THE ‘MISSING’ MONTHS AND A FLYING VISIT TO UK

Readers with an eye for detail might have noticed (but probably didn’t!) that there were almost two months unaccounted for between Harry’s return from England in March and the Dordogne holiday in May. Here are a few pictures and comments on the missing weeks.

April included a mini heatwave and brought our ancient pear tree into full bloom – we’d missed this last year as we were ‘over there’ in April.

We opened up the pool and were pleased with its general condition. With the water around 22° we got in and scrubbed the tidemark at the water line:

Then we had the year’s first barbecue:

Of course, April 8th saw the start of my 70th year. Carol made me a cake:

There was the traditional ‘Omelette de Pâques’ in the village on Easter Monday. Does Carolyn know what’s going on behind her back?

After the heatwave there were a couple of weeks of fairly persistent drizzle – quite Cumbrian! But April 25th included a fine double rainbow – impossible to get it all in one photo.

Carol decided to use this time to decorate our bedroom. The room was cleared of all except the largest pieces of furniture, and for about two weeks we slept in ‘Patience’, the first guest room.

We like the end result:

But it was nearly time for Judi’s arrival to house-sit. This lot had be removed from ‘Pirates’ so that Carol (Jnr) could use it, arriving while we were away.

Pam and Trevor have now bought a house in Arriège, about 40 minutes away, but at this time had not yet moved in. They were living in a ‘gîte’ nearby. We’d heard of an Esperanto group meeting near Pamiers and, though it wasn’t ideal timing, Trevor and I went and were glad to have done so. Pam kindly helped Carol with the bed-making here. That done, they went for a walk above the village:

After the Dordogne holiday, and just before our next escapade, Nick had a significant birthday:

He and Carolyn invited most of the village to ‘apéro’ on the square in front of ‘Maison Bleue’, and kindly – or rashly – invited me to entertain!

The next day,May 29th, we flew out of Carcassonne heading for Stansted. I really should have taken a picture of the cattle pen which passes for a ‘departure lounge’ at Carcassonne airport, and circulated it widely to illustrate the difference between the myth of Ryanair travel as portrayed by the current TV advert and the reality. It really is a dreadful experience!

At Stansted, more discomfort; we missed the chance to use the loos on the plane before the descent began, so by the time we we in the terminal this was first priority. Once up the steps – STEPS! – and into the corridor, the nearest loos were the ‘wrong’ way – against the flow (of people). Got there – the ladies was queueing, and the gents: closed! Disabled, only choice! Once in, pitch black, no light, no switch! In the end, Carol emerged from the Ladies and stood guard with the door open enough to provide a minimum of light ….

So now we were way behind everyone else, the disgorged contents of two planes. We followed signs. Down two escalators. Into an empty hall with no exit but several automatic doors, which wouldn’t open – and the escalators coming DOWN, but none going UP. There was no signage. We had NO IDEA that this was a shuttle station. I banged on several of the doors with my stick. Carol picked up the emergency phone, then lights began to flash above some of the doors, which then soon opened to give access to the shuttle.

Things did get a bit better. At the main terminal a very nice young lady listened sympathetically to tales of closed and unlit loos and claustrophobic basements with no signs, then once through passport control we set about trying to find our car hire firm. Having said ‘never again’ to Hertz after last year’s experience (you can check back if you really want to!) we’d chosen ‘Firefly’. No evidence of Firefly’s desk …. We phoned them. They’re part of Hertz!! But this worked in our favour, in the end. We asked if they could bring up our previous history and we registered ‘disappointment’ at having had no reply to our feedback; they gave us £24 worth of 2nd driver insurance for free.

We collected our Vauxhall Corsa and headed for Potters Bar where we had a nice meal with Chrys and Jan.

We had gone to England to be at the dedication service for Chris & Michelle’s children. We were saddened to have heard of the death of Martin Horton, an old friend of Carol’s, husband of Cathy. But happily, in one sense, the funeral had been planned for that Saturday, 31st May, so we were able to postpone our drive to Huddersfield in order to attend. Not only that, but Martin’s sister, Mary, wheelchair user, lives not far from Chrys and Jan, so we were able to take her as well.

During the drive north in the evening, the second driver insurance was particularly important since I was hit by the second migraine of the day (or a recurrence of the first) and couldn’t see straight!

We got lucky in Huddersfield as we needed advice to find our hotel, having no satnav or plan. We stopped beside a very helpful taxi driver who said ‘follow me’ and then stopped again a bit later to point out the road we needed.

We were also well served at the Cambridge Hotel the next morning where the receptionist not only copied two sections of town plan for us showing how to get to the (changed) venue for the service, but brought them to our room. Chris’s instructions by text hadn’t arrived at that time.

It’s difficult for us to comment on the service, especially after the sharply contrasting funeral the day before. Contrasting not only because of the nature of the event. The funeral had been High Anglican, with robed clergy, traditional church music, communion, and a Bishop to pronounce the commendation. The dedication was ‘Evengelical / Pentecostal’, casual dress, guitars and drums. Let’s say both events were found to be appropriate and meaningful to those most closely involved.

Respecting the ongoing advice not to show identifiable photos of S & N (a pity since this was ‘their’ day!) here are some of other folk:

She’s a show-stealer; can’t think where she gets it from!

After lunch at the church, a reduced party moved to 730 Manchester Road …..

CHRIS! I think Dan and Fiona gave ‘Funny Faces’ as a present to the children!

Er, yes, well …..

….it was on the chair; I just picked it up. But who took the photo? Either S or N, I can’t remember, but didn’t he/she do well?

At last Daddy (Chris) stopped playing and let his son have a go:

Rachel, Sean and Sannon left before the rest of us shared a take-away meal. Then after bedtime we got the cards out and the remaining foursome (Dan, Fiona and Luke had also left) enjoyed a rubber of bridge.

The drive south on Monday 2nd June was uneventful and we are grateful to Chrys and Jan for another evening’s hospitality and bed for the night. The Stansted experience on Tuesday morning wasn’t too bad:

– though it still doesn’t match the propaganda!

Back at home, on a hot day, we were glad of the pool to jump into!

