On returning to Hotel Martin after the evening meal in Toledo I looked at my mobile phone and saw I had two text messages. Horror of horrors! Brittany Ferries had contacted me to say that because their crews had been staging wildcat strikes they had decided to suspend all sailings. There would be no 24 hours cruise from Bilbao to Portsmouth on board the Car Finisterre on the following Tuesday. Their advice was to drive up to Calais and take a P & O crossing when our tickets for Brittany Ferries would be accepted.
This would mean arranging some overnight accommodation in France for Tuesday and also a meal that night. I therefore when downstairs on my way to get my laptop PC from the car to surf the net and fix up something. As I passed through reception I mentioned what had happened to the receptionist. She was incredibly helpful and brought out her netbook to find out the distance from Bilbao to Poitiers in France where she had once stayed on route to Calais. It seemed the right place to stop for the night. I popped out to the car and returned with my laptop which I set up in reception and used their free Wifi service. By this time it was time for changeover for the reception staff and the evening man came on duty. He was told the news and he too began to help me. I found a very cheap place called Class Hotel and booked a night's stay for £35. We were fixed up.
The next day we drove to Bilbao where we had already booked a night in the Barcelo Nervion. This hotel turned out to be far better than the Tripadvisor.com reviews had suggested. We had an excellent evening meal and breakfast, the following day, was also top rate. On Tuesday morning we set off for the French border and began our use of the toll motorways. These French motorways were way past their sell by dates and were being upgraded to three lanes each way. The trouble was that there were hundreds of HGVs using them. They were travelling slowly along the inside lanes and I had to drive very carefully as, occasionally, a car would come from that lane into the "fast" lane. On occasions the entire massive convoy of lorries would come to a halt, creating a vast lorry park! During this time we also experienced torrential rain which slowed us down too. By the time we reached Poitiers we had undergone a stressful time.
We then found that we had chosen to stay in a hotel which was extremely "basic" and the room was tiny with a bed that creaked at high volume! But they did offer Wifi so I surfed the net to find an eating establishment in the town. We agreed to go to Bistrot du Boucher, the number one choice of Tripadvisor.com reviews. We asked the manager to call a taxi and when we were driven to the restaurant it cost us 21 euros! However, the meal was absolutely wonderful. We chose rump steak with chips and salad. For wine, I selected a Bordeaux Superieur. The desserts were also excellent. Pauline had creme brulee and I had sorbet. It was a popular restaurant for people were arriving all the time. The return taxi cost 16 euros so we felt a little happier.
Whilst in Bilbao I had a phone call from Brittany Ferries to ask what our plans were. When I said we were to head for Calais the woman advised that we would receive back the cost of the return fare (£359) and £200 towards travelling costs. I thought this was excellent customer care and thanked her.
On Wednesday we drove to Calais where we followed the Car Ferries sign to the port. Our tickets were accepted and we were booked on the 5.45pm sailing. This didn't leave until 6.05pm but we then sat down and waited for the journey to end in Dover one hour and 35 minutes later. There we had chosen to stay at the Dover Ramada Hotel before leaving the next morning for home. Our evening meal was very good indeed. Our room was comfortable, if a little crowded with furniture. In the bathroom was the world's noisiest ventilation fan! We got a good night's sleep and next day ate the best hotel breakfast we had ever experienced!! Then we set the Satnav for home. The road was busy and the M25 was a hive of activity but quiet against its reputation. Eventually we gained the M6 and thought we were doing well. It was at junction 18 that we joined a stationary queue and found to our horror that they were closing the motorway because an accident was blocking it. We took the exit and found that we were on a very direct route for North Wales. What luck! I filled up at a service station and advised the woman there that she might have a busy afternoon as the motorway was closed! "Not again!" she exclaimed.
We then had an uneventful drive home and stopped at Waitrose in Menai Bridge to get essentials to last until our main visit there for groceries the next day. We arrived home and sighed a sigh of great relief. It was good to be home after taking an unexpected extra 999 miles from Bilbao to Calais. Home sweet home!
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