Over the hills and far away

Hi everyone, for those who didn't know I am now in Spain!! Got here on Saturday and love it already!
On Friday I got up a little early to put my washing out for a last chance to dry. Due to some issues with the washing machine they hadn't gone out early enough the day before. Unfortunately as I was walking over to the line -minus shoes - I felt a sharp stinging pain in my foot. When I pulled back I spotted the wasp I had just stepped on - ouch! The little monster had me hobbling around for the best part of an hour, I suppose at least know I know I'm not allergic...
After breakfast we got packed up and headed over to Luke's bar - we were off on an adventure! Joel and I said our goodbyes to Carly, Greg and Basil then we set off with Luke to Bordeaux - he had an important meeting about possibly having his art displayed in the city. While he was at his meeting Joel and I headed over to McDonalds - Joel for the food, but I just wanted the free wifi.
After that we went and checked out the Monument aux Girondins - a huge column with a beautifully carved statue at the top and an amazing fountain in front. Next we went to Bordeaux's own Notre Dame then the cathedral. As well as being good little tourists we were also on the search for a cheap ukulele but the best we could find was one for 40€ and that was more than he wanted to pay. Just as we headed into the first museum we spotted Luke called to say his meeting had finished so we quickly backtracked and headed back to the car for stage two of the adventure: the Dune du Pilat! It's the tallest sand dune in Europe reaching up to 110m above sea level - pretty impressive! It's surrounded by trees on three sides and the ocean in the other. You walk up the steepest side and from the top the view is spectacular - mile of beach, the ocean and sandy little islands. We ran/walked/slid down the other side to the sea and wen straight into the water then after a little while Joel and Luke took a couple more runs down a shorter stretch while I chilled out and acted as cameraman. Personally I think that pair had fad too much energy!
When we finished we made the long, tiring climb back up to the top. Unfortunately that was when I realised that I couldn't find my mobile! I emptied my pockets and we tried calling it but it was no use. I knew I'd had it at the bottom so my only option was to go back down. I asked everyone I passed to keep an eye out and searched as much as I could down the dune and along the beach. Finally I heard a shout from above - someone had found it and gotten it to the lads at the top. After half crawling up the dune a second time I was reunited with the phone and was much happier. So it's now been lost 3 times in two years: twice hitchhiking and once on the biggest run in Europe - pretty impressive really.
Before leaving we got sandwiches and got organised. After that we set off, Joel was staying at Luke's before his train the next day and they were dropping me off at the junction for the road south to Spain! I had received a message the day before confirming a new project so I decided to go right away. Unfortunately it's a pretty fast road so it took a while to find a lift. The guy drove me about 10 km down the road and dropped me off at a quiet round about just off the highway. Oddly enough though he then returned and decided to take me to a petrol station further down the road instead! He then made sure I had a lift south before he left - how awesome is that?! He spoke to a girl who was heading an hour south to near Bayonne and she was happy to take me. She was a nice lass and we muddled through the conversation despite the language barrier and when it was time for he'd to turn off she insisted on trying to find me a new lift as well. Unfortunately since it was getting dark and it was mostly families no one wanted to take me and after about an hour she gave up and could only wish me the best and hope I found a lift.
After another hour I had practically admitted defeat and had resigned myself to sleeping outside the shop and finding a lift in the morning. However, as I was starting to fall asleep a truckdriver, who'd seen my failed attempts at getting a lift, told me he was going to Pamplona! He wouldn't be arriving until the next day but that was fine so off we went. I slept most of the way to Irun where he stopped for a few hours for some sleep and sardine and corn sandwiches...which he shared. By the time we set off it was daylight and I'm grateful that was the case so I could see the Pyrenees. The mountains were beautiful and we kept seeing this tiny little villages nestled down the the valleys, to tall cut off from the outside. We drove along high above the other vehicles, Sun shining, wind blowing and singing along to some classic British Rock music from the stereo - perfection! Of course I didn't think to take any photos so you'll just have to take my word for it, it was beautiful.
Anyway he actually drove me right up to the new project since he had to drive near it anyway. Reggie (I couldn't properly understand his real name) was definitely an interesting character anyway. He invited himself in for  coffee while I got chatting to Linda.
Linda and Pedro run a small motel/ hostel here, although Linda's originally from Sunderland! She also lived in Durham and worked in Middlesbrough in the past. This was all pretty awesome for me considering my family's from round that way.  Once Reggie left Linda showed me around the buildings before having a nice salad for lunch and that's were I met the other volunteer. A 26ish year old Dutch city lad . I got him to show me the gardens but after that we climbed up the steep bank at the back of the house and went exploring! We walked along the ridge until the path disappeared then turned back since if was getting on a bit - a good option since my knees were protesting after being in the truck so long.
We made it back in time for dinner which was a very nice pasta dish then I spent the evening skyping back home and trying to arrange people visiting me in Portugal in September - can't wait! Eventually though it was time to call it a night so I headed to bed to read.
On Sunday morning I found by own breakfast as instructed then spent a lot of the morning writing and organising things online. Around 1.30 Linda and Pedro's friend Martin took me and the other helper - Jon to his brother-in-law's bar for a while before lunch for a couple of drinks then we returned for lunch - chard and rabbit stew.
Once we'd finished Linda drove Jon and I to the village so we could check out this ancient crypt....but it was closed...nice front gate though, very traditional looking. Instead we wandered around the village for a while before walking back up to the house. We had dinner around 8.30 then just had a chilled out night talking about good music.
Unfortunately I still haven't sorted my camera connections yet because the connector I thought I could get only works for chargers....any suggestions?
Talk to you all soon!

Field trip!

