Roses at Bas Etang

 

These glorious specimens are photographed today. Summer isn't over yet.

Oysters at the Ile D'Oleron

 

Yesterday we went to the home of Oyster beds - they are everywhere to be seen. And I can't even stand looking at them, let alone try one to taste!

Beautiful in Angouleme

 

I should have taken a cutting!

The Laurel hedge is shorn

 

Our local friend Dennis is helping us with this mammoth task. The Stihl Hedge Trimmer is a great tool, but the height of the hedge nearly defeats us.

An elaborate church in Civray

 

This exotic architecture takes the biscuit.

Classic cars in Angouleme

 

We went to the annual classic car rally in Angouleme, and saw cars from all over Europe. This little beauty is British, having originated from Italy of course.

Autumn is coming

 

The lilies in the river are retreating into the water, and the leaves are begiining to fall from the trees - a sure sign of the onset of Autumn.

What a whopper

 

A friend came to visit today, bearing this enormous, and very expensive, watch. An Eichmuller. Very impressive, but somewhat "prominent".

A new trailer

 

I decided to upgrade my old trailer by painting it to match the colours of my John Deere tactor mower. After many coats of paint, here is the final result - they now looked a matched pair.

Mother & daughter

 Amanda and her mother, Mimi, are in good form today.

Exercise Bikes

   I now have all the hardware needed to maintain a sleek and fit body. Whoops, the word should be "attain". The bicycle has been lent by a very good friend in Lavausseau, and the static bike, which is a sophisticated German model with LCD displays, has been provided by the French national health service and my private health insurance. In addition, I have a large Oxygen bottle which can refill a small one which I can wear on my back while cycling. Furthermore, a rather attractive lady has been detailed by the Hospital to visit me regularly to check my progress. So, all in all, this breathing problem, which stemmed from 30 years of smoking (stopped 10 years ago), seems to be getting under control.

Swanning around

 

We visited a friend near Saumur today. She has a large river next to the house, and this swan was seen flying nearer to us to get food. We had some scraps of bread for it.

Bastille Day

 

We had a lunch celebration in Lavausseau, held in the communal hall grounds. Then in the evening we went to Parthenay to see the most amazing firework display.

Wild Boar festival

Our village of Lavausseau had a lunch of boar a few weeks ago. About 80 people attended, and a good time was had by all.

Exterior repaint

Our very good friend Dennis Hallas kindly offered to paint our house. He is an Englishman living in Lavausseau. It took him 6 days to finish painting and varnishing the window frames and shutters. Once that was completed he moved onto Bas Etang 2 and did the same there. The finish is superb, and will last for many years.

Vandal in the night

A few nights ago we woke up to find that a car had smashed into our wall. The driver had fled the scene minus his front bumper, and many smaller parts of the car. The wall was not cracked, fortunately, and the application of the paint we used the last time this happened has concealed the effects of the impact. This is the third time this has happened since we have been here.

Our first visit of the season

Amanda's brother, Paul, and his daughter, Rebecca, visited from Sweden, and stayed for a week. They hired a Peugeot 1007 for a few days. On the first day the car was struck in the back by an Audi A6 while stationary. Fortunately, Paul had fully insured the hire, and it was the other driver's fault anyway, and so he didn't have to pay anything.

But, then a problem

I found that the John Deere tractor was unable to cut waist-height grass. I had to then buy this Pubert machine which specialises in clearing tall grass. Though it is motor driven, it is still hard work walking behind it, and steering round objects. However, it functioned perfectly, and, so long as I keep up regular mowing with the John Deere, I shouldn't need to use it until next year.

A new addition to the stable

Having missed the beginning of the grass growing season, I returned from Spain to find the grass at waist-height. Coupled with that, I found that the existing Westwood mower tractor's starter motor had packed up. As the Westwood was probably 20 years old, and beginning to be unreliable, we decided to get a replacement. We settled on the John Deere, which can Mulch, Eject or Bag. It was bought locally from a dealer we have done business with before. Unfortunately, it seems to be twice the price it would have been in the USA.

Back at Lavausseau

I returned to Lavausseau on the 19th after a 6 hour journey from my friends (David & Catherine Marks) at Puymaurin, near Toulouse. I had stayed with them for a couple of days. They live in Nairobi from November to April each year, and the summer in France. They had only been back at Puymaurin for a few days when I arrived, but the beautiful house looked like it had been lived in without a break.

On the way from Moraira, I stopped in Barcelona for a night to break the long journey. The weather during the week in Moraira had been atrocious - cold, raining and very cloudy. The day I left, and ever since, has been glorious.

I called in at Valencia on the 16th, as it was the first day of the America's Cup elimination rounds. Unfortunately, I missed the entrance to the harbour and decided to move straight onto Barcelona.

I managed to stay at a superb hotel for the second time - the Hesperia del Port, which was designed by Richard Rogers, though a 3 star hotel.

Today we reopened the pool, and took greater care than last year in peeling off the plastic cover. The secret is to make sure all the water is emptied from the surface of the sheet before trying to remove it. Last year a lot of the dirty water escaped into the pool.

Regarding my diet, I'm down to 93.5kg today. I had to stop the diet for the last two weeks, in view of my hosts providing such lavish meals. Now that I have returned I have recommenced the diet to achieve my target of 87kgs as swiftly as possible. Already I am down to "M" size shirts from "XXL" versions that I had to wear only 2 months ago. So I'm very pleased with the progress, which is a weight off my mind, if not my stomach!