Our plan was to pass through the city of Annecy on our way to the German border, but due to a few unforeseen circumstances, we found ourselves “stuck” in the city of Besançon for 5 days 😅 but more on that later.
Quick visit to Annecy
We made a brief stop in the city of Annecy. We would have loved to spend more time there, but the weather wasn’t on our side, and it was raining almost constantly. We debated whether it was even worth going out in the rain, but we wanted to see the city, so we concluded that we’re not made of sugar and could handle a couple of hours in the rain.
It was definitely worth it! Annecy’s most famous attraction is perhaps the medieval castle Palais de l’Île, which sits at the confluence of the river running through the city, giving the city a truly unique appearance. The city itself is beautiful, with a lot of charming old-town charm. Annecy is located on the shore of the lake of the same name, which would surely be a delightful place to swim in warm weather. However, in the chilly rain of late September, this wasn’t such an appealing option 😅
Unexpected stop in Besançon
From Annecy, we set off towards the French-German border, to Colmar. We had been driving for quite some time, and it was getting late in the evening when something unexpected happened. The darkness of the evening had already set in, and we were indeed on the motorway towards Colmar when *bam*, our tire burst in the middle of the French motorway.
Luckily, it happened right at an exit, so we were able to get off the motorway immediately. However, we were in the middle of nowhere; there were no houses nearby, not even streetlights. It was already very late, so it was completely dark.
We looked at the tire frustrated for a moment before the situation started to become amusing. And since modern cars don’t have spare tires, let alone a place for one, we had no choice but to call the insurance company, who arranged for a tow truck.
At this point, we realized, and the insurance company also pointed out, that since we were in France, we shouldn’t necessarily hold our breath while waiting for the tow truck. They even checked our language skills, and since French wasn’t our strong suit, they promised to arrange an English-speaking driver.
While waiting for the tow truck, we packed our stuff in the car because we didn’t know where we would be going, so we had to gather the bags containing necessary clothes, hygiene items, passports, etc.
To our surprise, the tow truck arrived really quickly; we didn’t even have to wait for an hour. But of course, the driver didn’t speak a word of English, only pure French. However, he seemed to be quite experienced in dealing with tourists and used Google Translate fluently, so we communicated through gestures and the translator.
Hunting for accommodation in the middle of the night – when the city is fully booked
So, we had accommodation booked in Colmar, which was still 100 km away, but since the car was left here in Besançon at the repair shop, it didn’t make sense for us to go there to stay. Fortunately, we managed to cancel the accommodation, even though it was already late at night.
At this point, we had reached the tow yard, had a lot of discussion through the translator with the tow truck driver, and the car would be delivered to the tire shop the next day. While the insurance company representative and we were looking for accommodation options, it turned out that there was some kind of fair in the city, so all the hotels in town were fully booked.
At this point, we had probably spent a couple of hours at the tow yard, constantly trying to find a place to stay. Eventually, the insurance company found us one hotel room in a hotel located on the outskirts of the city by the motorway. Well, it was clear that there were no other options, so we ordered a taxi and headed towards the hotel.
It drags on and on
The next morning, we received a message from the insurance company’s assistant that the tires needed to be ordered, and we wouldn’t get the car until 2 days later. This started the search for new accommodation; spending a couple of days by the motorway didn’t sound appealing, so we hoped to at least get closer to downtown Besançon for some activities.
Luckily, there were vacancies for the next few nights, and we got a hotel in the city. The hotel was really nice; we had an apartment with a kitchen, living room, and bedroom, so it was quite comfortable. The hotel was called Zenitude Hôtel-Résidences, and we can definitely recommend it if you’re visiting Besançon.
The days passed by exploring the city and its sights, which I’ll talk about in the next post.
Then a couple of days had passed, but we hadn’t heard from the insurance company, so we inquired about the situation, only to find out that the French assistant had forgotten to confirm our tire order, which meant that the tires hadn’t even been ordered yet, so naturally, we wouldn’t be getting the car back yet.
At this point, mild pain started to set in, and we even went to the tire shop ourselves to make sure and confirm the tire order, but since it was Friday, we wouldn’t get our car until Monday, so a few more days were added. So back to the hotel, hoping to book a few more nights, and luckily, we managed to do that!
Fortunately, the whole ordeal mostly just amused us, and we took it in stride. There were a few moments of frustration, but otherwise, we were fine with waiting.
Finally, Monday arrived, and a bit nervously, we called the tire shop, as on Friday, when we went, the promise that the car would be ready on Monday was more of a “we’ll do our best, but we can’t promise” type of thing. Well, thankfully, the car was ready and waiting to be picked up! So, what started as a simple tire change turned into a five-day project 😂
And with that, it was over and time to head home
At this point, we had been on the road for 2 months, so after this hassle, it felt like it was time to go home. None of the destinations felt exciting anymore, and the thought of continuing the journey felt burdensome, so we decided to head towards Finland! We drove through Germany, Poland, and the Baltics on our way home, a journey that took us four days, with only quick stops in a few places to admire the scenery. Travel fatigue really started to weigh on us, so a swift drive home was more than okay at this point.
In total, the trip lasted 2 months, covering 15 countries and slightly over 10,000 km, as the car’s odometer went full circle somewhere while driving through Estonia.
In the next post, we’ll revisit the city of Besançon itself and its magnificent sights.
