Tillers and Tastebuds

Beer making made simple on board Body and Soul

 

Please note; In due course, photos are to be added to the following text.

I have commissioned myself to write a commentary on how we make beer. Hopefully, you will find it instructive if planning home-brewing as a possible hobby (recommended!)

The Mash. Click for enlarged picture

 This hobby is firstly an indulgence of my friend Paul McDonnell who, having found  a fellow enthusiast with some  experience like mine, decided to build a bespoke wooden cabin, partly for brewing, in the grounds of his cottage in the port of Evran.  My role in this partnership idea was for him to learn from me how to make English Ale with the equipment he was to buy for his brewery. and with my varied, . experience as a semi-professional brewer.

Our  equipment is now large enough to brew 85 litres at a time. The normal brew volume for home brewers is 40 pints or 5 gallons, for which you will need, a 5 + gallon, food-grade plastic dustbin preferably with a screw top airtight lid  - easily available from any reputable hardwear store or, better still, your nearest home-brew shop will sell you one, made of stainess steel and with a convenienient tap at its base. (recommended).  

Professional brewers buy their malted barley from Maltsters, already milled to their specification - that's what Maltsers do in their Maltings which are buildings designed and built for this purpose. The maltster gets his barley from the farmer or from a grain  market.

Notes about maltings (before you start) 

Barley kernels are uniquely suited for brewing because their structure and enzyme levels can quickly and easily break down starches into more fermentable sugars. Specific strains of cultivated barley have tended to stay in narrow geographic regions for thousands of years, and there is very little genetic change over time.

"Ripe"  barley grain is heat-treated on special floors where it is carefully turned over repeatedly for several days at the correct temperatures and humidity until the exact moment the grain has reached the point of maximum sugar content and any particular roast flavour and colouring. (ie each seed kernal is about to sprout)

The next stage is to separate the 'sweet' flour from the husks by grinding (milling) it to the required mixture of flour and husk.

Back to the brewing ...

The milled grain is slowly stirred into carefully prepared hot water starting at around 80 C degrees in a large insulated container called a mashtun. The mash is allowed to settle at approx. 65 degrees for an hour. That is why a  mashtun is a well insulated container.

In the Mashtun the brewer is dissolving the sugar into sweet liquid form. The husks, an important part  of the remainng mix, act as a filter bed which removes the larger particles in the liquid before any further processes need take place. The resultant sweet liquid from the mashtun is now called "Wort" and should look reasonably clear - but this mashing process takes place for as long as it takes to dissolve out as much sugar as possible using techniques which circulate the hot liquor several times at 65 C  - for at least an hour- this is called sparging. In certain instances more hot water is added to extract as much sugar as possible, this is called "Lautering" and is common practice in professional breweries where efficiencies are most important.

The Boil From out of the mashtun the wort is boiled with hops, .sometimes kept separated in a porous bag of muslin. The boil will last for about an hour with various quantities of hops added at various times according to recipe and the style required. You will come to love the smell.... keep up a rolling boil which converts your sugar (starch) to a more fermentable type. By boiling, you are inverting one type of sugar (starch) into another, at the same time infusing the mixture with the hop flavours.

The Fermenter To avoid infection and to aid clarification the boiling liquid must be cooled as fast as possible - there  are many ways to achieve this.

Crash cooling,  involves various ingenious methods to achieve nervana. But as long as the liquid is kept covered or airtight, even 12 hours should be safe enough. One hour would be much safer! The rule is that the faster the cooling, the clearer and safer your resultant liquor (called "wort")

Pitching the Yeast ( There are many different strains of yeast)

Most home brewers use dried yeast .....

Fermentation will last for approximately  8/10 days  at the high end of these temperatures above.

During fermentation the brewer can expect to measure the specific gravity the OG (the "sweetness of the wort") at the start taken at 20C) and after some ten days, the final gravity (FG) when fermentation has ceased.  

OG minus FG say OG 1.063 - FG 1.019 = 0.044/0.0075 = 5.86 abv

The brewer, at this stage, may wish to lower the predicted abv by adding more  of the original water. 

Maturation

https://tillersandtastebuds.typepad.com/tillers_and_tastebuds/training-notes-for-real-ale-service-and-care.html

The liquid that you have in your fermenter can now be called beer but it is immature and not ready for drinking before a period of maturation has  taken place. A minimum of three weeks will see a remarkable change take place both in taste and mouth feel  and its future depends upon what storage system is best suited for its purpose. It is ready for bottling or kegging, either method  must ensure that air is not allowed to affect its storage life.

Corking, capping or spiling activity and the addition of sugar to encourage secondary fermentation and dry hopping become important actions, as does the cleaning and sterilisation of all vessels involved.

Serving/dispensing

So often left out of the whole process however, the importance of pouring beer into a glass properly can seriously affect  the reputation of those who serve it and the pleasure of those who are about to drink it.

The traditional hand-pull pump has the advantage of giving the server control over the speed that the beer enters a clean glass - this rightly assumes that the beer, being a live product, will vary from day to day in terms of the amount of CO2 dissolved within it, and to be knocked out of it as it enters the glass - creating what most people call "a head" or "conditioning."

 This hobby is firstly an indulgence of my friend Paul McDonnell who, having found  a fellow enthusiast with some  experience like mine, decided to build a bespoke wooden cabin, partly for brewing, in the grounds of his cottage in the port of Evran.  My role in this partnership idea was for him to learn from me how to make English Ale with the equipment he was to buy for his brewery. and with my varied, . experience as a semi-professional brewer.

Our  equipment is now large enough to brew 85 litres at a time. The normal brew volume for home brewers is 40 pints or 5 gallons, for which you will need, a 5 + gallon, food-grade plastic dustbin preferably with a screw top airtight lid  - easily available from any reputable hardwear store or, better still, your nearest home-brew shop will sell you one, made of stainess steel and with a convenienient tap at its base. (recommended).  

Professional brewers buy their malted barley from Maltsters, already milled to their specification - that's what Maltsers do in their Maltings which are buildings designed and built for this purpose. The maltster gets his barley from the farmer or from a grain  market.

Notes about maltings (before you start) 

Barley kernels are uniquely suited for brewing because their structure and enzyme levels can quickly and easily break down starches into more fermentable sugars. Specific strains of cultivated barley have tended to stay in narrow geographic regions for thousands of years, and there is very little genetic change over time.

"Ripe"  barley grain is heat-treated on special floors where it is carefully turned over repeatedly for several days at the correct temperatures and humidity until the exact moment the grain has reached the point of maximum sugar content and any particular roast flavour and colouring. (ie each seed kernal is about to sprout)

The next stage is to separate the 'sweet' flour from the husks by grinding (milling) it to the required mixture of flour and husk.

Back to the brewing ...

The milled grain is slowly stirred into carefully prepared hot water starting at around 80 C degrees in a large insulated container called a mashtun. The mash is allowed to settle at approx. 65 degrees for an hour. That is why a  mashtun is a well insulated container.

In the Mashtun the brewer is dissolving the sugar into sweet liquid form. The husks, an important part  of the remainng mix, act as a filter bed which removes the larger particles in the liquid before any further processes need take place. The resultant sweet liquid from the mashtun is now called "Wort" and should look reasonably clear - but this mashing process takes place for as long as it takes to dissolve out as much sugar as possible using techniques which circulate the hot liquor several times at 65 C  - for at least an hour- this is called sparging. In certain instances more hot water is added to extract as much sugar as possible, this is called "Lautering" and is common practice in professional breweries where efficiencies are most important.

The Boil From out of the mashtun the wort is boiled with hops, .sometimes kept separated in a porous bag of muslin. The boil will last for about an hour with various quantities of hops added at various times according to recipe and the style required. You will come to love the smell.... keep up a rolling boil which converts your sugar (starch) to a more fermentable type. By boiling, you are inverting one type of sugar (starch) into another, at the same time infusing the mixture with the hop flavours.

The Fermenter To avoid infection and to aid clarification the boiling liquid must be cooled as fast as possible - there  are many ways to achieve this.

Crash cooling,  involves various ingenious methods to achieve nervana. But as long as the liquid is kept covered or airtight, even 12 hours should be safe enough. One hour would be much safer! The rule is that the faster the cooling, the clearer and safer your resultant liquor (called "wort")

Pitching the Yeast ( There are many different strains of yeast)

Most home brewers use dried yeast .....

Fermentation will last for approximately  8/10 days  at the high end of these temperatures above.

During fermentation the brewer can expect to measure the specific gravity the OG (the "sweetness of the wort") at the start taken at 20C) and after some ten days, the final gravity (FG) when fermentation has ceased.  

OG minus FG say OG 1.063 - FG 1.019 = 0.044/0.0075 = 5.86 abv

The brewer, at this stage, may wish to lower the predicted abv by adding more  of the original water. 

Maturation

https://tillersandtastebuds.typepad.com/tillers_and_tastebuds/training-notes-for-real-ale-service-and-care.html

The liquid that you have in your fermenter can now be called beer but it is immature and not ready for drinking before a period of maturation has  taken place. A minimum of three weeks will see a remarkable change take place both in taste and mouth feel  and its future depends upon what storage system is best suited for its purpose. It is ready for bottling or kegging, either method  must ensure that air is not allowed to affect its storage life.

Corking, capping or spiling activity and the addition of sugar to encourage secondary fermentation and dry hopping become important actions, as does the cleaning and sterilisation of all vessels involved.

Serving/dispensing

So often left out of the whole process however, the importance of pouring beer into a glass properly can seriously affect  the reputation of those who serve it and the pleasure of those who are about to drink it.

The traditional hand-pull pump has the advantage of giving the server control over the speed that the beer enters a clean glass - this rightly assumes that the beer, being a live product, will vary from day to day in terms of the amount of CO2 dissolved within it, and to be knocked out of it as it enters the glass - creating what most people call "a head" or "conditioning."

Twelth Night (It isn't all plain sailing, y'know - part 87 )

 

The Christmas lights are still ablaze

In Evran Town, for the past 12 days 

"What heathen practice is this" I cry.

In France ? with more faithful than first meets the eye?

 

The answer to this question is now being told

As pagan history is seen to unfold

"Real" Christians count twelve from boxing day night

after which these lights must be out of sight

 

 I need more input for my research

probably from people who go to church

But breaking news has just been aired

(I trust your patience can still be spared)

about all these 12th nights and strange traditions

confusing the real message of their missions

 

Ukraneans, on the 6th, eat one course per apostle

(with twelve, the bill must be colossal !)

 We eat "les Gallettes des Rois" (it's made of frangipan)

  hoping to find a holy star? that's if we can.

  

None of us is born a Christian, Moslem, Hindu or Jew

We can choose a belief from a list of quite a few  

Or we can learn it all from other sources

like doing right or wrong, whatever the cause is.

So just when one's life seems to be in tatters

when nothing seems to solve these matters

it brings me to my central point

Stand tall, enjoy it all - stub out that lousy joint!.

 

 

 

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Grinding to a halt in 2021? (it ain't all plain sailing y'know, part 84)

To  our families and  other readers (?) a very prosperous and

Happy new year !

 

Keeping in touch with topical French humour

Putting a positive slant on 2021 is difficult but there are some bright moments to remember (some photo moments below)  and we are grateful to report that all our close relatives, in both our families, seem to have survived the pandemic so far and have been drawn closer together, helped by the miracle of the world wide web but, more importantly,  from a series of 'family' visits to us throughout the spring and summer months, despite horrendous travel complications and additional expense caused by 'Covid'.

(Visits from the Falshaws - Moo, Alan, Lois, Harry,  Jake and Rosemary Walker with Emily, then son Clive and Aileen Walker from California, then Lucie's Sophie Blair, then brother Robert Walker with Di. and then co Narrow boat friend, Alex Melville with Sue - all  were locally accommodated)   

 Harry, an eager student of beer making - wistfully sitting by my fermenter with an empty mug.

My eightieth year has been a year to remember- and I have to say - mostly for the wrong reasons. If we are to believe all the dismal reports from the media,  'homo-sapiens' seems to have lost the plot and is diving into a grubby pond of self destruction, taking with it all other living things. It's enough to make us all join the ranks of Jehovah Witnesses 'en mass'. Armageddon is surely just round the corner !

What the hell is going on? or is it just me having a bad day?

Well no ! - we are happily moored, back in le Port d'Evran - now bedecked with Christmas fairy lights -  after 5  weeks enforced exile 5 kilometres upstream  at St. Domineuc, allowing the canal maintenance people to drain our pound dry - and to repair a lock gate. We did not enjoy being away - the autumnal starboard view across the canal was lovely but being double-parked against a rather sick looking narrow boat (widebeam) darkened our port side as well as our mood.

In June, after  a routine colonoscopy  I was informed that there was a tumour in my colon.. I have  had scans and MRIs and 18 weeks of chemo treatment. The medical team is very pleased with progress and I will learn this week, the date of an operation to remove the 50% that's left of the nasty bit.

In our 18th year of  retirement on board 'Body and Soul'  we are naturally somewhat limited in activity whilst  both dealing with  unwanted health afflictions and the  inevitable encroachment of old age. My birthday bash had to be cancelled (postponed) until next year, or whenever. Actually we were quite relieved to  celebrate quietly with just a few local friends and drop-ins.

 

..and now back to Christmas - but click here for Carols from Kings to cheer up even the most hardened atheist !

More photos of visits from family needed for this posting!

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

So it goes on at Evran (It isn't all plain sailing y'know - part 83)

 

 For welcome to new readers, click here

My Poem of thanks

I've been hanging on aged 79

for as long as I can and that's just fine

but, I'm naturally a bit partial to having fun !

and important matters have been left undone

Sadly - the 12th September has long passed

and upon reading my calendar I am somewhat aghast !

 

So I've dedicated this late poem to all Walker family ties

Too many souls to name here - for sore eyes

But thanks to all my 'rellies' and just to be PC

to the Rytinas, Blairs, Baileys, Balmes, Ridouts and Yeatts-Walkers

and the Crawfords, Mcbrides and Diamonds we can all agree

from the Chadwicks to the Falshaws - so much talent they expose

and to my Lucie without whom little happens? heaven knows !

 

Our weekly pension comes in, then out it goes

Like the sand at Saint Lunaire - between the toes.

But in my eighty first year, we've entertained a lot on board

helped by glasses of home-brewed beer and wine - that's all we can afford

 

But there are faces in this video, I confess, I've rarely seen

Who now live in lots of places where I have never been

Sending in kind wishes and singing that bloody song

whilst I appreciate the sentiment, it can be a bit too long

Upon hearing it in Lithuanian, and even in Chinese –

We may well have left the EU - but in France, life's still a breeze

 

Anyway, we are not complaining?

