FROM A CARAVAN TO A CHATEAU IN FRANCE---MY LIFE

OUR DAUGHTER'S CHATEAU WEDDING

2009-05-10T07:04:00.000-07:00

Just when we thought life was beginning to settle down following the nearly disastrous golf incident ( re posts 2nd and 6th May) life took another turn ( more like a somersault) when our daughterMichaela and her boyfriend Darren announced they were going to be married!!!! and, bliss upon bliss, they wanted to get married in France-- and more than that, they wanted the celebrations to take place at our lovely Chateau la Roche Hue!

What a wonderful surprise it was , but we knew it would not be the easiest of occasions to organise for any of us! For a start, all the rest of our family and friends lived in England, and all of Darren's family live in England too! However, that did not dampen the joy of the occasion and we all set to work! Fortunately Michaela was absolutely fluent in French having worked in France for years before she joined the CruiseLines. Darren could not speak french at all , so Michaela did all the formal arranging with the local ' Mairie' ( Town Hall), and with the church. In France there are two wedding ceremonies , the first is the formal ' official' ceremony which takes place at the town hall presided over by the Mayor -- this takes place a few days before the church wedding and is less formal, similar to a register office ceremony in England .The second is the religious ceremony in the Church and is quite formal.

Invitations were sent out , and there were very few refusals ! Darrens' family decided to hire a large bus to transport everybody over in one go. Our family and friends were all going to arrive independantly in their cars. Everybody decided to make a short holiday out if it so it was a good job we had the accomodation for everybody, and what a blessing the apartments included kitchens, so everybody could self-cater during their stay ( phew)! It was early Spring-time so we had no bookings arranged, thank goodness! Outside caterers were arranged for the wedding day and Michaela and I made the fruit wedding cake tiers ourselves because in France they do not use fruit cake for weddings. I had them professionally decorated and mounted. So here are some pictures, they are all snap shot photos I'm afraid......

Michaela and Darren at the official ceremony at the Town hall, the Mayor is wearing the sash, Alex has the video camera.

The happy couple after the ceremony, they said aferwards that it felt strange and that they didn't feel married at that point , not until after the Church wedding.

The wedding day dawned and the caterers arrived early.......

The first thing to be set up was the wedding cake

I thought that they did a great job of decorating it - so pretty!

It was chaos in our bedroom, I was helping Michaela get dressed and she was not happy with her hair, we tried it every which way, then, suddenly she scruffed it all up on top of her head, held in place with a few grips, we put the veil in place, and she was beautiful, I am welling up writing this, but she was a vision. I am limited for photos on this post I am afraid, and I cannot find any taken at the church......

but here is a photo taken of the happy pair on their return from the church...

and the newspaper coverage showed ' their' knowledge of the English language :-)

Then several photocalls...

Four of my grandchildren, with Michaela and Darren

On the back steps of the Chateau, with just a few of our side of the family, another shot was taken with Darren's family and friends.

Then it was inside for ' le Vin d'Honneur ' and the champagne flowed! I smile now looking at my outfit! Talk about Joan Collins' shoulder pads-- however they were the rage at the time- but why did I choose black as the dominant colour????

Not only was the day itself a momentous occasion, it was 4/5 days of fun and partying, because most everybody arrived a day or two before the wedding and stayed a couple of days after, and we had the room for partying, and the pool and the horses, so everybody had such a good time.

Lovely memories!

A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE

2009-05-08T09:22:00.000-07:00

Last week I posted on my other blog ,about a walk on the wild side in my grounds, watching the demise of my trees. Today I took another walk with Chris on the real wild side at a nearby superb animal park....

.......it is called Parc le Pal and is nestled in 100's of acres of grounds, with over 500 animals, rides, roller coasters, restaurants, cinema, and spectacles with eagles, seals and parrots etc. Truly a fantastic day out for all the family! This is where Chris and I went today and I thought you might like to join us for a while.....

Hello! do come in to my enclosure and meet my friends...

This is Joeph, my best friend, he is quite old and he has a wonky horn!!

OOOOH! But my other one is O.K. !!

" Now listen here, guys & gals, if we huddle together against these rocks they won't spot us!

"Tut! Florrie and Amy are always titivating! They think they are better than us!!

" Now where did Petula go? can't see her anywhere!"

" Coooeee sh's behind you!!"

" Come on Pet, up this hill, show them what you can do!"

" What a fuss! We don't have to do anything to show off, just display our great headgear!!"

" What is wrong with everybody today! They are all complaining! Keep quiet, I am trying to do a job here!"

" They advertised them as 'des. res.' ! Which one is yours? Mine has 2 bedrooms!"

And so the chatter went on...

Chris and I just smiled and strolled hand in hand...what a perfect day

GOLF- the FINAL HOLE!

2009-05-06T01:29:00.000-07:00

So, this is the final chapter of the golf story, the last installment left us awaiting the full dossier following the visit from the ' Golf-course expert' -there must an official title for these people -with anticipation!

The day dawned , the dossier arrived and we waded through it .

