The Doors

French Journal Day 112 (Travel Diary Day 192)

Through sleet and snow, we carved our path north to Paris this morning. This time we were headed to the airport to bid farewell to Rachel’s mother .

At one of the toll roads we were pulled over by the police. When they saw the right-hand-side drive car and the bushy-haired driver, alarm bells must have rang. Who is the clown-looking freak driving this backwards-looking machine?

I’d heard that the French police had a habit of being particularly unpleasant to drivers of British cars. We’re not hard to spot. We’ve got a large GB sticker on the back of Betsy. I feel like it’s a sign saying ‘Idiot who doesn’t know what he’s doing is driving’.

I was also nervous because I’d left my driving license at home.

I wasn’t looking forward to the interrogation that was about to take place with the 4 officers waiting for us. I wound the window down and said hello.

Something happens to me when I speak to police officers. It comes from being raised in a ‘rough’ area. I know that the police have the control in this situation and that I should be polite, especially in a foreign country, but I also know that it is their job to serve us and not to bully. Essentially, they should not be the bosses in this situation but I struggle to strike the balance of being helpful to them but not submissive.

They asked me where I’d been and where I was going. I was fairly casual with my responses and didn’t smile too much. He didn’t seem suspicious after he saw Rachel and her mother in the car. He must have thought, despite this weird looking fella driving the car, the two women look fairly normal so they are clearly trust worthy.

He gave us the all-clear and we drove off. This is when my confusion with the police gets worse. I don’t know how to end the interaction. I yelled ‘have a nice day,’ put my foot down and sped away too quickly – I did an impressive wheel spin.

With the possibility that they might be waving at me to return, I chose not to look back and instead accelerated even quicker. I was in escaped-convict mode. No one was taking me alive, especially not these chumps. With a sexy ford Mondeo that at last count can clock up an impressive 0-60mph in 32 seconds, I knew I wouldn’t be caught.

As it happens, they didn’t pursue us.  They probably didn’t notice anything strange.

Today’s Photo – The Doors

These are the doors to Auxerre cathedral. They’re impressive beasts in real life.