After sixteen years of entertaining

and we've survived this pandemic so far.

And one can never forget the people we've met

on Body and Soul – 'la peniche' with a bar

 

Be that as it may and suffice it to say

On board, life goes on whilst one's healthy

and through thick 'n thin if you havn't been

You are welcome whether sick, poor or wealthy

 

What matters in life, as our mummies would say

Is what gifts you can bring to others

- in monetary terms you've given nothing away

clearly advice well taken from your mothers

 

But for sending in messages and presents of all sorts

- and the fact that you have given me your sweetest of thoughts

and your artistic contributions to this epic CD

your good-will and talents laid bare to see

In thought and sincerity –you've been generous but snappy

and you've certainly kept this old man happy.

 

Thankyou

 

A view of our mooring (on the left-side of the canal)

click to enlarge

Our new port facility, now complete, to be formally opened 8th April 2022

Has washing machines, showering and other toilet requirements the public who haven't got their own on board and for campers.

Sewage disposal ? We'll see!

Even in Evran ! (it ain't all plain sailing, y'know - part 79)

It's February 28th 2021. Spring chases winter away in Evran with cherry tree blossom and this week's glorious sunshine. But Covid 19 rages on -  with transmission rising in specific areas such as Nice and up north around Dunkirk,  where lock-down is re-imposed and new cases are still rising.

Today, for the record, France has 23,996 and the UK has 7,434 new cases recorded over the last 24 hours. The UK lies 23rd, internationally, in  cases found per 1 million of her population and 16th amongst all European countries (not just those in the EU).  Rarely, if ever, do we find this relatively better performance, compared with other nations, reported by the media. -  One is tempted to ask, who needs a parliamentary opposition party when one has Sky News and the BBC ? ( these are figures taken from the United Nations Geoscheme -  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brewer's notes: This top fermented ale, called 'Spitfire bitter' - was brewed from  malted barley grain, imported from the Uk, - supplied by BrewUk Ltd to the 'Body and Soul' Brewery (a Narrow Boat - wide-beam - currently moored at Port D'Evran, France,  bringing relief to all aboard her. Any similarities to ale brewed by Shepperd Neame, of the same name, is purely incidental.

Thanks to the generosity of Clive (my son in  California) who has provided me with the means to preserve, mature and serve this tasty, 'throat opening', home-brewed ale without the need for bottling - and all the mess that is involved -  the above pictures are from the  'Spitfire Ale' recipe (yes you're right, "no Focker  can touch 'em!" - the slogan stolen from Shepherd Neame). See the dispensing tank on the right above,  with its tap, ready to serve. That's the one - delicious!

But it ain't all plain sailing, y'know....

 

Our old port public loo - Soon to be replaced with a brand new building

!

 

 

Seasonal wishes (it ain't all plain sailing y'know - part 76)

New readers Click here for our Blog welcome

Wishing all relatives and friends - good cheer for Christmas and for 2021.

Have a good one!

We're in our 16th  year living on board "Body & Soul"  (for Google map link click Here) and we are  spending the winter months at Evran.  

Bateau Body & Soul

Place No: 6

Quai de Port  Evran

22630 Evran

Brittany

France

As you see from the photo below, Lucie is looking good - taking her tablets and injections bravely - keeping PMR and  GCA  at bay - Her greatest friend Anita, quite by  coincidence  and good fortune, has moved into a delightful rented cottage within spitting distance from our mooring - A happy state of affairs for us all - not 30m away! 

But it ain't all plain sailing, as you can imagine !

Thankfully, I am fit and well but all my brewery equipment has had to be moved  back on board Body & Soul.  I will miss the Old Mill at Hede - now too far away - and the company of Mick and Shelly too who kindly allowed me to make use of their premises.

We've got a 60 litre brew of English ale already bubbling away on the  poop deck - wrapped in an electric blanket - to be bottled in time for the 2021 celebrations -  an added temptation to my annual "dry January" resolution perhaps? - but on the other hand, the brew will  improve a lot in the bottle and I look forward to a less dreary February after a full 4 week period of maturation. 

Clive'n Aileen have generously sent me some more supplies (another beer kit from the UK, for making 23 litres of "Spitfire' ale) to keep us quenched in the hard times ahead.

 

 

At Port Evran mooring looking south

 

Lucie in control of  PMR and GCA

 

 

New neighbour and old friend Anita

Being old and retired has its advantages. At last one has the time to tease out the data which swamps the media regarding covid 19, Brexit, Trade talks, parliament etc - both political and scientific - to support our opinions.

Additionally we are more restricted in our normal activities - being confined to little else outside our boat. Our excellent WiFi connection is ever more important to our daily lives and we are grateful for the Evran authorities for this provision, 'free' of charge. We are pleased to respond to these benefits by spending our weekly pensions back into the local economy through the local shops, the pub, the log man and a reasonable mooring charge which includes the provision of unlimited electricity and water. We are close to Dinan for any cultural needs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cooking with Jazz

Click the above for the jazz accompaniment

Marmalade from our own oranges

Asparagus & Prawns

Pasta Dish

Chicken Curry

Black pudding & trimmings

Spicy chicken burger

 

 

 

 

 

 Click pictures to enlarge

Sumptuous pork

Antipasti

"Covid 19" another pantomime ? (It ain't all plain sailing, y'know! part 75)

We are all wearing masks - outside the Barge that is - keeping some spares in the car lest we forget the dress code when going out. Beyond this minor inconvenience and the gloomy forecasts of dangers lurking ahead, there is nothing much to get excited about in our otherwise  happy life of retirement.....However.....

Dr. David Grimes has caused me to think with much more clarity,  by his recent  posting on Covid 19.

"Physical methods of protection against the virus are very damaging and not very effective. To prepare for the end of lockdown we must protect ourselves by optimising our internal immunity by taking Vitamin D 4,000 units daily. So we must correct our Vitamin D deficiency!"

"Bottom Line:

The safe upper limit of intake is set at 4000 IU/day. Intake in the range of 40,000–100,000 IU/day (10-25 times the recommended upper limit) has been linked with toxicity in humans."

That aside, much to our collective disappointment, the pantomime group, "Creme Anglaise" has had to cancel this year's show because of the pandemic. This would have been three full performances of "Aladin". (Last year's two performances of 'Cinderella' were a great success)  However, not to be beaten, our highly esteemed chair-lady, Kim, and her very democratically led committee called together all members to the town hall car park - grouped  together in a large circle, - with the correct safe distance between us all - we all agreed what we could do to hold the group together this Christmas season.

A Dinner Party preceded by a very small version of the  pantomime, (using the theatre stage facilities for perhaps just one hour) - this to be followed by a dinner put together by some skilled foodies within our midst,  and then by a choral sing-song/cabaret, arranged by me (I was Volunteered !)

The "choir idea" was first mooted last year when certain enthusiastic group members were heard lustily singing carols  in the streets of Evran at the annual Christmas market. Happily, there  seems to be much initial enthusiasm to develop this idea which would, apart from the joy of singing, become a conduit for panto singing parts and stars of the future.

Thus I am to form and train a new "Creme Anglaise"  choir. We have a mere 8 weeks to get it together.  Zut alors!

Moving on.....You will remember from my last post that although most of our re-painting is complete,  Body & Soul has a rather patchy, rusty, roof,  now half repainted, (18 x 3 meters, de-rusted, filled, undercoated, top coated x 2)  but the weather has finally gone wrong, making the whole thing look a bit of a mess. This project is at the stage when I half-wish I had never started. We're hoping for a late  'Indian summer', in order to get the other half of the job done.

Twenty paces up the canal from Body & Soul is our friend Anita's fully furnished "Canal Cottage" complete with sizeable garden and useful tool shed including a lawn mower....yes you've guessed...but hopefully my services are only needed once more this season  -  It is 'good exercise' they say.

About Kate Gilbert's book Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PGA) and Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA) The book is written by this remarkable lady to support poor sufferers of these two conditions. PGA is often is followed by GCA but GCA  (Giant Cell Arteritis) is much more dangerous if not treated early in its inception because it can lead to irreparable blindness.

Deservedly, this book has excellent references from fellow sufferers....

"5tars are not enough for this wonderful book. I believe every PMR-GCA sufferer and their family, friends and work colleagues would gain a full understanding of our issues by reading the book."

"The author writes with great clarity and, while she doesn't blind us with science, she nevertheless gives us the most recent findings by clinical researchers which hold out hope that there are discoveries just around the corner..."

"This is so clear and informative I so wish it had been available in the early days of my PMR diagnosis."

If you are unable to order the book from Amazon yourself, please write to [email protected] to order via PMRGCAuk.

So, at the moment, It really isn't all plain sailing, y'know - is it?

.

 

 

Some cause for optimistic thought

We are all wearing masks - outside the Barge that is - keeping some spares in the car lest we forget the dress code when going out. Beyond this minor inconvenience and the gloomy forecasts of dangers lurking ahead, there is nothing much to get excited about in our otherwise  happy life of retirement.....However.....

Dr. David Grimes has given me some cause for optimism from his blog

Dr. David Grimes - Consultant Physician and Gastroenterologist

Click on the above line for all you need to know about Covid 19 and some  fresh ideas

Also Read a comment from the insightful Peter Skerritt:

 

"We, as humans, do not learn from history and are therefore doomed to repeat it. The Spanish flu lasted for 2 years. ( Lasting from February 1918 to April 1920 ? ED)

 

The second wave killed far more people than the first, and in total there were 4 waves. It killed somewhere between 20 million to 50 million people. Citizens were ordered to wear masks, and everywhere was shut down - boarded up schools, movie theatres, and business etc. Mail distribution stopped, as did garbage collection. Many people had to dig graves for their own family members.

 

Here we are 100 years later, and what have we learned?

 

Half the people do not want to wear masks because they think it is a hoax/it is not that bad/the government is lying - insert insane right-wing conspiracy theory rhetoric here.

 

People want to prioritise their own narcissistic desires and privileges over other human beings’ lives.

 

What did they have in 1918? - No TV. No internet, not a lot of food supply.

 

What do we have? TV, internet, movies that can be watched from home, UberEATS...you name it. And yet we are a world full of entitled and selfish people who lack human empathy and act oppressed when given any minute sense of responsibility.

Travel is not a necessity. Movie theatres are not a necessity. Throwing parties is not a necessity.

 

Being a decent human being should not be a revolutionary act....it should be common sense."

 

(and of course, "don't be a dick"! ED)

Our introduction

 

Welcome to our blog

We are in retirement on our barge called "Body and Soul",  on the waterways of France -  since 2005 - with "Coco Chanel" and "Minky"  our two cats.

 For a good description of all French Waterways, Click here

Click below for musical accompaniment as you scroll down for more ! ?

Body n' Soul

 

 

Body & Soul - 60ft British  Narrow Boat (widebeam)

Our mooring at Evran Autumn 2020

 

Lucie, my Wife, is a brilliant cook. She speaks French fluently and without accent,         ( I am so glad she agreed to come with me!) . 

Her interests are expressed by including photos of her delicious recipes

Most of my postings contain some family news and/or, descriptions of where we have been on "Body and Soul", but if you are not a family member just click on the line below for something more entertaining:

 “It isn’t all plain sailing, y’know!” 

• One cannot possibly travel thousands of Kilometres on these waterways without incident - good, bad or funny - it is these I try to describe. We hope you will enjoy them too.

Please Note:

• On the left hand column of each posting, there are many photo albums.
• The left hand column is also the home of - "My Rantings"  where you will read comments, views and topics of information which have caught my eye.  
  

Finally: to find a list of all postings since 2006, click on the word “Archives” 

Our email address is: [email protected]

or

simply click here on OPEN to go to the main pages 

Here's A short video of our trip out to sea and towards St. Malo

taken by friend Guillaume St. James in his Zodiac - June 2020

Avez vous vu ma chatte? (it ain't all plain sailing y'know part 72)

Considering all that was going on with this disruption to their otherwise peaceful life, moored at Tinteniac,  it was no surprise to get into trouble with either Coco or Minky (or both our cats)  who were suddenly given to explore several different and exciting new territories. We had to 'box clever' when faced with the timing of our departure to coincide with their presence. 'Time and tide' (and weather!) truly waits for no man - (or in our case) - Cats. 

Coco, the elder and a 'farm cat stray' from our time on the Garonne was  quite happy to remain on board for the most part but little Minky (the local stray from Hede) found it all too exciting and tempting - and she disappeared into the unknown for several days at a time, both whilst at Taden and more alarmingly when we were parked high up on blocks after being lifted out in the Bassin Jaques Cartier. So far, she has returned unharmed after each adventure - seemingly pleased to see us.

We feared that she might have been frightened by the monstrous size and noise of our lift out....but no.. she is stimulated as never before, .... we believe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lovely memories of 'Floyd on France' BBC 2 1985

 

Floyd on France BBC 2

Lock Down TV - Lucie and I have been thoroughly enjoying a virtual foodie tour of France linked to all regions of gastronomic fame and history.

• Keith Floyd really was a great food/cookery entertainer, Cookery writer, chef and travel writer, sadly missed and irreplaceable. His series, 'Floyd on France' was first broadcast in 1985! They don't make them like this anymore!...he died on September 14 2009 aged 65 after a heart attack and a very turbulent life it seems.
• In the early 1980's (In my Royal Crescent Hotel days!)  he was so impressed with the 'Hole in the Wall' Restaurant on George Street,  Bath - then run by its owner George Perry-Smith - that he  put his name to it as a template. (Details of this deal are not fully understood)  Regrettably I never met him.
  

 

Thanks to Keith Floyd for making food and French Cookery such an entertaining and interesting  subject, especially for us "foodies' during the 'Lock Down' in Tinteniac ( he probably never visited the town, although there are several notable restaurants not far from here which he would have loved).

Places we have loved so far:

Le Genty Home Restaurant

Le Vieux Moulin Hotel and Restaurant

Le Colvert

Le Petite Port   23 Place de la Mairie, 35630 Hédé-Bazouges, France (nearest thing to a British pub with great food cooked on the  chimney fire place. 

 

It's a Siskin

My friend Alex Melville (and Sue) says that the bird we saw on our bird table, which I thought might be a Yellow hammer is in fact a Siskin

Here is  photo of  Juvenile Siskins.

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=Siskin+juvenile

I suppose he's right, although others have suggested it's a goldfinch.... this could  go viral!