It was very detailed , from the complexities of the soil, right down to drawings of a) the 18 hole golf-course with the water holes , b) the clubhouse situated near the 9th hole, and c) the large Hotel nestling just within the woodland. It also noted the catchment areas by population, and current golf courses within a certain radius. Then it talked up the benefits of creating such an establishment in the countryside of the Loire Valley in France. In fact it was genuinely worth the large sum we had paid, so we were well satisfied!

So the next step was to go to the Mairie for the planning permissions! Then the ' French Administration' took over and we spent a long period ( I cannot recall exactly how long but it was at least 2 months) biding our time and looking into local golf courses and the running of them!

Finally -- We got our permissions! WHOOPEE! We were estatic, and thought that we had really arrived! Our dreams had been realised! We would find a buyer and be able to repay the bank and get back to concentrating on our first love, which was running the beautiful chateau La Roche Hue.

How naive we must have been, always looking through rose coloured glasses, we were about to get our first lesson in trying to" run before you can walk"

Our main setback was to discover that just outside of our nearest local town ' Baugé ' a Japonese consortium had already obtained planning permission for an 18 hole Golf-course which was already well under construction! This information was a huge blow as it had not been mentioned by our expert in his dossier. So he had not been as thorough as we had thought. We had relied on him to discover any potential competitors! We went to visit this course and it was in an ideal situation , and was being developed by professionals! This Bauge Golf-Course is still up and running today!

"So where do we go from here?" was our first thought!

We carried on with a search for a buyer for the golfing project-- we advertised in Golfing papers/magazines etc. Several enterprises showed interest but none of them decided to go ahead, mainly because of the other Course. We thought of suing the Pro for our money back on the dossier, but realised it might end up costing us more, so we discarded that idea.

We also approached several golfing celebrities- again nothing and money or ' lack-of ' was getting to be a problem.

Well, at the end of the day, we still had our lovely farm, so, reluctantly we put it back on the market.

Eventually , we sold it to the nephew of the family we had bought it from, ie the original owners of Chateau La Roche Hue. He , the nephew, was a Comte ( an Earl) and (unbelievable, but nevertheless true) he wanted to buy the farm, renovate it and install his mistress and her pet wolf! Yes I did mean WOLF!

So we struck even! We sold the farm for what we paid for it, making no profit, put our dreams on hold and got back to the business we were running, and concentrated on how to make it profitable. So endeth the tale of the GOLF..............

TAGGED - FOR THE FIRST TIME!

2009-05-04T09:54:00.000-07:00

THE HISTORY OF TAGGING.

I have been tagged - for the first time by the lovely Susan! this should be fun, my task is to record " SIX UNIMPORTANT THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY "

so here we go ........

1) Laying down in the bath, watching my boobs float to the surface looking perky again!

2) Picking dead skin off of my feet -- disgustingly good!

3) Driving the car with the top down!

4) Setting off in the motorhome -- destination unknown!

5) Memories of hop-picking as a child with my Mum!

6) Waking up next to my man!

Now I have been told I have to choose six new bloggers to tag ! I expect you are all flinching now, so my six lucky people are:-

Akim at I am a housewife get me outta here

Anet at Purple Squirrel

Cheryl Ann at Desertswest

Jan at Jans'place

Dewlish at A short history of nearly nobody

Lala at My castle in Spain

So that is it for today, good luck to the new taggers.......

GOLF CRAZY or CRAZY GOLF!

2009-05-02T10:27:00.000-07:00

Following the purchase of the farm, it began to be ' golf ' for breakfast, ' golf ' for dinner, and, yes you've guessed it - for tea! We actually never tried playing it but we did a lot of reading and talking about it. Our plan had to work because we had been to the bank for the purchase of the farm! The Manager had thought it was a great idea ( fortunately he was a golfer) and he was looking forward to being our first customer!

The next step was to get a geological survey of the land to be sure that it would be suitable for creating the 18 hole course . This was fairly easy to arrange, but costly, as you can imagine. We waited for the results with baited breath, because if the report returned a negative response, we were left with just a derelict farm on our hands. Fortunately the report came back and was positive on all counts, and the land had water which would be good for arranging a few hazard holes.

Then we had to find an expert who would create the actual course - so we visited a course about 60kms away and met the owner, who was a really obliging gentleman, and he arranged for us to meet with the person who had planned out his course, which was also an 18 hole. He came out to the Chateau the following week and Alex gave him a guided tour of the farm and its land. We thought that the main farmhouse itself would make a good sized clubhouse at the 9th hole, and the expert agreed that it would be good. Alex then left him on his own to wander and get the feel of the land and he agreed to meet us back at he Chateau. Our minds went into a reverie wondering what our ' golf-course' would look like.....

We wished!

When he returned he was full of enthusiasm and asked if we had thought of gaining permission for a large Hotel on the land as well so as to attract golfers from further afield or even abroad . We hadn't considered that, but thought " Why not? In for a penny etc"! All sorts of images flashed through our minds......