Hi everyone, I haven't got a whole lot of time to write at the moment so its just a short post (I think) but something's better than nothing. On Monday morning Joel and I worked on the new workshop. We had to take out all the wooden supports that had gone in to pour the concrete, sounds easy you might think - nope! They supports were all nailed, screwed, partially concreted and dug in; it took all morning to get the job done between us! Luckily we finished as lunch time arrived because once again it was far too hot to be working - 35 degrees!
After a siesta we moved on to work in the shade although it was another fairly heavy going task; shovelling dry, composting horse manure was the next project in the list. This was because all this muck was right where we planned on moving almost a whole cinema's worth of chairs the following day - sounds bizarre I know! Fortunately it only took us two hours and after a quick scrub and clean up we headed to the bar for some much needed internet time. We didn't get to the lake but we all had a lot to do online instead.
The following day we were up and on the road by 7.30 am for a field trip! We headed to a place called Eymit, about an hour away, and arrived at the Salle De Fate. The owner had decided to revamp the theatre so Greg and Carly decided to by up the old chairs, keep some to use and sell the rest for a profit. All morning we unscrewed chair feet, detached seats from backs, split rows into more manageable lengths and did everything else required to transport half a cinema down the road. It was quite heavy going but once we got back it was quicker to unload the van then had lunch. Since we'd worked hard and completed our work hours early we had the afternoon off so it was off to the bar in the spare car (with Joel driving) . We spent about an hour in there and I got properly registered for the next part of my uni degree - 'investigative and  mathematical skills in science' starting in  October and 'discovering mathematics' starting in February. Now I could have waited to apply for the second one later when maybe there would be more courses available to register for with start dates around then but I can only apply for funding once a year so it wouldn't have worked. I'm not to sure if two maths subjects is a good idea but the second one sounds more straight forward so fingers crossed it goes OK. When we got back to the house we waited for Greg, Carly and Fred to return then headed over to Carly and Greg's friend's house to chat and retrieve Basil before we went to the lake. Once we finished there it s time to head home but as we dove up the drive Greg stopped the car to point to a bird up ahead - a Hooper or a Hoopee or something similar ( the name is floating around in my subconcious somewhere but i can't find it exactly)! It's an awesome little bird that has a crest on its head which basically can become a full on orange Mohawk! Anyway after the bird spotting moment we had dinner then an early night on preparation for another early start.
Wednesday morning followed the same pattern as the previous day however once we'd finished loading up Greg's and Fred's vans we met a friend of Fred's who works in the town. The guy, who may or may not be called Camille as his business card suggests moved from London and now has a vintage little Citroen van which he's converted into a classic ice cream van. Since we gave him a few chairs he gave us free ice cream - best ice cream I've had in a long time - and a coffee on the house too! He seems like a right character and overall a pretty cool guy but we had to get back on the road, so with a promise to look him up on Facebook we headed back home. Lunch was made almost immediately so we waited and unloaded the vans afterwards before having a chilled out afternoon. Greg's friend Penny arrived around 7pm with her two month old daughter and after catching up at the house we all headed to the lake. Joel managed to swim right over to the other side - pretty impressive - and Fred went half way across too but the rest of us were content to hang out in the shallower area and just enjoy the cool water. After a while we headed to the bar and got two big portions of chips between us - there were six adults and two kids after all! Having finished up there we came back to the house for the main course a well known local duck dish ( the name of which I also can't fully remember - I blame the heat). It was decided that Fred and Penny are going to stay so we set up a makeshift camp for Joel so Penny and the baby could have the bedroom, and Fred put a mattress in his van. We sat in the house with the record player on drinking and enjoying the music until quite late until 2am when everyone else had disappeared to their makeshift homes. Instead of heading straight to bed then Joel and I sat and watched Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, well we watched most of it but we were both asleep by the end. By this point it was almost 5 am so I headed to the caravan and got a couple of hours sleep before starting work again.
All the work was done around the house today so we didn't have a set time to start, just as long as we worked our time. I started around 7.30 am to get going before it was too hot but ended up working extra since Joel was still working later (having started a couple of hours later). I spent the morning doing a number of jobs: clearing part if a field with a scythe so the fence could be replaced, watering the vegetable garden and taking up all the onions, and with Carly and Joel I helped with weeding around and watering the fruit trees, taking down an old barb wire fence, 'watering the sheep' and helping clear a new path to the sheep field. Luckily by 2pm it was time to finish for lunch before it was ridiculously hot once again and I was in desperate need of a break and a siesta! Anyway, the post isn't quite as condensed as I planned but what can I say - I love to write!
Speak to you all soon!