It's all very well but..(it ain't all plain sailing y'know - part 68)

We are keeping to the French  rules of 'social distancing'  with increased vigor, mainly caused by a relapse in Lucie's Hortons disease which has put her back on steroids (20mg/day) and self administered weekly injections of Tocillizumab.

That, as you can imagine, is a step backwards for Lucie, although she is relieved by the continued exceptional attention given to her by the medical establishment who are concerned, although not surprised by, this relapse. It is apparently quite a common feature of the disease. But her latest 'PET scan' showed a bad result. 

'Google' our goose with his (her?) inseparable friend, the Duck (Quackflix?)

 

The problem is that the taking of both steroids and tocillizumab, as we understand them, compromise her immune system thus making it imperative  to keep Lucie away from all infections and especially the bloody Corona 19 virus. Hence our zealous attention, not just to the French rules but attention to the detail of our life-style in all sorts of ways.

  The Golden Oreol/Oriole - My favorite song-bird, seasonal immigrant,  heard but rarely seen,  found in the south of France and particularly high in the poplar trees of Aquitaine - the Golden Oreol/Oriole  - I miss its lovely, unique and fruity sound.

click this line for the song

Having said that, the sun is  shining at last - Spring is really with us now (see  pictures) and we heard our first cuckoo this morning (8th April)  Our lovely neighbours have been absolutely fabulous in their kind attention to our every need. This comes in the form of shopping for food, the gift of fire wood or by the collection of medical supplies as well as lots of distant chats. There are no other shops open.

Thankfully, this department in France, - L'Ille et Villaine (which includes the city of Rennes )- has had very few Corona cases, (if any - at least locally induced ones) and even our lovely local GP says she has been unusually quiet since the beginning of this ghastly business. We are both trying to get 'Body and Soul' together, ready for the great trip to St Malo and reparations on 'the hard'. Currently all the Locks are  closed by decree until at least 1st of May. We are hoping to set off mid-May, although all the winter works draining some lock pounds  on the canal between here and St. Malo, may have to be carried out - this  will delay cruising until who knows when.? 

Meantime, we are not 'allowed out' unless in a crisis, although I still go to the 'Parcours' for my daily exercise with the ubiquitous 'Document d'attestation' in my track-suit pocket - And, I  have been forced to drink tins of LAGER 'sacre bleu!'. (My brewery has had to be closed)

 

(our bird table)

 

 

 

 

 

'Made in Dagenham' The musical, produced during lock-down by Barnard Castle School with our Lois (year 10?) in a star role. Click on link below

Lois's star role  

 

Spring, sprung in Tinteniac (ain't all plain sailing, y'know - part 63)

 

 

 

 

Click on any photo to enlarge

 Lucie's health problem over the past year has, naturally, changed our priorities and, in certain respects, our outlook on life - but thankfully, her current disease prognosis is good. She is cooking as well as ever - Click here for a Steak and Guinness pie recipe.

According to her specialist at Rennes (CHU) (the University hospital) her treatment for the Giant Cell Arteritis (Horton's disease) is working to plan. She  swallows a daily handful of pills and has to bravely inject herself each Monday with some other stuff which does nothing for her mood - but she is well served by the local nurse for regular  blood tests and it is from these results and from a series of x-rays and scans that the medics make their deductions.  She has to endure a two year period of treatments and regular assessments. Our frequent hospital visits to Rennes, a city which we are growing to love, are often combined with shopping for stuff which we cannot obtain locally... so that's alright then. Here's  another of her  recipes: Sicilian Panelle - street food.

Apparently, the down-side of long term steroid treatment is the osteoporosis which it  induces and Lucie is  suffering continuous pain from this side-effect in her hips and spine. Steroids also compromise the body's ability to resist infections, consequently, she has to be  careful physically, to avoid bone fractures and, where possible, infections from other sources.

This last point may seem a little counter-intuitive since kissing people in France, on both cheeks, whenever one greets or says goodbye -  is 'de rigueur'......and we continue to kiss everyone with gay abandon - including  all our  neighbours with their lovely but  'snotty' children.....  so far, no harm done - but we  have also joined the local choir of over thirty choristers, practicing every Tuesday  throughout the year. This means, roughly speaking,  greeting AND saying goodbye to each choir member - that is, for Lucie alone, 120 kisses every  practice! Extending this conjecture still further, for the whole choir, that's 3600  points of cross-contamination at each gathering, .... 'zut alors!' I hope we stay healthy enough to sing the Lords Prayer as brilliantly as this choir - click below:

 ' Otche Nash'  the Lords Prayer - click here

or here for 'UBI Cavitas'

Tuesday's practice

Our choral activity at Bazouges-Hede (not to be confused with nearby Hede-Bazouges, where we were moored for 2 years)  brings  us opportunities to mix with a splendid and multi-cultural bunch of friends, based in this highly active community just three  kilometres from our mooring in Tinteniac.  We have found a base from which many other activities spring - some, but not all, being social.

The village population is small but  young and  family orientated and, through a fortunate civic decision to combine the two 'Hedes' into one Commune, they have been 'given' the Old Mairie building to create into a village club-house for social and artistic purposes. All facilities and activities, which includes a bar and meeting rooms, are organized and over-seen by a properly elected and  highly energetic committee with an excellent constitution. A modern village hall is right next door and there is a  small weekly organic food market and  free parking. Lucie, with her fluent French, has become involved already with the organization and we are both  paid-up members.

 

Nick, Laura, Archie and Skya on holiday in Cromer

 

Below, a few dishes from Lucie's kitchen. Click to enlarge!

 

 

 

 

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who's a lucky boy then?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our wishes for a trouble free Christmas and the year 2019

 

 

From Malcolm and Lucie to all friends and relatives

Click here for " Now thank we all our god"

and/or

Click here for "Hark the Herald Angels sing"

Have a merry Christmas and a happy new year!

“Cheers to the new year and another chance for us to get it right.” – Oprah Winfrey

 

 

 

At Home in Tinteniac

 

 

 

 

Happy Birthday Lois

Happy  Birthday Lois

For music click here. Happy birthday!

for the 8th December

cheers, still hoping to hear from you sometime soon

with much love from

Grandad and Lucie Walker

Bateau Body and Soul

1 Quai de Listernac (Post Box)

Quai de Canal d'Ille et Rance (If arriving by Road)

Tinteniac

France 35190

Tel No: 0033(0)640733849

Email: [email protected]

 

 

Our Snail Mail address

 

 Happy  Birthday Moo

for the 19th September

Malcolm and Lucie Walker

Bateau Body and Soul

1 Quai de Listernac (Post Box)

Quai de Canal d'Ille et Rance (If coming by Road)

Tinteniac

France 35190

Tel No: 0033(0)640733849

Email: [email protected]

 

What we've been doing - May to August (It ain't all plain sailing y'know - part 62)

 

 

    

July 15th 2018 - Brother Rob Walker's 80th Birthday Party at their house in Walmer - showing the birthday boy holding a glass of Yorkshire Bitter, made by me, in France at my Pigstye Brewery. It was  indeed a brilliant party with all Rob's direct family in attendance. Lucie, as ever, played her part doing much of the cooking - pre-prepared in Body and Soul and transported to the UK in the back of our car. She and Di Bailey (Rob's lovely partner) were a good team producing several delicious meals for 14 people each time.

There was much home-grown music and laughter and everyone played their part. Simply memorable! Here are the Birthday song lyrics; sung rather badly by Lucie, Judy and me (on piano) to the tune of HMS Pinafore - Gilbert and Sullivan.

Soon after Rob's 80th came the brilliant news that Emily (Jake and Rosemary's eldest) had been awarded a First Class Honours Degree in Ophthalmology, by Sheffield University. She has since landed a good job, which she richly deserves for her hard work and dedication....she is now a registered "orthoptist". She also won the prize for "best pathology essay" about "uveal melanoma" and will get it published in a text book at some point in the near future, by all accounts. Gosh!

 

Sadly my Pigstye "Just a Pub" brewery has had to be closed for "re-developement" - there is a joke there somewhere! We have plans to move it all to a site in Tinteniac, yet to be disclosed but it may well be back on board Body and Soul on the Poop Deck - at least, if we cannot find another suitable site.

 

 

 Talking of medical matters, I have been suffering from what I assume to be some sort of rheumatoid arthritis in both hands for about five years now and it seems to have become progressively worse. Unkindly, some say my piano playing has improved because of it, but there you go! 

My Symptoms. I have a bent middle finger in my left hand which does not hurt but looks very ugly. My right hand is always tender and swollen at the knuckle of the index finger and can be extremely painful if squeezed or accidentally knocked. Quite by chance and coincidentally,  Lucie and I have started drinking Goat's milk and making Goat's yoghurt and avoiding cow's milk dairy products and Cow meat for reasons that I need not explain but - believe it or not, scoring pain levels from 1 (low)to 10 (high), I can honestly say that the pain level and swelling has dropped quite dramatically over the past week or so from 10 to level 2. In fact both my hands have become noticeably more supple.

Spurred on by Google to research this matter for the benefit of other sufferers, I came across this letter from a long time dairy farmer written to a Mr Cohen.

To read it click here. 

 

But as readers (both of them!)  will be aware   It ain't all plain sailing y'know - and it may well be just a fluke.... we will see.

  

Summer has been full of good things. Life on board has been quite relaxing as we have necessarily decided to stay in one place this year whilst  Lucie can concentrate on recovery - there's good access to the local GP who is in charge of her treatment by Rennes Hospital. We have both enjoyed a lovely weekend exploring St Malo on her 71st birthday...all organised by her, of course....

 

  Her treatment is going to plan and she is on good form. Her blood is tested regularly by the local nurse, on board before 9am and the results are made available by 12 noon, each time on line. Fantastic!

Our recently found friends (Fred, Anne-Claire and family) suggested that we could use their house for any visiting  family whilst they went on holiday. The house is situated less than 50 yards from our mooring and has a Cat (Hercule) to be cared for by the incumbent.

 

Five days with Nick, Laura, Skya and Archie who were delighted to take up the offer,  resulted in a very energetic time including, amongst other things, two visits to the Beaches,  on the Brittany coast to the west of Dinard, complete with picnics made by Lucie, and with brilliant weather.

 

                        

( you can click on  any photograph to enlarge)

  A day trip on Body and Soul to Hede, four locks there and back, for an ice-cream or so with our friends Guillaume and Catherine who live in the lock house there. It was fun getting our old boat "back on the road", as it were - no problems there - she managed without a hitch.

Maintenance is now all important as the summer comes to an end and Lucie and I are wizzing about with paint brushes and cleaning tools trying to keep Body and Soul in good order.

Yesterday we managed to remove and replace all four internal radiators in order to flush them out, (click here for a good video on this task) in readiness for winter central heating.

The problem with that is that we have yet to afford a replacement to the Eberspacher. So far we haven't decided whether or not to change to a "Kabola" or something else. Either way, we have our Jotul wood burner and electric radiators to keep us warm. We have been given a friendly neighbour's small microwave oven which is surprisingly useful for heating small amounts of water - enough for a shave- and for cooking vegetables.

As August ends with less stable weather, pidgeons continue to flap lustful  wings on the boughs of beautiful birch and pine trees  above us, showering wind blown seeds and  bits of sticky resin (and worse) onto the barge  and our car; but, like "Brexit", it is a  costly, but natural and essential inconvenience  - well worth the trouble in the overall scheme of things - taking the longer view. 

 ( you can click on  any photograph to enlarge)

Breaking News

It was lovely to hear from Charles and Pam Biggs who we befriended at Vias on the Midi whilst  waiting for our lift-out at Agde and for our great journey up to Brittany where we are now..

Click on the line below for their Blog or, alternatively, on the link at the top of this posting in the left hand column

  www.xeniaboatlog.wordpress.com.

 

Breaking news from "Family Blair" and other Walkers not yet included.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

              I try to keep up with the technology....patience please; it never is plain sailing!

Remember one can enlarge most of these photos by clicking on them.

 

 

 

  

New Years message

Ok, so it's the usual problem with the wifi box being switched off just when you need it most! but we are in the car park at Lidl's and Lucie is doing her weekly shop whilst I send this rather pathetic but well-meant message of goodwill to all friends and relatives and other lucky blog readers. I am using Lucie's IPad and not having a very successful time......anyway!

We hope you had a great Christmas and that you will have a wonderful year 2017.

We have had to buy another car because poor 'runner bean' the Corsar, failed its Mot by quite a large margin - but the new one - a Peugeot 406 - seems a good buy, although draining our pensions somewhat, as one would expect....It has powered steering and Central locking, and electric windows! Wow!

Have a "good one" and see you next year!

 

Scroll down for access to the life of Coco Chanel - our ships cat. 

 

A day of artistic inspiration (it ain't all plain sailing, y'know part 55)

I regret that I am hardly gifted in the so called "finer arts" and I am jealous of people who seem able to create beautiful shapes, paint pictures, draw cartoons, carve statues out of stone and so forth. I am shamefully ignorant of the history of art and can only express  the merits of  paintings or sculptures with a vocabluary strictly limited in its depth of feeling and appreciation.

It has therefore been  a surprise to me, that since being in Brittany - here at little 'ole Hede-Bazouges - we have become  involved with a crowd of people- mainly French -  who are bursting with talents and who love to share their enthusiasm with others.  I am indebted to Lucie who continues to facilitate the introductions! - Net-working is her special talent  - amongst a lot of others, of course.

We are so lucky too, to have made  friends with Guillaume and Catherina St. James who are our  neighbours and who's family home is the old Lock House, directly opposite to Body and Soul - across the lock.  Their home, shown below just behind B & S, is l'Ecluse de La Petite Madelaine and from there, we receive a free Wifi signal as well as their friendship.

Us with L'Ecluse de la Petite Madelaine

Guillaume is a professional musician ; an "all- rounder" with talents in every genre (not forgetting to mention his DIY responsibilities  for the business and the  home). Qualifying out of the Rennes School of Music and the Jazz Conservatoire in Paris, he writes his own "avant garde" but serious classical compositions and gets commissions to write music for anyone who will pay him. His particular bent and obvious pleasure is to play Jazz saxophone of all types - soprano, alto, tenor - and he has recently returned from a tour of the USA with his friend Chris Brubeck, a trombone player (yes! son of the late pianist Dave Brubeck!) Guillaume also plays a mean jazz piano  with great swing and enthusiasm. (Click on his name above and listen to his music)

Catherina is not only running their family "Glamping" business but also holds down an important full-time post promoting "Culture" in the region - besides which she is a loving mother to their three children and all that this entails.To describe her life as busy, is clearly an understatement. 