" SHALL I RELIEVE YOU OF YOUR BAGS? SIR? "

So, after a long consultation the golf expert left armed with his figures and we sat back for a few weeks waiting for the final dossier to arrive. We would have to use this dossier to gain planning permissions, and to then find a suitable buyer for the whole package.

to be continued.............

THREW CAUTION TO THE WINDS!

2009-04-30T09:24:00.000-07:00

Back to the farm!

To briefly re-cap:-

In 1989 , we ( my husband and I) had bought this abandoned 80 roomed Chateau in the Loire Valley France, with a next to none knowledge of the french language- Moved in with the dogs and my 82 year old mother--- Renovated the Chateau over the next year and turned it into a holiday letting business by creating 15 self-catering appartments-- bought six horses -- traded successfully for two seasons, and were now contemplating purchasing a nearby derelict farm with its 170 acres with the intention of creating an 18 hole golf course!!!

We must have been totally in cloud cuckoo land!

NO! Not that one!

Yup! That is the one --up with the fairies!

Well, I suppose you would call us risk takers-- but we did have a plan!

Our plan was 1) to get as much information as we could about creating a golf-course and everything that has to be done leading up to it. Then, 2) to buy the farm and the land. Then 3) hire a golf-course advisor(?) to create it for us on paper. Then , 4) Apply for planning permission for the course and a club house ( the farm) --and finally, 5) we would then sell the whole deal ( farm and all) to somebody who had the money and ambition to go ahead with the course! Sounds simple enough doesn't it? Yes you are right - it wasn't!

However , we threw caution to the winds, and we bought the farm! Now that was fun at first, as we set about exploring all those acres that were ours, and climbing up into the attic of the old farm building and finding things, like original wooden clogs ( goodness knows how old they were, and what a pity I haven't a photo of them) and boxes of old abandoned pairs of glasses? Wasn't that a strange find! We wondered why they were kept, there were at least 50 pairs;

We also found two fantastic huge old pots which were full of some alcoholic substance, my cousin who was there at the time sampled some and thought it was brandy! We kept those pots and they stand today in our courtyard......

Is it my imagination or can I still smell the brandy ?

These are Chris' legs , bless, to give you an idea of their size -- the pots not the legs:)

Another great joy at that time was I could take my horse up there and ride to my hearts content!

You will perhaps have noticed by now that , referring to the plan, point one was not actioned at all, i.e. we took no counselling apart from buying lots of golf magazines and visited a few golfcourses about an hours drive away! Incidentally, neither of us had ever played golf, and I still haven't, enjoyable though it looks!

I try not to let my posts go on too long as there is always so much to relate! It is getting towards evening meal time now so I had better start cooking , we have fish tonight, so à demain!

TWITTER DISGRACE!

2009-04-29T09:41:00.000-07:00

I am outraged, so much so I feel I have to talk about TWITTER in this post instead of resuming my tale....

I awoke this morning a bright and happy person looking forward to all that the day had to bring, and looking forward to resuming my post about the farm.

Sitting at my computer I thought I would, first of all, check into my Twitter site which I had only begun two weeks ago! To be perfectly honest I was not quite getting into it , and also was not understanding why it is so popular. My daughter and her husband are on it so I thought I would give a reasonable try. My initial problem was uploading a photo! I tried numerous shots but they were all rejected, mainly because they were too big, but even after I re-sized one or two, they were rejected; not wishing to give up I persevered and finally got one through --

BINGO!

I was on --so I sent a few messages - nothing! Read a few twitters - it did nothing for me to know that A was having a cup of cocoa - or B was going to blow her wages on a pair of shoes. I tried contacting a few stars ( famous people) - received no replies----- what am I doing wrong? So this is how I went on for that first week, feeling let down and dejected but slightly amused at me determination to succeed--

UNTIL THIS MORNING!

I logged on to my home site, and there was a new lady smiling back at me!! One that I had not seen for 3 years! It was actually me in that picture, but it was not the photo that I had posted. The picture that I had put up was a recent one and I was quite demure in a white dress and a red jacket! This new 'me' was wearing a low strappy white tee-shirt and looked three years younger ! I am making light of it now , but I was really angry when the facts hit me!!

'THEY',presumably the ' Twitter' company or whatever you would call them, had actually delved quite happily into my computer photo files ( and goodness knows what else) and had looked through all my photos deciding which one to choose to post up on my site -

WITHOUT MY PERMISSION OR KNOWLEDGE !

Can they do that and get away with it?

The photo that was put up was in a totally differnt folder and file to the one I had chosen! They had hacked into my computer -- I am still furious.

Needless to say I have sent them an irate email, demanding an explanation. I have also deleted my site totally.

Has this happened to any of you, my friends? If so, what was the outcome?

Do you think I am over-reacting?

DEATH IN THE GROUNDS

2009-04-28T10:37:00.000-07:00

As recorded yesterday in my other blog, we are having tree problems which has interupted my blogging for today-- Have any of you had any similar problems following last Winter? Even back to last Spring our Horse Chestnut trees were looking sad and did not produce any healthy conkers. Take a look at our devastation! http://thoughtsaboutlifefrombeyondthegrave.blogspot.com

Back tomorrow....

