And that’s without a horse!!

So, we decided to take a trip to Saumur 3DE.  Held just the weekend before the big B (Badminton Horse Trials) meant that International competitors were scarce, but it was a chance to experience another French event and check out a venue/ cross-country course. Held close to the city of Saumur and incorporating a racecourse and surrounding countryside the going and track was reminiscent of Tooradin/Tonimbuk with wooded areas and light sandy soil.

Second day of dressage

All dressage was on the grass with the main arena bordered by a small trade village plus the compulsory French bar🍷

Classes ranged from 1* to 4* with the majority being French competitors alongside a handful of other European and Indian riders.

The plan was to fully walk the XC the following day, however not to be!!!

One of the XC fences down into the racecourse

The following morning we were up early for the start of XC, “Tonto “ the motorhome was happily settled into a camping-car park a 15 minute drive from the event so all aboard, a turn of the ignition key and we were going nowhere!!!
This is when our lack of the language can be a bit of a problem 🤪 but after an emergency email to a friend back in Germeville we were soon in touch with breakdown assistance through our insurance company.

OK so it meant we missed the rest of the event and were “stuck” on site over the weekend awaiting a tow truck on the Monday morning, but it gave us an opportunity to see more of Saumur itself and also get a bit fitter with heaps of walking!

Not a bad place to be stuck for a few days

We took the 10km stroll (there and back) alongside the Loire and managed to fit in a visit to Saumur castle as well as the Saturday market.

Saumur Saturday market

Despite our hiccup which meant a few stressful days with tow trucks, garages and hire cars plus an overnight hotel stay, we were amazed at how efficient the whole recovery operation went! Fortunately as retirees we have no real schedules or deadlines to meet😊

Also it gave me time to fall in love with Saumur- any city that can have “graffiti “ and museums totally dedicated to the horse apart from wonderful history and architecture has to be worth a regular visit.

Tunnel “graffiti “ through the windscreen

We dedicated a whole morning to exploring Saumur castle and it could have been a full day, highly recommended. An added attraction was to experience a “family legend “. Dad was in the RAF during WW2 and on a sortie across France he was running out of fuel whilst making for the coast which meant landing in rural France in the hope of re-fuelling??! It seems the French farmer whose field he landed in was convinced that he must be the enemy – a German or a spy. So the story has it that Dad was bundled into a car by the French Resistance and driven to Saumur castle for interrogation! Upon confirming that he was actually an RAF pilot, fuel in various jerry cans was loaded back in the car before Dad was returned to his Hurricane, refuelled and waved on his way. Happily he survived the whole war including the Battle of Britain.💕

The castle looking picturesque in the sunshine

But a little more sinister close too.

Apart from all the wonderful displays of art, ceramics and furniture the whole experience of walking in the footsteps of knights and kings was spine tingling. Plus the whole top floor is dedicated to the Museum of the Horse 👌

Tapestries and furniture some dating to medieval times

An incredible wood carving

Some pretty severe bits

Saddles

And stirrups

No foot, no horse

An assortment of shoes through the ages

Sunday was May 1st and here in France it is celebrated as a holiday with little sprigs of lily of the valley being the symbol of the holiday, so I couldn’t resist buying ours from 3 gorgeous polite little French children (probably 3 to 5 years old?) who had positioned themselves strategically outside a local cafe.

Puss and Ratfink with their lily of the valley

Maybe not the weekend we had planned, but eventually we made it home if a little later than expected, but in good time to enjoy a fleeting visit from my brother who had to endure days of Badminton Horse Trials on livestream 😂😂

Toasting a departed friend who was very much a part of Badminton Horse Trials. Cheers Gillian 🥂