As I write this blog, I hear  Guillaume practicing his tenor sax from his floating office  opposite us. Surprisingly, he likes to accompany me on the piano at social occasions whenever our calenders collide.  We all enjoy each other's company and even Coco Chanel (our Cat) roams freely through their open house, much to the delight of their children. The international rugby matches add further grounds for a healthy relationship, albeit with a distinctly  competitive edge -  we often watch the series on their television "en famille".  

Guillaume is the founder and over-all organiser of the Annual Hede-Bazouges jazz festival, now preparing for its ninth year. (17th and 18th Sept) (make sure you click on the links at the very top of the front page for all the details and picture records)  This festival is not just about Jazz but also about art and the promotion of local talents in any of the art disciplines - both professional and amateur - even great cooks and professional clowns are included. Entry is free to the festival site with many services and entertainment to be enjoyed by the family - bookings for the main band events in the huge circus tent, however, must be reserved and paid for in advance. 

All the organisational activity is carried out by volunteers (the French word "benevoles") who include, in large part, a group of art lovers and talented locals,  over-seen by Vincent Brodin  a  delightfully modest professional in his own field as a sculptor/plasticien. Ten thousand people are expected over two days of the jazz festival, subject to good weather. Much needs to be done at this early stage. Click here for the facebook photographs from last year's event.

Another couple,  Alan and his wife Pascale Beauchamps - she is a sculptor of stone and cement and they live in a remarkable old family house, absolutely stacked full of interesting "objets d'art" at every turn, together with a large barn-like studio which they make  available for the jazz festival artists, the volunteers  and their paraphenalia.

Lucie is involved with the whole project - planning to run the "Cream Teas" tent again this year, served through the Houdini hatch from Body and Soul. She also goes for her weekly health-walk with Pascale. Good friends. 

 

Lunch al fresco at the house of the Beauchamps

 

Surprisingly, in view of my afore-mentioned lack of artistic talent - this Sunday, we are both  invited to a "creativity forum" for the 2016 Jazz Festival where talented art lovers, under Vincent's direction, help to create new display material - to be  hung up in trees and in strategic places - as objects of interest and beauty. This all takes place in the above mentioned Beauchamps' studio.

 On arrival at 10am, whilst Lucie goes off to do something useful,  Vincent sits me down at a table, seen below, suggesting that I might create something from a box of assorted drinking straws,  a piece of wire and some plastic off-cuts. He supervises the real talents that drift in and out throughout the day - each one making  great mobiles and chandeliers, seemingly within minutes - from absolute rubbish.

It isn't until nearly "midi" when - encouraged by the thought of  lunch -  I have an idea as to what I could make after considering the paucity  of the material  in front of me, without much hope.

 There is no photo of it, thank goodness, but I managed to cobble something  together by the end of the day which is certainly of no use to anyone - neither is it interesting and really it is quite ugly - even with the day-light shining through it ! - we laugh a lot and  I enjoy the day making it - especially the "apres art"  -  Lunch and Supper - prepared by Lucie and Pascale with Alain,  Anne, Olivier, Janique and Vincent - Friendship, food and wine ( or beer?) - these are the best creations of all.

Who'd 've thought it - me, a "plasticien"? 

Possibly, but it ain't all going to be plain sailing, y'know!

But how do you get this out of the door..?

 

Spring is sprung (Some of Lucie's facebook entries)

Sorry; the  extracts from latest Lucie' facebook entries are not in date order...I'm still learning how best to do it. However, I have added some interesting links to expand their scope. Just click on the highlighted words to learn more....

24th March 2016

Someone else's pictures of Lehon and surroundings

Our pictures below

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dancing cheek to cheek.Rob f.mp3

 

But Beautiful Rob

 

Loverman Rob

 

 

   Lehon sur Le Canal d'Ille et Rance

(Click on the above link for info.)

We had sailed through Lehon without stopping on our way upstream just after leaving Dinan on our second night on the canal - We return by car with Alan and Nicki Robinson to see what a treasure we had missed. 

15th March 2016

The sun was shining; the call of the sea too. Off we went towards Cancale enjoying all the signs and the feel of Spring in the air.... just before Cancale on a long stretch of beach; good for wind surfing on the Baie du Mont St Michel and we stopped at a fish restaurant in the middle of the oysters and mussel barns at Ondine St Melior.

The restaurant boasts a wonderful selection of shellfish and fish which you choose, put in a basket, pay for at the cash desk before settling at a table near the fireplace to await the delights of freshly caught and broiled fish. We share a dozen oysters, (a dry house white..ed) followed by salmon and a bream, crispy on the skin side, with succulent flesh cooked to perfection. Vivre la Bretagne! What a celebration of the beginning of spring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm trying to think of interesting salads for me to eat since my bout of diverticulitis has become a challenge. I love salads, but am no longer allowed to eat raw foods. We had a social, pot luck, English conversation evening so it was a bit of a "what's in the fridge/freezer that I can cobble together" moment. Went down well. 

Lightly steamed courgettes, green beans, wilted spinach, braised peppers and cooked mussels with a lemon vinaigrette. Served with a crispy baguette.  Asparagus and prawns could also be added for more luxury. Good starter. Bon appetit! 

 

29th Feb 2016 (looking back a bit on Lucie's Facebook entry)

We went to the UK to catch up with family; the older generation this time. Lovely sunny crossing from St Malo to Portsmouth before driving on to Walmer in Kent where Malcolm's brother lives near the castle. We revisited Deal, my old haunt; had good luck with the weather. Had a "fab" full breakfast on the end of the pier that now has a great cafe. Deal high street was voted the best high street recently by the Telegraph. The new high speed train to London has influenced Londoners to move there. It was comforting to find that all the old shops are still there just the same as when I lived there 25 years ago! Of course new ones have also sprouted up but no "formularisation" in this high street! ... it definitely has a new buzz.

My little terrace house did not look as loved as when I owned it. Still charming.  Also revisited the Griffin's Head in Chillenden where Malcolm took me for our first date 23 years ago. Still great and the landlord recognised us.......reassuringly! (nice 2 pints of Sheperd Neame's ordinary Masterbrew bitter ..Ed)

Robert and Di had organised a wonderful time with lots of visits to pubs and treats to lovely restaurants. Malcolm enjoyed some great British beers. Laughter abounded as always when the Walkers get together.

Popped in for lunch - half way to Portsmouth - at Malcolm's lovely Aunt Lois (in Reigate) who will be 91 years old this year. She had a delicious "cold collation" and wine ready for our visit. Then we carried on to Portsmouth to catch our ferry home; a bit early, so a chance to discover old Portsmouth and the huge wharf shopping centre. Impressive and attractive in both cases - one last pint before queueing and boarding the Bretagne to go home. Even with  grey skies, it was lovely to steam into St Malo after a delicious full breakfast on board. Such a civilised way to travel.

Diet?.... now we are back!

 

 

 

       

 

Ed. Also treated to the Beer Festival at Dover's Royal Yacht Club and a sensational dinner at a marvellous newly opened restaurant on the "front" at Deal. More later..... 
 
 19th March 2016 (Extracted from Lucie's recent facebook entry)

 

Some very kind new friends from our English conversation class offered to take us to Rennes to the Marche des Lices renowned for it's size and cornucopia of food and flowers. We set off at 7.30 am in order to secure a parking spot and to beat the crowds. It was more than worth the early start. Brittany certainly appreciates good food.

After a much needed hot cafe creme and delicious home made brioche bought in the market, proceeded to another gem in Rennes Le Jardin du Thabor. Just awakening from the winter, will return in early summer as many of the wonderful plants were only just showing signs of buds. The aviary in the middle of the park had some delightful residents which one could have spent hours looking at, the netting made taking photos of them a visual disappointment. (the kids will love it too!...ed) Just click on the above active text for more delights and info.

for other facebook photos click here

 

 

 

Christmas Cheer!

To Families and Friends

 

  merry christmas!

 

In our new livery and current mooring at Hede-Bazouges, Bretagne

 

Body and Soul 1 Eb  

(Click on the line above for my version, with double base)

Malcolm and Lucie Walker,

Bateau Body and Soul, 

c/o Ecluse: La Petite Madelaine,

Hede-Bazouges, France 35630

 (Hede: acute accents on both "e"s above) 

Our telephone numbers are as follows:

 0033 640 73 38 49 (recommended)

0033 670 18 36 02..(if all else fails)

  

Lucie and me

Wishing you all a merry Christmas!

Hark the herald Angels sing

click above for full effect!

Seasonal Greetings To Our Families and Friends

We are now happily moored in the port of Montauban but since last Christmas (2013) - spent in a very damp and muddy Castet en Dorthe - we have experienced a year of non-stop change - mostly to plan but, to be frank, some which could be put under the heading "reality check"; and a rather sobering thought.

Firstly, the exchange rate combined with the French recession has proved expensive for us despite the slight strengthening of the pound against the Euro, (at the time of writing, is worth 78 pence - down from near parity last year) But prices in the shops have inflated uncomfortably as indeed they have in the UK as has diesel fuel (until just recently).

To counter this we have sold our 2CV (Mange Toot) which was beginning to cost a lot in terms of serious repairs - a sad but necessary decision. She is now in the capable hands of an enthusiast back in the UK being rennovated somewhere near Bath. Not having the convenience of a car has limited our ability to "go and see and get" which has affected Lucie more than me and, in a sense, it is a step backwards to when we started our adventure 10 years ago. On the other hand I have started using my old bike again and we make use of the excellent bus service found in Montauban.

Sadly, also in June, our elderly Jack Russell, Spud, suffered a tumour in his brain which was mis-diagnosed and eventually fatal. We miss him of course, as does his life-long pal Teddy - our Norwich Terrier  - who also shows signs of age related decline.

 

 

During the summer we found ourselves conveniently moored outside the Tapas restaurant at Lagruere where we earned free mooring, water and electricity in exchange for a few piano gigs. We tarried here throughout the three summer months whilst nipping backwards and forwards just for fun, to all ports, in either direction, from Lagruere.

 

This bonus enabled us also to keep up Lucie's weekly massage treatments to help her bad left-shoulder strain. The twenty sessions by an excellent manipulator at Le Mas D'Agenais  proved to be successful but the reality is that Lucie, in future, must give up the rope work at which she had become so accomplished. She now handles the tiller upon entering a lock whilst I zoom about risking life and limb with the ropes and ladders. Not quite a reversal of roles - more, as is the essence of our partnership,  a sensible compromise.

The final reality check came before we left Lagruere. Lucie developed a problem with her colon which was diagnosed as  acute diverticulitis ( all that lettuce eating, I told her!) requiring urgent attention and a week in hospital in Marmande. This condition, although now completely under control, has introduced a new and serious change in her diet which, on the one hand, is an unwelcome challenge to her love of garlic and high class cooking but, on the other, means a dramatic drop in her body weight - something that no other, let's say, more fashionable diet,  has succeeded in doing hitherto.

We became good friends with our hosts, Allain and Christianne and their staff, at Lagruere and were mutually sad when we set off for the final leg of our journey to Montauban and our winter mooring. We left complete with Coco Chanel, our new pet stray cat, having been fed by Monica (our lovely Spanish waitress) and picked up by Lucie from the restaurant car park.

Coco Chanel has squeezed herself in to our hearts since then and has settled into her new life on board although,  "falling in" several times, she has used up at least five of her nine lives doing the things that kittens do. Her colouring is very similar to that of poor Spud.

Unbelievably affectionate and entertaining, she can swim, loves climbing trees and is highly combative towards dogs. She operates the cat flap with great skill which allows her complete freedom to come and go as she wishes. She has already cost us a fortune at the vet, is neutered and eats like an elephant.

Here's just a few family photos as sent to me over this year - and just a few of many thousands that one takes throughout the year. What do we do with them all? Don't ask.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It would be nice to have a photo of Clive and Aileen -  Cameron and Gabby - but I can't find a current one. Please send one....those in charge...so's I can add to this blog posting.

Lucie and I are looking forward to our next - perhaps our last! - life changing journey - to the canals and rivers of Brittany. We have only January and February left to prepare for this. The first stop is the dry dock at Toulouse in early April (29th March for ten days) for our four yearly bottom painting, followed by a long trip to Agde where we are to be lifted out on to a large low-loader; taking our precious home to St Malo where she is to be lifted in. There are 680klms of waterways to explore.

We will of course be  much nearer to the Uk (part of the reason for making this move) and  be better able to visit and be visited. So watch this space! Have a  wonderful 2015; but remember please, that it ain't all plain sailing y'know! : Never- the-less

Happy New Year anyway!

....and whilst I'm at it, here's a few memorable moments from the less recent past:-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our route to Montauban (part 2)

Please note: For part 1 just "scroll down"

Finally, (Sat 18th October) we are ready for the long awaited trip to our winter mooring in Montauban. A full tank of diesel - fully charged batteries - plenty of drinking water - a full utility water tank and plenty of "pink" diesel for the Erbespacher - a fridge full of healthy food and a whole heap of logs for the wood burner. What could possibly go wrong? We shall see.....keep checking our progress!

We will always be on  tel no: 0033 (0) 640733849 if anyone wishes to contact us.

We will probably be able to get wifi connections, periodically, as we find the various hot spots "en route" and will use these moments to update this blog.

Our route to Montauban 2014 (part 1)

 

Click on this to to get "Memories of Spud "

Click on this for photos of "Our route to Montauban"

Accompanied by the photo album linked to this posting, I try to describe our deliberately slow progress throughout the "summer madness"  - on our way to a winter mooring, which is waiting for us at Montauban from November 30th until March 2015. Then we take to the high road on a low loader - destination -  the Canals of Brittany.

We are both stimulated by the constantly changing environment and the new people we meet.... Now Spud has died, we have acquired a black and white cat - a stray one found in the Lagruere car park and fed by a lovely waitress called Monica (Spanish pole dancer?). Teddy has been a bit non-commital about the new addition but is slowly accepting her.

A small leak has appeared on our water lubricated stern gland which means we've had to go back to see Fred, our man in Castets en Dorthe, for repairs. It is not serious and we do the 40 klms very slowly, enjoying a couple of nights wild mooring, en route.

 

 

 

This is Coco Chanel, who adopted us at Laguere in August. Here we estimate, she is but 5 months old and not yet neutered. 

 

 

 

11/09/2014

Now poor Teddy has a cancer - a prostrate cancer - a lump on his anus which bleeds a little. One vet has diagnosed this problem. We had hoped this was merely a matter of gland squeezing.