BIRTHDAY TODAY

2009-04-26T09:37:00.000-07:00

In war-torn London, on the 27th. April 1942 , Priscilla gave birth to a 7lb 4oz girl! She had waited for 12 years for this moment..... she looked at the little screwed-up yelling bundle with a red face and instantly changed her mind on the choice of name! Her and Frank's choice had been 'Bonita' but this little wriggling thing, could never have been nicknamed ' Bonnie' so she re-named her first-born ( and last) Loretta Delphine ! Yes that was me.... 67 years ago...... and today is my

BIRTHDAY!

wee me and mum

So feeling nostalgic, here are a few old photos, sorry about the quality...

I think that I was standing on a table here! I do remember that this was taken in Jersey. I bet it was a nightmare for my mum to comb my hair out--I know it was for me!

on the beach, I remember that costume it used to fill up with water whenever I went into the sea- I would come out looking like Michelin Man!

my first boyfirend - I rember his name- it was Peter . Great cornets!I wonder now who the legs belonged to?

Couldn't resist putting this one up- what bathing belles they were, with costumes not leaving a lot to the imagination; Mum is the one on the left with her friend Lou-I think it was before she became a Mum!

This is me as an aspiring dancer at the age of 17, it came to nothing, although I have always loved to dance, and still do!

Taurus as from Google archives.....

" Personal Traits Taureans tend to be slow, methodical, practical and reserved. They are also stolid, tenacious and determined. Possessing tremendous willpower and self-discipline, they are inclined to stick to tried and traditional methods. Their greatest satisfaction derives from results produced directly by their own personal efforts rather than by others.

Roots are very important to the Taurean. A sense of permanence, a feeling of security is essential. Generally an easygoing person, slow to anger, but once roused is known for a ferocious temper. Very difficult to deal with when angry. Usually set off by jealousy due to a possessive nature. Loyalty is important to a Taurus, and a true friend of a Taurean will speak well of their great generosity. Honesty, integrity and dependability are notable Taurean characteristics. The calm, pleasant, and well intentioned Taurus exterior belies the volcanic temper that can erupt when sufficiently aroused. The bright side of the stubborn bull's nature is, they are incredibly and uncompromisingly loyal to their friends. Established slowly, a Taurus friendship can, and often lasts a lifetime

Positive Traits
Taureans are warm, loving, gentle and charming most of the time. Motivated by self preservation, the Taurean is not a risk taker and weighs every decision carefully, in a slow and methodical manner. To more impulsive people, the Taurean is a bore. Opinionated and stubborn, once a Taurean makes a decision, it is written in stone. nobody can alter it.Basically physical people, they prefer the known to the unknown and the tried to the new. They love the earth, possessions, and generally treat those they love as sacred possessions.
Main positive traits: Stable, dependable, practical, conventional,determined and patient.
Negative Traits
Taureans can be very caring and warmhearted but there is a tendency to be extremely jealous, possessive and very stubborn. Taurus must strive to keep an open mind because his strong personal convictions can blind him to the ideas of others. Risks are taken only if it is absolutely necessary and only after much consideration. This is a sign that's slow to change and would prefer a steady routine in life.me
Main negative traits: Possessive, stubborn, materialistic, lazy. "

Not sure if I would agree with all that! Some of it is correct particuarly the stubborn bit!

Finally a picture of as I am today, sorry it is a bit posey, directed and taken by Chris - Bless him!

A DARING IDEA

2009-04-25T01:47:00.000-07:00

Winter arrived again at La Roche Hue, loaded with snow, cold, but, oh so pretty!

Our french was really improving and we found that we could both converse now without difficulty, and make ourselves understood! I found that, sometimes, I would dream in french - that felt weird. The love we felt for France ensured our well-being , and in spite of missing our children and grandchildren , it really felt like home. We would take time out each year to visit our family and loved being with them , but, every time we stepped back onto french soil we would smile, breathe deeply, and be so glad to be back after the hustle and bustle of England!

Passing those Winter months was fun with all the jobs around the property to do, plus the upkeep of the animals and the marketing of the business, but the initial buzz of the huge transition we'd made, had disappeared , and Alex and I began to get itchy feet with a desire to break into another venture! But what? We didn't know what!

Every time I went out riding on my beloved Hortensia,

I used to leave Roche Hue by the bottom gate, take a track through the farmers crop field , cross a road and take a lane through farmland on which stood a derelict farmhouse and outbuildings.....

The lane was about 1.5kms long which led to over a 100ha of woodland , scattered with bridal paths -- great for hacking out!

The farmhouse and 170 acres of farmland belonged to our neighbours, whose ancestors had previously owned Roche Hue, and had , at one time, all had belonged to the Chateau.

Talking to Jean, the farmer, one day he mentioned that he was thinking of selling the farmhouse with the 170 acres of land, and suggested that it would be an ideal situation for a golfcourse!!

DING!!

The idea was born!

A GOLFCOURSE -- BUT......we didn't have the cash!!