A night at the theatre

Hi everyone,
Still trying to get caught up with writing but there's been so much happening lately I've hardly had time to write.
Friday morning began with cereal and herbal tea before Carly took Basil off to the summer school he goes to on weekdays. While she was out the building reinforcements arrived in the form of Frederic and Romain - Greg's friends. Fred restores old furniture and also builds cabinets while Romain is a carpenter. They had arrived to help build Greg's new workshop. We had a quick coffee while everyone looked at the an then, once Carly arrived it was time to get started. The guys got to work on he building while Carly and I worked on refencing the  sheep field since they had escape the previous day. It was pretty heavy going because we had to try and balance on the ladder then try and use a huge mallet to hammer the posts into place then once we ran out of posts and had enough in to use the open roll of wire fence he then had to hammer long staples in the hold the wire in place.
By lunch time it was far too hot so Carly and I went into town i get some food for a bbq lunch. Romain left before we started as he wanted to get out on his boat but Fred stayed to help all afternoon.
Since we couldn't do anything else outside Carly and I relocated to the house to start getting it tidied up and presentable. We also cleaned out one of the rooms upstairs for the use of a new helper who was arriving that evening. By this point it was  time to go and get Basil from school so while Carly did that I went online in the bar nearby to use the internet. The bar is actually owned by Luke but he rents it out instead of running it now.
Once we had Basil it was time to go and get our new helper - Joel. He's 19, from New Zealand an is travelling in France then maybe Scotland for 6 months. We met him at the train station in Libourne before driving back to the house. We went in the van but Joel drove Carly's other car back which had been left in the station CD park for the week. We got home and of organised then went to join Greg and Fred at the lake. Jut like the day before we went for a swim then got some chips which we ate alongside the salad we'd brought with us. Around 9.30 I had a nice although short phone call from home to confirm dates for visit in Portugal and shortly after that we got our things together and headed home. Before bed Joel and I made some mint tea (something I think I'll need practice with) then we sat out for a while with the guitar. Not a bad first day of work!
Saturday began a little later than the day before since we weren't working but once we were all organised we headed out to St Foy la Grande where Carly, Greg, Basil and Luke were taking part in a painting competition. Joel and I were given the chance to enter but we both decided not to inflict our bad paining abilities on the town. Instead we wandered all over the town, exploring the market and swapping travel tales - he's pretty well travelled as well for his age. By 11.30am the temperature had risen drastically so we hung out in a coffee shop for a while before meeting back up with the group for a picnic lunch by the Dordogne where they had been painting.
Carly had painted part of a large deformed tomato which she had found in the market. It was really cool but I think the judges decided it was too 'outside the box' or what they wanted people to paint - a representation of the patriotism of the town. Luke, meanwhile, had used the church for inspiration and had painted par o that with the angel from one of the stained glass windows standing outside the church and a couple of soldiers to represent the fact that that part of the town had survived the war. Basil had painting a dinosaur and Greg had painted a scene with the bridge using only coffee and orange juice!
After lunch we stayed nearby while Luke and Carly finished their paintings although Greg decided not to enter his and took Basil home to sleep since he was getting really cranky. The canvases had to be turned in at 5.15pm so having done that we went over the river and swam for an hour while the judging was done. When we got back we found that Basil had won for his age range and Luke had won a section of the professional group. We stayed around for the presentation and for the wine and biscuits but after that Luke dropped us off at home so we could eat before going back out. Luke reappeared and once we were ready we were back on the road, this time to go to LA Réole  for an open air dance theatre performance. The first performance involved on man reenacting World War 2 with no props only mime. The fact he had interchange between three or four characters - including an American officer a Japanese soldier and Hitler - and make the audience understand the different settings like when he was in a submarine or anything like that was quite impressive but it was pretty bizarre. The second show however was brilliant it was about how people think, behave and interact when waiting at  the bus stop but I was done most through dance - specifically tango and salsa. I couldn't understand quite a lot of the dialect but in general the show and the music - provided by a man playing the accordion on top of the bus shelter - were brilliant!
Once the show was finished we were starting to head back to the car hen we came across an art gallery opening. We went it a look and it was pretty impressive. The paintings were abstract landscapes which were quit interesting but the sculptures were amazing. They were made from old metal wire and various other metal objects And were all sorts of strange biomechanical figures such as a wire human form with a prosthetic leg lying on a table or a figure in the starting position for a race but with a goat's skull complete with horns. They were really interesting and I would have happily stayed longer but we needed to get back so we returned to the cars and all headed back to the house for a couple of drinks before Luke went home and we all went to bed.
On Sunday we all had a bit of a lie in and just had a quiet morning in the bar trying to organise things online. We got back around half one for lunch then after a siesta we did some work outside. The paths around the property had all overgrown so we spent a few hours clearing out the nettles and other plants that were trying to take over. Back home this would have been done with a strimmer or hedge clippers but the tools are a little more old fashioned here so we used syths instead. I took some time out to take Basil out for a little row on the pond at the back but it was a pretty tiring afternoon overall so once we'd finished we headed straight for the lake.
The lake was totally packed when we got there but we swam around a while then went to get some chips as is tradition. While we were there we met a couple of Carly's friends and after we'd finished at the lake we went to their house to hang out for a bit. They had 3 gorgeous dogs that I spent half the time fussing over but we sat and talked a while and drank home made prune wine - very nice. It started getting dark and Basil was tired so we headed home for bread and cheese before going to bed.
The post for Monday onwards should be up soon too for those of you eager to keep up to date but in the mean time feel free to leave a comment, even if it's just a short message to say hi, it can get a little lonely on the road, even when you're surrounded by people and I would love to hear from you guys!
See you next time!

Project number 3!