Since then, the weather has got hotter and hotter; there’s always the threat of thunderstorms, but they haven’t materialised yet. (Do thunderstorms do that?) We’re eating our own-grown lettuce leaves, and lots of strawberries. Tomatoes are just visible. Last Thursday I took part in, and Carol attended, my first ‘Chorale’ concert. (No photos). A new style of performance for me – I’m not used to singing unaccompanied with lots of ‘doo-be-do-wah’s instead!

I think it’s time for a dip ….

FOOTNOTE:

Tuesday 3rd June, 4.30 pm:

Hallo, Lady Lucy! Wo warst du, denn? Where have you been?

A Carcassonne. A l’aéroport. THEY left me there.

THEY? I thought we weren’t to say that any more.

Don’t care! Je suis cuite.

What?

Cooked – fried – what you say? Frazzled.

But it’s not been hot till today.

Tu parles! J’en ai marre! I have had enough of HIM. And HE bashed me up in Carcassonne last week. HE backed me into a fence post. Look!

Those few scratches! That’s nothing. He practically pulled my tail light cluster right off back in Cumbria. I was stuck up with duck tape for months. He doesn’t mean to do it; he’s just a bit too hasty at times …..

Oops! Well, you’ll never get nowhere if you’re too hasty ….. I don’t suppose either of THEM would have come up with that.

Dordogne Holiday

Sunejo,Thursday, 22nd May 2014, c.17.50

Hallo, Lady Lucy!

Ah, Milord Harry, there you are! Where have you been? You did not send me any postcard;

I’ve only been away a week! And you haven’t been lonely, have you? People have been here, and you’ve been out and about.

How you know this?

That.

What?

It’s “How do you know that ”

Hm! Since when are you the expert teacher of the English?

I’m not. But anyway, there was a phone call. That’s how I know you’ve been out.

Je comprends …..So now, racontez – where do you go?

Did.

What?

“Where did you go?” or “Where have you been?”

C’est bizarre, ça!

We went to the Dordogne Valley. We left here at about 12.15 last Thursday –

Ah yes, I remember it well …..

– and travelled 300kms to the north. The weather was very fine and the snow on the Pyrenees is receding:

We crossed the River Lot:

and left the motorway at Souillac, where there is this magnificent railway viaduct, which SKT & CLT have often tried to photograph as we go by on the motorway, but never got a good one:

Then they got lost! Satnav couldn’t recognise the spot and the place we were looking for wasn’t on the signs! But just before 7pm we found ‘Soleil Plage’:and we pitched up on an “emplacement” with this view of the Dordogne just a few steps away:

On Friday they put the awning up beside me, so more space to have, and they went to swim in this pool complex:

And on Saturday they did very little also, but make bookings to do a canoe trip on Sunday and hire a car for Monday and Tuesday. SKT must tell you about these things.

Yes, the canoeing was wonderful. The ‘base de canoë’ was just outside the campsite (at the ‘beach’) and we booked the ‘Parcours Nature’. The man took us to the starting point by minibus (with one other couple) and the canoes on a trailer behind and pushed us out onto the river. We then had all day (if we’d wanted) to go with the flow 10 kms downstream to get back to ‘Soleil Plage’.

We had plenty of time to study the river bank:

the Castle of Montfort:

and the birdlife: this is probably a black kite:

After about an hour we beached the canoe (on the second attempt – the current took us past the first spot we aimed for!) and enjoyed the little picnic we’d taken with us:

Then, after another hour, as we came round the ‘Cingle de Montfort’ (more later) and past the campsite, some friends we’d made, who had a riverside pitch just near Harry, took our photo as we paddled by:

They told us that several people had grounded their canoe in the shallow water to the left at that spot, so we felt a bit chuffed at avoiding that, and steering successfully in to the beach on the first attempt. A highlight of the holiday – the weather had been ideal; unbroken sunshine, but not so hot that we were constantly thirsty, sunburnt or exhausted.

We swam again – in the pool, not the river! – and that evening we treated ourselves to an excellent locally themed meal at the on-site restaurant.

[The arrival of a German party led to an ineresting exchange between them and the waiter which has prompted me to put a little rant on my neighbour blog ‘Daddy Says ….’ Have a look if you like, but be warned – it’s Esperanto propaganda!

THE SCANDAL OF LANGUAGE

]

Monday May 19th: Once we had the hire car we made our way downstream by road to see Beynac and ride in a different sort of boat, a ‘gabarre’, a flat-bottomed boat formerly used as river transport, taking, eg, nuts to Bordeaux and bringing back essentials, eg, wine.

Beynac, ‘un des plus beaux villages de France’, occupies a spectacular site and it’s castle remained in English hands – and loyal to the English kings – during the hundred years war,

whereas this one, on the other side of the river, changed loyalties several times. (It would then have been just the fortress, without the stately home.) It’s now owned by a Texan millionaire, not oil – the inventor of the car crusher, apparently.

The river trip, with effective commentary in French and English, afforded excellent views and interesting historical insights, so we were well pleased with it.

However, we then tried to find some gardens which we had been told were ‘absolument magnifique’. Once again, satnav let us down, we couldn’t find it on the map, and signage was inconsistent. We really were going round in circles, passing one school at least three times! Gardens are Carol’s thing and I was tired, so when we found it, I let her visit on her own. I fear she was disappointed. ‘Keep off the grass’ signs were everywhere and there’s a limit to how much topiary and how many box hedges one can enjoy in one place! Still here are a few of her pictures:

Back at base we swam again and enjoyed a ‘Blanquette de Veau’ that we’d bought earlier – tinned, but tasty. Then we invited the neighbours, Mike and Sandra – that’s them in the water with Carol – to coffee and what would have been in ‘the library’ if we’d brought it with us!

Meanwhile, Harry chatted up the little white car – sorry, Lucy!

Ca m’est égal. He can ‘chat up’ , as you say, who he want.

Hmmm ……

Tuesday 20th May 2014: Having the car for a second day, we set off for Rocamadour. However, our first stop was quite close by at the ‘Cingle de Montfort’. The information panel was missing from the rough parking area beside the road, but we later found out that ‘Cingle’ is a local word referring to a meander. It’s some bend! We took far too many photos of the river, saying “we’ve been down there”, and a few of the castle. Then I realised that the cliff behind us was perhaps even more interesting:

We picnicked overlooking an artificial lake at Gourdon, and made our way across country to Rocamadour, wondering whether SATNAV was choosing the best route (we decided later that she wasn’t). Rocamadour is certainly spectacular, but that said, both it and the ‘Grotte des Merveilles’ (no photos allowed) were disappointing. The road train ride from the car park at the bottom to the village added nothing either by way of views or information, for there was no commentary, and the narrow street was very ‘Mont St Michel’.

