Many apologies for not posting a blog since 10th November. The reason being we have been back in the UK for a couple of weeks to catch up with friends and family and celebrate a very good friend’s 50th birthday. As such, this will be a short blog but will let you know we’re alive(!) and back so, hopefully, I will be able to write more regularly in the next few weeks.
Before we left, I did manage to continue with the rendering on the front of the pool house. Having started with one end in the first week of November, I thought I would have to wait until the roofer had dismantled his scaffolding before I could do the rest.
However, as the weather in the week before we travelled remained dry and mild, and so perfect for rendering, I thought I would attempt to work round the scaffold poles and do what I could. As it turned out it wasn’t too difficult to do so I was able to complete the front before we left.
We sailed to the UK from St. Malo which is only 2½ hours from us by road but, as previous years, we took a day to drive slowly cross-country to the port, stopping a couple of times en route to explore some new areas.
We drove via Rostrenen, worth a very brief stop, to the very pretty city of Quintin which is 1½ hours from both St. Cadou and St. Malo and definitely worth a stop if you want to break up your journey.
Quintin is one of France’s small cities of character (as are Roscoff and Locronan closer to us) dominated by a church, chateau and lake.
While we were in the UK, when the weather allowed the roofers also continued their work on, but it seems mostly off, to complete the pool house. Our neighbour, who is kind enough to look after Mouse while we’re away, took a couple of pictures of the work progressing.
We returned home last Tuesday and, thankfully, the roofers finally completed the last of their work the following day. We are really pleased with how it looks although what we had hoped would take 3 weeks maximum has taken almost 6 which may have a knock-on effect with the whole project, especially as we enter the wetter and colder winter months.
The next, crucial, task is to lay the terrace and our tiler hopes to be with us next week although can’t achieve anything if it is wet or less than 5 degrees. Fingers crossed.
For my part, I have started decorating the gîtes for Christmas as we have guests in all the accommodation for the holidays, the first of which arrive on 17th December so I should be able to get things done.
I mentioned in the last blog I wrote, that we didn’t think we would be able to attend many Christmas fayres this year which we enjoy doing, because we were about to leave for the UK. However, we did visit a couple today in Saint-Servais (disappointing) and Berrien (much better!) There are also a couple next weekend so perhaps we will get our fix!
I will write another blog next week!
Salut.