May 18th 2019
We are off to France shortly.
Neighbours in Australia landscaping their garden.
EXCITING TIMES:
We fly out on the day Australia holds its General Elections, May 18th. Because of this we were allowed to vote early which we did a couple of weeks ago. Great feeling as we can now ignore all the hype. Apparently, with a week to go, 3 million Australians have voted already. Out of a total of 15 million that's quite extraordinary.
China and the USA are having a spat over tariffs. So, as we are flying China Southern Airlines we are hoping we don't get detained in Guangzhou in retaliation!
When we do get to France it will be on a Sunday the day the "Yellow vests" have been out on the streets of Paris protesting. Hopefully we don't get caught up in any of that.
Meanwhile Britain is thrashing about with its struggle over Brexit. Hope we don't get spat on when we arrive in France!
We have booked in at Rydges Airport Hotel, Sydney, for the night before we fly out because the flight is at 10am and we want to get to the desk early. To get there Liz will collect us and take us to Mulgrave railway station where we use our $2.50 pensioners concession on the train to Central. All very civilized! Thanks Liz.
View from our hotel window.
MAY 24TH
Pleased to report we arrived safely.
China Southern airlines looked after us well and staff were pleasant and helpful.
One negative. They have a routine whereby they come with a drinks trolley. A while later the meal trolley arrives but by this time your drink is gone and they have none with them!
Checking in at Sydney Airport we were given seats on opposite sides of the aisle for the first leg from Sydney to Guangzhou, in China. We told the check in lady that we were unable to book our seats "on line" and could we change the ones we had been allocated.
Her first comment was "Yes, China Southern crashes all the time!!" Very reassuring!! Of course, she was referring to the computer.
She then told us we could get two seats together but we would have to pay for them. Ah ha! we thought, here it comes! We had been congratulating ourselves for booking back in October and paying only $A1080.00 each for return flights to Paris. That price had risen to $A2500.00 a couple of days ago so we were expecting the worse. "How much will it cost?" we asked. $A20.00 each she said!! "We'll take them!"
The sound system was not good, those flat sponge things. The Ads, of course were clear but for movies it needed a finger to press the earphone hard against the ear. On the second leg to Paris the sound system was much better but this time we were at the rear of the plane and once the engines kicked in it was hard to hear anything at all! At least we arrived safely.
PARIS:
Problems again, like last year, at Paris CDG airport finding a phone to call Eurodrive, the car lease company. It was Sunday so, despite the fact there were thousands of people arriving, the Information counter was firmly shuttered and there are no public phones anywhere. Fortunately a security guard helped us out using his mobile phone.
The car we got is a Satria Sandero Stepway and BLUE! Very minimalistic but with a great sound system and Sat Nav.
Lease car at motorway rest stop.
GUEMENE
We called in to Gail for a drink after 30 hours on the go and found she and friend Jenny whom we met last year in good spirits.
OUR HOUSE:
The house smelled a bit musty which was not surprising as my efforts to stop leaking gutters last year were not 100% successful and we had mould in the corner of the front bedroom and on the ceiling of the TV room. The rest of the house was fine helped no doubt by the efforts of Bob and Andrea, Scottish near neighbours, who had been in to the house and running the dehumidifier. Removing litres of moisture from the air they said.
Leaves in the back garden. Comes with being surrounded by trees. The staircase has been put there by neighbours who thought it might be useful!
TWO PROBLEMS.
The first was no telephone or internet despite having 33 Euros a month automatically deducted from our bank account since we left last August. The other was a large form I had received in Australia from the Mairie of LOCMALO which is the jurisdiction the ruin falls into. It looked ominous and hinted at a new tax.
The second problem was easily fixed. The elaborate form was just to announce that the land now had a new identification code. All it needed was a signature!
The telephone/internet was not so easy. It required a round trip to the office in Pontivy 25 km away where I received no more than an assurance someone would call by in a few days.
I was stunned when not long after I got back this truck with elevating work platform turned up.
It took him about half an hour to sort things out. The internet was on immediately and the telephone promised for the next day which is a bit unusual as its normally the other way round. We now have both. The French here speak with a very heavy accent not at all like you are taught. I had great difficulty understanding him so don't know if they are going to blame the malfunction on us or not.
NEW DOORS:
We acquired two new doors and a doorframe some time ago. It looked like a doable job and we were falling over them. Also a quiet inside job to do while getting over jet lag.
Before.
After. Huge difference with the amount of light getting in.
NEW PIECE OF FURNITURE.
Our Scottish near neighbours were given this French made stand by friends of theirs near Glasgow, Scotland. They brought it all the way here to find it didn't fit in with their decor so thought of us. Looks good in the kitchen. Cost a bottle of whisky! Phillipe, who lives across the road and is an Ebeniste by trade (Cabinet maker and restorer) thinks it could have come from the southern parts of North America. There is a Mexican influence.
The corner has also been reorganized to balance the new arrival.
MAY 26th
As usual we pause to remember our mums, both with this birth date. Betty Barker would be 106 and Sarah Steedman 95 today.
UNPLANNED NEW STUFF
One of our favourite hardware stores, Mr Bricolage, is holding a clear all sale. Everything at half price to make room for new owners.
So we have a pot belly stove for the kitchen which we had no plans to buy, new carpet for second bedroom ready for royalty arriving in a week and a battery powered lawnmower!
The lawnmower should be interesting. The old petrol powered one had been playing up and there was an outside chance it may not be serviceable. This new one has a Li-ion battery and hopefully will be man enough to look after our patch of grass which is too far away for a power cord.
Now all this wood burner needs is 9 metres of stainless tube duct from stove to chimney top! At almost 30 Euros a metre it will cost more than the stove!