The visit to the cave (the ‘grotte’) took 80 minutes instead of the supposed 40 because, out of consideration for members of the group who spoke no French, the guide said everything twice!

We made our own route to get back to Soleil Plage, and were quite sure it was quicker, and more scenic, than SATNAV’s. We decided to go for a meal at a Pizza restaurant in the last village before Montfort, and just as we parked up the weather broke (we’d seen it coming) and we dodged the the first drops of what developed into a terrific storm.

The meal was good, but back chez Harry we found him surrounded by a sea of mud and began to wonder how we were going to dismantle and stow the awning (‘Harriette’!) and whether, indeed, we’d be able to drive off the pitch without slipping and sinking …..

Things were better in the morning, and Harriette was dry by the afternoon, thunderstorms were forecast so we bustled about and got everything packed up much more successfully than we had feared. As we emptied the tent of ‘stuff’ we found this gentleman lurking in a corner, and very reluctant to leave!:

We were just finishing puting the bikes on the rack (they would have been quite useful on site but one of the pedals seized up on mine which made riding it a bit tricky), when the first raindrops fell, at exactly 5.30pm. Within seconds we were experiencing the most terrific thunderstorm, torrential rain hammering on Harry’s roof, prolonged streaks of lightning and tremendous thunderclaps. I’d really liked to have seen more of it and tried some photos, but there was no suitable viewpoint without getting soaked! However, we still had that little white car with us; I’d waited half an our for the man on the car park, but he still hadn’t come for it! So when the rain eased off a bit we darted out and DROVE (!) up to the swimming pool to use the covered area. (There were three sections, covered and heated, outdoor and heated, outdoor unheated.) While we were there the hammering started again ….

We had a ‘three tin meal’ during which Mike came round to say the mud wasn’t too bad and we could get to their caravan after supper, if we didn’t mind taking footwear off in the awning before stepping in! We did that and played a closely contended rubber of bridge over a bottle of red wine. They won from game all, 90 all, for those who know what that means. It’s a bit like 2 sets each and 4 all final set in tennis.

The rain had stopped and when we stepped out of the caravan the stars were absolutely brilliant! However, that didn’t last, and in the small hours the flashes, crashes and hammering started again.

The morning was something else! All was calm and surprisingly dry. Grey, low cloud at first, but within minutes of sun-up, it had all burnt off. These photos couldn’t have been taken five minutes later, honest!

We’d packed everything except the picnic table and we’d ordered pastries, so we settled down to outdoor breakfast, together with the usual visitors:

The great tit was very tame and had perched from time to time on the ketchup bottle and the thermos as well as the seats and the table. We also had visits from, or saw, sparrows, a robin, blackbird, goldfinches, greenfinches and, we think, goldcrests.

But it was time to go. Harry moved off pitch without problems and we left the little car on the car park and the key at reception, which neither we nor the staff were very pleased about, but the man didn’t seem to think there was any issue.

Harry?

Ja?

Do you want to narrate the journey home?

There’s nothing to tell, really. You’ve gone on long enough. We stopped at Aire Jardin for lunch and the view of the Piebald Pyrenees was much clearer than sometimes and seen sooner – before Toulouse. And here we are – Lady? ….. She’s gone to sleep! I said you’d gone on too long.

……….

Maybe, but we have to say it was nice to swim in our own pool before enjoying a salmon and couscous supper that Judy and Carol prepared for us. Next day, Sunejo let the minders go:

and on the way to the airport we had lunch in Limoux – outdoors till another heavy shower drove us indoors for dessert:

(Lucy has actually woken up and told Harry about what happened at Sunejo while we were away. You can see that here:

http://carolthompson73.wordpress.com/2014/05/28/house-sitting/

We’re very grateful to Judi & Carol for coming over and looking after the house, the plants and the pool. It’s good that both we and they were lucky with the weather. So, who’s next?

SUNEJO DIARY JANUARY 2014

We saw the New Year in at the village ‘Réveillon’, a shared meal attended by 20+ local folk.

Starting soon after 6.30pm with ‘apéro’ – drinks and nibbles – a 5-course meal was accompanied by unlimited red, white or rosé wine, not to mention a locally distilled plum liqueur at some stage.

I didn’t mention the plum liqueur in the first account of the evening on Facebook, because I hardly noticed it, in that I was singing at the time, which I was invited to do both before the meal and between courses!

At midnight there was a lot of ’embracing’ (kiss-kissing) and exchanging of ‘Meilleurs Voeux’ (best wishes) which more people said than ‘Bonne Année’, and continued to say for a couple of weeks to people they hadn’t met yet this year. I made the mistake of saying ‘Meileurs Voeux’ about two weeks later to someone who’d been at the réveillon and got an exaggerated Gallic shrug with the words ‘Mais on s’est déjà vu!’ (We’ve met already!) She might as well have lifted her eyes heavenward and said ‘Ils sont fous, les Anglais!’

The weather was quite good at the start of the month and on the 2nd we were able to eat lunch on the terrace:

I’d made a New Year’s resolution to cut back on the alcohol a bit, so the photo above shows long glasses with water or cordial. The intention is to drink wine only once a day, unless visiting or entertaining, and to limit stronger drinks – sherry, whisky, liqueurs and so on – to once a week. So far we’ve stuck to it!

As a result of the singing at the réveillon, I was encouraged to join the local ‘chorale’ which rehearses on Friday afternoons in Chalabre. It consists mainly of senior citizens (who sometimes go and entertain the old folk at the retirement home!) and an 85 year old neighbour, Guy, insists on driving me to rehearsals! That’s an exciting ride!

I was due to have the injection into my hip on the 14th, so we decided to have a day out in Harry on the 12th. We thought we’d head for Carcassonne and find the lake known as ‘Carcassonne Plage’. Unfortunately, a big bank of rain bearing cloud was lying to the east, whereas to the south and west were blue skies and sunshine. But we went ahead anyway and picnicked in Harry in the drizzle which then held off long enough for us to walk down to the water and a little way along the shore.