....but we did have the enthusiasm-- a lot of serious thinking was neededand A PLAN!

ON BOARD THE Q.E.2.

2009-04-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

It is now a year later following Alex's TIA, and we find ourselves totally settled into ' la Vie Française'! There had been no futher major health shocks in the interim, as Alex had finally signed on with a good french Doctor who prescribed a permanent blood thinner and life returned to normal for us.

The second trading season of 1992 had been a good one, however the pound had started to slide against the franc , which was not good for us as we had decided to charge in pounds instead of francs, and we were losing on the exchange. On the other hand it was good for increased bookings, so it balanced out that year.

Our camper holiday destination for that year was decided when our daughterMichaela telephoned us to say that she would be docking at Naples around late September ! Michaela was a petty officer on the Q.E.2.-- Italy was one of our favourite places so we arranged to be at the docks on that particular day. Finding the docks was easy but finding a parking place for the camper was difficult however .....

...............we made it just in time to see the magnificent ship come rolling up to the quay!

The first thing that grabbed me was just how massive this ship was as you can see in the next picture......

It seems bizarre that it actually has to be tied to its post by the ' handlers' the same as any small boat! How tiny the people seem !

Here is our lovely daughter with her Dad. She had got the Captain's permission for us to be aboard the ship for that day, and that we could could ' take a tour ' of the facilities.

On deck there were squash courts, tennis courts , golf practice and putting, and swimming pools, and a jogging track etc. In fact everything for the sporty people.

There were two main restaurants ( one of them above) apart from the many 'eateries', bars and cafes etc.

I was not impressed however with the corridors leading to the cabins and suites etc., I found them quite narrow and claustraphobic. We weren't able to see inside the cabins as they were all occupied, however we saw inside Michaela's cabin and it was really so limited "you couldn't even swing a cat"-- now where on earth did that horrible expression originate I wonder?

Finally here is a picture of Michaela looking down on to the stage and main dance floor. as you can see , the upper balcony houses all the designer shops ( money, money,money) for the rich!!

There turned out to be a special reason for our invitation, Michaela introduced us to Darren, another petty officer , in the engineering department of the ship-- they had become inseparable on board AHHH ' aint luv grand'! He was ( and is ) a lovely boy who is now her husband and father of their three children!!! Happy days!

As you probably already know the beautiful old ship has now been sold to retire gracefully as an Hotel in the upmarket tourist resort of "Palm Jumeirah" in Dubai.

and here she is.... I think she deserves the rest!

THE DARK CLOUD

2009-04-21T03:26:00.000-07:00

Our short break at the end of our first season , mid september, was drawing close ( thank goodness) and we set about tying up all loose ends before we set off!

Isabelle ( our girl groom) was happy to work shorter hours during the Winter which was essential as there were six horses to exercise, groom and muck out! I mucked out with her nearly every day, and I actually enjoyed it and found it quite theraputic, especially laying down all that sweet smelling hay . Trouble with horses though, the first thing they do when they enter a clean stable is to ' mark their territory ' , and then roll, thus scattering the hay everywhere!!!!

MOI?

Victoria, my daughter was going to be in charge of the telephone ( for future bookings), her boyfriend would be in charge of the pool and grounds, and Archie our faithful friend would look after the general running of the Chateau and odd jobs. All three would keep an eye on Mum. Jacqueline , our cleaner would return to just a couple of hours a day during the Winter as all the apartments were closed down for the season end.

So with bags packed into our car we headed off to the south of France , one of our favourite destinations. We had nothing booked, just decided to go B&B or small hotels. Our longer holiday, planned for late October would be in the Camping Car.

I remember the weather being very warm and gentle down at Narbonne Plage which is where

we decided to bed down in a little hotel overlooking the beach.

Alex relaxing in the hotel-- dig those crazy tracksuit bottoms!

We used to go camping there many times when the children were young, so the visit was quite nostalgic; As usual it took quite a few days to finally unwind, and we spent those days re-visiting old haunts including the "ABBAYE DE FONTFROIDE" which was beautiful....

...... as you see!

Time passed quickly and we were anxious to get back home again to see if everybody had coped well without any problems; Little did we know that we were to experience a problem which was about to shape our future lives together.

We packed our bags and set off on the long drive up the motorway heading towards Bordeaux and then the Loire Valley. We always took it in turns to drive, at least, my joking husband always said that he did 60% and I did 40% ! I was at the wheel whilst Alex was fast asleep beside me when we approached one of the large ' peages' - toll booths. I nudged Alex awake to find the necessary payment as we always do; I knew something major was wrong when he did not respond in his normal manner! He stared at me as if I were a stranger and did not know where he was or what we were doing! At first I thought he was joking or had been having a bad dream, but I soon realised it was real. He began to wander off in his mind and I knew I had to get home as quickly as possible! I cannot begin to describe the terror I /we , were both feeling . Alex had no memory of where had been or what we had been doing, he was unsure of everything.

