Aaron, Kylie, Mia, Abi and Raphy stayed with us at the campsite for twelve days. A very busy time but also very enjoyable.
How did we manage to fit everyone in? Very easy in fact. A large caravan and a large shady site helped considerably. Aaron and Kylie slept in our guest room, a square Quecha tent, the girls slept in the small attachment at the end of the annex and Raphy slept in the single bed in the caravan. We put up a curtain half way along the annex in order to make a dressing room. Cooking facilities have greatly improved with our new electric hob!
The children made friends with the children on the next site, and played happily in the pool with them.
Of course there was also plenty of activities outside the camping ground, so boredom was never an issue. And it was lovely to take the children out so they could experience life around Le Lavandou.
A visit is never complete without having a drink at our favourite cafe, Cafe du Centre. Raphy enjoying his fruit cocktail.
A line up of our tanned family at Cafe du Centre. We were very careful not to move any chairs, having learnt from past experience that this is not good etiquette in this part of France. One must wait for the cafe staff do organise seating for the customers. We reminded each other of the procedure before we approached the cafe. Just in case one of us forgot!
One windy day there was actually some surf at Le Lavandou. Mia and Abi had lots of fun in the waves. The wind and waves kept bringing them into shore on their rubber rings where they took a few tumbles. Very exciting.
Raphy managed to get his toes wet. He was not so keen.
We all agreed that 9 pm was the best time to swim, when the sun had gone down and the crowds had left the beach. There were one or two families taking advantage of the coolness and quietness in order to enjoy the beach. No worry about sharks here either. They probably left years ago. There is no possibility of me swimming in Australia, at dusk and in a warm calm sea. I would definitely be offering myself as the shark's evening meal.
There is a large ferris wheel on the seafront, with excellent views, if one has the head for it. So I persuaded Walter to take Mia and Abi up. A little scary was his answer when we finished the ride. Not for me. Thank you Walter. But the girls enjoyed it immensely.
Raphy, in the meantime enjoyed his rides in the different toy vehicles on the merry-go-round, especially as he could make the vehicles go up and down when he pressed the button. Four year olds are easily satisfied.
Lunch out in a lovely shaded restaurant, pizzas, salad and chips. Delicious.
Raphy had his own little trip to the go-kart place. He, of course, greatly admired all the big go-karts, trail bikes, and quad bikes but found the small electric go-karts and bikes quite fast enough. Once he pressed the foot pedal. There was also a large soft play area, where he happily spent an hour. We sat in the shade with a soft spray of water coming from overhead. Looking after the parents and grandparents. There are always lots of Grandparents at this park. Child care arrangements I think.
The gardens in Hyeres have horse rides, always a popular activity with children. Raphy looking very happy on his pony.
Mia and Abi looking equally happy on their horses. The ride, at walking pace, is only for about 15 minutes but the children loved it.
Also in the gardens, is a little train, which amazingly is always very popular with our older grandchildren. A very relaxing 10 minute ride, it seems.
A fantastic playground with equipment for all ages but too hot to use. No overhead shade here, such as you find in all playgrounds in South Australia.
I also took the children to the Crazy Golf area in the gardens in Le Lavandou. We have been coming here for 14 years and I never knew there were gardens let alone a mini golf place in Le Lavandou. We played a very competetive game, and I lost of course. Even Raphy was better than me. The winner was Mia, followed closely by Abi. We finished with ice creams as a reward for playing so well, and fairly too.
The highlight for the girls was a visit one evening to the fairground on the roundabout before the turn off to St Tropez. Aaron and Kylie took the girls while we looked after Raphy at the campsite. They had a very exciting evening and did not get home until 1 a.m.
So now it is just Walter and I going out together. Not half as exciting.
No comments:
Post a Comment