Through Google, we read up about prostate cancer in dogs and find the information to be depressingly consistent with what we have observed in Teddy's behaviour - his breathing and his backside problem. Today, two days after one vet has diagnosed cancer, his breathing has been very much worse which points to the accuracy of the diagnosis. Has the cancer spread this quickly to his lungs? We have made an appointment with a different vet in Tonneins. We already have consulted him on matters to do with Coco.

Here is something much more cheerful - Lois and Harry Falshaw, (Alan and Amanda) on holiday and off to school?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have a look at the  Local birds French to English

 

 

 

New format: Please note!

To keep in touch with our current movements on the canal, try clicking on the "Daily Diary" on the left hand column of this page. I don't know whether one can keep up this daily discipline - one can only try!

Note: I give up trying this after the September edition. I suppose it has acted as a bit of history but otherwise not interesting or entertaining enough.

Saving our pubs! (It ain't all plain sailing, y'know part 47)

How we got ourselves into this mess:

On this page I describe my experiences as a licensee since the late 1960's as I watched helplessly from within, the demise of the British Pub.

How I would stop this pub closure disaster:

Now in retirement in France, living on a British Barge, I have time to think about how to save this vital part of our culture. 

As a taster: the fact that we have chosen to tax beer at a rate currently 42% per pint! ;  higher than any other European Nation bar  Finland!....this is akin to an otherwise healthy child, self harming. It is madness!

 So please click on the above link for my solution to restore what is still a glorious part of our heritage and, if you have the same feelings as so many of us,  please pass on the link to your friends and fellow pub and beer Lovers. 

Then perhaps, one day, our politicians will understand the damage they have done and act to reverse the trend of closures. 

Save our local pubs and our cask conditioned beer at the same time!

French beer v Real Ale - Cultural differences found in France that effect the drinking of alcohol:

Drinkers on the Continent drink differently to the British. This is not wrong or right, better or worse, it is just a fact, like driving on the right hand side of the road as opposed to the left. But.....

The above link is to my observations of the cultural and physiological differences between the consumption of alcohol in France and in Britain.

Do we really all want to be the same or should we treasure and protect our cultural differences? 

A table comparing the alcoholic content by volume of  beer and wine

This small table shows the dangers of the current trend for "brewing" ever stronger beers and wines and links the reason for this trend to clever marketing by the large "brewing" conglomerates who have persuaded the population to accept that there is a positive correlation between the strength and the quality of their products.  

Another important and funny link you must look at: 

A video film - Hitler berating his Generals about the lack of progress in the Campaign for Real Ale - well worth watching...it is poking fun at "Camra" and must have been very expensive to produce: -  to have spent this money and by poking fun at Camra, it shows clearly that Camra obviously is a great force to be reckoned with!

....re-enforces my view that it is the brewing conglomerates and some Pub Co's who have the money to spend on promoting their more profitable lager beers - : who are therefore responsible for the growing consumption of more alcohol and the less sensible drinking.

Christmas again - Help! (it ain't all plain sailing y'know! part 44)

       Click here for Hark the Herald Angels sing 

A Firewood poem

    Beechwood fires are bright and clear, if the logs are kept a year

Chestnut's only good, they say, if for long 'tis stored away

Birch and fir logs burn too fast: Blaze  up bright and do not last.

It is by the Irish said, hawthorne makes the sweetest bread.

Elm wood burns like church yard mould; e'en the very flames are cold

Poplar gives a bitter smoke, filling our eyes and making us choke.

Apple wood will scent your room with an incense-like perfume.

Oak and maple, if dry and old, keep away the winter cold.

But ash wood wet or ash wood dry, a king shall warm his slippers by!

Anon: Quoted by: "Y" in his column in the Irish Times.

("Y" was a pseudonym of the late Douglas Gageby, on time editor of the newspaper)

 

Archie Walker, Born 11th Sept. 2013

Lucie and I send our seasonal greetings to friends and family - wishing you all happiness and health for the coming year. 

Castets-en-Dorthe is beautiful  - see lots of photos in the "Christmas Message" album displayed in the left hand column of this page.  Towns with good facilities nearby include Langon and La Reole, both within 10 minutes by car - The Friday market at Langon is the best I've seen and pleasantly "French", (in the nicest possible way) :The surprising absence of "Les Anglais" is doing wonders to my linguistic skills - I am told. 

We have found an excellent, family run, DIY shop called "Bodin" in the centre of Langon (much better than Mr. Bricolage or Point P) - charming and helpful staff and an incredible stock of everything imaginable. Body and Soul now sports smart  "polythene type" sheeting, protecting the stern deck from the elements and giving us  an extra dry "boot room" and a place to sit out in the winter's sun.

Nick and Laura - proud parents again

There's free Wi-Fi, water and electricity within our monthly mooring fee and fallen branches from the plane trees lining the canal, (something like maple, as above) give us free winter fuel for  the  "Jotul" wood burner. We are cosy and warm despite the unusual amount of autumn rain that causes much mud throughout the port . 

Our 2CV van (Mange tout)  gets bogged down and splattered. Her engine and chassis are fine but the bodywork is increasingly held together with paint and Isopon - major work needed there.

not a bad life!

Teddy and Spud must be rubbed down after each walk:Cleaning the boat gets harder. Spud, now 13, is totally deaf and more cumudgeonly than  ever. Teddy, two years younger, is gradually taking  the role of pack leader from his aging friend. I wonder which one of them will hit the buffers first, but try not to think about it too often!

Our position at Castets-en-Dorthe

Our lives throughout the last six months have been exceptionally busy with lots of "Foodie Cruises" and piano "Gigs", then visitors and visits to and from our families in the the UK, and in my case, to San Francisco as well. New neighbours have  taken  priority on the social scene and we have even found time to visit the Chateau du Hamel - which dominates the port.

Boat maintenance and painting is fitted in to all this somewhere. Our second set of batteries are getting weaker by the day and must be budgetted for - as is the next visit to the dry dock for another bottom scrape and some additional anodes. Lucie and I often talk about a "probably last" expedition up somewhere nice - perhaps to the North - who knows? The Canals of Europe offer so much more to explore or to re-visit - but it is very comfortable here and, no doubt, we will be having a great Christmas on board Body and Soul !

Please note this wine tip: (if you haven't already experienced it)

Having just returned from a lovely weekend in the Gers at Saint Mont with our friends (and boating neighbours at Castets) Michel and Yolland, we discover Madiran wines and we are now hooked on them - largely because they are made with (40% - 70%) the Tannat grape - reputedly especially good for the heart, say the doctors - the rest being Cabernet Sauvignon or Fer or Cabernet Franc: (it tastes good too!).

Made in San Francisco

I'm trying hard to expunge the image of Clive's excellent homebrew pint (shown left) from my psyche, as  Lucie and I - with glass of delicious Madiran (rouge) in hand - wish everyone a merry Christmas and happy new year 2014.

But as oft' said, it ain't all plain sailing y'know!  cheers! - have a good one never-the-less!.

 

 

                                   Click here for Richard Dawkins.net

Click here for In the bleak mid winter - Dark version

                                Click here for Dancing cheek to cheek  

San Francisco - and some cultural shocks!

Note:

For details of my visit to San Francisco and a wealth of photos - click on the left hand column of this page under the appropriate "pages" and the album. So far so good, but many more to come..........

 To Jane (Niece), Jonathan (her husband), Judy (Sister), Clive (Son), Aileen (Daughter-in-Law) and Lucie (my wife) - all responsible for what is, for me, a trip of a lifetime. Many thanks to you all for your sculduggery and generosity. 

 

Clive and me with the Bay Bridge behind

Aileen and Clive and the Bay Bridge behind

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I need photos of Jane and Jonathan and of Judy - please supply!

Seasonal greeting to all friends and "rellies"!

This shows the start of 2012 at the Port of Meilhan when our section of the canal was emptied - such desolation was avoided because of our pre-emptive move to Caumont where we moored up next to our good friends Charles and Caro Lamb for the rest of the winter. We thoroughly enjoyed their hospitality.

Maybe it's their turn this year?

The French Authorities (Voies Navigables de France - V.N.F.) periodically empty various sections of all the canals to undertake repair work. We moved out on the 3rd of January this year. If we had chosen to stay, we would have had to live for three months at a very uncomfortable angle on the muddy bottom. Yuck! it ain't all  plain sailing, y'know!

I'm not exactly sure at whom this blog is aimed but the following collage might give those who can be bothered to look at it, an idea of our lives over the past year.

Frankly, we could add another 400  photos but that would be asking too much of even our dearest readers. We have had an extremely busy year in every way, most of which has been spent moored at the Port of Meilhan; for the third year of our eight year retirement in France and on board "Body and Soul".

To our "rellies", we send much love and hopes for the next year. We look forward to your visits greatly. Through "skype", it is easy to keep in touch, though, as I write this, we are having great difficulty in getting a strong enough "wi-fi" signal! But there you go again it never is plain sailing, is it? Much more stuff to come..........

- there is, apparently, a problem with the signal in this particular area at the moment. It is Sunday morning (23rd Dec) and this moment is probably just a lucky window of a weak signal and will probably fade away.......So have a good one!...... more family pictures to follow...probably after Christmas. 

 It's now Sunday 30th Dec. and the WiFi equipment is repaired and  running well at last. It never ceases to amaze me how we are, seemingly, so dependent on this modern phenomenon. Our retirement experience has indeed been enhanced by it despite occasional equipment failures, cost and frustration.

Wintery scenes at Caumont Feb. 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Playing with George Smith at one of his gigs is always a great pleasure. He's my secret agent, in charge of my artistic welfare!

   

Lots more to come........meanwhile try http://humanism.org.uk/humanism/humanism-today/non-religious or, for a provocative bit of free speech just put "Pat Condell" into google and enjoy. 

 I've never seen so many catkins so early (early Jan). Such encouraging scenes  make one's seasonal cold feel as if it might soon come to an end after all!

Signs of spring

 

Sinking fast!

 

 

 Top: Body & Soul showing how much she's sunk and her gang plank.

 The Caumont garden belonging to Charles and Caro Lamb where we have an opening picnic lunch party, late February '012.

  Great full moon at Caumont

The dogs roam around  free at this port and love it.

Music for the hard of hearing:

Download To Emily, with love 2 

 Download Blue Cameron in F

Download Body and Soul with Bass 3

Download My funny valentine2

  Download Windows of your mind (Dm)

 Download Windmills of your mind 4 B minor

   Download Somewhere over the rainbow 1 F (with base)

Download Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans 7

Download Harry's theme

 Download Lois's Melody

Download Gabby's Tune

Download Charlie's tune

Download Max's stomp

 lIle De Re

 

  More to come in this posting with pickies of our holiday break on the Ile de Re - an island off La Rochelle - with Charles and Caro Lamb!

Alex and Louise on Riccall www.riccallrambling.blogspot.com

 

Yet another "chomage" - we quit! (It ain't all plain sailing... part 38)

Oh horror! - 5 days before Christmas we are informed by the Canal Authority (The VNF) that there is to be another "Chomage" (I've just discovered the correct spelling!). Once again, the canal between the locks in either direction of us, has to be emptied for serious repair work. We must choose between resting on the canal bottom, tilting as before, at an angle, until March (2012) or sailing off to somewhere else for the remainder of the winter where we can stay afloat. This is the second time in the last three months - the first time being for only one week.

It's a nuisance but we decide to winter in Caumont just as we did last year when we suffered the same fate. We set sail on the 4th January with our guests, Clive and Aileen, (My Son and daughter-in-Law) who arrive in Bordeaux, after an exciting journey from Colorado via Yorkshire via Derry, the evening before. They have a hired car, a "Twingo" with a GPS system on board which proves very useful for their short stay and we drive it down to Caumont to await our eventual arrival on "Body and Soul". Our much loved 2CV Van ("Mange Toot") is to be collected later. 

The canal trip to Caumont, normally, takes half a day by canal and about twenty minutes by road but we dawdle as we pick up fallen branches  from canal side to augment our existing stock of winter logs.

Free central heating from the canal-side plane trees, is something which gives us great pleasure. It keeps both of us warm and fit. Clive and Aileen are a wonderful help and we take full advantage of them as crew, arriving on "Body and Soul" in Caumont, late afternoon, with piles of winter fuel on our roof deck, ready for sawing up into logs. It's enough for the rest of the winter.

 Eating, drinking, talking, laughing and going places, form a large  part of their five day visit, which we thoroughly enjoy. We haven't seen them for three years but catch up with everything - sadly, in such a short time.

But, brilliant! there's an excuse to delay the start of my annual austerity program until their departure. (28 days, normally starting Jan 1st - now Ten days to go at the time of writing!)  
 At least my home-brew has had time to mature to its optimum condition for once. Mark and Charles, our next door bargees, say that it's "like nectar" (the bastards!) and I have ordered an emergency supply of home-brew  kits from the UK in anticipation of sudden increase in consumption after 6th Feb. Mark has joined in the home brewing bug which makes the postage from the UK less painful at 12.50GBps. for orders over 70.00GBps. in value. (approx 31p a pint or less with bulk orders)

Homebrew shop

A generous present of a new DVD audio system for my PC, piano and radio console for my 70th birthday is  adding much pleasure to our daily lives and, with Clive's help and technical know-how, I can now record the sound of the piano and post it to this blog (just click on this below, as an early effort with all its mistakes and rather flat tone).

 

Download Windows of your mind

 

But it really ain't all plain sailing, y'know

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy birthday to both Gabby and Skya for the 15th and 16th Jan.

Nick and Laura's two daughters who's birthdays I forgot....yuck!

 

Blair Hols ruined by Russians? (It ain't all plain sailing y'know! prt 36)

Nearly  - but let me explain!

Chateau Sauvin or, as we know it, - "Chez Kelly" - figures quite a bit in our lives over the last three years at Meilhan. It is owned by two delightful blokes who run it as a luxury B and B and through various social events, they become friends of ours as with many other local people. It is a natural choice for pool parties, firework nights and other festive occasions - often initiated by them. Their expensive birthday present to me for my 70th - two 40 pint home-brew beer dispensers - is just typical of their generosity and "joie de vivre". 

Chateau Sauvin is a perfect location for friends who threatened to visit us as part of their  holidays. Its grand gardens slope down to our canal allowing us easy access by barge, the convenience of which, as all safe car drivers would testify, we often take advantage.

Then, Oh horror ! We are appalled at the news! An obviously very rich Russian buyer (an oligarch?) makes an offer which the owners, the Kellys, can hardly refuse and they sell the place within weeks. All bookings are cancelled without notice. For the Blairs and other friends with confirmed bookings as well as us, it causes a great deal more research and stress, at this late stage, before an alternative venue is found. In the middle of the season - everywhere is full. The Blairs seriously suggest cancelling the whole of their holiday. 

