A flying visit to France plus other (in)consequential happenings

Just a pretty scene as a header for the blog and to show
my happy place

I've been lax again – well, no, not really. It's more that things have been pretty busy and exciting lately while life in general is a bit more taxing.

Before I get into the visit to France, the taxing part is that our road has been dug up yet again. Some of you may remember that two years ago, we were unable to park next to the Crumbly Cottage or drive past it for several months owing to work on the drains. Well, when they finally finished, they just relaid the brick surface (we don't have tar here) on a temporary basis. Last year, a large section of the road was re-surfaced over the course of several more months resulting in our access being cut off again. But, they didn't reach our section, so this year, they are doing the part in front of the cottage and for a couple of hundred metres on either side of us. Sigh. 

2021, 2022 and now again in 2023, the dyke near us is dug up
for months on end

It feels as if we'll never see the end of it, but they predict it will be finished in November. The main problem for us is we cannot access ou house with any kind of vehicle, which has consequences for our wood supply this winter and also for delivering parcels. I won't bore you with an extended moan, but suffice to say it's getting to be a bit of a burden, especially with the wet weather we've had recently. The mud, and if not mud, the sandy dust. Trudging through puddles ... with a spaniel. And then coming into a house with carpet, where every surface is covered with a layer of sand. Need I say more? 

Okay, that's the taxing part. The busy part is that I've started work again, there's still painting on the boats to do, and we're trying to keep up with engine maintenance as well. I'm honestly not moaning about any of that as I enjoy my work as well as all the boaty jobs.

The exciting part is the new French connection. A close relative has finalised the purchase of a fixer-upper house at the southern end of the Champagne region. Just a few kilometres from the Marne river and its sidekick the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne (The canal between Champagne and Burgundy), it's in the incredibly beautiful Haute-Marne department, the department where Charles De Gaulle had his home at Colombey-Les-Deux-Églises. The transfer took place on the 15th of September, so Koos and I went along for moral support. And of course we were very curious to see the house in the flesh, so to speak.

It was a six-hour plus drive including stops for breaks for the dogs as much as for us. We left at sparrow's whotsit (6.15 a.m.) and arrived sometime after 12.00, although  don't remember exactly what time it was. Our first stop was at the house, so we headed for the village and were completely captivated by how beautiful the area was. Rolling hills, wooded copses, fields full of sunflowers (past their prime, sadly) and picturesque stone villages. When we arrived at the house, we were amazed by its size and the extent of its buildings. It's a fine, well-proportioned home that would be called a villa here and I can well imagine it will look beautiful with window boxes of geraniums and freshly painted shutters, which we found in the garage.

After a walk around and some entertaining but time-consuming wrangling with the pop-up toilet tent she carries for emergencies but which refused to un-pop, it was time to meet the estate agent for an interior check. I'd seen plenty of photos, but it was still impressive to see it for real. Luckily, the former owner had left some basic furnishings, which made the house look more homely and also gave us something to sit on and at in the evening. The tour of inspection over, we drove another twelve kilometres to Doulevant le Chateau to the notary. Koos and I were in charge of the dogs for the two-hour appointment and since by this time it was quite hot, I volunteered to take them (Zoe and Mack) for a walk while Koos had a snooze in the car.

We made our way along a path out of the village and into gorgeous countryside. It reminded me  of England's West Country and the area around Maastricht and I realised she'd chosen a delightful place to make her home if she chose to move there full-time in the future.

When I returned, the deed was done, we were all invited to the sellers' home for a celebratory drink– all being the three of us, the estate agent and an interpreter. For me, this was the highlight of the trip. We were welcomed into Michel and Jeanne's spacious dining room, champagne was poured and a wonderfully multi-lingual conversation ensued. Michel and Jeanne were such warm, friendly, spontaneous people and the estate agent was so bubbly, we were all laughing and chatting together in no time, despite the limitation my French. The interpreter, Marjon, spoke Dutch when needed, so we had that to fall back on, but it was a wonderful welcome to the area and I'm sure more good friendships will be made in due course.

A village street in the morning (courtesy Koos Fernhout)

Back at the house, we set to wiping tops, sweeping up cobwebs and generally making a few areas  fit for camping out that evening. Of course, we were pretty tired, so after a salad supper we'd brought with us, and a walk through the starlit evening village, we retired to bed: Koos and I on an airbed upstairs and our relative on a sofa. The upside was the tranquillity and stillness of the night; the downside was the bells from the church almost opposite. I heard them ring on the hour, every hour throughout the night. I suppose you get used to them eventually...?

On Saturday morning, we were up early to walk the dogs and I marvelled again at the peace–apart from the regular rings from the spire above. We were planning to leave around 9 a.m. for the long haul back, which gave us a couple of hours to do something useful. We cleaned the front windows and I weeded the steps and the area in front of the house. What a difference even these two jobs made!

"It already looks loved again," wrote my daughter, when I sent her a photo.

The return journey took a little longer as we made more stops. We arrived home mid-afternoon, although for the new home owner, it took a lot longer. The car broke down on her way home, so she had to call the Dutch version of the AA. They managed to fix the issue temporarily, but now she has to have the problem investigated and repaired. All the same, it was a great trip and a wonderful adventure into a part of France I didn't know. I have a feeling we'll be going back in the not-too-distant future.

That's all for this time, allemaal. Enjoy the rest of your week, and I'll catch up with the rest of our doings in the next post.