Day 2 - Thurs 11th April 2013

Start - Ancenis
Finish - Angers
Distance - 68km
Time - 5 hours

Today has been an official 'no falling off' day. We have adhered to that philosophy and for that we are very proud of ourselves. Also on the plus side, we have stayed dry despite a forecast of rain it has been almost completely dry with a couple of light showers hardly worth mentioning. Our distance we have ridden has been much less challenging and as a result it has been really enjoyable.

We had a lovely breakfast before leaving the B&B at Ancenis and stopped at a small town enroute at a small inauspicious restaurant. It was rather bog standard but cheap and I had the plat de jour which happened to be a goats cheese tart followed by chocolate cake and custard.

Anyway, onward to Angers any we arrived shortly after 2pm and went straight to the Office de Tourisme. We had booked a hotel on the outskirts of Angers but we had doubts about its location on an industrial estate and it was well away from the centre. We did prefer a Youth Hostel that was a little closer to town and a bit cheaper but we were unsure about the joining fee and whether it was transferable to other countries. Anyway, the girl at the Tourist Office booked us its a Hotel in Chinon for tomorrow night and I managed to barter them down over the phone! Also, we booked in to the Hostel for tonight at Angers and I cancelled the hotel we had previously booked.

So, after sorting out the accommodation we did the sight seeing and visited the Chateaux and the Cathedral. The Chateau included an exhibition of the Tapestries of the Apocalypse which were very extensive but I've seen the apocalypse before because I've been to Blackburn!! (Comments of a Burnley fan). The Cathedral was very grand as you would expect from a large French city. I must add at this point that we were walking around town in our cycling Lycra and looking very much like Max Wall. The good side of that is that not many French people will know who he is!

We then went to the Youth Hostel which is out near the University but is actually on a bit a of an Industrial Estate. It had a place for our bikes and the room is functional. I decided to join the organisation because I will be using hostels further along the route. I was issued with a membership card that confirms that I am a 'youth'. The place is full of young people who are on vocational training courses and there don't seem to be any travellers or tourists. Anyway it is cheap and warm and the food is filling if not haut cuisine.

We managed a bottle of wine with our meal in the canteen and we will venture out for drinks in the first bar we come across. So that's all for now. There are some photos of Angers attached.