Our stay in the Pays de la Loire (France): Part 1/3
Between South Korea and the wedding of JB’s brother in Tours in September, we spend a few months in Europe, more particularly in the Pays de la Loire, in a village 35 minutes drive from Nantes : Trans sur Erdre. And we have company: our cat, who will go on vacation with us
Why Trans on Erdre?
Everybody asks us this question 😀 We have friends in Nantes, and the only house with a garden, available in July and accepting cats, is in Trans sur Erdre. So we paid for a month’s rent via Airbnb and we came with our cat
The cat’s vacation
Well, it’s never easy to get a cat to travel. Especially not a cat like Rosalie. She complains, she meows super loudly, to the point where I almost turn around
Note: Rosalie is our cat, she is now at my sister’s house. But we love her so much that we want to take advantage of our passage in France to spend a month with her, and especially to make her enjoy a garden (which she doesn’t have in Paris).
But after an hour of mewing and protest, Rosalie finally calms down, walks in the car (with her leash of course – so as never to get under the seat of JB who is driving). And when I understand that she just wants to be in front of the air conditioning, everything goes very well until we arrive at Trans sur Erdre
The house
The house is really big, so big that we immediately condemn the first floor (so that we don’t have to clean Rosalie’s hair before we leave) and live only on the first floor. Rosalie has the right to walk in the garden 15 minutes a day under control (and on a leash). But the window (which we have protected with a net) is open all the time so that she can watch the garden and spy on the cats that pass by
Otherwise, she has her little pillow and spends long hours sleeping
There are only 2 shops in the village, a restaurant and a hairdresser, but the services are at the top. The restaurant O P’tit Trans Et serves homemade cuisine with quality ingredients. It’s cheap, it’s simple but it’s super good. I especially like their little homemade mustard sauce, miaaaam ! Every friday night, you can taste the delicious homemade burgers (even the bread is homemade). I recommend you if you ever pass in the area one evening
We had a barbecue in the garden with our friends (who now live in Nantes) – and have lunch there from time to time
I admit that I have trouble watering the garden, I don’t know how much water to put in. But it’s a joy to see the tomatoes ripen, to pick them… and to see that the plants still survive even if I don’t have a green thumb
This is the first time in my life that I live in a small village like this. Things are so different that I really realize how much we Parisians, decision-makers, marketers, politicians… are out of it. We create services and products to satisfy the 12 million inhabitants of the IDF but ignore the life and needs of the remaining 55 million
We complain about having to sort through the garbage in Paris, while the garbage cans of all colors are available just below the building. Here, the garbage truck passes by every 2 weeks (which means you can’t eat seafood whenever you want), there’s only one yellow bag to sort paper and plastic packaging, and glass has to be recycled 10 minutes away by car. There is no doctor in the village, and a nurse comes by between 8:30 and 9:00 a.m. to give injections (if needed). The post office only exists via a mailbox, and to do any shopping, you still have to take the car
Our agenda
Of course, we always work 2 to 3 days a week, remotely
But the rest of the time, we explore the surroundings, and I can tell you that there is a lot to visit
The creperie of the lake
Not far from our place (15mn by car), there is a restaurant called “Crêperie du lac”. It does not give directly on the lake but we can see it from far. The way which leads there makes us cross a mini-forest
Enjoy pancakes at the edge of the forest, what a delight!
Nantes
We pass in gale just to have lunch with our friends, but the city is always so pleasant, calm and we love it so much
It’s the only French city where I see myself living, really
We went there to honk the horn and wave to passers-by after the French team’s victory in the World Cup. Because our village is too quiet and JB needed to share his joy with more people 😀
Feast of the Lined Sheep
It is the opportunity to participate in an inter-village party. You don’t come to this party by bus or subway, but by car. And a farmer lends his field for parking and a huge flea market
Floats and musicians are volunteers. Thus, we can find floats that have nothing to do with the theme of sheep, but as they are floats made by individuals from the region, they have responded present
If JB takes advantage of the mutton skewers, I taste the pancakes while watching the parade go by
Unfortunately it is too hot, otherwise we would have liked to stay and watch how to shear a sheep
Trentemoult
Trentemoult is an old fishing village. The village is known for its colorful houses. The village can be visited very quickly, it is especially the restaurants on the waterfront that are interesting. To visit if you aren’t very far from Nantes, preferably for lunch
Rochefort-en-Terre
Rochefort-en-Terre is one of the most beautiful villages in France. Attention, “Les Plus beaux villages de France” is a registered trademark, and to be part of it, villages must submit their application and be selected by a jury
Today, we spend the whole day visiting the surroundings of Rochefort-en-Terre. We park our car in the village parking lot (as cars are forbidden except for residents). The first restaurant we see already seduces us
And then we continue walking and come across more and more beautiful houses
There are flowers everywhere and even the town hall is too pretty !
