Yes, here I am again in the land of the cheese eating surrender monkeys.

We were up at 4 and on the road by 5. Our journey to Dover was uneventful and the ferry trip over to Calais even less so, apart from the fog in the Channel which delayed our journey slightly.

As usual, the french roads were a joy to drive on and we quickly ate up the miles, despite being in no rush. We stopped in a picnic area and had a… well, a picnic. The view was gorgeous and as the sun beat down on the farmers toiling in the corn fields, we climbed back in the car and turned the air-conditioning to full.

We arrived at Le Mans and booked into our hotel. This was only to be an overnight stay, just to break up the journey. And just as well, because the strangely named Mister Bed hotel made Travelodge look like a four-star luxury stay. The heat outside was about 32 degrees. Inside our non-airconditioned room, with a window that only opened six inches, the temperature was considerably higher. I must have woken a dozen times in the night, continually turning my flat-but-lumpy pillow in an attempt to find a dry bit, but like me it was damp all over from sweat.

In the morning we showered in the ridiculously small bathroom and continued on our way, stopping briefly for fuel (20p a litre cheaper than in the UK). A leisurely drive brought us to our destination late on Tuesday afternoon: La Palmyre on the south-west coast.
Our caravan is quite fantastic: air-conditioned, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, full decking with canopy – very comfortable.
The following day, the temperature has dropped to 27 degrees – much more bearable, and we split the day between the caravan and the pool.

The kids have befriended a couple of English children just up the road, which is great, cos we hardly see them.
Last night, Mrs Masher downed the complete bottle of complimentary wine that was left for us and then started on her holiday reading: the ubiquitous Fifty Shades Of Grey. Needless to say, the heady mix of alcohol and badly written girl porn, eventually made for a very interesting night.

I’d say it’s been a bloody good holiday so far.