French hospitality on the banks of the mighty Loire river (From Bournemouth Echo)

French hospitality on the banks of the mighty Loire river

6:30am Saturday 23rd January 2010 in

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IT’S not supposed to rain on holiday but it was, with a vengeance. Outside the little cafe – with its view across the River Loire – the owner had pulled out the awning to protect his Sunday morning customers sitting at the tables, but rainwater was collecting and bulging the canvas.

The owner poked at the underside of the awning with a broom... and the deluge soaked a young man who was running in for cover from the torrential rain. A great cheer went up from his unsympathetic mates.

In the village square, market traders were looking at their watches and deciding that, even with an hour to go before the midday shutdown, they might as well cut their losses and pack up.

But we were in no rush.

There are worse ways to spend a Sunday morning than sitting outside a French cafe, with the crossword from one of yesterday’s English newspapers, a coffee and a brandy, just watching the world go by.

A young French couple joined our table-for-four, wished us a “bonjour” and ordered a couple of beers from the passing waiter.

What they didn’t let the waiter see was that they’d brought their own little lunchtime feast from the market across the way – a baguette, some ham, a chunk of French cheese and a tub of olives – on which they surreptitiously dined when the cafe staff weren’t looking.

I risked a “Bon appetit!”, a friendly phrase that the French use when they see someone eating, which elicited not just a “Merci monsieur”, but an offer to sample the olives in a chilli sauce ... and a chunk of bread, and the cheese, and the ham if I’d like to.

Absolute generosity, from a total stranger – and people say that the French are stand-offish.

Not only did we enjoy free nibbles, we were also treated to a local history lesson (it turns out that Richard the Lionheart and Eleanor of Aquitaine are buried just up the road at a local abbey) and the couple were kind enough to help me brush up my French with assorted colloquial expressions.

Perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised at such good-natured reaction to “Un Anglais” on holiday.

The village at which we were staying – Montsoreau, midway between Saumur and Chinon, where the rivers Loire and Vienne meet – is described as “a village of charm”, a claim certainly confirmed by such a kind reception from a resident.

And to think that a little more than a couple of hundred years ago, these villagers were still living in caves. I’m not being rude, but it was only towards the end of the 18th century that they moved out of homes cut into the face of a large limestone cliff overlooking the river a mile or so up the road and built homes at what is now the village of Montsoreau.

Today, the former troglodyte homes are occupied by gift shops, art galleries and entrepreneurs smart enough to realise that cool, dark caves were perfect for growing mushrooms.

In fact, the Loire Valley generally, with its fertile soil, became known as “The Garden of France”, not least for its vineyards producing world-renowned labels.

The Loire Valley equals towering castles – more than 300 magnificent chateaux, some open to the public, some offering accommodation for tourists, some still private homes, stand guard over the river.

At nearby Chinon (where, curiously, a large block of stone on a pavement is accompanied by a plaque announcing that Joan of Arc got off her horse here) the ancient towers and ramparts dominate the town and the council has thoughtfully provided a free lift to carry sightseers up the rock-face.

Far below, on the river, peculiar local boats that look as though their owners have bolted a garden shed on to an overgrown punt, potter up and down the waterway.

We’d made our journey to the Loire in 21st century style, on the superb French RN roads and motorways.

Our overnight Brittany Ferries crossing from Portsmouth to St Malo meant that we arrived on French soil refreshed and breakfasted, with a whole day clear for a comfortable southbound drive on the dual-carriageways to Nantes, then inland on the A11 motorway before joining the picturesque riverside roads to our “Village of Charm”.

GETTING THERE

• Brittany Ferries operates routes from Portsmouth to Caen, Cherbourg and St Malo (the Brittany port has the advantage of saving a fair chunk of driving for southbound holidaymakers). Contact them on 0871 244 074 or at brittany-ferries.co.uk
• Information about Montsoreau can be found at ville-montsoreau.fr and the tourist office phone number is 02 41 51 70 22.