This was a cold, grey, drizzly Sunday, but there were still plenty of people there, some of them feeding the ducks – so we could tell this will be a very popular spot on a hot summer’s day, both for locals and tourists

The walk was very pleasant, but unfortunately the car park is some height above the lake and getting back to Harry wasn’t too comfortable, but we hoped all that would be resolved soon ….

We hoped it would be resolved! …… This would surprise any enthusiast for the French health system who came across it, and they’d have difficulty explaining it; we left home in good time, travelled the hour to Castelnaudary, arrived in good time, did the paper work at reception, and waited …… for an hour and a half …. the doctor didn’t turn up! At 1pm a couple of other consultants noticed we were still there (during lunch time!!) and asked questions on our behalf. A secretary telephoned the doctor’s surgery (in a different building) but only got an anwserphone; like I said it was lunch time, what else would you get? Since ‘my’ doctor had no-one else to see at the hospital that day, they said they ‘didn’t know what to say’, but the implication was ‘don’t hang around’. We didn’t hand around. Confession time: we had lunch at McDonald’s! Didn’t even need the wi-fi! But at least we didn’t drink! We had to make another appointment, of course, and also of course, that couldn’t be done at the hospital; no, no, no; that could only be done by phoning the surgery.

One week later and we tried again; the snow-topped Pyrenees were superbly displayed as we set off mid-morning:

However, that was the last we saw of the sun for over a week, more of that later …. This time the doctor was there and the procedure went ahead with nothing at all said about last week! As for the procedure itself, I don’t think anyone wants to read about it (if they do, they can ask!). Carol drove home and we were back by 2pm. The hip was stiff and sore, but that wore off with rest and painkillers.

Then the rains came! When you see the weather maps on UK TV, you sometimes get a wide view which include northern Spain, the Pyrenees and part of the Med. On those maps you may notice that we are often affected by the southern end of the same fronts as hit the UK; so it’s been WET for nearly a fortnight now, and although the sun is shining today another week of rain is due to start tomorrow. The River which gives the village its name (Sonnac Sur L’HERS) isn’t usually visible from ‘Sunejo’, but by January 25 it was clearly visible:

Not only that, but the field between us and the river was seriously waterlogged. In November I put up a photo of the river in spate under the bridge, but find the bridge on this one:

Yes, the bridge is under the water this time and the water in the foreground is the track leading o the bridge. It’s only a short walk, but this was just 4 days after the injection and the hip didn’t like it! Maybe it was too soon. Still, later the same day we went shopping and just beyond Camon we found the road had been blocked by an ‘éboulement’, a mudslide. In fact, the workers had just finished clearing the road and were moving the barriers; they said it was OK to go through, but we met some friends in the supermarket who had had to follow a considerable diversion on narrow, windy, hilly roads! This is what that site looked like a few days later (and still does):

On January 29th, which was a fine day between wet nights, Carol discovered that although the water had gone down a lot, an accumulation of fallen trees was now blocking the bridge so that it was still unusable by wheeled vehicles:

To photograph this we went down BY BIKE! (Thinking it might be better for the hip.)

After that, since it was a fine and warm day, and although we might have sunk into the marsh if we’d sat on the grass, we had lunch out on the terrace. So in spite of the excess of rain, that’s three outdoor lunches in January!

So we’re in to February. February 2nd is Candlemas / Le Chandeleur, not much celebrated in England, but an excuse for a pancake fest in France. So we invited our neighbour, Marthe, who was one of the first local people to speak to us and invite us to knock on her door if we needed anything, to join us on Sunday evening and served a seafood pancake followed by a sweet one. This was the first time Marthe has actually come in, in spite of numerous invitations to share a drink or a brew. She’s 80 + and passes the gate regularly when out for her ‘constitutional’. Once again, no photo of pancake tossing! At about 11pm we offered to go along the road with Marthe to her place (it’s about 200 metres, but there”s no street lighting outside the village). She protested a bit but accepted in the end so long as we would go in for a ‘nightcap’. That turned out to be half a tumbler of whisky (for me); we told her to stop, but she just said ‘might as well empty the bottle’! Didn’t notice the hip on the way back!

Actually, I”m seeing the hip doctor again tomorrow (if he can be bothered!), and I think I can say it’s getting better. We’ve been out for a walk by Lake Montbel this afternoon, and there are no uncomfortable after-effects – yet! Here are some pictures to finish with:

SUNEJO CHRISTMAS

There’ll never be another Christmas like it! Because although Christmas does come once a year, Baby’s first Christmas comes once and once only, and we’ve been very privileged to have been part of it. Thanks to Sean, Rachel, Megan and Becky for travelling all this way to be with us – we think it wasn’t easy!

What follows is a few (?!) of the photos taken by anyone with a camera, accompanied by, I hope, the briefest of comments – if I can stop myself ‘going on’! (and on …)

First meal together, and a new game is invented; Grandad and Shannon play ‘Boum! Boum!’ Everybody gets the giggles!

The game involves taking the wrapper from the baguette, making a ‘truncheon’ of it and batting the side of the high chair with it saying “Boum! Boum!”. And if once or twice Baby’s head or cheek, got in the way, well, ….

We played it many times, in fact a wrapper had to be preserved for the purpose, and it always got a smile and frequently a laugh.

The SKT tradition of the Christmas Eve pancake-fest at tea time was respected and seemed to be well received. No-one photoed it, though. I suppose they were too busy eating and I was too busy tossing ……

In France le Père Noël looks for slippers under the Christmas tree; we compromised with a couple of slipper-socks, but they worked!

Contrary to every forecast we had seen, Christmas day was sunny and warm. Some spent much of the morning on the terrace, where we also enjoyed the pre-lunch blanquette / apéro.As for Christmas lunch, I’ve never been better pleased with my efforts at turkey roasting. Using a French recipe which I’ve had for years but never used before, with chestnut stuffing (French) one end and sage and onion (English) the other, slow roasted on the rack over a good quantity of stock and well basted with butter, it came out looking good, and was moist and easy to carve:

Carol’s Christmas pudding got flambé-d, of course:

Presents were exchanged after lunch, and as anyone with experience would expect, Shannon’s interest was greater in crinkly wrappings than in the content of parcels. What we didn’t anticipate was that an empty green cracker would become a favourite for the rest of the week! Ignoring a whole chain of teething rings, she kept licking it! Well, no harm in an early start in eating your greens …

Christmas Day tea was fairly traditional (English) with cake and candlelight. Rachel took some lovely pictures:

Megan and Becky, Sean’s older daughters, are both very good at entertaining Baby when needed:

Boxing Day brought the expected rain, but we ventured forth to see Carcassonne:

OK, bin there, done that. Did anyone buy a T-shirt?