I think the car must have grown wings for that journey which must have taken at least another three hours! Alex began to settle down and come out of it but was still not himself. I didn't know the name for it but I guessed he must have had some form of mini stroke. As soon as we got home I immediately telephone our old English doctor who talked to both me first, then Alex over the phone and diagnosed a ' TRANSIENT ISCHAEMIC ATTACK ' which, in effect is a mini stroke or advanced warning of a stroke. He suggested we go to a french doctor, which Alex refused to do initially, then agreed finally to start taking aspirin immediately on a daily basis. I was shocked because he had seemed so well, as you can see from his photo! He was a heavy smoker though and would not give them up.

I telephoned the girls back in England and we were all reeling with the news and after some badgering Alex agreed to enrol with a french doctor and have some tests. He laughed it off but I knew that deep down he was really shaken.

What a holiday that turned out to be.

AGATHA CHRISTIE , and a WEDDING

2009-04-20T01:36:00.000-07:00

Back to La roche Hue........

That first Summer was drawing to an end and we were feeling quite tired and a bit down, when suddenly a last minute ' long- weekend ' reservation came through! It was for an Agatha Christie weekend!! I had heard of them before but had no idea of the format. We contacted the people for the details on what was expected and were pleased to hear that they would arrange it all-- the only thing we had to do was to keep the bar open ( haha) and enjoy the occasion. It was just what we needed to give us a lift!

What fun it turned out to be--everybody bought costumes for the scenes which were to be enacted in order to discover the murderer.

For those who are ignorant on how it works ( like myself)-- everybody is given a part to play with a written synopsis on the story and the character they have to play ; with details on what they were doing around the time of the murder..

The only person who knows who the murderer is, is the one person who receives that written information. I am not explaining this very well, probably because I have never taken part-- all I know is that they did, by questioning each other and by trial and error, discover who the muderer was ............. errr, I think it was the vicar !!

Another surprise event was a demand for wedding photos to be taken in the grounds of the Chateau. There was no payment involved, but we decided it was good to be able to offer something to the community, so we agreed. It turned out to be a very strange event, for no guests at all showed up for the pictures and the bride and groom looked so fed up and not at all happy!!!! This is the picture we took of them.......

You see what I mean? The body language says it all.............

We made hay for the first time that year too, with the help of neighbours who owned all the farmland around the Chateau. Their family were one of the original owners of La Roche Hue, and it was them who sold the Chateau to the Algerian Government, from whom we bought our lovely home.

Making hay whilst the sun shines!!

So that was it the end of the first year and ALEX and I were preparing to go away for a good rest and leave the Chateau in the capable hands of Archie and my daughter and her boyfriend.

GUESS WHAT WE FOUND!

2009-04-18T09:26:00.000-07:00

Putting aside blogging withdrawal symptoms, we have just spent a wonderful Easter. My daughter, her husband and three of my lovely grandchildren came to stay for the whole week. Chris stood up to invasion remarkably well and loved all the fuss and attention directed his way!

Leaving the two men behind to do their thing, us girls took the kids out exploring and guess what we found in the centre of a ' petit village' called Noyant right in the centre of France?

We stumbled across a part of
INDO-CHINA!!

This statue is enormous !

Noyant from the turn of the 19th/20th century was a coal mining town, and virtually all the male villagers were employed down the mines. By 1955 the source became dry and the subsequent unemployment sparked off a mass exodus! In order to re-populate the empty village, the local authorities agreed to repatriate a large community ( over 1000) of vietnamese who took over the empty miners houses. In 1982 they constructed this huge Pagoda set into gardens of peace and tranquility where they could meet and worship. So for half a century now the Indo-Chinese have lived in perfect harmony with the french in this pretty little village;

Below is their place of worship...

Once a year the buddhists come over to pay their respects....

and, finally, a little picture of my three little monkeys and their Mum--I am missing them already!

Back to my story tomorrow, I hope you all enjoyed a great Easter!

EASTER FAMILY BREAK

2009-04-10T03:36:00.000-07:00

HAPPY

EASTER

TO ALL !

The family is coming for Easter and to give Chris a big hug, so I shall be taking a break for this coming week.

Do have a fun time everybody and I look forward to catching up with you all soon!

ALL'S WELL WITH THE WORLD

2009-04-08T09:49:00.000-07:00

My man is home and all is well with the world..........

With reference to yesterday's post, we had another exciting occasionthat first year! The local region's Brass Band asked if they could perform a concert in the grounds of the Chateau . It would be an event which would be open to the general public-mainly local residents! How could we refuse! Not only would be find it enjoyable but so would our holidaymakers, and the Bar would maybe profit from the occasion as well!

Preparations were put underway, leaflets were put around the town, we rushed of to the local 'cash&carry' for extra stock for the Bar, and waited with anticipation for the day to arrive...

The day dawned hot and sunny, local guys arrived with stacks of benches and arranged them facing the rear of the Chateau. The Band arrived early to set up! They were mostly young men and a couple of girls, and all beautifully dressed all in white. In fact they looked like an English cricket team ( smile). They arranged their chairs and instruments at the base of the steps leading down from the Gallery and its terrace.

