I mentioned at the end of last week’s blog that the weather had turned for the better and we were promised another dry week which we enjoyed. In fact, I don’t believe that I am even saying this, in Finistère, in April, we are almost reaching drought conditions as everything is exceptionally dry which isn’t great for the garden or our pots but does have some advantages.
We had David’s Dad, Roger, stay with us for the week and so we had a balance of work and social activity visiting some of our favourite restaurants and trying a couple of new ones that we like to do when personal guests stay with us.
My project work was again focused on the pool house but, unlike last week, hasn’t made the great visual change that painting the walls did.
I said the next step was the tile skirting which I have managed to complete. It has made a big difference despite me not yet having completed the grouting completely. It has also allowed me to use some of the travertine off-cuts that the tiler created when she was laying the terrace.
I will complete the grouting tomorrow after which I can start to build and install the kitchen units – we are definitely on the home stretch with the interior of the pool house.
The other significant addition I have made also involved items that Roger brought out with him, some wall lights for the front of the pool house. There is a long story involved with sourcing appropriate lights that I won’t bore you with here, other than to say some (crazily expensive ones) we originally ordered via our electrician, before the telescopic cover was installed, proved too large and wouldn’t allow us to open the cover if I had used them.
Due to the proximity of the lights to the pool itself, our electrician said that regs dictated the lights be 24 volts so has installed a transformer in a safe place. His supplier (the same one who provided the very expensive, too large, lights) then said that the GU10 bulbs (the ones with the little mushroom(ish) shaped connections) weren’t made in 24 volts versions. Thankfully, a quick online search proved this not to be true and we found some lights we like, that were a size which allowed us to open the telescopic cover even though I have had to recess them into the cladding.
We have now wired everything in as we had intended in our plans which has given us lots of lighting options to create different atmospheres as darkness falls which is why I have taken lots of photos … The only additions will be a couple of table lamps when we have some tables and we have removed the Christmas deer!
We said goodbye to David’s Dad yesterday so today we were able to have a longer Sunday stroll and started in the tiny hamlet of Saint Sébastien which has about 5 houses but an enormous chapel known as the mini-cathedral.
The route was supposed to follow a loop in the river Aulne, part of the Nantes-Brest canal, to the west of Port Launay. One of the other large structures in the area is the viaduct carrying the single line train from Landerneau to Savenay which is very impressive and longer, although a lot less known, than the, slightly taller, Morlaix viaduct.
It was a lovely walk until we reached a Route Barrée sign indicating the path was closed a kilometre ahead. However, in true French style, it was evident the sign had been there some time so there was no urgency to fix whatever the problem was; there was no deviation indicated and, an alternative path on the map had been appropriated by the local farmer who had ploughed the area so there was no way through.
One of the advantages of the dry weather is that the ploughed fields were as dry as dust, amazingly so considering how wet the spring had been, so we were able to walk around the edges although never managed to get back to the canal path!
Another advantage of the warm, dry weather appears to be that our wisteria loves it and looks the best it ever has when in bloom. I may have cracked the trimming regime too!!
Next week’s weather looks more unsettled, although still warm, but my focus will remain inside the pool house. Once the grouting is complete, tomorrow hopefully, I will concentrate on building the kitchen units and, say it quietly, the interior should be finished this time next week.
Salut.