We have lunch in a creperie. The front is quite common, but JB quickly spots a garden. We have greenery as far as the eye can see, it’s really too nice!
There is a castle (under renovation) at the end of the village. Just at the entrance of this castle, there are deckchairs available free of charge, with a view on the whole village
The village has only 600 inhabitants, but there are many traders. Even the tourist office is held by 2 people, adorable… who spent a lot of time with us, to inform us and give us all the maps of the region
Ahalala, I really like this village! If next year we come back to France for a month, I think we’ll rent an Airbnb here, it’s obligatory!
The house of Yves Rocher
The tourist office in Rochefort en Terre told us about La Gacilly, its permanent exhibition of portraits and the house of Yves Rocher so we took the car to get there (it’s only 20mn by car). Well, we don’t really like the portrait exhibition in the city center, but we really like the gardens surrounding the Yves Rocher house. There is even a harp player (she isn’t there all the time, eh)
There is an exhibition of landscape photos in a pretty garden, followed by a space for the sale of handicrafts
I can’t comment on Yves Rocher’s house as such because we don’t have time to attend the scenography (for which people come here). It’s a mini multi-sensory show that lasts 45 minutes and there’s a session every 20 minutes and the reviews are very positive on the Internet
As for the boutique, it looks like any other Yves Rocher boutique. There is also a beauty salon if you are interested
Auberge de la Diligence
We take advantage of lower prices than in the Paris region to please us. In this case: a dinner in a starred restaurant near us
Already, the frame is nice, it really looks like an inn (as its name indicates)
JB and I both opt for the surprise menu: 8 dishes – chosen by the chef (he picks the dishes from the list of dishes on the menu and serves them in miniature quantities)
I think our eyes were bigger than our stomach because it was very difficult for us to finish everything, despite the quality of the dishes
The meal includes
- two entrances
- two fish dishes
- two meat dishes
- cheese (at will, served on a cart)
- all the desserts on the menu, in miniature
The whole of a delicacy! Nothing is left to chance, the slightest piece of carrot or mushroom… is delicious!
Frankly, I regret having eaten at noon, I should have come on an empty stomach to be able to enjoy this meal 100% 😀
In spite of the quantity of dishes served, we make a point of honor to finish all the desserts
It is a starred restaurant (1 Michelin star), but the service is like the inn: very warm
There isn’t that bourgeois, pretentious side with pompous dish names that you see in other chic restaurants, where the waiters are better dressed than the customers. I validate !
Practical information
Budget
- Car rental at Leclerc: 4€/day + 7 cents/km (we rented at Leclerc in Levallois-Perret and drove to Trans sur Erdre)
- Airbnb to Trans sur Erdre: 894€ for 29 nights, or 30€/night
- Feast of the Sheep: free entrance
- Trentemoult: free access. Meals on the spot: within 12€/person
- Rochefort-en-Terre: free access (access to the castle is also free). Meals on site: 15€/person
- Yves Rocher’s house (Le Moulin, Le Bout du Pont, 56200 La Gacilly): free access to the gardens. The scenography costs 7,5€/person
- Restaurant Auberge de la Diligence (4 rue de la Libération49440 Loiré): 1 Michelin star. Menu from 48€/person (starter – main course and dessert). The menu we have chosen (surprise menu, 8 courses, excluding drinks costs 92€/person)
- Crêperie du Lac (2 Route de la Forêt, 44440 Joué-sur-Erdre): from 9€ per pancake. Magnificent terrace.
- O P’tit Trans Et (1 Rue de Saint-Mandé, 44440 Trans-sur-Erdre): fresh ingredients, 100% homemade. 12€ the buffet at noon and from 9€ the dish in the evening.
