Open all hours Vergaville

When Jacques had suggested last week that we pay a visit to an artisanal cheese maker in a nearby village, and in the same village a new cafe which was run by several artists that looked quite promising, and that Saturday lunch time would be a good time if we wanted a lift, we thought it would be rude of us to do anything but accept.

Jacques and Maggie's car is too small for six but fortunately Aileen and Grahame had the use of their rental car for just a few more days so they tagged along, intent on sharing one of our much boasted of quintessential travel experiences.

As we turned off the road to enter the main street of the village it became apparent that something was quintessentially wrong in the way it usually is when we are involved with anything that is required to be open for business.  The first hint of this was the sign which said "road closed 200m".  The second hint we received two hundred metres later when we discovered that the road was indeed closed.

After much zigging and zagging, an alternative route was discovered, as was the cheese farm and the sign on it's gate which quite unequivocally noted that said farm was indeed closed today  and could we please go somewhere else.  This we duly did in direction cafe.    Unfortunately direction cafe involved turning into the other end of the road that we had previously been advised was closed, and the cafe apparently out of sympathy for the road (open seven days) was quite clearly not at all open for this Saturday lunch.  

A neighbour advised that the cafe would actually open later in the evening if we'd like to come back then for lunch, and by then the village fete would be in full swing a rollicking good time could be ensured.   This did explain the closure of the road, and the filling of it with all sorts of carnival rides and stalls, seemingly abandoned and appearing for all the world as though it were some sort of surreal movie set.

But we didn't linger.  We found another town, had a stunning lunch and for far too long into the evening had a rollicking good time of our own without having to close a road.