And Capture Them We Did
After all my worries and stressing out, we actually did manage to capture Percy and Ginger without too much difficulty. What a relief! While I know it helped not having the other furries around, a little starvation certainly drove them to eat their food inside the capture cages.
My main worry was that we’d capture one of them in full sight of the other – who would then freak out and do a runner on us. With only three days to go (we’re leaving this coming Saturday), my fingers (and toes) stayed well crossed.
As it happened, we captured Ginger first in one of Leslie Frasier’s larger capture cages. Nigel hid behind the kitchen door and as soon as I saw the cat well inside the cage, he pulled the string et voilà!
A couple of hours later it was the turn of Percy.
Yesterday evening we met with Leslie and did the hand-over. It was a sad moment (I do wish I wasn’t so soppy) as I tried to hold back the tears, telling myself that we were picking them up in January and to stop being so silly and upset. But I was – upset that is.
The dogs are now back with us and enjoying being home. I feel like God for the moment as I know the adventure that awaits them and they don’t. Odd feeling!
A Room With A View
- At October 4, 2011
- By alice
- In France, Photography, Property Filming
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Imagine waking to such an incredible view. Every day. This was the sunrise yesterday morning from the hills behind Tourrettes-sur-Loup and, as luck would have it, this is the view that I woke up to.
After we filmed this property last Thursday, there was little doubt in my mind that sunset and sunrise from there would be spectacular. I therefore asked if we could return a few days later to film these two events – which is how I came to wake up myself to this stunning view.
At my feet lay the entire French Riviera and vastness of the Mediterranean Sea and above me an immense unblemished sky as far as my eye could see. This view would have moved me at the best of times but it was particularly emotional as this is my last week of living on the French Riviera and so, as it turned out, I was able to bid a discreet and sad farewell to a much beloved region before I departed.
Packing has now started in earnest and I am yet again surprised at how much there is still to box up. Yesterday I did all the DVDs, books and magazines – today I’m packing up my office- tomorrow I’m making a start on the kitchen.
We have now set up the capture cages for Percy and Ginger and with luck these two rascals will be captured in time to hand over to Leslie Frasier (Les Chats du Mercantour) tomorrow evening as she is kindly looking after them until we come to pick them up in January.
Watch this space!
Scouting through France with the MG
On Monday it was the turn of the MG to be driven through France and, barring a slight detour, up to Belaugh; a journey of just under 1,000 miles. Our itinerary was simple: Peymeinade, Avignon, Valence, Lyon, Dijon, and Troyes with an overnight stay in Buchères, a small village just south of this ancient town.
We stayed at what we have come to affectionately call The Cabin (in reality a Première Classe hotel) as the size of the shower rooms remind us of those found on ferries. This particular hotel is located next door to a Campanile, so after winkling ourselves out of the MG, we made our way over to their restaurant, where I must confess I ate 1kg of Moules Marinières – their evening special . . .
The following day we whizzed up to Reims, Béthune and Calais where we caught the Channel Tunnel. This time our destination was Gilwell Park, rather than Belaugh, so, after going through the (wretched) Dartford Tunnel, we took the M25 anti-clockwise to Waltham Abbey and Gilwell Park Conference Centre to attend an IOV workshop being held there (more about that workshop in ABW).
Dating back to the 1400s, Gilwell Park today stands in 108 acres of mature parkland, and offers conferences, corporate activity days, wedding receptions and parties. But more importantly, since 1919, it is the home of the International Scout Leader training centre created by Robert Baden-Powell.
His small green caravan trailer, nicknamed Eccles, and presented to Baden-Powell by the Boy Scouts of the World in 1929, still exists much to Nigel’s astonishment. For he, like so many boys in his early teens, was a scout and remembered seeing the caravan when he attended scout camp at Gilwell Park in the 1960s.
Which probably explains why he’s such a very good navigator . . .
Simon’s Elixir of Life
- At September 19, 2011
- By alice
- In France, Friends, Peymeinade
- 0
We have a rather excellent supermarket in Grasse called Leclerc who stock one of the best selection of wine bottles I have ever seen in my life. Not only that, they stock the most amazing range of rosé wines and it is there that we would find a fantastic rosé labelled Pink Floyd – a wine our friend Simon Moxley loves to bits.
Over the years, whenever he came to visit us in France or we’d visit him in the UK we’d buy a couple of bottles for him and he’d literally be in 7th Heaven at the thought of tasting it again.
So prior to his recent visit, yours truly dashed over to Leclerc to buy a couple of bottles of Pink Floyd. There were none. Zilch. ‘Must have sold out’ I thought. He too drove over there a few days later, hoping to buy a case full. Still nothing on the shelves.
Could we find it on the internet we wondered? And we did and discovered that it is issued from one of the most historic domaines of Provence: Château Miraval. We also discovered that the Château, winery and extraordinary vineyard was rented by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie (if you’re a wine-buff you’ll enjoy reading this article by Elin McCoy) and that this particular rosé is now just made for export. Which is fine if you live outside of France – which Simon does.
But a man weeping into his hankie after driving over 900 miles to enjoy his favourite tipple is not a pretty sight. What could I do? And then yours truly had a brain-wave. Off I drove to the tiny hamlet of Plascassier and popped into their Super-U supermarket. There they stock a sublime wine grown from a small vineyard in Mougins, Vigne de Pibonson, that produces a gorgeous rosé (cuvée Nicolas) and a delicious white (cuvée Christopher).
The day, and evening and Simon’s holiday were saved!
