C’est la vie

Well folks, we tried our best to get the boys across the line in the game against England, but it was not to be.

We had seats booked on the TGV to Marseilles, a wise move we figured given our experiences with traffic in French cities… and Marseilles is huge. Our day consisted of the trip to Montpellier, the inevitable drive the wrong way up a one-way street only to find the parking station too low to take the Trafic and then success in an all day parking area adjacent to the station due to Bruce-Ross combination of driver and navigator. French trains leave on time and this one was filled with both Aussie and English supports, some of whom spent the whole time in the bar.. no mean feat when we left just after 9.00am. We had two English speaking companions who proved to be very useful translators during the 2 hour delay we had near Avignon due to… get this….vignerons striking somewhere on the train tracks. Apparently this is not an uncommon way to protest in France.

Despite the delay we made it in plenty of time and at the station randomly ran into Birg and Ross’s friends Bekki and James whom we had seen at the Montpellier game. We had good seats in this massive stadium in beautiful sunshine and while there was a lot of green and gold, we were outnumbered by the English spectators. Crowd was about 52,000.

Match report: the Wallabies were beaten by a better side. Their forwards demolished ours and we were never really in the game.

We left the stadium quickly and were a bit concerned about getting caught in a crush on the way to the metro after the game. After an initial squeeze we were sweet and actually had several hours to have a few beers, chat with some English and Welsh supporters and soak in the rugby atmosphere in Marseilles. The TGV ride back to Montpellier was fast, event free and Lee and Ross spent most of the time chatting with English supporters in the bar (which ran out of beer very early in the trip).

Back in Montpellier, luckily it was quiet traffic and our second go the wrong way up a one-way street almost went unnoticed by anyone except ourselves. On our arrival at home, many TV sets in Soubes were tuned to the France-All Blacks game and we joined in the eruption of cheers from our windows when the Tri-colours won. We also had a rugby fest on Sunday watching Fiji give South Africa a run for their money and Argentina defeat Scotland. It was also our ‘Last Supper’ together, as members of our little group embark on separate journeys for the next weeks.

Bruce and Doreen headed to Scotland on Monday morning. Lee and Ross took them back to Marseilles for the flight to Glasgow, then headed to Sete to wet the budgie smugglers in the Mediterranean. Meanwhile Nez and Birg did the housework in preparation for leaving for an overnighter in Montpellier. Then Nez and Lee head to Barcelona by train and Birg and Ross fly to Norway.

We will continue to do some Blog entries from these parts.

Best moments - summing up

Nez
Who will win RWC.. Argentina (mind changed after Fiji lost to South Africa)
Will always remember…Ross’s birthday and our house in Soubes
Best moment…seeing Beau and Steph
Glad to leave behind…the food
Hang on the wall.. will have to build a new room for door photos
In awe of…the history
Other bits…great holiday in France looking forward to our next leg

Lee
Who will win RWC..Argentina
Will always remember…the roundabouts and historic towns everywhere
Best moment…being an Aussie in France for the Coupe de Monde
Glad to leave behind…hairy car rides up impossibly narrow streets
In awe of…Australia’s food
Other bits…going to re-examine history and find out more about the Templar Knights and Simon de Montford

Doreen
Who will win RWC.. south Africa
Will always remember…all the ancient sights
Best moment…wlaking around a corner in Nimes and seeing the Arena
Glad to leave behind…right side of the road
Hang on the wall..posters of wine
In awe of…the age of the sights we have seen
Other bits…had a wonderful holiday in France and would like to see more of England

Bruce
Who will win RWC..Argentina
Will always remember…enjoying a World Cup in France with mates
Glad to leave behind…dog shit and narrow roads
Hang on the wall..selection of great photos and memories – Fiji haka and Cardiff
In awe of…the Romans and French roads

Ross
Who will win RWC..Les Blues
Will always remember…so many memories
Best moment…getting off the Metro after the game
Glad to leave behind…dog shit
Hang on the wall..the bloodstains from hitting my head on the low beam upstairs
In awe of…the vin rouge and the history at every turn

Birg
Who will win RWC..France
Will always remember…the all-nighter from Belgium and drives up one-way streets
Best moment…when some French conversation came very easily with our locals
Glad to leave behind…dog shit on pavements everywhere
Hang on the wall..a collection of Ross’s best pictures
In awe of…Pont du Gard
Other bits…the funny comments and one-liners made by everyone, but mostly by Lee all through the trip