2004

BACK TO CALENDAR 2004

The "We're Here" Map:

The Map is a "thumbnail", click on it for full size whilst still connected to the web-site

 

Opening of the season, the month, the spring, this year's log, year Two Thousand and Four!

 

  

To see where and what we spend our winters click on this link.   East Cowes, Isle of Wight, with pubs and restaurants offering constant 2 for the price of ones to keep the thin winter trade turning over.

 

Suits us!   Much weight gained.

 

To see where we are now - see map.   We're on Albert, in St Jean de Losne.

 

Trip out - Total HURRY UP and WAIT.

 

Sods law ensured - as usual on these occasions - ferries from the Island to Portsmouth did not match the departure times of ferries Portsmouth-le Havre, so a the 5.00 a.m. Fishbourne-Portsmouth had to be caught.

 

Horrors - flat had to left fit for renters moving in - greater horrors, and much rushing.

 

Coffee on Wightlink, fried breakfast on P & O.

 

Rushed up to get good seat in Club class, to find Tuesday of Easter Week is a non traveling day - boat almost empty!

 

Motored to Vernon - just off the auto-route north of Paris on the Seinne - and home of Monet's garden.   

 

Sorry - this is not Monet - it is Portsmouth Harbour exit - can't get pictures lined up.

 

No, no culture absorbed, we were knackered, but unwittingly found comfortable cheap hotel - Hotel d'Evreux.  Used to be a Logis de France - that's how we found it.   Being touristy sort of town masses of eating places.   We headed for a crepe shop - just the job - spinach and poached egg in a crepe. Sounds revolting, but extraordinarily good.   She called it a "red eyed crepe".   Looked it - and yes, I know, crepe should have an accent, but terribly fiddly on this computer - so crepe is hereby anglicised!

 

Charged off next morning much refreshed, invigorated, and Francophonic. Bought obligatory baguette and quiche lardon for picnic lunch - good, we really have arrived.

 

Into St Jean de Losne at tea time.   We stuck to auto routes throughout.   Not very enterprising, but tried it last autumn, and found it much less wearing than keeping on the Route Nationals and getting lost in every single large town.   I think we paid out about €40.00 in payages.   (That is a very strange Euro sign, but seems to be the best this all singing all wireless terrible cleverclever key board will do).  The thing is, French Auto-routes/motor ways, except around Paris, don't seem nearly as frenetic as ours, and have almost wall to wall stopping places complete with loos of the 2 footmark squat type and lots of picnic places.

Overjoyed to be re-united with a rejuvenated Albert, currently sitting right under the passerole leading up to the office.   Thin moorings for a thin boat.

Great welcome from the office - almost began to think we were their favourite people, rather than neck-thorn

 

Joys - the mile long weed had been blasted off Albert's below water sides (in the past we have always done this ourselves - but ...........!), and reblacking done.

Amazed to find inside clean, dry, and smelt sweet.    Coupled up lekistry, turned on our 2 heaters and went up to the Hotel du Pont for supper.   For once - and rarely - they were open!   Good supper.

 

So to bed - warm comfortable - and - needless to say - happy.

 

Since then - forty million odd jobs - all desperately urgent, but major ones 

Complete cleaning - 6 months dirt!

replacing engine starting battery (existing 1 is 7 years old), and 3 domestic batteries - brought from marine electrical guy  on the quay at Cowes - Wroath)

Got engine going.   Apparently liked 6 months holiday too much - wanted 7.  Panicked, and called base mechanic, this frightened engine so much it started.

Fitted bits to domestic water pump and pressure accumulator (last year the shower was either cold, or burnt our bums - no half way comfortable stage) and pump keeps blowing fuzes - 2 this year already.

draining, cleaning and re-filling fresh water tank.  Dreadful palaver - have to empty by pumping through basin and sink
Computer - not the same as last year.   Simplified, slimmed down, wireless keyboard and mouse (no table or mat required - just wave it in the air) - (hope the keyboard is water proof - just dribbled Bordeaux onto it)  built in CD writer thing so last year's disaster of all photos lost should not be repeated.   Still a ghastly net-work of wires and little black plug transformers.

Got CD player going.   Damn thing wouldn't work - completely forgotten that there is a volume control on both player, and radio it plays through.   Default position on player - selected when power switched off - is minimum.  Turned it up to full on radio and it yowled at us.   Stupid thing.

Lots of other things, but seems each project - never mind how simple - takes half a day, so we'll probably still be here faffing about in 2010.

That's all,     so will try that dreaded job of transmitting this.   

 

Did we tell you, France Orange cut us off last month.    Deeply wounding.  Pay their winter bills 3 months in advance up front, to save bank charges.   They "lost" the International draft, although a large credit was shown on our invoice and decided we hadn't paid - and chop.   3 days on the telephone from the Island in fluent French, before we got reconnected.  Actually, reckon they were taking the mickey - probably trying to get at Blair about Iraq through us.