At last, a bit of time to get the blog up to date. The month started very quietly but has gathered pace towards the end with lots of things taking up my time. The most notable of these is the arrival of a lovely “new” dog, Bounty. We were unbelievably sad when Chester died and the house felt so empty. Geoff still went off for his walks but somehow without a dog it just wasn’t the same. So we started to ask around and visited the local animal refuge. Unfortunately, there were no dogs there which pulled at our heartstrings and we began to think it was too soon after losing Chester to find another dog we could love as much. We even went to look at some puppies which were for sale but Geoff nearly had a coronary when he found out how much a puppy would be! Then, by chance, we saw a notice in the dog grooming parlour in Issoire asking if someone would re-home a dog. We rang up and the next day the lady brought Bounty (pronounced Boonty) to see us (and to see if we were suitable too). He is a beautiful dog, a Breton Spaniel(ish – he’s a bit big to be a thoroughbred), 3 years old and full of energy! The owner obviously liked the look of us and we agreed to try the dog for a week to see if he settled and if we liked him. No problems on either side – he cried a bit the first night but after that he seems as if he has been with us all his life! We had forgotten how lively a young dog is and Geoff has taken him for lots of long walks to try and calm him down. When the owner came back this weekend she said she could see a big difference in him! She lives in a small house, with a tiny garden, 3 small children, has a full time job and just hadn’t been able to walk him enough. She was very happy to give him to us and as soon as his re-adoption papers have been verified he is now ours. There is always some paperwork – this is France after all! It is great having a dog again and he has already wormed his way into our hearts – big softies that we are!
The other new arrival is the kitten! We got a phone call to say that the kittens had been born and went to choose the one we wanted. I had set my heart on having a “marmalade” cat this time as the mother is a lovely orange and white cat, but sods law strikes again as the 3 males were ginger and the lone female is grey, black and white striped! And of course I want a female! Anyway, she (Maisie) is very cute and should be with us in a few weeks time when she is old enough to leave her mum.
I only hope that Bounty likes her – and not to eat either!
We have been out and about a bit this month. When Hazel was here we went to visit the old paper mill near Ambert (Moulin Richard le Bas) and really enjoyed the interesting tour there. We also took advantage of a free entry day and went to look at the Chateau Villeneuve-Lembron which is quite near here. It has amazing interior wall decorations and is well worth a visit. Slowly but surely we are building up our knowledge of the local attractions so that we can tell our visitors about them and these two places will definitely be recommended. We have discovered another new walk near Sauxillanges too which at this time of the year is lovely as it follows a small stream and the birdlife and wild flowers were fantastic when we walked there the other day. Another recommendation! Talking of birdlife – we heard our first cuckoo on April 4th – and he/she has not stopped calling since then!
On the business front, Geoff is STILL waiting for his agree number from the prefecture in Clermont Ferrand. He has had to supply two extra bits of paperwork (oh how the French love their bits of paper!) and is anxiously watching for the post each day now. He gets very excited when a likely missive arrives only to get very cross when it turns out to be another request for yet more information! He has got another two new private clients for his language lessons though so that is good news.
As for the gite and B&B – we had another lovely family in the gite for a week during the Easter holidays and they had a great week enjoying the countryside. They wrote very nice things about us on the advertising site which was much appreciated. We have a Dutch couple arriving tomorrow for a nights B&B. They are keen to look at the village school in St Etienne sur Usson which was made famous in the film Etre et Avoir. This film was a huge success in France and we often get people wanting to see the school. Then next week we have some friends from Marple visiting us for a few days, and I am really looking forward to showing them around a bit. The summer bookings are going well with the gite now booked for most of July and August. Good news indeed!
The brocant season has started here now with brocant (a mix of car boot sale and antique fair) events most weekends in the surrounding villages. We went to the big brocant event in Sauxillanges a couple of weeks ago and enjoyed looking at all the “precious items” (or tat depending on your viewpoint!) for sale. I am always amazed at the prices the stall holders ask though, which in my opinion are way too high. I have been looking for a statue or something like that to go in a corner of the garden which could do with a bit of a “feature”, and thought I had found just the thing at Sauxillanges. It was a very dilapidated iron cherub, very rusty and sad looking, but I thought, with a lot of work and paint, it would do. Geoff’s face was a picture when he was told the asking price was 100€! Needless to say my garden is still cherub less! I shall continue the search!
The Tupperware party season has also started again much to my horror. How can I convince these lovely ladies here that I DO NOT WANT ANY MORE TUPPERWARE with out offending them! Your suggestions are very welcome – as long as they are polite!