GETTING READY FOR VISITORS
New carpet being laid in guests bedroom.
Sue and Sally arrived at Rennes Airport having flown from Exeter. We had trouble finding the airport which was not well signposted and the Sat Nav seemed to have no idea where it is. We tried all sorts of search words to no avail. By the time we arrived the plane had already landed even though we had given ourselves ample time.
Our guests were not in the happy frame of mind we were expecting as they had been DUDDED by Flybee, the low cost airline. Both Sue and Sally had immaculate mini suitcases purchased because the dimensions fitted the advertised size restrictions for carrying on board.
Neither case would fit into the Flybee frame at check in and they had been charged 40 pounds extra each one way and their bags put in the luggage hold. They understandably were fuming as this was half the return fare. They complained to Flybee staff at Rennes who tried them in two jigs they had and they complied. They were given pass tags immediately for the return trip. "They are more particular in Exeter" said the staff member.
Complaint waiting to be processed!
PLOERDUT
A medieval festival is being held in the nearby town.
Sue and Sally contemplating some medieval food. The Medieval sausage sandwich was not cheap at 5 Euros (something lost in translation there I think!). Then the sausage fell to the ground in an attempt to halve it so it really did become medieval but tasty after brushing off the grit!
GUEMENE
Standing outside the bakery opposite Gail. Just been reopened by new owners. Not sure I like the GREY colour though it's the IN thing!
Friends Jan and Ian from Brisbane drop by on their French Odyssey.
RENNES
We stayed at the APPART'CITY RENNES, BEAUREGARD for 2 nights at 187 Euros for the four of us. Great arrangement but with a few initial drawbacks.
Firstly couldn't get into the apartment as it wouldn't unlock and had to call for help. Then later I had to climb out of a window as the same lock wouldn't open from the inside! One of us got locked into a bathroom because they couldn't open the door by turning the lock from inside. Worked OK using a coin in the slot provided on the outside so some WD 40 needed. Bit scary.
Another negative was no English language television (not even CNN news) so we had to resort to old fashioned talking!
I parked the car in the basement car park where there were about 60 parking spaces. I could count the cars parked on both hands so wondered why I had been allocated a space as far from the entrance as possible and in a giant puddle! Two of the cars had not been moved for years judging by the dust on them, which I thought a bit odd in a modern looking building and finally you didn't need a door open clicker for a pedestrian to get out of the park. Guess what? I left my clicker in the car, as I am sure many others have done, so later had to ask for a duplicate to get the car out!
The facilities were excellent once the obstacles had been overcome. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a personal outdoor area.
Sort this roof mess out!
Mr Bastard was once the mayor of Rennes.
CANCALE
We did a day trip North from Rennes taking in Cancale, St Malo and Mont St Michel.
Cancale is famous for its oyster beds.
Note the high tide mark on the rock in the background. The tidal movement is enormous here.
ST MALO
A fashion show is in progress on the beach front.
Note the maintenance man in the window of the attic roof. Not a lot of attention paid to health and safety here!
Medieval game on the parapet. The object is to catch the sticks as they drop. Controlled by the bloke in glasses.
MONT ST MICHEL
Section of the crowd leaving as we arrived on the elevated roadway to the mainland.
Sue and Sally flew back to Exeter from Rennes on 16th June.
Sue observed that plaster was breaking away from the wall in her bedroom. This was the result. After picking away I discovered the old window frame was rotten. More work! Not surprising as the other room was the same when we first moved in.
20th June
Not good News. Got word today that Garth, an old friend the same age as me, died in March. He had been unwell for some time but it was still a surprise.
27th June
LADIES WORLD CUP SOCCER
Tonight England play Norway in the Quarter Final. Norway knocked out Australia in a penalty shootout.
The competition has given us an opportunity to socialize with Pat and Robbie who live nearby and have a giant screen with English Language commentary. The standard of soccer is exceptional and has reminded us of how many family affiliations we have these days. England, Scotland, Australia, Holland, Canada, USA and France.
29th June
DEW POINT
Remember "dew point" from school science lessons? It has been cold and wet for much of the time we have been here but a few days ago the temperature hit the 30's deg C outside. A combination of hot humid air and cold tiles resulted in a lake in the back room! Cathy is determined that the dehumidifier will save the fabric on the back of the settee so has had it on almost continuously. I can't help feeling we are attempting to dehumidify the whole of Western France!
WOMENS WORLD CUP SOCCER
England beat Norway 3-nil in an impressive display and will now face the USA next Tuesday after they dispatched France 2-1 last night. There has been a match on every night for a week. The games kick off at around 9pm which works out very well with current lifestyle. The standard of soccer is very high but I'm not surprised after watching granddaughters Kira and Elske's teams play in Australia.
Fortunately Pat and Robbie have English Language reception and a large screen TV so have been down there with beer in hand every day.
Tonight Holland play Italy in a quarter final match in Rennes about two hours drive from here. Too late to get tickets now I imagine. My mistake it was Sweden vs. Germany the other game was elsewhere. Holland and Sweden both won so are in to the semi-finals against each other.
CATHEDRAL CEILING PAINTING
Managed to 95% complete the primer coat on the Cathedral ceiling in the front house. This years principal project.
I used the "Magic" paint roller which I bought from a TV ad in Australia. Worked like a dream on the flat surfaces. You take a cap off the roller and pour about a litre of paint in. I can vouch for it being drip free. Saves you constantly dipping roller in tray.
The old fashioned shaggy roller still needed for rough walls and Cathy preferred to use a brush to do the walls of the nook downstairs.
Flower garden "Au Naturelle".