Hi everyone,
so posting is still going to be a little difficult because my current project doesn't have internet but I'll try my best.
Wednesday morning was pretty chilled out since I had to wait for some washing to dry out, plus I wasn't in a big rush anyway. While I waited I double checked my route for the next day and asked the staff if they could call ahead to my intended campsite in Bergerac to see if they had space which they gladly did and reserved me a spot for just under 4€50!
Around 10.30am I left Domaine de Barbe  and walked down into town. Luckily it was only a kilometre and all downhill cause it was far too hot to be hiking with a full rucksack. Within a couple of minutes I found a lift to Lalinde (I can't remember how it's spelt and don't have a map to hand) - about 5km down the road. The guy was English but had lived in France for 15 years so to begin with he tried speaking to me in French since he didn't notice the bad french pronunciation or confused looks I was giving him. It wasn't a huge lift but it got me a better hitching spot and I had another lift in  5 minutes and they happily took me all the way to the campsite! Dominique spoke really good English and although her husband Christophe didn't speak any I even managed a speak with their 8 year old daughter Cecile in English a tiny bit! Although we got a tiny bit lost trying to get to Bergerac we found the campsite in pretty good time so I could set up before the heat was too much.
As soon as I made camp I went for a quick wash before setting out to explore. The main area is jam packed with restaurants and shops selling fois gras. It's full of old buildings and seems pretty cool but it is definitely geared up for tourists, meaning it was packed with holiday makers and everything was more expensive. Also by the time I'd finished scoping out the area places were starting to close for lunch. I tried wandering around the backstreets too because usually you can see what the place is like behind the image it's given by the tourist board, however even there everyone was inside sheltering from the Sun so I gave up on that idea, reorientated myself then headed off in search of cheap food. I found a great sandwich place in the more local part of town where you could get a full sized baguette sandwich with a cookie and drink for 4€ so I settled on a safe looking sandwich - it turned out to be salami and pickles - then found a shady spot to eat and watch the people go by.
After lunch I went down to an exhibition which was open for the afternoon in the town. The work was by an artist called Emmanuel Michel while the exhibition - titled voyages - was full of paintings of people going about their lives in places like Cuba or Tanzania  or Indonesia. He had also created some statues using the same theme. I loved his work, the pictures really showed how little modernisation has gone on in these places.
Almost two hours later I finally decided to go and find some water and decided it was far too hot to stay out. Instead I headed back to the campsite, had a quick dip in the Dordogne since it ran alongside the campsite, then went for a long nap.
A couple of hours later I went up to the reception to use the internet for an hour to look for more projects and chat to a couple of people back home and while I was there I checked out the book swap shelf and picked up a copy of The White Tiger by Aravinda Adiga. It's about an Indian boy who works his way out of a little village in the darkest depths of the country to be a chauffeur in Delhi and progresses up to become a top entrepreneur in Bangalore although not always by staying on the right side of the law to succeed. I had read it before while I was in India but it definitely deserves more than one read. Eventually it became to dark to read or write without the torch as me and my camping neighbour opposite realised at the same time so I decided to call it a night.
Thursday morning came around rather slowly due to a pretty bad night's sleep - I half wonder if they just turfed over a car park to create the campsite, I could hardly even get the tent pegs in! I had already decided to leave early so I could try and get to my new project before it got too hot so I struck camp and set off around 7.30am to get to the edge of the town. I still didn't exactly know where I was going but I knew how to get to the village nearest so I figured I could walk around and find it from there....or so I thought.
It took about 40 minutes to get my first lift with a plumber who was heading 20km up the road so I set off with him and after picking up his colleague  they dropped me off at the roundabout for Castillion  la Bataille before turning off the other way.
I didn't have to wait long before I got my next lift with a passing truck. I think the guy was French but from an area where they had a different dialect because I knew the French for some of the things he was trying to say but he was using totally different words... Either way he dropped me off in the centre of the village and wished me luck before heading off.
With the address of my new home in hand I set off asking people as I went for directions. I ended up walking right back out to the east side of town then couldn't figure out if I was at the right junction or if I had to turn off at the following one. Fortunately I managed to flag down a car and asked the guy for directions. However when he checked his GPS it turned out that it was about 15 minutes drive so he offered to drive me instead because although it was just before 10.30 am it was already about 30 degrees. Edouard and I couldn't find the place despite driving through the little hamlet a few times so we called Carly for directions and then made it to the house.
The only problem was that Carly and Gregoire and their little son Basil were still on their way back from Paris, having been delayed overnight. Instead Carly explained where the keys were and said they would be back around 2pm so on that note Edouard headed back to work and I headed to the house. I tried looking for the keys but to no avail and with little to no phone signal the only option was to find a shady spot and wait. I found the outside water tap and still had some biscuits so I set up in the hammock and alternated between reading, sleeping and heading to the only spot where I could find signal to see if I could get any more clues as to the location of the keys.
Around 4pm they arrived after having some trouble on the road but I was just grateful to get some proper food.
After a quick snack I had a quick tour of the site then got set up in the caravan - I could have stayed in my tent but after the previous night my back needed somewhere slightly softer to lie. Once we were all organised it was off to the lake for a swim.
The lake's really nice - half surrounded by trees, a nice beach and lovely clear water, plus a couple of cafés on the water's edge. After going in the water we got some chips and a small jug of wine and watched the ducks. I was also introduced to their friend Luke. He's an artist from South Africa although he's been here 5 years and has been doing glass sculptures over here - specifically suits of armour!
Once we'd finished it as back to the house for an early night since we'd all had a very long day.
Before I finish I'd better give a quick description of the project. So Carly and Greg have a big bit of land with a house that needs total renovation and a big workshop which they're in the process of building. The family are living in a refurbished 1930s gypsy caravan (not the rounded type but square-ish and longer).
Anyway I'm here for the week and one again have no idea where I'm going next. We shall see!
Also I know my posts are a bit behind but I'm super busy here!
See you all next time!