Typically, Sophie and Steve set about seeking alternatives - urgently - and with their "www" skills to the fore - they finally come up with the answer - they rent a lovely house near Lauzun, with swimming pool and all that young families need. They insist on us joining them for the week. We are unlikely to refuse. One might say it was a sort of holiday within a holiday for us. I take my piano too. The house turns out to be as good as expected and offers every facility that one could possibly want- excepting, in our case, a fridge large enough to house our drinks - the pool is gorgeous - large enough to properly swim in and, at the same time, play with the smallest of children without fear of accident.

  
   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, firstly, a week's camping at Meilhan which included a Jazz Concert in the port, a night market in the village, a visit to an inland beach at the pleasure park in Casteljaloux and a trip to Fontet on Body and Soul where we all swim in the artificial lake with its fountain, rather green looking water and where we build sand castles with the imported sand. Body and Soul takes us back to Meilhan in the evening.

 The Blair's second week is spent with their friends in Agen whilst Lucie and I relax into a dreamy summer at the port with occasional visits to and from friends.

Whilst they are in Agen we  are invited to Stephen and Janet Campbell's beautiful Manoir near Montflanquin, -(first met them in Wiltshire where I played piano for their birthday party)- A picnic in the garden followed by dinner for ten people and a stay over night. It's a kind of castle with its own tower and man in armour standing guard at the bottom of the classic round tower stairs. An almost medieval atmosphere. Wonderful to meet up again with family Nicks (My Niece), Alex (and their children Emily and Lucie) The weather remains fantastic. I explore the "Moat" with glee...dogs go bonkers with such space to be free. We picnic again for breakfast, talk  and laugh a lot before our departure for the rest of the holiday at the rented house..

 

 

A pre-70th birthday party for me with a super dinner/barbecue. Lots to eat and drink and fun with the two littles. Sweet of Sophie and Steve, our hosts, to set this up. Cheers! Yet another memorable evening. The weather is good although we have one day when I insist on swimming in pouring rain. It's gorgeously warm in there, despite it. Memorable indeed.

Sophie and Steve grab the opportunity to take a look around this beautiful area of South West France - the Dordogne and Lot-et-Garonne as they have now decided to move to France as a family.. and to meet our friends Caro and Charles Lamb, who joined us for a family barbecue and bring their daughter Zoe and her two lovely children Collie and Grace.  Lots of useful information is gleaned which may useful as three weeks of holiday has confirmed the urge, though there are potential dangers when one has two children who have just started school - a dog and cat to bring  and a house to sell - in a slack market too. (It really ain't all plain sailing, y'know!) Living in England whilst trying to find the right property in France can be a bit of a nightmare.

We all conclude that it might be better to rent a property in the right area first, say for an exploratory year, in order to get a better understanding of the facilities and options available - schooling etc ...but it doesn't stop them finding an agent and viewing some lovely properties, whilst on holiday, just to get a flavour of what is available. We will see...... 

More fun back at the hired house

 

Check out the "Hols with Sophie and Steve" - the Blair holiday album near the top of this page in the left hand column or try....

http://tillersandtastebuds.typepad.com/photos/hols_with_sophie_and_stev/index.html

 

Entering antiquity. (It ain't all plain sailing, y'know part 34)

My last day in the "sixty nine club" is celebrated with a stupendous party organised by Lucie. Brilliant!

- have a look at many of the photos by clicking on the album at the top of the left hand column of this page

Cartoon by Rob depicting the Body and Soul Brewery

What starts as my suggestion of "a few friends for dinner" turns out to be a much bigger bash all together. Sixty people descend upon Le Porte de Meilhan - Sunday Lunch from 1.00pm until an awful lot later. (1am for some!) We drink "Champagne" and taste  Lucie's delicious canapees to start with and eat Fish and Chips from a very smart van ("Cod en Bleu" would you believe?) 60 portions of Cod and Chips with the various accompaniments -  on the house!  -  Really first class quality and the best I have ever tasted.  We finish off with homemade chocolate brownies with cream - of course.

I am aghast at the number of people who make the effort and comply so well to the 1920's dress code, as suggested, and so pleased to have my Sister Judy, Brother Rob, and daughter Amanda (Moo)(from Peterborough Dover and Barnard Castle respectively.) Numerous other friends turn up in ridiculous garb.

What an effort they make. Lovely telephone messages received and much appreciated from Jake in Vancouver and Clive in Colorado. . 

My old friend, Simon Glover, with whom I am gloriously reunited after practically a "post-school lifetime"- arrives from Farnborough and is billeted in the Barge "Pezza" - a few feet away from "Body and Soul". We don't have much time to catch up - but promises to keep in touch are made between laughter and general party chat. I never seem to catch up with anything these days. Is there any hope of improvement? - I think not.

Lucie arranges all their accommodation impeccably. There is, naturally, a   party on the Saturday night for those coming from so far and before the main "do". The weather forecast is of some concern but we are blessed on the day, although there are several moments when a trickle of drizzle causes a rush to cover up the band's electronic instruments with canvass sheeting. It's quite warm and pleasant otherwise.

More about the party later... must tell you about one of the many   exciting presents I receive - a ticket for 35 minute flight on a "micro-light" shown here. I've just landed and have to tell someone how great it was! 

Scroll up to the top left hand column of this page for the new album of party pictures and some more on the micro-flight. 

 

 

    

 

 

 

Up in the sky I go with the pilot/instructor sitting in front of me. I am astride on a flying bicycle and feeling a bit like Harry Potter. The take- off run seems only 100 feet  and the pilot deliberately swoops close over the heads of his colleagues and the huts which make up the airstrip offices. "He always does this" they tell me afterwards. We are high in the sky within a few breath-taking seconds. I hang on to the seat beneath me unnecessarily - call it "white knuckle syndrome" if you must. It's difficult, at first, to let my hands go free of it.

 My instructor shows me how easy it is and soon I am applying both hands to the camera. There is a bit of vibration from the propeller, just inches behind me and photography is not easy. As requested we fly up the canal towards Meilhan so that I can take pictures of "Body and Soul".

The conditions are superb for flying and I don't want this to end. What a beautiful world this is! I take three or four pictures of the Porte De Meilhan and we soon turn for home, taking a circuitous route over towards Marmande.

More and more pictures.... then soon the home airstrip is already in sight.. Then comes the best bit. The pilot - with whom I have every respect - through my earphones - informs me that he is about to turn off the engine and to glide in to land from around 1000 ft. Glorious  peace follows for what must have been 2 minutes as we gracefully swoop down, clipping the crop of maize at the edge of the airstrip and a safe landing. Wow! I am elated.

Now, back to the birthday celebrations....what a party we have! Music is created from the roof of Body and Soul by Rob and me playing the old standard jazz numbers with Colin Wilkes on double bass.

Then to the delight and surprise of all, including me, Moo joins in with a few unrehearsed songs. Frankly, I can't remember the order of events which followed - this, perhaps, a function of an excessive consumption of my own home brewed beer (housed for general consumption in the back of our van) or a surfeit of fish 'n chips - but we are all delighted to have Charlie Smith and his friend Antony who sing their young hearts out with such confidence and talent. We are all priviledged to be in their presence. I hope the "hat", passed round, made it all worthwhile. In between acts Lucie puts on carefully chosen 1920's background music. Perfect!

 Anyway....more later given the chance....

 

 

So what's new? (It ain't all plain sailing y'know! - part 32)

  Golden Oriole http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldenoriole/index.aspx

 and then, equally, the Hoopoe and Nightingale. 

Hoopoehttp://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/h/hoopoe/index.aspx

Nightingalehttp://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/n/nightingale/index.aspx

...and the Cranes in flight

Flock of common Craneshttp://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/c/crane/index.aspx

I am just trying to get good at importing sounds to my blog - to share, more to come!

But it ain't all plain sailing, y'know!

And a very happy birthday to Cameron

 

 

 

 

Brewing Good Beer in France ( It isn't all plain sailing y'know, Part 30)

We're having a cracking time slowly making our way to Castelnaudary.

Started brewing the Woodford's "Admiral's Reserve" 9/03/2011. All malt extract. No sugar needed, but quite expensive per pint. Must find more water bottles to put it all in.  Lucie will just have to drink more fizzy water. It's good for her!

 

 

Pictured here ravioli stuffed with spinach, more spinach topped with shavings of goats cheese, garnish of balsamic vinaigre

Plan to syphon off into second 25 litre bucket after initial brewing is complete. It Gets rid of most of the sediment.

On 15th, I give it all a big stir. It's on the roof covered with a rug and canvas. Have now bottled it and added 1/3 of t/spoon of cane sugar per litre. Approx. I may have brewed it all too cold but next time will be warmer.

Took the van back to Meilhan followed by Bob on his super motor bike, to take me back to Caumont. Much laughter at my expense.  It certainly took less time to get back, to say the least.

 

 

 Me on Rob's bike having delivered the Van back to Meilhan.

 

The Body and Soul Brewery with  about 40 pints of Munton's Heavy brewing as at 22/04/011

Locally grown asparagus topped with crushed feta cheese

 Departed Caumont at 3.35pm on 21st March Monday. Weather OK, if a little cool. 

First night wild-moored at the lock before Damazan. Now Lovely weather. Moon. Dinner. Wine. Walked the dogs next morning and sawed some new logs which I found in abundance. Stopped in Damazan at our normal position and went to shop in the town.

 Had coffee at the road side pub whilst Lucie went to the Boucherie opposite the Casino. We love this Boucherie as much as we love the one at Meilhan.

Chris and Bob are following us up the canal on "Sassi" with my hat which I left on board! Asked them to look out for my club hammer which I left on the bank side at Damazan. They find it the next day and then moor behind us at Seringnac-sur- Garonne where we enjoy free electricity and water. We stay for a few days.

We talked about the "elastic band" driven cars now available and thought we'd look them up on the web. They are very popular in France - no licence needed. Perhaps one day.......

Reached Buzet PM.  Stopped for the night opposite the Capitainerie where we paid for WiFi services and take on water. Spoke to Herman the German in his wonderful Chalk. We stay in Buzet for a few days.

Click on map below to see our journey in full clarity.... 

 
 
 We've met a lot of new and "old" friends whilst on the move - one of the great features of cruising that we had forgotten since being mainly in Meilhan. A French couple, Alan and Danielle Poujade on "Resa" with whom we have already had lunch at the "Chicken on a Bicycle"  -  (PK 94, ie on the chart 94 klm from Toulouse) - a delightful converted lock house - and dinner on board their boat, later,  in Moissac.  Lucie gets chatting to the nice lady who owns the business and books me to play the piano on the weekend of the 21st May. on our return. They have an annual "shin- dig" then apparently. I will be playing from the roof of Body and Soul as we steam in. Subject to the weather.

Return dinner on "B'n S" tomorrow. Alan and Nicky Robinson on "Finca"  at Moissac - their Linsen Sturdy - always lovely to see them again. More dinners at each other's. Another interesting couple from Australia - Tony and Rita - have just taken over "Kimasut" - a Piper Boat familiar to us with the previous owners. They are just off to take their "Boat Driving course" but we manage to get them in for a long coffee break before they went - swapping emails and blog addresses "as you do".  Then at Moissac whilst in a rush to go out to dinner on "Finca",  we briefly meet a lovely couple Mark and Annie on their huge barge "Anna" - have a look at their blog on www.somewhereinfrance.co.uk 

We very much hope to meet them properly next time. It is indeed just a long village.!
 

Anna on her way through  the double lock to the Tarn from the port at Moissac.

  We have just bumped in to another delightful couple, NewZealanders, Keith and Lynn Milne, (On yet another Linsen Sturdy "Paprica") at the lower lock before Montech. More aperitifs and name swapping.

An English  lady, Mandy, and her daughter Maher, arrive on the quay at Moissac on our second day - she's selling her own home grown asparagus - amongst other fresh veg. (cherries soon). Her email address is [email protected] for orders. Very good quality and right to your door. We wished her luck in her enterprise. We'll be buying cherries from her on our return journey, if there are any left.

  View of the  canal junction Montech junction

I am writing this posting whilst moored up at Moissac for a few days. It's Tuesday the 12th. April 2011. We'll be off again on Thursday morning destined for Montech. The weather, on the whole, has been very kind to us with several heat-wave type days. We're both in shorts and these conditions are ideal for brewing beer. This I must now do again because, I am ashamed to say, the first brew - The Woodfords Admiral's Reserve -  has already been consumed and never reached its true potential. It went down very well never-the-less.

The Hambleton Bard's Bitter is now resting in bottles but seems flat at the moment. Will take time. It's delightfully "hoppy"

I am  using water bottles, screw top, non returnable and plastic, to bottle the beer in. This is a potentially risky idea because of the danger of explosions after priming. But I am being very careful not to prime them too much and I test them every day to release any excess pressure. So far there have been no problems and I am growing in confidence using them, as they do have some advantages, not least of which are cost, convenience and hygiene. To avoid any problems if bottles burst, I am keeping all of them in black plastic dustbin bags...and regularly releasing excess CO2.

I have now bottled 28 litres of the second brew - Hambleton Bard Bitter - which is beginning to show signs of good condition in the bottle. I overdosed the water quantity by mistake but its better to have more than less -I think you'd agree! This particular kit is entirely made from dry malt extract - something I have not come across before and is therefore intriguing. One still has to add cane sugar. I'll try, this time, to let it mature to its best condition which means at least another week's wait "in bottle". It will be appreciated, I'm sure, by Brother Robert who joins us at Toulouse on the 3rd of May. 

The third brew, Munton's Heavy, is also new to me though the malt extract is in the more normal liquid malt, pre-hopped form. It is happily bubbling away on the roof of "Body and Soul" as I write this posting. It seems much darker in colour and has been actually more active in the brewing vessel. The weather is kinder for brewing beer.

Together with the delights of  fresh spring asparagus - I recommend a look at the following site for any further encouragement which you may need to eat the stuff -

 http://www.squidoo.com/asparagushealthbenefits

We (I am!) are now drinking very pleasant Hambleton Bard's Bitter.  Others seem to like it very much and I do too although I think it is a little sweet. It is also weaker than prescribed because I mismeasured the amount of liquor needed to make 22.5 litres. It's good quaffing stuff though and have had many complements. I now realise that I added the 2 lbs of sugar required after adding the rest of the liquor - I should have added it with the boiling water to invert the sugar properly. Hey ho. That's why it is sweeter than I would like. I have another pack of the stuff. It has the advantage of being quite light for postage purposes.

