And it was all going so well!
Then in the middle of Rouen the car came to a sudden halt. Of all the places to break down, she chose the main street running through busy Rouen. I won't go into details, but things got worse and worse.
We had already experienced delays, an awful meal at the hotel we stayed at, and Billy being sick a couple of times.
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The Breakdown man drove us (and the dead car) to Dieppe, and left us at a garage. They instantly diagnosed the problem; the timing belt had broken, and it would cost more than the car was worth to mend it.
We gave the man the car with a full tank of petrol worth about €100. Then from Brighton my darling son, Kimbo, organised a lovely dog-friendly hotel for us, and booked himself a ferry crossing to pick us up the following day. What we would have done without him I don't know. We had a car full of 'stuff', and Billy. It was a nightmare.
To add to our misery, I went into Dieppe town to get some money from an ATM, and it chewed my card.
By this time I was thinking of throwing myself under a bus, when I heard the WORST NEWS IMAGINABLE, that a very close friend had died (more on this tomorrow). Things couldn't have got worse.
Kimbo arrived in Dieppe at about 5 am, and we were back at the garage by 8 am. We transferred everything from one car to the other, then caught the ferry back to Newhaven. We were home by 2.30 pm.
I have never felt happier to be back home than after this nightmare of a trip.
The hero of the day, without doubt, was Kimbo. I am so blessed and privileged to have a son like him.
Thank you Darling; thank you, thank you, thank you! You saved the day.
Oh my gosh! That's a whole pile of 'bad' in very short order. I'm sorry for your friend, and I am glad for your Kimbo.
ReplyDeleteI treasure him now even more than I did before!
DeleteTiming belts going have caused many accidents and a good number of deaths. Praise the lord that it happened when you were travelling quite slowly in Rouen and not on a fast road or motorway. Kimbo should be knighted for coming to the rescue like that. Sir Kimbo Magnon has a nice ring to it.
ReplyDeleteHe took it all in his stride too. What a wonderful son he is.
DeleteI was thinking about you and the courage to do this long way. How lucky you are to have such a wonderful son.
ReplyDeleteLucky indeed. He surpassed himself.
DeleteWhat a great boy he is. I am glad you are back and can put it behind you and get a new car.
ReplyDeleteI was planning to replace the car this winter, so a firm decision has been made for me!
DeleteAnd keep to the service intervals as per the book.
DeleteThis is the stuff nightmares are made from. Who services your cars? I'd give them a good slap.
ReplyDeleteI swap cambelts every 50,000 miles or two years. Chains last much longer and make a racket before breaking.
I'm ashamed to say that no-one services my car. It had a French MOT every two years and if anything needed doing, I did it. Otherwise.....
DeleteOh my goodness what a trip. Well done to your son - what a star. Glad you are home safe and sound.
ReplyDeleteIt was such a terrible trip. We were so pleased to be home. We arrived back at about 2.30 pm and the whole of Brighton was swarming with people. Luckily not in our street though.
DeleteOh what an awful nightmare of a trip. I am so sorry for the loss of your friend and for the stressful time you have had. Well done to Kimbo, thank goodness you had him to rescue you. I am so glad you are safely home now.
ReplyDeleteThank you Carol. I hope it will be the last of its type. Such days are a nightmare indeed.
DeleteWelcome home, in a way it is probably best you lost your car in France and can start afresh here. Glad all three of you are safely back and your son is a hero.
ReplyDeleteAlmost the most annoying part of losing the car was the full tank of petrol. At least €100 worth, to the brim.
DeleteI was a bit worried about you as it seemed to be taking a long time for a new post to appear to say that you were back! What a nightmare..glad it ended well.
ReplyDeleteAll's well that end's.... etc etc
DeleteThank the powers on high that the wonderful Kimbo rescued you. Certainly it was a nightmare, one you had to live out. At least you're home now and can possibly relax. Sorry to hear you lost a good friend.
ReplyDeleteLosing our friend was the very worst bit. More about that tomorrow.
DeleteDo you think the fates are trying to tell you something?
ReplyDeleteRelieved to know you're all home safe.
Kimbo, you're a star!!! X
If they were, they were SHOUTING. Yes, I've promoted Kimbo to sainthood.
DeleteWhat a terrible few days. Cars can be pain in the proverbial. So sorry about your friend.
ReplyDeleteWhen they work they are wonderful, when they don't they are the most useless things ever!
DeleteAnd there's me thinking you were safely home in Brighton again when you were going through all that. I wonder what goes on when we get these times of everything going wrong.
ReplyDeleteWas it a full moon? lol
Glad you're back safe anyway, just the task of getting another car now I guess.
Briony
x
We were amazed by all the people down by the pier on Saturday afternoon. Coming from deep in the French countryside where we see no-one, it was quite a shock. Yes a new car, but I'm in no hurry.
DeleteSign me up for the Kimbo fan club. ...a lovely son !
ReplyDeleteHe opens Supermarkets too!
DeleteI can hear the stress levels in your writing. Timing belts need to be replaced at set intervals. They make havoc when they break. Thanks goodness for the kindness of your son, who doubt had to change his day to rescue you. Lady M remained calm? Your bonus news of the death of a friend sounds sad.
ReplyDeleteLuckily he was working from home this weekend, so was able to leave at a moment's notice.
DeleteYou brought him up and nurtured him so you and Lady M can take some of the credit. Glad you got home alright - have you any tomatoes left in your wall baskets? When you left I remember you saying you had planted some in the hopes but with the hot weather I guess it was a false hope.
ReplyDeleteIn a couple of days all the questions of Tomatoes will be answered. You jumped the gun!
DeleteA nightmare trip, indeed. Saved by Kimbo--bravo. But way too much stress for you all in such a short period. Hope you and Lady M (and Billy) are able to take time to recoup.
ReplyDeleteMy sincere condolences on the loss of your friend.
It could hardly have been a worse few days, but we're almost back to abnormal. Tomorrow we should be OK.
DeleteWelcome home Cro, glad you made it eventually after that nightmare journey. Now you can relax and de-stress for a bit, hopefully. Thank God for Kimbo!
ReplyDeleteThank God indeed. I really don't know what we would have done without his assistance.
DeleteWhat a day ! your son was a light in the dark. Happy to know your home.
ReplyDeleteWe were so relieved to be back. It was almost a miracle.
DeleteWelcome home! Reading about your ordeal reminded me how truly shitty things can get...thankfully they always get better.
ReplyDeleteIt started shitty, became even more shitty, then we were shat on 'big time'. It couldn't have got worse.
DeleteThis experience sounds totally and completely hellish. At lease nobody was hurt. That is always my first concern. Kimbo came through like a shining star. He's a keeper for sure.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I told him. We won't be selling him too soon.
DeleteAs you said, a nightmare. I hope you had AA or similar as I should imagine the cost of a breakdown man from Rouen to Dieppe would be quite steep to say the least. Talking of Dieppe I wonder if you have ever got in touch with Didier. As far as the car situation goes I seem to remember that you were talking of going carless anyway although I suppose you will need one in France. Sorry about your friend. May he/she rest in peace.
ReplyDeleteOh, what a horror story! But it really gave your magnificent son a chance to shine.
ReplyDeleteBloody hell cro
ReplyDeleteTiming belt failures are the worst.
ReplyDeleteI don't even know what a timing belt is but it doesn't seem fair that repairing one should cost more than the car is worth. I know what a fan belt is and that it can be replaced by a nylon band cut from a stocking or pantyhose top.
ReplyDeleteThank heavens for sons with cars!