We’d been watching the weather situation very carefully in order to try to choose the best day to visit Andorra. We did well. Fresh snow had fallen up there while it was raining here and in Carcassonne, but Friday was superbly blue and sunny. Rachel chose to stay at ‘home’ with baby, which was disappointing but probably sensible.

The rest of us piled into the big, black hired car – yes, GPT & Family, the same one you had! – and climbed up to the big snow:

The ski slopes were very busy

and after lunch – and the first bit of shopping – we found a lay-by where some silly play was possible:

Then, drive on for a cable car ride:

and at the top, where in summer there’s a golf course and mountain biking, skiing and snow boarding were in progress, although it was late in the day now:

In the last of the daylight, another shop-stop:

Mean while, back at the ranch, Rachel took Shannon in the buggy down to the river:Compare and contrast the next photo with the first one in the last posting – taken from the same spot!

Saturday was wet n orrible, but no matter; we had boyle deggs for breakfast – from our hens (sorry! Nick and Carolyn’s hens) – croque-monsieur for lunch and parmentier de dinde (left-over turkey made into a cottage pie – turkey farmers pie? Matthews’Pie? – bootiful!) for dinner. We even introduced the family to Cluedo – to help the Coyles unwind ….. No photo.

And so to Carcassonne airport on Sunday (in two cars), where we had lunch in the restaurant, and thanks to a friendly waiter who is good at this, we have an excellent photo of (nearly) all of us:

He did take another with Baby in, but it’s not such a good photo, and anyway, Shannon’s asleep; so here’s a Festive Farewell from a wide-awake Christmas Baby:

and Bye-Bye from Baby in a big hat:

And an Au Revoir from Shannon:

And its “Boum! Boum!” from her:

And it’s “Boum! Boum!” from me – Boum! Boum!

November ….. December ……

November continued to be cold, windy and wet. The river Hers overtopped the little bridge for the second time this year, though locals say it hasn’t done so for the last thirty years!Halfway through the month we even had a couple of days of snow. This didn’t stop the hens from laying, however!Recovery from the surgery on the nose seemed to take longer than expected, but breathing does seem to be getting easier and there’s no sore throat most mornings. However, the surgeon isn’t ready to sign me off and feels a bit more radio / laser treatment may still be helpful. That would be under local anesthetic.

After that grim November, December, by contrast, has until now been beautiful with blue skies and warm sunshine after frosty nights. Unfortunately this is due to break on Christmas day! We combined one of our visits to the clinic at Colombiers with taking Harry to the Motorhome centre at Narbonne where, FINALLY!, he got his new skylight! Hurrah! While waiting for the job to be finished wo took the opportunity to go down to Narbonne Plage in the last of the daylight:

Not the best photo ever! The sculpure represents a wave and the old man was caught by surprise with his leg hurting! That’s another issue due to be resolved, or at least treated, by injection, in January; it’s been a long wait!

Lucy has to have jobs done in the other direction, but the drive to Foix is very pleasant, and on the last occasion we went into the town for the first time and found a shop specialising in British goods and produce; there will be pudding on Christmas day! Foix is dominated by it’s castle, but we haven’t visited it yet:

There was another fish & chip night at the Mad Hatter in Mirepoix on the 13th. In response to an invitation on their website, I offered to add some Christmas music – in several languages – to the evening. It seemed to go well and be well received: DSCF1844 Most of the music was to the guitar, but I did play the melodeon in public for the first time as well.

A lot of time has been spent – mainly by Carol – getting the attic room above the garage ready for use as a bedroom. Sorting out this lot was just part of it!: DSCN0862 So today – 22nd Dec. – the family arrived at Carcassonne airport, to be greeted by bright sunshine and snow on the mountains, oh – and me with the big, black hired Nissan Qashkai. Big? Not really big enough for five folk, plus baby and luggage. The journey home was not really comfortable, though some slept through it and we arrived safely. We’re looking forward to a Happy Christmas; more of that next time …… DSCF1862

left to right: Megan, Becky, Sean, Shannon.

Autumn sets in; we’re on chicken-watch; Stephen gets a nose job and Lucy gets a flat tyre (on the same day!)

In the last post I mentioned how the sunflower fields turned black before being harvested. Didn’t have a photo of that just then. Here’s one now: Nick and Carolyn have gone away (to England!) for a couple of months, so we, or rather, Carol, is on chicken watch. A daily stroll into the village to top up the feeder and collect the eggs. But they are laying five or six a day! We’ve given away what we can, but we’re struggling to keep up with extra-sized omelettes and scrambled eggs! Eggs are appearing in the salads more frequently than before, too ….

There are six of them, but they won’t stand still and in shot to be photographed!

Autumn colours still don’t predominate, though one group of trees across the road is turning:However, the weather has changed significantly. We’ve had several windy days, so the pear tree has lost its leaves before they changed colour. We’ve also had a couple of days and nights of really serious rain, including yesterday which was a right soggy Sunday!

I’ve had a chance to compare out-patient treatment in the French and English systems. There’s no clear winner, contrary to some of what you hear about French health care being outstanding. To begin with, the clinic where I had to go on Friday for minor surgery on my nose (septoplasty – google it if you feel the need!) is a good 2 hours away. Our plan was to go on Thursday in Harry and be on the spot for first thing Friday morning. But Harry hasn’t had his skylight repaired yet and we didn’t dare risk it, so Lucy had to serve. Up at 5 and on the road soon after 6. OK, we managed that. Paperwork in order at the hospital, including results of blood tests and ECG which I had to be responsible for myself, and so to a 2-person room to change into disposable operating garb. I don’t know whether it was because I was English, or whether it’s just the way it’s done, but explanation of the anaesthetising procedure was missing compared with the NHS so I was ‘under’ almost before I knew it was happening.