Solving the water filtration problem....is my next blog subject coming soon. I am in touch with a guy called Martin at Silverline who is advising me...more later but his Company's site is:

Martin Goddard

Silverline UK Ltd

Telephone: 01805 804202

Email: [email protected]

 

 Pictures to be added soon and much more.....click on each for larger version.

  
   
  
 
 
 

  
 

From left to right,  Saint  Rustice, Emranchement de Montauban at Montech, Dinner at Lacourt St. Pierre, The Royal Occasion at Toulouse Pound, The Kiss, Another one. A tit nesting in the exhaust pipe of a Peniche. The stern of the Peniche.

  

 "Crapau dans le trou" (toad in the hole). Prepared by Peter (of Aurigny) for the Royal celebration Dinner on board Aurigny. .....using Toulouse Sausages....delicious and very  British for the 29th of April.

 

On the waggon with lurgie (It isn't all plain sailing, y'know - Part 28)

It's a hard winter so far with a lot happening "on the down-side" of comfort. Worst of all, the sad news from my old school pal, Simon Glover, that his wife Valerie has died, mid January, after a protracted and extraordinarily brave battle against the big "C". Our thoughts are with Simon and his family, all present at her bedside and her funeral which happens in Farnborough on the 27th January. I feel guilty at not being there.

Grumpy 'ole git (Taken by George Smith, ex- friend, the swine!)

It's been really abnormally cold and damp. Everyone seems to have caught some bug or other and both Lucie and I have taken our turn with the lurgie. On top of this I have been suffering self-imposed abstinance. Just as last year, not a drop of booze has passed my lips for the 31 days of January. I sleep much better but the advantages of imposing such pain on oneself is for a psychological reason as well as for the obvious, though perhaps temporary, health benefit. 

 To Lucie's horror, I have turned over a new leaf and  ordered 90 GDP's worth of home-brew kits which should cross the Channel some time in March with our friends Bob and Christine (from the great ship Sassy now moored without water in Meilhan) The engine room and the gap behind the sofa and beside the bed, are all taking on a new and important role.  The amount I am brewing initially will be about 280 pints - only a gallon  short of a brewer's barrel (288 pints!) - anything to improve upon the Eurofizz suffered to-date. Guests at my 70th birthday party will have bottles of "Grumpy 'Ole Git" presented to them  - at least, that's the plan.  It's worth mentioning that it is  our 17th wedding anniversary (10th September 1994) - so all in all, it could be a good do.

   

 "Body and Soul", with "Minute" in  persuit en route to Caumont where they will both pass the rest of the winter in the company of our hosts Charles and Caroline Lamb on "Connie". During the "chomage", this section of the canal is completely emptied out to give access for maintenance.

  "Minute" with David and Carol Harris, steaming up behind us

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting ready to leave the dry dock at  Castelnaudary on our previous visit three years ago when we shared the dock with Vertrowen      

The lovely Dr. Honore, our local GP, sees us today 7/02/011 by appointment to review our blood test results. To our delight she gives Lucie a "Gold star" for her results which are all excellent. I too have compliments and good news in general although I must cut out butter and any other saturated fats. My good cholesterol HDL is very good but the LDL - that's the bad one - is on the high side. However I get gold stars for my efforts to lose weight which is down to 94kgm. from 103kgms last time in November. She doesn't like my plans  to brew my own beer though and I am required to see her again in six months by way of punishment after a further blood test. No diabetes though - yippee!

 We go home, with our tails up, for a rewarding glass of red. It's good for the liver, they say.

                                                                                                                                  My hyercinth sculpture -  green fingers or what?     

By the way, we are now on "Facebook" - click on:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=51826&l=3682db7075&id=1790747326 

Two new dining room chairs from Ikea which give us much more room than the old bucket arm chairs   

We plan to set off from our mooring at Caumont on Sunday March 20th for a leisurely journey to the dry dock at Castelnaudary where we will be pressure-washing, scraping and painting  our hull for the second time in just over three years.  Body and Soul is booked in for two weeks from the 4th May and we will be on our own this time, without our friends George and Sue on Vertrowen. However we do have the help of my Brother Rob who is scheduled to land at Toulouse on the 3rd of May, where we will pick him up from the airport bus terminal, conveniently placed  50 yards from the canal. This gives us an easy two days to complete the 65Kms to Castelnaudary, arriving in the afternoon of the 4th May.

More for my benefit than for the reader's, (if indeed there is one!), we will be passing through the following main towns, (marked in bold): 

Please note that to read the map below properly you MUST click on it to enlarge.

  

 

From Caumont on the Canal lateral de la Garonne

Le Mas-D'Agenais (4kms and 1 lock)

Villeton (11kms - 2 locks)

Damazan (20kms  - 4 locks)

Buzet (24kms - 4 locks)

Agen (52kms - 11 locks)

Valence D'Agen (79kms - 14 locks)

Malhause (86kms - 17 locks)

Moissac (95kms - 19 locks)

Castelsarrasin (104kms - 26 locks)

Montech (116kms - 34 Locks)

Grisolles (133kms - 35 locks)

Toulouse ( 160 kms - 47 locks)

continuing on the Canal Du Midi from Toulouse

Montgiscard (181kms -  54 locks)

Port Lauragais (210kms - 66 locks)

Castelnaudary ( Total Journey = 225 kms - 73 locks)

In between these towns there are ample opportunities for beautiful wild moorings which I am sure we will be taking, however, I have an appointment with my dentist at Castelsarrasin to which I am not looking forward with much relish -  another one gone!

This episode in our travels is different because we may well be travelling when the canal water temperature is low and therefore relatively more dangerous. Falling off the boat is a much more serious affair at our age and not recommended, particularly when it is cold. We will be taking extra precautions both with our own safety but also with the dogs - but there you go, it really isn't all plain sailing, y'know, is it? 

  

..Just straws in the wind (It isn't all plain sailing, y'know - part 26)

From our arrival on the 16th, we have a lovely time with Steve and Sophie and their two children, Charlie and Max. It's a pre-christmas Christmas, complete with tree, presents,  lovely food and wine. All in their house in the lovely old village of Steeple Ashton. We thoroughly appreciate being spoiled.

Mother nature decides, meantime, to have a bit of a strop and we realise that over-night we have become insignificant straws in the wind and at her mercy.

It's now the 20th of December and we're sitting in an over-crowded train at Bristol Temple-Mead station waiting for some positive sign of movement in the Trowbridge direction - an unscheduled but - come to think of it - unsurprising deviation from our plans.

So we lost the gamble we made on the weather and despite having checked in our luggage and watching our Easyjet plane being de-iced and prepared for us on the runway, the return flight to Toulouse departing at 10.30am - ours is the first of many flights to be cancelled that day.

So here we are, slightly fed up but stoical and  resigned, clutching our re-claimed baggage, two bottles of duty-free whisky and a piece of paper from Easyjet, explaining how to get our money back or take a later flight - if we are lucky - the earliest one being the 27th December. A week hence! It is snowing. The train doors remain open and there is no heating.

 

 

 There are many other people on the train too, who would have been elsewhere but for the bad weather. Conversation starts between complete strangers. Whisky, crisps and a twix chocolate bar are offered for sharing amongst people with a common suffering. There is a very British, almost war-time, atmosphere.

"Ding dong" goes the tannoy and on comes - a kindly west-country voice  which says -

" our apologies, Ladies and gentlemen, this is your guard speaking. The reason we have not been able to leave the station on time is because although we have a guard - that's me - unfortunately, our scheduled driver is stuck in a snow-drift somewhere in Wales - so we are having to find another one from somewhere else.  Let's hope he knows the way! I will keep you informed and would ask for your continued patience....etc"

Within half an hour,  another driver is found and those who have left the train to find warmth elsewhere are shepperded back on-board to rejoin the party. For some reason our French Mobile refuses to work - even to send a text message - and the lady, sitting opposite, kindly offers  her mobile for us to ring Sophie and Steve to warn them of our second coming. Poor dears.

The next 24 hrs becomes a furious nightmare of discord and uncomfortable decision making together with considerable expertise on the internet. Other relatives are soon to arrive. Should we tap other friends for what might be an extended stay over Christmas and possibly the new year too? Our own house and dog-sitters have to be considered. The forecast for the following week is grim. Should we bite the bullet and catch a ferry from Portsmouth? - whilst the railways are relatively on schedule,  then hire a car for the long drive South. Our budget is well and truly shot already. We stay another night and sleep on it.

Next day, we make the decision to catch the night Ferry from Portsmouth to Caen where we hire a Fiat Punto at enormous expense.

The train to Portsmouth from Trowbridge - also without heating - is freezing. It's a  two hour journey with only our own sandwiches as sustenance. The glorious English countyside, for the most part, is soon forgotten as we delve into the suburbs of Portsmouth. What a dreadful dump it is, viewed  from the train. The toilets at the station, Portsmouth Harbour, are truly the most disgusting I have ever seen. One doesn't need to know the detail - but really shocking - someone should be sacked!

 We are wisely but hopelessly early and spend an uneventful and rather tiresome day at a bright and modern shopping centre just by the Quay, buying underpants at Marks and Spencers. Eventually we walk at least two miles from there to the Brittany Ferry Terminal, like impoverished refugees, dragging our belongings behind us but without a donkey cart. We board the Saint Michel at 9'45pm and sail an hour later, watching the whole loading and sailing off process, albeit in the dark,  from the piano bar drinking some more of our own whisky.... (this bar has a smart piano but no pianist - of course.)

  It's a night crossing on a "luxury" cruise liner and we book our "reclining" seats for the night -  all cabins are full. The seats are very uncomfortable - "Reclining" indeed! Even the tower of Pisa inclines more than these - be warned! - they are more like posh deck-chairs. But the crossing is otherwise smooth - for which Lucie is thankful. We treat ourselves to  steak and chips in the canteen.

 "You sure know how to spoil a girl" says Lucie. I am duly ashamed.

  We are brutally awoken at 5.30am with the full glare of the lights being turned on. We struggle one by one to the toilets each one guarding the luggage in turn. It's a minimal French breakfast and I'm really  struggling without Marmite! But hey?

    All coaches to the centre of Caen are cancelled because of thick snow, thick fog and ice, we join the freezing queue for the sole taxi. We finally pick up a Punto (not a penguin) from Europcar and I drive the 700klm South in a blizzard chased by a snow storm. We  arrive home at about 6pm. Job done. But....

It really isn't all plain sailing, y'know - is it?

Pass the Marmite (It isn't all plain sailing, y'know - part 25)

Breakfast conversation is always important on board "Body and Soul". Decisions about what we do each day are made over porridge, tea, toast and Marmite, marmalade, fruit and yoghourt etc - and, on Sundays,  we delight in "the full-monte" (ie bacon, egg and tomato or similar.) as we listen to what the world outside is doing, by courtesy of digital Radio 4. 

Spud and Teddy, who  look forward to this routine,  enjoy toast and Marmite tit-bits. Begging is forbidden of course. Would you believe that we have been eating fresh local strawberries even now - in late October! They are delicious.  

 

 

Here's Pierre (retired restaurateur and fisherman)  who comes from Bordeaux every day to fish at Meilhan.  

Yesterday, for instance, during breakfast we talk about our aging physiques and minor ailments and what we are going to do about them. The French health service has been sending us reminders about the various tests they like to perform on the "elderly" - prevention is better than cure ..and all that.

We are both becoming more aware of our age. I was made more conscious of this when yesterday I couldn't make the new egg-timer work without my glasses. There are constant reminders of this inevitable process. It's all going to be up-hill and we have to be sensible about what to expect. But it's more important not to worry about it  and to enjoy the life that we lead to the full. It is comforting to know that  we are definitely in the right place to do that.   

  View of our winter mooring

 

My lemon tree which we have grown from a small cutting,

We must put it inside for the winter

 

                                                                                               A view of our garden from the roof of Body and Soul       

Signs of autumn 

 We plan a visit to Marmande market in "Bumble", our much loved van which I have now repainted and repaired after a couple of posts, embedded in concrete, had an argument with Lucie as  she  reversed out of the post office car park. 

Lucie has just returned from a fortnight of caring for grand-children in Wiltshire and we need to restock the fridge after my efforts to stay alive during her absence.

We take the dogs with us - they love to stick their noses out of the windows on either side as we streak along at 30 mph,  "en route" to Marmande. Then we enjoy a morning walk in  the secret garden that I have found quite near to the market square. The French are so good at looking after their public spaces, just as they are bad - as another pertinent generalisation - at looking after their private houses. This particular secret garden has a small river running through it and several  streams with tasteful paths, many mature trees of various common varieties and plenty of bird life. It just isn't  the ubiquitous municipal park! We meet no-one else although on market day, perhaps that is not surprising. We return to Meilhan after having a cafe creme at our usual bar, looking out on to the market place, loaded with fresh fruit and veg. for the week. A lovely start to Saturday on a dramatically colourful autumn morning.

Talking of drama.... In late September, brother Robert and Di come to stay on board for five days, carrying relief supplies of Marmite from the UK,  having driven down from Dover in their car. One of the features of their stay is our trip in Body and Soul to Lagruere which is a very small village East of us by some 15 kilometres -  Not a stressful journey with only 4 locks. We have a delightful dinner at the canal side restaurant there and return the next day after a free mooring just beside the restaurant, for the night. The weather is fine and an early start for the trip back is peaceful enough, enveloped as we are, in beautiful autumnal scenes whilst we chug slowly back to Meilhan.

Then, just past the lock at Caumont, with Rob at the tiller, there is a serious bump  and horrible scraping sound beneath us. Body and Soul is not happy but appears to be undamaged by the experience which we put down to, possibly a sunken supermarket trolly. She continues apparently unharmed and eventually we reach home base with no more incidences.

Upon our return we hear that Doug and Sally whom we have only just  passed, going in the opposite direction in their boat, Poseidon, have hit the same object and, because of their deeper draft, are stuck fast - they are neither able to move forward nor aft. They ring Mike at the Capitainerie as a first attempt to enlist help to extract themselves from the middle of the canal. Mike then calls Lucie to help with his call, in French, to the Canal Authorities - the VNF. There does indeed appear to be a dangerous object in the middle of the canal which should not be there.

The conclusion of this story is shocking. An army of police, firemen, divers, a large crane and a number of VNF officials, descend on to the site and discover an upturned car in the canal. There is a dead body in it !  Clearly, this is the object that we slid over as we came back to Meilhan. What a drama !

 For us it was a lucky escape. Not so, for Doug and Sally in Poseidon and certainly not for the poor guy in the car.

