Footloose and Fancy Free in France

 So, if you’ve ever been on a cruise you know how when they come and turn down your bed and leave those cute little animal towels they always leave you with a schedule of events for the next day.  On that schedule it generally includes what the forecast is for the place you’re going to be in the next morning.  Up until this point on the trip, the weather had been pretty nice.  Not too hot, but not too cold.  Typically low 70s.  Besides the day at sea where it was so windy you couldn’t go outside, we felt pretty good about the luck we were having.  It did rain on us a bit in Pisa and Florence, but we weren’t sure what this would mean for our day in Toulon France.  Well, wouldn’t you know it,  our little schedule for our day in Toulon told us there that rain was likely the next day.  I was really bummed.  

Cute little towel animal

You see, of all the places we were going; only two would be actual beach type days.  We had decent weather for a beach day in Mykonos, and now we were in the French Riviera and had plans to kayak and picnic on the beach. 

We were a little nervous about Toulon in general.  You see, from what I had read the best thing to see in this region of France was going to be in a different town, Cassis.  This would require taking a bus or walking to a train station then hoping there would be a train departing within the hour, then having to take a Taxi from the train station to the place where we had planned to kayak.  Rick Steves made it sound fairly easy, but both Adam and I felt uneasy about it.  So this rain wasn't exactly helping to ease our nerves.  Regardless, We put on our swim suits, and rain jackets thinking perhaps the rain might clear by the time we reached Cassis and we would have a great time Kayaking.  

Well, we weren't off to a great start.  First, the we were about 15 minutes late into the port, it took a long time to park the boat there.  But thankfully as we were getting off the boat we ran right into the Price family.  They were headed to the train station too and their son Josh speaks French, so we figured we'd find our way to the station, which we did and we were thankful for, it was about 9:45 am at this point, and Rick Steves said there was a train that left every hour from Toulon to Cassis, but we weren't so lucky, we got there to find that the next train to Cassis wasn't until 12:50pm!  I was pretty bummed.  There didn't seem to be a ton to do in Toulon and I had Kayak reservations, prepaid, I might add.  Anyway, wouldn't you know, the Price family was renting a car, as they had planned to drive to Cannes, they were trying to figure out a way if they could squeeze Adam and me in their car, which was only supposed to fit 7, and with the two of us we would have 8.  But here's the thing, a few nights prior Tracy and her daughter Addison had met a couple in the hot tub, Tom and Daphne, they happened to be Mormon too.  Well, wouldn't you know, in walk Tom and Daphne into the Car rental area of the train station, and Tracy greeted them, then suggested that the 4 of us rent a car together to get to Cassis.  Tom and Daphne had also hoped to either kayak or hike in the Calanques in Cassis.  So, that's exactly what we did!  

Tom and Daphne were celebrating their 20th anniversary, but you'd never know it.  They looked so young and were full of energy.  Tom used to be in the Navy and they lived in Guam for a few years so he was comfortable driving in foreign countries.  We let him take the reins and just enjoyed the ride. It's interesting to me the immediate connection we had and trust in them, just knowing they were members of the church, I love the camaraderie we have together as we know we're one big family here on Earth.   

Somehow we found our way to where we needed to be, we had stopped and asked directions a few times, but couldn't find anyone who spoke English, I think perhaps that the first thing Daphne said when we got in the car was, "Maybe we should say a prayer," did in fact help us find our way. 

So, is my story long enough yet???  Anyway, we made it, we found the sign for the Kayak place, as well as trail head for the hike.  We made our way to the rental place, but found it closed.  I guess the stormy weather means no kayaking in the Calanques. 

We took a pictures as evidence that we showed up, so we could get reimbursed for the prepaid kayak rental

The rain never really did let up.  It stayed pretty stormy for the entire day, although it would get lighter at points, so we decided to head up to the train head and hike the Calanques. Despite the rain, we had a really good time.  It would have been nice to be able to stop and lay out and swim in this beautiful blue water, but it was just too cold and wet. 

We had packed a lunch and stopped here to eat, I was really tempted to hop in that water!

Beautiful views

Pretty spectacular site

Notice the shoes, yep, they were great for hiking!

For some reason, we never took a picture with Tom and Daphne, I am bummed I don't have the picture of the four of us.  But then again, there really weren't any other crazy people hiking in the rain that we could have asked to take the picture.  We had such an awesome time with them, they were kicking out butts on the hike.  I hope when Adam and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary we can be moving as fast as they were!

We definitely made the most of the rainy day in Cassis.  And Tom and Adam even dropped Daphne and me off close to the ship before they returned the car and had to walk back to the ship from the station (about a 15 minute walk), but it was really pouring rain at this point.  We found a little cafe and had just enough time to order Crepes!  

 

So delicious!  All in all, I'd say we made the most of a rainy day in the French Rivera.  And we got a full refund from the kayak place.  For now, I'll have to  just appreciate the view I did get of the Calanques, and have to live through this You Tube video to imagine what it would have been like from the water. 

One more post to go before the vacation recap is finished.  But stayed tuned, up next is Barcelona, and that was my favorite!