Late afternoon, it was time to leave. Here’s the big difference – payment to be made! Not only that, but separate payments at different desks on different floors! Just what you need! (I expect to get most of it back, but that’s not the point!). At the second desk the receptionist saw that I was still bleeding and wouldn’t sign me out till the consultant had seen me again! This delayed us by about 45 minutes. Then Carol was about to drive off the car park when we spotted a note on Lucy’s windscreen: “Take care – back right tyre flat”. (In French). I was NOT up for changing a wheel in the dark! We rang the roadside assistance number on our insurance certificate and the man with the tools came very quickly. But Lucy’s spare wheel is a small, emergency only wheel, so the return journey had to be made at well below normal speed and took 2 hours 45 minutes.

I’ve spent most of the weekend in bed but things are a bit better today (Monday). Not looking forward to next Monday when I have to go back and have some ‘splints’ removed. Don’t know how that’s done – probably not comfortable. Will it have been worth it? Well, if eventually I can breathe more easily and sleep with my mouth shut and so not have a sore throat in the morning, maybe!

That’s all a bit grim! So let’s backtrack to the end-of-month barbecue with Nick and Carolyn before they went away. (Friends on Facebook stop here, ‘cos you’ve seen these!) 8am: Sunshine on the hill over the river, but not on the terrace yet:11am: Blue skies and things are warming up, though there’s a slight ‘nip’ in the air: DSCN0849 1pm: Sticky chicken wings get us going while the salmon fillets are on the Cadac: DSCN0851 Time to consult the library?Wild Turkey, Man!

October at Sunejo.

At the start of the last post, I said we’d ‘seen the year round’. Of course that was the case only in that Sunejo has been our home for a year. We didn’t ‘see’ October last year because we were busy with a wedding, a birthday, and meeting Grandchildren in England and Wales! We’ve had a beautiful month with very little rain, and autumn has really only just arrived. Sonnac’s only real ‘industry’ is the orchards and harvesting the apples has been a major activity, with trailer loads of fruit passing the house (behind tractors!) almost every day. That’s although most of the orchards are on the village side of ‘Sunejo’, so we wouldn’t be aware of activity there.

The field on three sides of the house has been harvested, ploughed, harrowed, treated and possibly sown, we’re not quite sure. What has surprised us is how much of that work has been carried out late at night – as late as 1 in the morning the night the clocks changed! Maybe work in the orchards has to take priority in daylight whereas the tractor’s lights are adequate for working the field.

The sunflower fields turned black before being harvested, which has just taken place, but most of the maize is still standing. The swallows have gone, but the wagtails and redstarts are active and today (October 30th) we saw the robin for the first time since spring. As it happens, today was also the first day when, travelling home from Limoux, I noticed there had been a significant snowfall on the High Pyrenees. Maybe autumn is here. Nevertheless, as late as this Monday – the day the storm hit the UK – our poolside thermometer showed 35° in the sunshine and the water was holding up at 23 / 24. There has been a significant drop in temperature since then, so maybe swimming is over and we must learn about winterising the pool. Still, we’re hoping to entertain Nick and Carolyn to a lunch-time barbecue tomorrow – earlier this month they entertained us to a lovely evening with apéro on the square in front of ‘Chez Maison Bleue’ and dinner inside.

A few days later Nick came round with his rotovator to make a start on my planned vegetable patch. Before: DSCN0815

During: DSCN0818

After: DSCN0823

That really was a great start, and I’ve done a bit of digging since to break up the soil so that the frost can get at it over the winter. Just a bit at a time so as not to aggravate the hip; I haven’t done it all yet.

As for that hip, the consultant thinks it’s too soon to do a replacement, so he’s going to see what an injection can do. I can only hope he’s giving good advice! Before that, another consultant is going to operate on my nose! Not really a ‘nose job’ but an attempt to help me breathe more easily and sleep with my mouth closed, so not waking with a sore throat every morning. That’s set for next Friday.

Now here’s a thing! When we were in Mirepoix with Trevor and Pam (see last post) we noticed that the ‘Mad Hatter’ restaurant was having a Fish and Chips night! Orders were to be placed via the internet – a visiting Fish and Chip Man (English) came and took over the kitchen for the evening. Everything was as authentically English as it could be (except the wine!); the frying, the bread and butter, the paper, the mushy peas:

DSCF1762

Someone seems less than happy with the (small) quantity of wine! DSCF1763

but it still put a smile on his face! DSCF1764

We found that this event was part of Mirepoix’ “Fête de la Pomme”. Evidently the region, including Sonnac, though strictly speaking we’re in a different county, produces such an excess of pommes that a novel use must be found for them: DSCF1772

Hundreds of apples, individually secured by elastic bands to metal frames on the square represented all types of means of transport. We just had to go back next day and have another look. After parking the car, as we got near the square we heard sounds of Country and Western music, then we found a troupe of (French) line dancers performing to an ever-faster version of ‘Pick a Bale o’Cotton’: DSCN0826

Had to take a closer look at the ‘Apple Steamer’:

DSCN0828

‘The Sirens of the Hers’ Hmmm …….. Is that Carol and Carolyn? DSCN0829

On yer bike, Carol! DSCN0830

Apple decorations were everywhere, while the market place was full of stalls selling (mainly) apples and apple-related produce. DSCN0833

Time to take off:

Stop chatting up the pilot! (And give me my stick back!) DSCN0840

We’ve been disappointed by the lack of progress in getting Harry’s skylight repaired. The place we went to in Pamiers – two months ago! – haven’t even given us a price and ordered the part yet. So we’ve given them the elbow and turned to the very well reputed motorhome centre in Narbonne. It was a longer drive and there’s still a wait, but at least the replacement skylight is on order now.

At home, time to relax and enjoy the sunshine – and the pool! DSCN0766

Finally, a view of the Square in Sonnac Sur L’Hers – as we left Chez Maison Bleue (and Nick tidying up) after that delicious dinner earlier in the month. DSCN0810

YEAR 2 BEGINS AT SUNEJO; we get a new car, our first visitor returns and new ones arrive.

So we’ve seen the year round!

For those who might be interested, and haven’t found them already, I’ve put an album of representative pictures on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006348009110 – don’t know whether that works; someone can try it and tell us. (OK! I tried and it does.)

The second year began as did the first – with a visit from (Cousin) Mark, by motorbike:

He had better weather than last year and we were free to entertain (no removal men!) so we fitted in a trip to Andorra where a mountain biking event was taking place below the cable car;

and one to Puivert Castle:

Though a heavy shower opened up just before Mark and Carol got back to the car where I was waiting for them – warm and dry!