Never mind the Marmite, life really isn't all plain sailing, y'know - is it?

Postscript: Doug and Sally in Poseidon are lifted off the car which was upside down in the canal and find, to their relief, that there is no damage to their boat.

 Talking of Marmite - the French just don't know what they are missing. Have they ever tried Marmite on croissants or baguettes with lashings of beurre doux? Delicious! And now we have Nigella Lawson with her great recipe,  Spaghetti with Marmite. (click on this for this..)  Ok, it's fairly high in salt, but a good dose of Marmite each day gives one plenty of vitamin B12 (good stuff for high alcohol consumption) and for preventing mosquito bites. No?....really! Believe me, it works..                                                                                                                          

http://tillersandtastebuds.typepad.com/tillers_and_tastebuds/spaghetti-with-marmite.html

 

                                                                                s 

" Immersion Total" (It isn't all plain sailing, y'know - Part 24)

The White-fly pest.  (click here for more info) is very annoying this year. There is a plague of them causing "HONEYDEW" - a sticky substance which, apparently, is produced out of their back-ends after they have consumed the sap of their victim plant-host -  So we are all covered in s...t! The effect is most noticeable underneath the beautiful plane trees that line the canal on either side. Any object left anywhere near them is covered with this sticky substance which, when dry, is difficult to remove and turns orange and then black. Car and boat owners alike are incandescent with frustration and the trees themselves don't like it either, dropping dead leaves, months earlier than normal. There will be further trouble when the wasps and ants arrive to feed on such a sticky bounty.

What on earth has that got to do with the above title?  I hear you say...well, it is a kind of immersion after all and it really follows on from my contention - that despite the glorious weather, lovely wine, lovely fresh food, fresh air, fun and  good company - that it isn't all plain sailing is it?....

 but then there's another thing.....

Il n'est jamais trop tard pour apprendre! (it's never too late to learn!)

It is clear to me that people learn a new language at different rates depending on the mix of both nurture and genetics (nature).  To speak French is really an essential requirement if one intends to fully integrate with the natives. There are many, I know, who think otherwise or believe it too late or too difficult. Any excuse will do. 

It is, I suppose,  courteous to engage in conversation with the French in their own language. One must try! ..but to-date, I readily admit to being  dependent upon Lucie's bilingual fluency to cope in all but the basic social niceties. I live in awe of her very natural abilities, born of a bilingual education at the French Lycee in London. Having a wife who can speak French fluently is an enormous advantage to the practical aspects involved with living. 

It is Lucie who tackles French bureaucracy with great skill and patience in innumerable matters involving licences, medical cards, insurance, banking, travel arrangements and residences and probably a lot more (what else is there?). But if she is not by my side, I am forced to engage my brain instead of relying on hers - thus increasing my ears' ability to listen, my brain to understand and my mouth to convey meaning.   Progress is therefore slow, but it behoves me to pass on my experiences to those who struggle or even to those who have given up.

With a long history of schoolboy failure behind me but with a modest vocabulary stuck somewhere in between my ears - and, after five years of living in France with a bilingual wife and some more recent French friends -  most of the restrictions and complexes I may have had in the past, have gone. There really is no excuse. I am now improving perceptably (and still making a fool of myself  - according to others) but I am determined to do better.

There is a plethora of methods on offer - from computer programs, direct French lessons, reading children's comics, listening to French radio programs, going back to school. All have their good points and a mixture of each seems to be the way to go. My English/French dictionary - "Le Robert & Collins" (only 35E) http://www.lerobert.com/ is now constantly by my side.  This imposing tome is worth more than any electric gadget and better than what  can be fished up by trawling through the web.

 I am particularly blessed to have the help of a real live mentor, Jean-Noel. He and I spend several hours a week under what he calls "Total Immersion" - or, while we are at it, "Immersion total". This happens at the Capitainerie with coffee, his newspaper and "petites" cigars.

This blog posting may do me good too. It is just another part of the learning process and might well help, if not amuse, other "Brits",  in the same predicament. At least it makes me look things up.

  Total immersion - the answer?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Grandchildren swim in Jean-Noel's pool    

'Total immersion with Professor Jean-Noel, facingI

If the weather is fine, Jean-Noel can be found at the Capitainerie  having a morning cafe-creme, sometimes with his newspaper sometimes with his delightful wife Anne Marie.  I am not allowed to speak English. If I try, he refuses to understand, even though I know he can speak it quite well. At last I am beginning to use my brain.

But the ability to read and write French clearly requires grammatical skills. To speak it, arguably, does not. But to converse with fluency and to be able to understand it in depth,  spelling, vocabulary and grammar, I believe, are important for advancement.  I find the afore-mentioned dictionary invaluable for this, especially the section which deals with the conjugation of irregular verbs - the curse of any language. I must learn all the irregular verbs and how they are conjugated. It will be worth it.

Jean-Noel is as patient as a saint. Every time I try to say something in French he corrects me and makes me repeat it, over and over again. Then we try alternative ways of saying the same thing, colloquially.

If there is one phrase which I find has helped me enormously it is this -

"Il faut que j'aille promener les chiens" - (I must go and walk the dogs) -

Just to be able to say the phrase exactly right and quickly, is a triumph to me and gives me an amazing boost in confidence. I now spout it out whenever I can however relevant it is to what I am doing or to whom I am speaking and with  or without the presence of my two dogs. It makes for much laughter and praise.

Developing this phrase goes further........

"Hier, Il a fallu que j'aille promener les chiens" (Yesterday, I had to walk the dogs)   

 and then again:

"Demain, il faudra que j'aille promener les chiens" (Tomorrow I have to walk the dogs)

Now this is a clear example of how French is confusing when dealing with irregular verbs. There is  no direct translation to English. By discussing this with Jean-Noel, and after several rehearsals, I manage to remember all three phrases without any knowledge of the grammatical niceties or even the verb that I am using, but I still  know what to say in French and to convey meaning. This is why it is not sensible to try to translate French directly into English before speaking. As the prof. keeps reminding me "Pas de traduction!" (No translation!) He insists.

In fact to my surprise, after looking up the irregular verbs in my "tome" I discover the verb "falloir" which might seem to the uninitiated, to have precious little to do with any of the above useful phrases. Jean-Noel is dead right. "Pas de traduction"! 

Zut allors! "Faut, Fallu, Faudra" what's that got to do with "Falloir"? Don't ask me but he's right of course.

"Falloir" Indeed ! it roughly means "to need" but its uses and phrases in this dictionary cover a whole page in small print.

"Il faut etre fou pour parler comme ca"   (You must be mad to talk like that)

"Il faut de tout pour faire un monde"  (It takes all sorts to make a world!)

Now we're talking, but it really isn't plain sailing, y'know, is it? 

(Maintenant nous parlons ensemble mais tout ne marche pas comme sur des patin a roulettes, n'est  ce pas?)

Note - and there's another reason for not translating exactly! - "patin a roulettes" means roller-skates! 

 Just by way of a break, have a look at the following links for all you need to know about the canals we live on.

Les Canaux Entre Deux Mers

These two Canals, Le Canal Lateral a la Garonne and Le Canal du Midi - meet at Toulouse - the former connects north-westward from Toulouse to the Atlantic Ocean at Bordeaux and the latter,  Eastward from Toulouse, to the Mediterranean at Marseillan.

I have below inserted some useful links about both Canals - Entre deux Mers.

Le Canal Lateral a la Garonne (the canal we are on at the moment)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canal_de_Garonne

Le Canal Du Midi (Linking ours with the Med.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canal_du_Midi

Sight seeing

http://www.creme-de-languedoc.com/Languedoc/sightseeing/canal-du-midi.php 

 Sue Kibbey singing at the "Jazz au Port" with me accompanying.

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                                       

George Smith, my agent. An accomplished professional musician playing at the "Jazz au Port"

 

 

 

A trip too far (It isn't all plain sailing, y'know - part 23)

Chez Kelly (www.chezkelly.eu) is a Chateau owned by our two friends, Keld and Brendan. They run a very upmarket Guest House business in what is also their home. There are splendid views of the great river Garonne. The Chateau is beautifully appointed with many facilities including a large swimming pool and tennis court, set in rolling parkland and gardens flowing down to the canal, where a small pontoon provides guests with  the possibility of a boat trip on one of the most beautiful sections of the Canal Lateral a la Garonne.  Guests are offered bed and breakfast and free use of all these facilities but other meals are only provided if specially arranged.

The proprietors involve themselves very much with each of their guests and when a family wants a river trip, with dinner provided on board, we are asked if we'd like to provide such an experience. We jump at the chance. This is where the story really starts.

We welcome three of their guests aboard with an aperitif on the "poop deck". Lucie has everything ready.

  The table is beautifully laid for three.

 The menu is well researched and even includes dishes for one vegetarian.   At 7pm my role as "Captain" comes into force and with my captain's hat on, I take charge and we cast off from the pontoon and, with a "toot" on our horn, proceed in the direction of Bordeaux with the intention of turning round at the village of Hure. This is a trip of 4 kilometres. Dinner is to be served on the return journey starting at about 7.50pm. It's a beautiful trip and a beautiful evening.

A beautiful trip...Yes. this canal is as wide as we are long and sometimes it can prove to be ones undoing......

Upon reaching Hure  earlier than we expected, I take a unilateral decision to extend the trip further in the same direction. Our guests seem to be enjoying themselves, so why not? My rather vague plan is to find a turning point somewhere close to the lock and further  downstream of the village. But being 60 feet in length (18 metres), "Body and Soul" needs at least this amount of space within which to turn. The canal, for the most part, is too narrow but there are usually plenty of places where one can nudge one's bow into the soft grass slopes in order to turn. So I take what I consider to be a minor risk with some confidence - misplaced as I am soon to find out.

Baked feta, garlic, cayenne, peppers, oil - first course.

We sail past the agreed turning point at Hure on our way to the lock with no doubts about the success of this dinner trip. Things are going splendidly. Everybody is happy. We dream of making this into a small business say twice a week? - with a reasonable charge - to supplement our state pension - we have visions of wealth and glory untold. 

Readers will doubtless guess the rest of the story. There are no turning points for barges of our length after Hure until one has gone through the lock. A distance of perhaps one kilometre. In fact the canal has metal sides all the way to the lock from the village of Hure. We soon discover this when we try to turn just before it. There's no way - and the lock is long closed at 7pm.

 Just a view of summer life at the Port of Meilhan sur Garonne, taken from Body and Soul, showing our pontoon, our garden, some of the Minervois Cruisers and the Capitainerie in the background.

    

Faced with this situation and after trying several times to turn without success using the barge pole and with help from the only male guest, Lucie suggests that our guest's dinner will be spoilt if we don't start the first course soon and that we should tie up on the pontoon before the lock and she should start serving it now. Good idea, I say! But any promises we made for a session of romantic piano music during the dinner are now shelved indefinitely as I am heavily engaged in problems of a more pragmatic nature.

  

not forgetting the rest of the crew who had nothing to complain about

(click on any of the photos to enlarge) 

This is rapidly developing into "Fawlty Towers" on water. "Everything's under control, will passengers kindly return to their seats!" - I could have done with a tannoy system for public announcements.

Whilst our guests settle into their dinner, I take a desperate but quick walk back towards Hure along the bank to examine all possibilities. Surely there must be a hole in the bank somewhere? -  there isn't even a kink for at least a quarter of a mile.

I endeavour  to make our barge just a couple of feet shorter by removing the stern fender, a strange rope object which protrudes out at the back and protects the rudder from collision damage from the rear. This procedure would normally be carried out in dry dock but, bravely, I hang on to the tiller with one hand and, with the other, manage to undo the shackles with a pair of pliers to release the chains which hold it in place. Bad move! I'd forgotten the other chains which hold it down from underneath the water line.

The fender, now relieved of its upper connections, slips down to entangle itself with the rudder, rendering "Body and Soul" impossible to steer. I am perspiring profusely with the effort and in need of a glass of beer.

At this point, Lucie floats up on deck, to find out how my plans are working. She is looking lovely as ever, dressed for the occasion as "hostess with the mostest". A fine linen tunic and trousers, silver-thong sandals and, of course, her signature silver dangling earrings. With her mass of well groomed hair  blowing in a rapidly rising wind she finds it noticeably cooler. But the guests are  happy with everything although I detect an element of concern creeping in about the prospect of being stuck at this lock over night. Their laughter grows more hollow by the minute. There is a plane to catch in the morning. But at this point it remains just a ghastly possibility which we cannot even contemplate. Our reputation is clearly on the line. One just couldn't make this up. 

I manage to secure the back fender temporarily and, as the ex-leader of the Peewit patrol in the 16th Epping Forest South Troup (Be Prepared!), I lash it with a piece of string to the tiller and am thus able to steer the boat, in a restricted kind of way. There is now absolutely no chance of taking emergency action if called upon on our eventual return journey.

As all barge owners, without bow-thrusters, will be aware, it is impossible to steer a barge in reverse gear using the rudder. Bow thrusters do help considerably but without them one can only steer by firstly establishing as much backward motion as possible and then adjusting the direction of the vessel by going into forward gear and using the rudder "hard-over" which ever way is required. It's a skillful but painfully slow process at the best of times but the alternatives in this case are unthinkable. I discuss my desperate plan with Lucie.

Now our lovely hostess is on the rough canal path, still in full evening wear, with two ropes in her small hands - One from the bow and one from the middle of our barge - her role is to keep us straight against the wind which is blowing us away from the bank, whilst I attempt to reverse and steer astern towards Hure or to the nearest possible turning point that we find. All this is happening in full view of our guests who are finishing their delicious tarte tatin, wondering about their coffee and staring in disbelief into the growing gloom through the saloon windows.

For four hundred yards we slowly edge backwards. The engine revs are noisily going up and down whilst I struggle for control.  Lucie's face is a picture and, believe me, she is not smiling. We finally find a niche where the canal will allow us to turn and our  nightmare is nearly over. Lucie climbs aboard and is justly rewarded with great cheers from her three guests and we turn around with inches to spare. The wind drops mercifully but it is now dark and we set off for home with all lights ablaze. Our guests finish their coffee on the poop deck with us, straining their eyes at the approaching and dimly lit plane trees, no doubt wondering how I could possibly see anything at all.

 If only they knew ...... still, it's never plain sailing y'know - is it?

Postscript

We arrived safely in Port at 11.00pm. and hear from our friends, the proprietors, next day that their (and our) guests were more than pleased with the experience and the superb food  on "Body and Soul" and that we should have charged for the excellent entertainment! QED.