Sweet shop in La Rochelle

 

This is how classy a sweet shop can be in France. Imagine that in the UK. No, I thought you couldn't.

More customary view of La Rochelle

 

This is a very desirable view of the harbour's edge. We had a snack in a beautiful bar - mussels in curried sauce for me, and a sandwich (a foot long) for Amanda.

La Rochelle harbour

 

We went to La Rochelle to pick up our friend Dennis, who was arriving from Bristol via EasyJet. We took the opportunity to go into the town. I took this photo by the harbour wall as I was intrigued to see schools of fish in the dirty water. Click on the photo to enlarge it to reveal the fish.

An idyllic setting

 

This view of the river, La Boivre, at Bas Etang was taken today. It is as breathtaking a view as the picture indicates.

Another enhancement

We've just acquired this cover for our outside table and chairs. We were getting a constant drip of cuckoospit from the froghopper insects that live in the rather large tree above the table. Now our guests can eat our "grub", without fear of confusion with the tree dwellers above.

Robot cleaning of the swimming pool

 

Today we opened the pool for the summer. The green machine in the front of the picture automatically cleans the floor and sides of the pool. It is programmed to work continuously for 3 hours, and can stretch to all the surfaces. It never tangles the blue electric cord, and works non-stop to produce a sparklingly clean pool, without seeming to miss a speck. It cost 990 Euros, and is made in the USA.

Beautiful house

 

Today we visited some friends in a nearby village. Their house is quite delightful. Here is just a very small part of their extensive house and grounds.

Armistice 1945

 

To commemorate the Armistice in France the people of Lavausseau gathered together in front of the memorial. All the names of the fallen from both Wars were read out. In this picture the recently appointed female mayor of Lavausseau can be seen with the mayor of the neighbouring commune of Benassay on her right.

Satellite installation

 I now have a Satellite connection for my PC. I have a Hauppage PVR (Personal Video Recorder), and using an excellent File conversion utility, Tunebite, that facilitates the transfer to my iPod Touch. I also have an Apple dock to view video from the Touch on the TV too.

High drama at Bas Etang

This car was travelling behind a tractor this afternoon. The female driver was approaching too fast, and failed to notice the tractor in time. The car swerved to the other side of the road, straight into our wall. I was only aware of the event because of the sound of the sirens. I guess a modest contribution by the insurance company of 2,000 Euros might help to patch up the wall! This is the fourth time that a vehicle has struck our walls since we came here 3 years ago. The road alongside the house has been completely relaid with an excellent surface in the last few months, and the 7 bollards adjacent to the bank next to the swimming pool wall were replaced only a few weeks ago. But it seems that all this expensive work provides no protection from inattentive drivers. When I took the photograph of the police, the female Adjutant came over and asked whether I had focussed on them. She said that people are not allowed to photograph police, and she was quite upset. So, I am taking an enormous risk in publishing these photos!

Lengths to go for the perfect picture

 

Mark was determined to get the best photograph possible. I never did see the result!

Hare today......!

 

I know it is difficult to see right in the middle of the picture, but we had a visitor today - a hare. It was quite oblivious of me, until spotting me as soon as I clicked the camera.

Hail to the Chief - at Lavausseau

 

Surprisingly, we had hail today for the first time in ages, as this graphic photo shows. Within the hour, the sun was out and a glorious day continued.

The flowers are beginning to bloom

 

Today I noticed that the first flowering Daffodil appeared in our flower beds. It has been warm and sunny all week, and today has had a very clear blue sky.

The MG is back

Yesterday I collected the MG from the garage. Apparently, rust got into the gearbox, and they were able to clean off the rust and restore the drive. They have told me that I must drive the car regularly to avoid a recurrence.

The MG is unwell

 

The other day I went to drive the car, and found I couldn't get it into gear. I could do so while the engine was off, but not whilst started. If I engaged gear first, and then started the engine, there was no drive. I'm rather perplexed, and fearing a costly repair. I'm awaiting our local garage to come this afternoon to carry it carefully back to their workshop.

The river sleeps

 

Apart from the occasional coypu running across the land, and diving into the water, the teeming river life lies dormant at this time of year.

Devoid of colour

 

At least we have been spared snow and deep frosts so far this Winter. I can't wait for Spring to arrive, and the flowers to burst forth.

Am I breeding Moles?

 

Judging the number of hills in my field, and knowing that I had a fraction of the number last year, I can only think that the area is extremely popular with all the moles in the village. When Spring arrives I am going to clean the grass up by scalping all the hills, and carting away the earth. I can't do much about the moles, as there seem to be too many of them. Little blighters!

Shopping in Poitiers

 

This is the best shopping centre in Poitiers, taken at Xmas. The FNAC store shown is an excellent place for Computers, TVs, Digital Cameras and Books.

Amanda

 

Taken on New Year's Eve, Amanda views 2008 with caution.

Panasonic Headphones

 

I have had so much trouble with headphones over the years. Either the earpieces keep falling out, regardless of the choice of the size inserted, or the sound quality is inferior. I have just bought these Panasonic headphones (RP-HNJ300) and they are excellent. Highly recommended.

iPod Touch

 

I recently acquired an iPod Touch (16Gb), as well as a case from Sena. Though I already had an iPod (3rd Gen.), this new product is excellent. I'm able to view movies on it, or on the TV via a special Apple A/V cable and dock. The WiFi internet access is brilliant, and there are new web sites coming online every day that specialise in content optimised for the iPod Touch. For example, www.seeqpod.com allows you to find tracks from all major artists, and play them immediately at a very high quality level. I just can't recommend this product enough.

Amanda visits Limoges

 

We took our friend Dennis to the Limoges airport, and took the opportunity to walk around the town itself.

A proud owner of Bas Etang 2

 

Jason visited us a few days ago to celebrate Amanda's birthday.