Suddenly people started flocking in-- that was such a relief for us because although we thought it might be popular, there was always that doubt that not many people would turn up,which would have been awful for the local committee who had arranged it all. Everybody started to arrrange themselves on benches and greeted each other in the only way that french people do, like they hadn't seen each other for years!! The air was abuzz with french conversation.

After initially tuning up, the Band started to play, and they were GOOD! It was a thrill for us to be hosting an occasion like this and light years away from the life we had back in England. We thought of our daughters still there and wished that they were with us.

The interval came and there was a rush for the bar, and we were ready for them. It was great to see our English tourists mixing and chatting to the french locals- getting along really well.

So what an evening that was! A good time was had by everybody and , I suppose, we were involved in helping along a little " entente cordiale "!

We were so happy with our life at the end of that first summer, but little did we know that there was a dark cloud on the horizon!

UP, UP, and AWAY in my BEAUTIFUL BALLOON

2009-04-06T09:51:00.000-07:00

Firstly, thankyou to all who joined in my little quiz yesterday! The answer was Muskrat, in France called a Ragonda! I felt a little drained yesterday, and my heart wasn't into my story. Today I feel good and energised, especially as Chris is so much better, and will be allowed home to recuperate! So back to my story......

In our first year of opening our doors, we had a few exciting group bookings, and one of them was from a group of hot air balloonists- in french 'Montgolfiéres'. They were from England and quite a jolly bunch. They had sponsors for their activities, the main one being British Airways. Their intention was to fly ( is that the right expression? or float?) before 7.00 a.m.! This, apparently, the safest time because there is no wind. If there are any balloonists reading this, please correct me if I am wrong because I am just using my memory of our conversations with them at that time! So, in order for them to fly before 7am, they had to start getting the balloons inflated at about 5am !!! So as we wanted to share this experience, we had to get up at that time too with our cameras--help!

One is going up, the other still needs more gas

The group leader kindly asked if one of us would like to join them in the basket! Well I have no head for heights, neither did my husband, but our son-in-law leapt at the opportunity, and took a camera with him.

This is him about to get in the basket- how brave

So up up and away they both go.............

The horses just could not believe their eyes! At first when the colouful objects started to grow before their eyes, they all galloped madly around their field. When they had finally exhausted their nervous energy, they all drew up and stared and stared.........

This is the shot that he took from the basket.....

And this next and final photo we took the following morning when they decided to go even earlier. It is lovely to see that bright orb just floating quietly over the roof of the Chateau in the eerie early morning light!

What an experience that was- I just wished now that I had had the courage to go up myself!

DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS?

2009-04-05T10:48:00.000-07:00

This chap playing with the fish?

Here is another picture.....

They lived in our lake at Chateau La Roche Hue, and we have a whole family of them here in my present Chateau.

I am asking because they go under more than one name. I will post my answer tomorrow but I am interested in your names for them. They are cheeky chappies with orange teeth!

THE PRESENT AND THE PAST

2009-04-02T10:07:00.001-07:00

THE PRESENT........

To begin with, a quick update on my man Chris-- he is cheerful and seems to be making good progress. He is still in intensive care but has been helped to a chair today, so that is the first time he has been out of bed. He said it felt soooo good! The Doctors and nurses have been very cheerful and informative, which makes such a difference. Fingers crossed it is hopeful that he will be home sometime next week, but then he must not do anything much at all for one month at which time he will have to go back for tests to see if the damage to his heart has healed.He will be allowed to walk for about half hour a day, they say. At last- a target to focus on! With this encouraging news I feel able to resume my story.

THE PAST.......

Back to Spring 1990 at Chateau La Roche Hue.

We were open for business at last! What a strange feeling that was! 'People' were milling around our home! They were trying out all our facilities , wandering around the grounds, asking endless questions like how and why we came to be there, booking horse-rides ( yippee, the horses would all be fit) using the gymnasium, playing tennis, having a drink at the bar,

playing pool and table-tennis,

and swimming in the pool.....

FANTASTIC -- everything was working! and you would never guess --NO ' EXPECTED' COMPLAINTS! We were estatic, it made all that hard work and worry worthwhile.

Then we had a call from the "Sunday Times" who had heard about us, and they asked if they could do an interview!!!! We were amazed, but, of course, said YES! I would be good publicity for us. The end result was a double page spread in their sunday supplement, the headlines really made us giggle..............

but it so embarassed our four daughters who were absolutely horrified that we were " going public "!

Ah well-- they eventually got used to us and our passion for Chateaux.

SORRY !

2009-03-30T10:10:00.000-07:00

I am sorry today for two reasons........

Firstly for not keeping up my blog for the last two days!!!!!

and secondly, the reason why I was not able to do that.....

The dear man in my present life was taken very poorly on Saturday and was rushed off to hospital, with a blockage in one of his main heart arteries.

I would not be posting on this subject if he had not made a good recoveery thanks to the speed and efficiency of the Franch SAMU services! I cannot praise them enough -- they were here in less that 8 minutes of my call and did all the right things, before whisking him off at what must have been 100 MPH to the hospital with the best heart department, which is 50 kms from here.

