Topsy Turvy

2005 - In an earlier post I told you about the ideal picnic spot in the village of Champigny-sur-Veude near the town of Richelieu. There are more such places, near a river or a pond that are perfect for a having a meal alfresco.

One of them is located in the village of Saint-Ouen-les-Vignes, on a side road of the D31, some 10 km north of Amboise. The picnic area is secluded from the main road by a hedge and the access is via a wooden foot bridge. There are five or six picnic tables, two of which are by the water edge. The little stream is full of wildlife. Several ducks are prominently present and well aware of the fact that people who come there to picnic will throw them some food. They’ll intrepidly walk up to your table begging for leftovers of bread.

We visited this picnic spot twice. The first time everything was perfect. It was a sunny, warm day. We were the only people there and had unpacked out hamper on one of the tables near the water edge. A big tree supplied the necessary shade. After lunch we stretched out on the grass and had a short nap before continuing our excursion. It was fabulous!

Our second visit, in 2005, was not as uneventful, though. When we arrived, the best tables by the water were taken. From the remaining tables one offered no protection from the burning sun. The other one was slightly damaged. By that I mean that one of the wooden benches that are usually attached to each side of the table was missing. That left us very little choice. But as there were only the two of us, we decided to sit on the same side instead of opposite to each other as we usually do.

We started to unpack our hamper. I had put out the tablecloth on which my friend had put our bottle of rosé wine. While he was bending over, reaching for the cutlery and beakers, I sat down. Or at least, that’s what I tried to do. As soon I put my full weight on the bench, table, bench and yours truly tumble over backwards. It all happened so quickly that my friend only managed to save … the bottle of wine …

The quality of the picture is not very good, but it's the only one I have. Notice the 'table to avoid' inside the magnifying glass!

Fortunately, apart from a little scratch on my leg, no serious harm was done. My pride was slightly hurt though, as the people at the other tables had seen me go topsy-turvy. When they noticed that I got up unharmed they stayed at their tables giggling over what had happened.

It was all very funny and we kept joking about the incident during the rest of our picnic. We haven’t been back since, but each time we drive past the spot, we still have to laugh about what happened. If you ever stop there, make sure that your table has two benches and that the whole structure is fixed firmly to the ground.

All’s well that ends well. However, one question keeps bugging me: “Why did my friend save the bottle of wine, instead of preventing me from rolling over?” What would your partner have done in a similar situation?

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