Ah, car; yes. We set about finding a replacement for Sally as soon as we got back from England. We found this Citroën C3 in ‘Lucifer Red’, and she’s a former driving school car, which appealed in a quirky sort of way:

I said that with that colour description, it was as well the number plate was 777, not 666! We toyed with calling her ‘Cerise’, but on the way home Carol suggested ‘Lucy’ and so she is. She’s not as excitable as Sally, who used to squawk if you set off with your belt not fastened, even for a short manoeuvre on a car-park. Lucy just jingles politely; and she’s very good at drawing attention to open doors, or key left in the ignition – she even tells us how many kms we can go before we have to fill up.

We have less good news of Harry; the place we called at in Pamiers haven’t got us a new skylight yet and we’re worried about wet weather approaching. We also didn’t dare use him for excursions with the next visitors, which was a bit disappointing.

The day after Mark left we welcomed Trevor and Pam – we stayed with Trevor for three weeks last year while Harry was having that major repair, then in January we went to their wedding. Even without Harry, we enjoyed the ‘usual’ excursions, with trips to Mirepoix on Market Day:

The Church in the Rock at Vals:

A look at the castles of Montségur and Roquefixade:

Carcassonne, on a drizzly day, when Harry would have been really useful (for eating in):

A picnic by the Aude:

followed by a ride on the Train Rouge:

and a drive up – and down Galamus Gorge:

followed by an eve-of-birthday dinner for Pam at Mike’s (Café du Fleuve in Quillan) – Pam & Trevor’s invitation, thank you!

More eating and another willing waiter (to take the photo) next day during Pam’s birthday trip to Andorra; this is at our now ‘usual’ eat-as-much-as-you-like buffet restaurant:

We were a bit disappointed that the cable cars weren’t running – possibly due to insufficient custom between seasons – but since T & P were visiting by car they made the most of the shopping opportunities, contributing adequately to the Principality’s economy. As for photography, cows and horses beside, or even on, the road seemed to be the main ‘focus’ of attention:

During stay-at-home days, Pam & Trevor enjoyed the pool, and were the first of our visitors to do so. Trevor even had a pre-breakfast dip a couple of times, which I haven’t done yet! No photos of any of that, but there’s a nice stay-at-home one to close with: (Peace, Pedants! John Humphreys says prepositions at the end of sentences don’t matter; who am I to argue?!)

A TRIP TO ANDORRA AND SALLY GETS WIND OF SOME BAD NEWS …..

C’était le 31 juillet, M’sieur and M’dame decided to go up to Andorra and buy some stuff, in bottles. –

It wasn’t all in bottles; we bought some other stuff as well.

C’est possible. There were a lot of bottles. After driving over the hill from Pas De La Case, THEY decided to take a ride on a cable car, which THEY have been talking about every time we go up there, but they haven’t done it before.

Yes, we thought it was time to find out what it was like. There was a large multistorey car park as part of the base station, and there was no queue; it would probably be rather different during the winter months.

Though in spite of the 3-week heat wave, there were still patches of snow to be seen near the summits. This particular cable car ride keeps going all year by exploiting other possibilities than skiing. Some of the cabins are equipped with external bike racks – see second photo – so the mountain bikers go up in the cable car and then ride down:

Then at the top there’s a golf course:

After that we did some more shopping and headed for home, arriving in time for a sunset swim.

It was a nice drive, as always, in spite of the extra weight to bring back, but I was a bit worried about something …. I kept hearing remarks about ‘if we sell her’ or ‘what if we don’t sell her?’ … Ils ne parlent pas de moi, sûrement? THEY wouldn’t do that …. would they?

We really did work hard to try to be ready for an early start on Friday morning, packing up everything except the contents of the fridge and hooking the vehicles up just inside the gate, as we did once before, but in spite of getting up before seven o’clock on Friday, it was still after midday before we got away. One issue was that as a first job I put Harry’s fridge on using the gas and during the morning the gas bottle reached empty! It was probably better to have to change it at home than later in the dark and a hailstorm, but it took time. Another thing was that there was far too much stuff in the big house fridge then Harry’s little one could take – bad planning! – and then at the last minute we couldn’t find Carol’s car key. She’d slipped it into a pocket of the apron she put on to help change the gas bottle, then completely forgotten it. We spent about half an hour searching …..

Ja, und es war heiss beim warten! It was hot, waiting for THEM in the sun. But endlich we did get away and drove past the fields of sunflowers:

on the way to fill up with diesel at Pamiers.

But now I know! They said ‘say goodbye to your abri’ before we left and they put a notice in my back window about this little car being for sale! …….. So it’s true; THEY don’t love me any more!

Yes, we do!

Then why are you trying to get rid of me?

Sally, it isn’t like that; but we really need a French car now –

But I am French!

Well, you’re a French make, but you’re made to be used in Britain – your steering wheel is on the right hand side, and anyway rules about towing are different in France and the A Frame is illegal. Not only that; but I’ve change my licence for a French one, and it doesn’t include towing, unless I have a medical. I didn’t know that when I changed it – I thought these things were standard across the European Union.

Well, that’s not fair …

Whoever said life was going to be fair, even for a car, was lying.

So what ARE you going to do if no-one buys me?

Hmmm ….. we haven’t decided yet. But anyway, here’s a picture of the first lunch stop on the way north, with you and Harry taking a break in the shade:

SPLASH!

Tuesday evening, July 2nd, 2013: It seems to have been a long time coming, but we’re ready to go:

And we’re in! But what comes up …..

….. must go down!

Why should HE have all the fun? (Or the embarrassment?!)

And how better to end the day as the sun goes down …

than with some al fresco cooking and eating?

BON APPETIT!

Friends from Puivert Return – A Day Out – and POOL PROGRESS

Remember this?Probably not, but this is the couple from Berlin with whom we played boules at Puivert last summer. We were delighted when they got in touch and said they were in the area again and would like to call. We opened a bottle of Blanquette (though Thomas drinks only beer), played pétanque on our gravel patch, and enjoyed a meal on the terrace, pulling the table well in towards the french window to be out of the wind, and they spent the night in their van, parked next to Harry.

Can’t think why HE’s looking so sceptical – perhaps because HE couldn’t win at pétanque, except when partnered by Thomas, who won every game.

