Made to feel unwelcome
Monday I had an important meeting with people arriving from all over Europe so I thought to book a nice restaurant for when they arrived. This is not easy in La Vienne because most are closed on Monday evenings. Eventually found one that I had not eaten in for 6 or 7 years but thought it should still be OK.
We arrived at 8 pm as booked, but some of the group had been held up on the trip from Holland and did not arrive until 08:45. We were made to suffer. Frequent references were made to the fact that I had booked a table for 7 and as there were only 3 perhaps we should move to a smaller table – there was only one other couple in the restaurant. Then the serving lady who I suspect was also preparing the food spent 30 minutes talking to the other couple whilst we waited for our dessert. The food was OK but the ambiance was distinctly spoiled; it could also do with a coat of paint. You can find it at the Hostelery Charlemagne, Charroux.
Later in the week I booked a ride on the VeloRail – pedaling on a railway truck from Confolens to Manot.
The ride was booked for 4:30 but getting 7 people who are deeply involved in a meeting to leave is difficult. We arrived at 4:35 and had to wait whilst previous riders were prepared for the journey. Then we were greeted with “We have been waiting for you with impatience”. The ride was super but spoilt by several example of gestapo behaviour from the employees of the tourist attraction, trying to make us feel like naughty children
Clearly there is much to learn on how to make tourists feel wanted and coping with small problems of delays and behaviour.
Fortunately, none of this affected the overall mood of the week.