Wild camping - take 1

I've broken this one into a couple of posts since otherwise it would be far to long so read the Bastille Day one first!
Monday morning started of a little slowly again but at least I had decided where to go. I had considered taking Tim up on his offer to stay and help a little but I decided to move on and have a couple of days exploring Dordogne before starting work on Thursday so off to Sarlat I went.
Kate drove me down to a little way out of Chatellerault and we said our goodbyes on the roadside, agreeing to keep in touch. I had a wonderful time staying with her and Vince and really hope to she them again sometime.
I got a lift in a matter of moments to the SE corner of Poitiers with a young woman going home for lunch with her family. I didn't catch her name but she was nice enough to go out of her way to find a good hitching spot at a big , busy layby so I was fairly happy with that.
Within minutes I had my next lift from another young woman, this makes a change cause in the UK women on their own don't often stop. Vivianne teaches french as a foreign language and has worked everywhere from Middlesbrough (near where I used to live in England) to Ethiopia! At the moment she's looking for a job in Australia and hopes to move over there permanently- not a bad idea really. We parted ways in Limoges as she was turning east but we had a great chat and sing-a-long to some bad British pop music on the radio - its crazy how much of that there is in France!
After a 15 minute wait I found a lift to Give - about half way between Limoges and Sarlat. The guy didn't speak any English but we got by in french and to be honest I was just happy to have the air conditioning on!
He dropped me off near a couple of shops and 'a good place to eat'....Since I wanted to save the food Kate gave me for if I couldn't get food where I camped into McDonalds I went. Thankfully it wasn't the worst meal I'd ever had and it did fill a gap so off I went, feeling a little dirty for having eaten in the monster of all fast food chains. I tried walking out of town a way but as with all these places town spreads out for miles so a couple stopped and offered to drive me a couple of villages down the road where I'd be more likely to find a lift.
As they expected I had a lift with minutes although it was a bit of a funny one. First the woman had to go and get her son from the lake where her sister had taken him swimming with her family. So we spent a little time there while the kids played although the sister was casually wandering around topless which was drawing a bit of disapproving attention to the entire group, not that she noticed. Once we left the lake we stopped by sister no.2 to see if she knew any good wild camping spots. They decided on a little bit of woodland near a small château where there was even water and a toilet available! It was a good few kilometres from Sarlat but I wasn't planning on exploring until the morning plus they gave me  a pack of biscuits so I had plenty of food.
The only problem with wild camping here is it's a bit of a grey area as to whether it's allowed. Just in case I hauled my bag into the deepest part of the woods I could find and made camp, trying to avoid as many tree roots as possible. By that time there was nothing else to do but turn in for the night.
I had a fairly early start as I needed to get the tent out of the way without being spotted walking out of the woods with my rucksack. With the help of a kind old Dutch gentleman I made it to Sarlat - asked asked for directions thinking it wasn't far and he gave me a lift instead.
Sarlat is a gorgeous old town with most of it's original medieval buildings still in tact. I looked around as much as is possible with a huge rucksack slowing you down but finally I admitted defeat. The steep winding streets of the town are definitely better explored sans the bag. I grabbed a cold drink in the town centre - 3€50 for a fanta!! - before walking out to the edge of town. I stopped by a small bar for a bottle of water and double-checked my directions which isn't easy when my French is apparently incomprehensible. As I sat inside making the most of the air con in walked Pierre. We conversed in mostly French with splashes of English and by the sound of it he had travelled a bit in his early 20's but mostly following the dance-scene.
Once I'd finished my water I decided it was time to move on and walked to the outskirts of town where I eventually found a lift with a young Belgian couple who were off hiking - how they can hike in that weather I've no idea! Anyway they drove me about 9km up the road where they thought I would get a lift more easily, which would have been true if it weren't for the fact that on the necessary side of the road there was a huge cliff face restricting parking possibilities drastically.
Fortunately after 20 minutes and a lot of people ignoring me - including a nice big,  empty 4x4 from Scotland - I got a lift. James, Jonathan and Debbie were on holiday from England for a couple of weeks and were happy to drive me all the way to the campsite I'd found online - Domaine de Barbe. I would have continued to wild camp but in this climate showers, or camping spots near water, are much more desirable! I just quite happy to find that since I was only using electricity very briefly I didn't have to pay for it 7€ overall!
The place was quite out of the way so I just spent the evening reading then had another early night.
Well you'll be happy to hear that I'm almost caught up so the next couple of posts will maybe be a bit shorter. Still working on getting my photos on - bear with MRE just a little longer - thanks!
See you next time!

Bastille weekend!

Hi everyone, bit of a long post again - sorry!
On Saturday Kate, Vince and I went over to Chatelleraut for the morning. We had a quick wander around the market and got some vegetables that weren't already growing in the garden before going straight to the coffee shop, after all it was boiling outside! We went to Kate and Vince's regular café next to the market square - I say regular but they hadn't been in months - and they were greeted by the owner like old friends still. Just like the waiter in Caen he knew everyone by name and clearly loved his job. What I didn't realise is that in France you have to go to study for any sort of job. You can't just be a waitress on weekends for some extra cash, you need to be qualified to be a waitress!
Once we'd finished there Kate and Vince went to the supermarket while I had a look around. It's a nice enough town, with a river running through it, plenty of nice buildings and cafés galore. Unfortunately the supermarket has caused a few local shops to close but I think that's the case everywhere. On my way back to the planned meeting place I did get a little slowed down but that was due to the domestic going on on the street. There was a huge smash and lots of banging then s guy came running out of the house in front shouting and waving his arms around. He was followed by another guy doing the same then a woman stood shouting from the doorway. I have no idea what was going on but I got out of the way before anyone else asked me for the story.
We made it home without further incident and got back just in time for Tams in, Dale and Leanna to arrive. They're also expats and live in St Gervais - the nearest town to the house. They came over for a coffee and to pick up some old presents for Leanna before rushing off a couple of hours later to prepare food for Bastille Day fireworks in the village.
After spending a little time with the kittens we went over to Tamsin and Dale's for dinner before the fireworks. When we arrived Tim and Brett (and Davide i think) were already there. Tim had recently bought a huge house in Chatellerault to renovate. It needs a lot of work but for 50,00€ that's s good deal. Brett is s carpenter from the UK who decided to come and help and Davide lives near Tamsin and Dale's.
We sat and talked in the garden for a while, mostly about travel, building and music - Tim used to play in the Noisettes and Kate and Vince are both great musicians.
Another couple of their friends showed up Terry and Sharon) but we were the only ones to stay for dinner - vegetable curry with couscous and salad. We wandered down to the pond just in time for the fireworks to start. It was a small local event so there wasn't a huge amount of fireworks but there was some fun, cheese music and the kids did a lantern procession - it really had that quaint village feel.
Once the fireworks finished we went back to Tams in and Dale's for a quick cuppa then it was back home and straight to bed. Although one of the cats - Aurora decided to join me in the garden house and moved around all night.
We had a bit of a late start on Sunday but once we had breakfast we headed out to one of the other towns nearby where they had a big antique/ car boot sale and a vintage car rally!
We browsed the stalls first and Kate found a couple of decorative bargains for the house. They also found a pretty cool 1930's chandelier which was priced at 80€ - not bad when it would have been at least a few hundred in any London antique store. The guy even told Vince that he would take it down to 60€ if Vince could play something good on the accordion he'd been eyeing up. We left him to think about it and went to find a drink. The cheapest thing there was the rosé at 1€ a glass, even the water cost more! As we wandered around a bit more we bumped into Sharon and Terry who had a stall there and chatted to them a little before going to look at the cars.
There really were some beautiful cars there from the cute little Citroen 2CVs to a gorgeous pair of classic Opals and even a stray Ford Anglia (in the same colour as the one out of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets). There was also an old flying boat sport of thing.
We went back to try and bargain down the chandelier but the guy was haggling it down without any prompting - we got it to 30€ and were quite happy with that little deal.
Once we'd finished there it was time to go back to the house to chill out for a bit before another evening out! We headed over to Tim's new place in Chatelleraut to watch the Bastille Day fireworks on the bridge there. All in all there was me, Kate, Vince, Tim (obviously), Tim's son, Brett, Terry and Sharon, Tams in, Dale and Leanna, and a couple of Tim and Brett's friends from the town. Everyone had brought food and drink for throughout the evening and we had a nice time chatting about this and that until the fireworks began. It was a pretty impressive display, obviously they had a bigger budget than St Gervais though the ones the previous night were still nice. The music was a lot more dramatic  and the flashes lit up the bridge brilliantly but before too long the show came to an end. After a little more conversation it was time to head home but I hope to see everyone again at some point in the future.

