If you are interested, then you may not be too bored. If you’re not interested that's fine (& understandable) - you
therefore have two options; either logging-off by clicking
HERE (Log Off)
, or to email us and let us know what you’d really like to see on the WEB-site.
You can contact us by email - just click
HERE (Email) ,
and we'll get back to you.
The scribblings for 2013 start from here …
Lymington, Hampshire:
We have delayed this year's arrival into France in order to visit some ex-boating friends in the UK. David and Juliet, ex of the hotel barge "Jubilant", who are now living in Lymington, on the south-coast of England. They kindly invited us to come and to spend some time with them at their home before going on to the boat.
We picked up a hire car at Heathrow, and after plugging their address into Emily (the GPS), we drove the easy 2 hour drive down the M3. The weather wasn't very welcoming - low grey clouds and rain, but that was more than compensated for by the warm welcome we received when we arrived. I explained to David that we weren't there for sight seeing, but purely to catch up with them, and hopefully over a glass of red or two.
Lymington is a great little town. On the western end of the Solent it is pinched between the New Forest to the north, famous for its forest ponies, and the English Channel to the south. The ferry to the Isle of Wight runs daily between Lymington and Cowes (I think).
David and Juliet took us to some great places to eat; country pubs, restaurants and we even had lunch at the Royal Lymington Yacht Club. We also had a meal at a pub called "The Master Builders" at Buckler's Hard. It was here at Buckler's Hard that Nelson's famous and favourite ship Agamemnon was built. Her 'master builder' was Henry Adams. The houses where the ship-builders and tradesmen lived are still there. There are two rows of them and the great ships of the day were built between them. When finished, the ships were railed down the slope and floated onto the Beaulieu River and then sailed out into the Solent.
I think Lymington suits David and Juliet well; he is close to the boatyards and water, and Juliet is able to pursue her other great passion, horses. Juliet has a 16.2 Irish horse called John Boy that she keeps at stables just out of town. He's a very looking smart animal (a bit like David). Juliet rides most days in the forest area near to her stables.
Just before we left David & Juliet's, they had visitors arrive via cruise-ship from New Zealand; people we also know - John & Rosemary (from the boat "Vrouwe Petronella"). You meet up with 'boaties' all over the place! It was good to catch up with John & Rosemary, who we normally see in St Jean-de-Losne.
We drove back up to London after a great stay with David & Juliet. All going to plan we should see them on "Histoire d'eau" later in the year.
This year we made our customary pilgrimage to Champagne again, enroute to the boat (stayed in Epernay overnight), and
We stopped at the usual Champagne house; the before and after photos that Pete took, I think, explain what I mean.
(PS: I can't finish here without adding the following addendum however; the Champagne Region in the summer is, without question, a wonderful place to tour. It is a much different place to tour than it is at the moment, in April.)
On the Wednesday morning we headed for the boat at Toul. We arrived and found she was in good condition. She'd coped well with the ice and snow of the Lorraine winter. We de-winterised the systems onboard in the afternoon (all worked well), and spent the night onboard.
The weather has been OK here since we arrived in France, but not what I would call great. However I've included a photograph of the port, taken by the port captain in December 2012, just to remind us that while the weather may not be great, it is indeed not winter weather.
Today we drove down to Sampan (near Dole, in the Jura) to catch up with our friends Helen & Iain. At the same time, since we stayed with them overnight at "le Chateau du Mont Joly", we were able to also meet up with Catherine & Romuald and the girls.
It was a very pleasant trip; good food, good wine and most importantly good friends.
Since coming back from Dole, I have unfortunately come down with a fairly serious cough, &/or flu, &/or whatever. Probably "man-flu" (the worst kind of ailment known to woman-kind!). Anyway, this has slowed us up a little with regard to preparing the boat for this year's cruising. We are just now getting back on schedule (strong antibiotics administered). This year's flowers have been purchased and potted; the herbs are in; new gas bottles, etc. However, we are still not yet completely ready, and since we like it here in Toul, we've decided to extend the hire car for a week and stay a little longer. It's an interesting area, and we think we'll do some local touring (by car).
Today (Tuesday April 30th) has been an interesting day.
Our port, the 'Port de France' in Toul, has just been awarded the "Pavillon Bleu"; a prestigious award for the city of Toul, which places their port and city moorings among the premier facilities in France. The town held a grand opening and a presentation ceremony, attended by Madam Mayor and a large number of other dignitaries from the city and representatives from other ports around France. Pete was even interviewed for both the local radio and by a very nice young woman from the regional TV (channel 'France-03'). A star! The radio interview was in French (I was impressed), but I think they'll probably go with the English version for the TV interview.
Unfortunately the weather wasn't great - it rained quite hard for much of the day. The locals however did not seem to be too deterred; there were plently of congratulatory speeches, local wines and sparklings flowed, and plenty of finger-food was server in the presentation tent. All-in-all, it was a very good day, despite the rain.
It was a very interesting and enjoyable event - something you don't do every day.
You can click here to go directly to the May 2013 web page ...
click here for May 2013 .
(The New Forest was cleared of villages about a thousand ago to service the hunting requirements of William the Conqueror; it is mentioned in the Dooms Day Book.)
The weather has been 'wet & windy' since we've arrived - not nice at all. Apparently the UK has had a tough winter. However, since we've spent most of our time here so far inside, it hasn't been a problem.
2013: Tuesday April 16th to April 30.
FRANCE.
In Transit: Tuesday 16/04/2013 to Wednesday 17/04/2012:
again stocked up on the essentials. I'm always surprised how desolate Champagne looks when we arrive there at this time of the year; end of winter, no new growth yet. How can such a bleak looking landscape produce so much joy!
Sampan: Thursday 18/04/2013 to Friday 19/04/2012:
Toul: Saturday 20/04/2013 to Tuesday 30/04/2012:
Back to the Top...
CLICK HERE