One Jag

Last week-end was my sister's wedding, in my home town of Brest, in Brittany. Well, not quite Brest, a small village close to Brest called Locmaria-Plouzané. I had decided to hire a car for the wedding so that I could drive around and pick up guests from the airport or the train station. I decided to hire a nice saloon rather than a cheap hatchback so that we could easily have 4 people plus luggage in it. The price difference wasn't huge anyway. I was meant to arrive at Brest airport on Thursday evening, at 23:00. My brother was arriving at the same airport 30 minutes earlier so I told him to go and get the car while waiting for me. He went to the Hertz reception and his conversation with the guy behind the counter went something like this:

Me washing the Jag 

‘I've got a booking for a car,’ said my brother, ‘here is the confirmation document.’

‘A type E car?’ said the Hertz guy, ‘That's unusual. Is it for a wedding or something?’

‘As a matter of fact, yes, my sister's wedding.’

‘Well, if you want, for the same price, I have a Jaguar X-type. Are you interested?’

‘Yeah! Where do I sign? Can you put me as main driver and my brother as second driver? What about extra insurance? Here's my driving license!’

So by the time I got out of the airport after the plane had landed 30 minutes late and I had retrieved my check-in luggage, I met my brother with a big grin on his face and the key to a Jag that was parked outside.

In the end, we were not the only ones to enjoy the car. My sister, who wasn't sure what car she'd use as the couple's car on the wedding day saw it and decided the Jag was just what she wanted. So I ended up being official driver in addition to being official photographer.

I have to say this car was a real pleasure to drive and I was rather sad I had to give it back on Monday evening. I never thought I'd ever say this of a British car but then again I never thought I'd ever drive a Jaguar.