"Cats are a mysterious kind of folk"

Hi everyone!
Before I start on the main part of the post - I know there have been no photos for a while but I will do a catch-up post with just photos as soon as I can get them uploaded! Also, normally I post all over Facebook when I have a new post but I'm going to just post reminders every so often from now on - not everyone wants to see my constant updates (hard to believe, I know)! However once my photo stuff is sorted properly I will try and set up a Facebook page linked to this where I can update you all about new posts and where I can put more photos! Now, on with the tale!
On Tuesday morning we got the kittens out so they could explore some more. Even in the Short time I've been here I've seen a big change in them - they're much more adventurous and have started exploring more of the garden. They're mother is finally spending time outside with them and I think they've just started teething...well it can't all be positive. Unfortunately they can't really stay here because all three, plus the mum (who's totally wild), plus Kate and Vince's other two cats are quite a handful! Homes are trying to be found for them but I do keep considering taking one with me....travelling with a kitten couldn't be too much trouble , right?....
Once they were fully immersed in their gamed I got back to sanding and even managed to move on to putting the undercoat of paint on too! It doesn't sound like a slow job but the middle parts between the panes take forever!  With a break for a quick toasty I managed to get most of the undercoat for one set if windows before Kate called time.
I spent a bit of time reading a new book - Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. It's a pretty good read about an Australian escaped convict who runs off to India and ends up involved in the Bombay mafi.  It brings back some good memories of travelling in India (not involving the mafia obviously)!
As afternoon turned to evening it was time to prepare for movie night!
Jo, Jupiter, Anna and Gowan arrived around 7.30pm for dinner. The conversation varied from Kate befriending her East a neighbours back in London... to French politics. Now I hardly have a clue about UK politics so what's going on with the government here totally mystery to me, but it was all interesting and I did learn a bit about the government here. The meal consisted of the other half of the previous day's lasagne, a potato and mushroom made by one of the guests - Gowan I think....apologies if that credit should be given elsewhere - and lots of salad. The main course lasted at least an hour as we were all too busy talking but once we'd all eaten our fill we relocated to the living room where the screen and projector were set up for the movie. We all sat down, wheat-free, vegan chocolate cake in hand, and so the movie began. The film of choice was A Good Year - Russell Crowe - an investment broker - inherits his uncle's château and vineyard, but as he begins to renovate it in order to sell the lot ASAP he ends up falling in love with the château, France and the woman who runs the town café. It's definitely me of those happy feel good films that's perfect to watch when in France, or when dreaming of warmer weather than is normal in old blighty.
The movie finished pretty late so we all said our goodbyes, wished Anna and Gowan a good trip back to England then called it a night.
Wednesday was a pretty quite day after all the excitement of the night before. It was spent working on the windows some more. I managed to finish one set with the main coat, its a sort of light, maybe lime-ish, shade of green...I have no idea what it's called but it looks nice! The rest of the day was spent undercoating the second set before finishing up to try and find a home for next week. I did try and organise my next project sooner but no one seems to be replying!! I even tried calling a few but still no luck. If I can't find somewhere I'm just going to hitch slowly down to the Pyrenees and hang out and camp there until I find somewhere. I don't mind either way really. Anyway we had quinoa and salad for dinner and after a nice little Skype session I went back to my little garden house to read a few more chapters and have an early night.
Thursday morning was nice and cool so it was finally time to do a bit of work outside. Hoe and rake in hand I weeded out the gravel around the front of the house.  I'm sure I could have had it finished in half the time but the kittens were fascinated and kept getting in the way as they tried to catch the rake, daft little things! By lunch time it was, once again, far too hot to continue outside so after a nice healthy lunch I set about getting the stray globs of plaster of the new tiles the end bedroom or music studio as Kate literally just suggested!
What I didn't know when I arrived is that Vince is in a band which, from what I've heard, is pretty awesome and Kate sings, paints, and used to work on music video set design. This last part came to my attention when she heard me playing an album by The Levellers and she explained how she'd created the set for one of their music videos! Definitely a talented woman! Of course Vince, who's repointing the entire house himself at the moment is super talented too! No I'm not looking for brownie points by the way - they won't see this until I leave.
After I'd finished with the tiles I finally finished undercoating the second set of window just in time to finish for the day. The evening was spent reading, looking for a new home and keeping an eye on the kittens. Unfortunately the mother and one of the other cats have decided to start scrapping so we had to keep breaking them up; and as if it couldn't get any more crowded a new cat just strolled right down the drive and made himself at home in the barn! After a late dinner - salmon carbonara with spinach it was time for bed and I was so tired I didn't even get chance to read!
Today has been another gorgeous day, a little windy but nothing compared to back home. I spent the morning doing some more weeding before it got too hot and after another lovely lunch - poached egg and courgette with goat's cheese on toasted home made bread - I spent the afternoon finishing the windows. I'm pleased they're finished because I wanted to get them done before I left. Now - time to go take some photos for you all to have a look at...eventually!
See you all next time!

