Nantes

The day after the previous post, I tootled over the 2k bridge across the mouth of the Loire at St. Nazaire, then after meandering through a couple of villages beside the seaside I joined one of the trunk roads heading South. After a roadside picnic South of a little chi-chi fishing port called Pornic, I managed to hit a kerb and crash good style. Bike was virtually undamaged (lots of panniers), but I'd hit my shoulder (right), so 50k ambulance ride to Nantes, kept in overnight, fracture bound up and debridement, and then a round trip to Pornic Gendarmerie and back to pick up the bike, which had EVERYTHING - passport, cards, the lot, aboard.

I got lodged in a little 2* hotel but went back to the hospital on Wednesday because the elbow wasn't healing; the nurse started to sew it up; then got an intern; the intern had a go then got a colleague; they called a surgeon; and then my heqrt sank when they asked me when I'd last eaten... I ended up having general anaesthetic around midnight when they sewed me up, put a cast on, and I've been unable to do much for the past week. Cast is now off, I'm going to get on the boat on Friday, and chalk it up to experience. I've been bored as few times before because I haven't had the budget, the inclination or the physical resources for sightseeing. I'm glad the bike wasn't damaged, but as a holiday this has been a bit rubbish. Annoyed about the infected wound, I could have been on the road this week because the collarbone was only fractured and you can still ride a bike with that. I have made lots of observations but I'll save them for when I'm not paying cybercafe rates.