‘After much debate internal’ (a bottle of blanquette for the person who attributes the quote in a comment below), or rather ‘quiet, calm consideration’ (another bottle for saying what that achieves), we have decided to avoid further hassle over insurance, MoT and road tax by importing Harry –

Wie? I’m going to be FRENCH?

Well, you were originally – before you went to Germany.

Anyway, as a first step we had to have the work on the rear lights which we had done last year in England reversed! Then we needed the ‘Contrôle Technique’, the French equivalent of the MoT (repeated every two years). So we took both vehicles to the Ford dealer in Lavelanet one day last week, and left Harry there for the day. After a bit of a delay at the ‘Orange’ shop – we’re going to have to change my mobile phone number – we went exploring in Sally.

Mais oui, c’était magnifique! First we went up to the col at the foot of Montségur. (Google that – it’s an amazing site, and the scene of one of the worst atrocities of the ‘crusade’ against the Cathars.)

Ensuite, we went up to the ski station at Les Monts d’Holmes. No snow now, and practically deserted, it was all a bit moche. Actually THEY were looking for a viewpoint shown on the map, where pique-nique might have been possible, but we could not find it. Never mind, we ended up at the village of Roquefixade, with another château on top of a cliff:And at the foot of the cliff, there was a parking area with a magnificent panorama:

where we picnicked in the company of a very friendly native:

Though maybe her friendliness was due in part to mendacity, and the wisdom gained from past experience; either way, I’m sure she had as good a late lunch as we did, though hers would not have been the first of the day!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the work we’ve put in – or mainly Carol has put in – to beautify the immediate surroundings is beginning to show, with tubs on the terrace:

baskets above the patio, and where the unsafe awning was removed, we’ve invested in a large parasol with a heavy, but moveable base, and a choice of seating, reclining or lounging:

The water feature which was a wedding present from Marjorie and Norman can be seen under the window, looking after the lettuces, and in case you’re wondering why there’s a hosepipe trailing across the terrace, here’s the news we’re most excited about, apart from Rachel’s Baby and Chris’s Children (include Sean and Michelle, of course!) – a new liner has been fitted in the pool and it is being filled! We expect to jump in it one day this week. With the weather as it is (80° in the shade at 10am), it shouldn’t take long to warm up!

O – oh! Showers are forecast for Wednesday! But temperatures over 30°C are likely by Saturday ……

A CANAL TRIP, AND THE SUN SHINES ON THE LATEST VISITORS.

The Canal Du Midi is a remarkable piece of engineering, now used exclusively by leisure craft. It links the Atlantic to the Med and much information and many pictures can be found by googling Canal Du Midi.

I had an appointment at a Clinic in Colombiers the week after Philip and family were here and we decided to take a short cruise on the canal afterwards from the nearby marina (above), the weather being ideal on this occasion (our third visit).

Our cruise took us through the Malpas Tunnel, with its fascinating, but natural, honeycomb pattern which has grown along the walls:

And, as usual, the natives were friendly, if a little camera shy:

C’est à moi, maintenant! My turn now! It was Monday 10 June when we went to Carcassonne to meet the next guests, Florence and Hilde. The weather was not wonderful that day, but after that there was sunshine for almost ten days until the day they left. And very hot, too.

Sorry, Family!

One day, they did the excursion on the Red Train, and on the way they had the pique-nique at the usual lay-by beside the Aude:

Then the ladies did the train ride while M’sieur and I went by road. Here we are – Little Red Car and Big Red Engine:

The first part of the train ride was along the part of the line we haven’t done before – from Axat through the tunnels and over the bridges of the Aude Gorge to the gravel factory at St. Martin, then back to Axat. Somehow I got taken along for free for this bit!

I wondered why you were away so long, leaving me alone with the wild beasts!

Tu exagères encore! You weren’t “alone” and they were hardly wild. But it’s true there was a circus occupying most of the car park at Axat station and there were some lions in a cage quite close to Sally.

Eh bien, voilà! That is what I said. Anyway, here is the train on the viaduc at Lapradelle, where they stop for people to take photos of the Château, and for the guide to say a lot about it.

And if you look carefully at the next picture – or enlarge it, you will see that the little figure on the bridge is M’sieur taking pictures of the train:

I also took one of the castle (Puylaurens):

It was so hot that day, that we did not go on to Galamus as planned after regrouping at Caudiès, but came straight home. However, we did do Galamus and Bugarach another day. Here’s yet another picture of Galamus:

And on the way back we stopped for them to have tea / iced tea or shandy on the square at Rennes Les Bains:

I did get to join in! The day they went to Carcassonne:

The weather was a bit dull to begin with, though it brightened up for the main visit, so they took me in order to have lunch indoors:

Das können vier Leute in Sally nicht! Four folk just can’t eat like that in a little car!

Big show-off! At least I’m allowed up Galamus –

Stop it! You’re both very useful in different ways. I dropped the Ladies off close to the Citadel and a very nice young man in uniform let me drive through the bus lane to get more easily to the motorhome park, where I left Harry (with lots of company!) and walked back to rejoin the party to do the little train ride, as recommended by the previous visitors:

All ready to roll!

So away we go:

Yes, a good one to do, especially for the less agile or in poor weather. But on a hot day, this was very welcome afterwards:

And back at Sunejo, we used the built-in barbecue to prepare supper and provide atmosphere – and a little extra warmth – afterwards:

Wednesday 19th June, another Harry-based lunch on the way to the airport, well, over the road from the airport in fact, then we entrusted the visitors to the staff and to RyanAir (they had booked wheelchair assistance).

We’ll close this entry with a photo of our star guest:

Miss Florence Kirkby (92) MBE

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Tag Archives: Sunejo

THE ‘MISSING’ MONTHS AND A FLYING VISIT TO UK

Dordogne Holiday

SUNEJO DIARY JANUARY 2014

SUNEJO CHRISTMAS

November ….. December ……

Autumn sets in; we’re on chicken-watch; Stephen gets a nose job and Lucy gets a flat tyre (on the same day!)

October at Sunejo.

YEAR 2 BEGINS AT SUNEJO; we get a new car, our first visitor returns and new ones arrive.

A TRIP TO ANDORRA AND SALLY GETS WIND OF SOME BAD NEWS …..

SPLASH!

Friends from Puivert Return – A Day Out – and POOL PROGRESS

A CANAL TRIP, AND THE SUN SHINES ON THE LATEST VISITORS.