(Title quote from Walter Scott)

Racing past Le Mans

For those of you who don't know already - I've moved! I'm now staying  near Chatellerault which is about two hours south of Le Mans. But before I go into the full details about that I'd better finish telling you about my time on the coast.
Since Friday was my last day off with Anne and Tom I decided to go exploring some more and caught the bus to Caen. The bus arrived at the stop moments after I did and 1 hour and 3,90€ later I was in the 'big city'.
Now I'm not much of a city person generally but I actually quite liked Caen. I walked across the city from the station to the city's main attraction - William the Conqueror's Castle and the whole fortress surrounding it. The whole area was huge, I think it's one of the largest fortified areas in Europe, and a lot of it is still standing! Within the grounds there were a couple of museums which were free for under 26's! Although I was just a tiny bit put out when the woman insisted on ID to prove I wasn't too old, especially when she was only in her early twenties herself. The first museum was about Caen through the ages. While a lot of the prehistoric stuff isn't to varied wherever you go, the period from medieval times onwards was pretty interesting since it looked at the old traditions and culture in the area. My free pass also got me into an exhibit on the change from black and white to colour photography but I wasn't as interested in the so I stayed just long enough to see an acceptable amount then wandered off to explore the grounds some more and find food. After my sandwich (crab and salad I think)  I decided it would be a good time to try and find the new adapter I needed for my keyboard. Unfortunately none of the shops had what I needed and none of the electronic stalls on the big market really knew what I meant. After scouring the market for a little longer I was still out of luck but I did get to browse through some pretty cool hippy stalls in the meantime!
All this walking about was thirsty work so I treat myself to a coke while I sat under the canopy at Le Virgule Café and made a few notes. Once again the background music and the waiter took great pride in the fact he knew the songs and grinned at me at the start of each new track. That guy must have known over a third of all the people who walked past - something you would normally only expect from small towns but then he seemed like a pretty friendly guy so it's no wonder he knows a few people. Finally I decided it was time to head home and after getting a tiny bit lost in the dodgey part of town - only distinguishable by the adult entertainment store and super cheap take aways- I eventually found the station just in time for the next bus back.
After a quick dinner I watched short wildlife documentary then did a few things online before turning in for the night.
Saturday was my last working day so I spent it getting as much last minute strimming some as possible before being told to clock off a little early for some beach time before I left. The beach was pretty packed even at 4pm but I went for a bit of a swim then claimed a beach spot to finish reading my book. I got back just in time for dinner before packing and finalising my route.
On Sunday morning I said my goodbyes to everyone and got a lift off Peter to the roundabout up the road. It was a bit of a shame to leave as everyone was so nice and i am very greatful for being made to feel so welcome there but it was time to move on and see somewhere new.
Within a couple of minutes I already had a lift to Cabourg which was about 20km up the road. Jerry was just driving home after getting a new Iron Maiden tattoo and, like a lot of french, loved the Scottish. I know I'm not actually Scottish but saying I live there really seems to help! We had a pretty good conversation about music and parts of Europe and although a few things were lost in translation it was a good start to the day.
Jerry dropped me off at a convenient roundabout and within moments I had a lift to the south east side of Caen - right where I needed to be. Unfortunately conversation with this guy was not so easy especially due to his accent and rapid speech but as far as I know he is a chef at an international restaurant and had either just finished or was pulling a Sicky. Either way he dropped me off at a petrol station on the edge of the city and wished me luck before heading home.
20 minutes later I found my next lift. Now I had been planning on doing this trip (4 hours by car) over 2 days after the carry on getting to France but I was absolutely flying! The next guy didn't really understand my attempts at French but he said he was going to Falaise - half an hour down the road - so off we went attempting to make light conversation as we went. He dropped me off at a junction where our paths split and after confirming there was a petrol station only a few miles away he drove off the other way.
Despite the fact my new spot was a bit in the back and beyond once again I had a lift within minutes...with a family! For those who don't know families very rarely pick up hitchhikers for the sake of their kids safety - understandable. None of them really spoke English but I could just about talk to the parents in French and they managed to get me just north of Alençon  before they turned west.
After sitting by the side of the road to eat half my sandwich I set off again within a few minutes, this time with a french truckdriver who was going all the way past Le Mans to Tours - only an hour from my new home! We made great timing only stopping for a quick coffee and I was on the outskirts of the city in no time at all.
After a bit of confusion trying to get past the roadworks I found the right road and had a lift within 15 minutes. I could have been on my way even sooner but unfortunately, despite their efforts, none of the group of 6 bikers who'd stopped to see how it was going actually had a spare helmet - a shame cause there were some really nice bikes.
However I got a lift to St Maure - about 15km from my destination - and after sitting down to finish my lunch I found my final lift with another family! Now unfortunately I really have no idea how to spell the girls name and don't want to spell it wrong but her, her father and brother made room for my bag and off we went. Her English was really good so we effectively swapped languages - she spoke English and I replied in French. Before I knew it we were already in Richelieu and we parted ways but they were a great family and if they're reading this THANK YOU!
I sat and read in the town square for a little while before Kate arrived to take me to the house. In that 15 minute drive I knew I would love it here.
Kate and Vince live out in the country and are working on renovating their 200 year old home while also running a website selling organic health food products. They're just such wonderful and friendly people - I know I'm going to have a great week here.
Upon arrival Kate brought out the kittens that I would be helping with - 8 week old Luna, Galahad and Khalisee (like from the TV series Game of Thrones). They are adorable! After about an hour with them I got to see my home for the week. The garden house is such a great little place with crystals placed around the room, beaded lampshades, ornate dresser plus a number of soapstone oil burners and loads of candles- very arty and really cool.
After dinner -chunky vegetable omelette and salad - we all had an early night after a long day and within a few minutes of reading I was fast asleep.
Working hours are a little different here as I only start at 10am so I ad a bit of a lie in then spent some time sitting with a mug of tea in the garden looking out at the valley. I was going to do some meditation but Aurora, one of the other cats, insisted on being stroked - I couldn't ignore her!
After a lovely filling breakfast - fresh muslei with almond milk I spent some time with the kittens before starting with the day's work - standing a couple of the windows. It was a simple but slow job due to the amount of small panes of glass to sand around but the weather was gorgeous and I could keep an eye on the kittens too.
Lunch was called around 1pm and some of Kate and Vince's friends came around too. One couple live nearby and the other couple are mutual friends staying with the first couple. We spent a good two hours enjoying our vegan lasagne (courgette instead of meat and cashew cheese instead of dairy). We also had salad fresh from the garden and washed it down with a little wine while we chatted and watched the kittens enjoying their recent freedom.
After organising to meet up for a movie night the following night they left to continue their tour and we got back to work. I finished sanding down the windows and started on the underlayer of paint before finishing for the day after only five hours of work - at this rate I'm going to feel like I definitely haven't done enough on my side of the exchange!

This little gypsy went to market

Hi everyone,
OK, so I was going to write a couple of days ago but I figured I'd wait until my technology issue was resolved which it now is, for the most part. My writing head was also on holiday but I think it's back now....fingers crossed! So I'm a little behind but I'll try not to ramble on too much.
On Sunday I awoke to find the dogs had been left out all night and the chickens hadn't been put away either, plus the car was gone. On the way to the market Jan, Peter and I tried to figure out what might have happened and came to the conclusion that either they'd been out partying all night it something was wrong. Unfortunately there was nothing we could do until everyone was home so in the meantime we went to explore.
We parked up in Deauville so we could walk through to Trouville and see the difference. Deauville is basically the posh part where the rich Parisians an upper class types spend their holidays an on can tell instantly - designer boutiques with 200€ shoes in the windows, flash cars, classy red carpet casinos and calm, sofisticated beach goers. Even the market stall owners seemed more restrained - it was almost boring.
Fortunately the road lead through to Trouville. Here there was much more of a buzz - people killing about in the street, shops things things that the regular folk could afford, market stall owners full of life and actually interested in making some sales. The beach was alive with volleyball tournaments, teenagers sunbathing and donkey rides while British pop music played over the tannoy system.
Now most of the market held the same sorts of things you would see in any town market - cheap clothes, 1€ make-up and 3€ sunglasses; after that though there were the fruit stalls full of strawberries, refrigerators full of local cheeses and stall after stall of sea food straight to the harbour.
Eventually we grew tired of weaving between stalls, people and miniature dogs so we made our way back to the seafront for a crêpe and a coffee before walking back to the car.
On our return we found that Anne was back but Tom was not. He hadn't been feeling well the night before and after a phone call to the hospital the asked hi to come straight in and made him stay overnight. And of course Anne stayed with him for comfort and since he doesn't speak French. Anne was only back to pick up a few things since he was going to have to stay in a little longer. So I spent the rest of the day dog-sitting and reading.
On Monday it was back to work while Anne went back to the hospital. So I spent the morning strimming until the stimmer wire ran out, digging out fresh compost and tying on a new weedkiller formula:
1 litre of vinegar
50g salt
2tspns of washing up liquid
It's eco friendly, super cheap to make and acts ridiculously fast. Although it really does kill everything so you've got to be a little careful with what gets sprayed. I spent the afternoon weeding around the courgettes and then tried to help James (who stays in one of the other gîtes on site) with his car but it turned out the alternator was going to have to be replaced so off to the garage he went.
Anne got home just after the car fiasco with the good news that Tom would be back the following day. So we had nice meal - pita bread with falafels and salad - then I spent yet another even in trying to prevent next week's homelessness.
On Tuesday I went to the post office first thing and picked up my replacement technology before returning to strimming since I had more strimming wire. I continued along the edge of the lake, the boundary fence and outside the front gate. As I was finishing Anne and Tom returned so I stopped it lunch and then spent the afternoon in the office calling more potential customers. I finished a little early for the day and emailed a few more projects because otherwise it was going to be a case of just camping somewhere. My the end of the unsuccessful afternoon I also had a slight case of travelling blues. Now I know a few of on might think that that's silly, after all no one forced me to go travelling, and I get to see new things, places and people and spend my time gardening and going what I want. However every so often so start wondering more about things at home and what your friends and family are up to. It's just a part of being on the road on your own, especially when you aren't keeping busy. So that's one reason why after this week I'll be travelling a bit faster and diving further into this trip. Anyway after talking to Courtney and Skyping back home I felt much better and finite the evening with a but more reading. I'm still working through Paul Theroux's The Old Patagonian Express - it's a great book but every time i read travel books I start wondering about visiting the places written about there...even when I'm already travelling!
Wednesday morning was spent hosing out the chicken shed and then it was back in the office since it was chucking it down outside. Unfortunately almost everyone was out so it was a pretty unsuccessful morning but I did manage to pick up a new client with three or four houses to rent out so it wasn't a total waste.
I had the afternoon off so I spent it planning further ahead with my trip since last minute planning doesn't seem to work for helpXing. Luckily I also had a positive reply for this week coming - no more potential homelessness! So on Sunday I will be relocating to Deux-Sevres for the week to garden, paint window and look after kittens!
Speak to you all soon anyway, either before I go or as soon as I arrive,
see you all next time!

PS. I will get some photos on here of the market but I need to get a new connector for my camera first