The doctors at the hospital set about unblocking that artery within minutes of him arriving. Now he is able to sit up in bed and he is back ' in the land of the living again'-- thank goodness. It will mean arest in hospital for a while and then medication from now on .

Incidentally, he has never smoked, eats a healthy diet and is not at all over-weight!! He let me take this picture of him hiding behind a magazine and he sends his wishes for good health to all you bloggers out there!

I look forward to having him home again!

THE CHATEAU COMES ALIVE

2009-03-28T03:30:00.000-07:00

We returned from our holiday quite refreshed and launched ourselves into the last minute finishings. Everybody had worked really hard during our absence and everything had moved on ! what a difference! " we should go away more often " we thought!

The fifteen apartments were having their kitchens finished off and the furnishings were now in place. Because of the lovely wooden shutters throughout , there was no need for curtains ( thank goodness) what a job that would have been on top of everything else. It was time for a congratulatory dinner for our English workers, and what better place than in the newly finished bar........

They had done such a good job , with the apartments done we could take a few photos and change our brochure by adding real pictures!

The pool.........

and....

......the apartments!

GOSH do you know , after all these years, I have just noticed a spelling mistake of the word ' appartments' just above the picture, but it is correctly written in the script!!! That is really bizarre that I have never noticed it beore. Actually it shows that we were ' going native' as it is the french way to spell this word.

By now we were getting excited, and also apprehensive! Suppose people were disappointed? Suppose they would leave the apartments in a dreadful state? Suppose they didn't like us? Had we done enough to encourage enough business to pay all the bills at the end of the day? Now THAT was the million dollar question!!!

ALEX'S TRIBUTE TO HIS GRANDMOTHER

2009-03-26T10:54:00.000-07:00

MY GRANDMOTHER LOUISE

I remember her hands,

work-worn and scaly

against my feathers.

Daily scrubbed in service

when she was a young girl and

never idle a moment.

Working fingers. Lean, like her voice

always correct and

always correcting me, sharply,

best as she knew how.

Hands that bathed me.

Hands that chastised me.

Hands that fed me, filled my own

with the strength a child needs.

Hands that loved me like her own.

Hands that knew pain; that felt,

through the hardy skin,

her love, only one, lifelessly

slip through her fingers

( to rest her hands from his weight)

Hands that touched winter

and denied the cold,

half-way to heaven as the knuckles

told her life in knotches.

These were the hands that shone stone

for a living, a lifetime;

the hands I remember,

ground to the bone.

By Alex

my beloved husband who passed away at this time 27th March 2001

THE BEGINNING OF A LOVE AFFAIR!

2009-03-25T02:53:00.000-07:00

It was Spring and the dates for our first bookings were looming up , so we decided to take a break for the first time and leave the Chateau and animals in the good hands of Archie and my daughter and her boyfriend. Isabelle was coming in now on a daily basis to look after the horses, and Jacqueline was working for a few hours a week doing the cleaning.

But- we had no idea of what to do , or where to go ! We talked about the Camping holidays we always used to enjoy with the freedom they offer, when we struck upon a bright idea!! At that time we had invested in a nearly new car-- so,why not let us trade it in for a camping car ( second hand) and buy a little old run-about for shopping etc? That was the THIRD best decision of our lives! The second one was to buy a Chateau in France! and the first one was to get married to each other!

So that is what we did and here is a picture of our first camping car, with us on our way to Italy, which is where we decided to go. It will eventually become our favourite destination!

OH BOY!

What fun they are.... our own little home on wheels, and such a contrast to all that space we had at the Chateau, so , an ideal break! After setting it up with everything one needs, food clothes, scrabble, books ( essential) etc etc , there is no further need to drag suitcases around or unpack and repack. We had a shower , oven, central heating , all mod cons! Each morning you wake up to a new adventure.

This is Alex trying to get to grips with how to put the stabilisers down haha-it didnt take us long to get the hang of it all.

So, YES! we made it to Italy-- Mind Blowing! We went to Rome and camped on the banks of the Tiber at a good campsite which offered a shuttle bus to the train statin in to the centre of Rome. That was fabulous!

We also went to Pompei, and Pisa . I thoroughly recommend Pompeii for a visit , it is just incredible. I am posting two pictures which we took of Pisa below--

the ensemble with the tower peeping out.

The tower on its own-- that's me getting in the way of the shot!

I could have rambled on forever about that first camping car holiday, but suffice to say it is still my favourite way of taking a break to this day!

FRIENDS AND NEIGHBOURS

2009-03-23T08:26:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I couldn't resist that one!

Apart from that horrid man (in previous post) we began to get to know the local people and made valuable friends , some of whom I still see from time to time. I remember Michel , the butcher! He had a van and went around the local villages on market days to sell his meat. What a character he was! He looked typically french with a droopy moustache and often wore a black beret for effect. He had made a horn ( of sorts) and attached a long rubber tubing to it and would swing it around rapidly making a sort of weird wailing sound. He could also play that horn, and very well, without the rubber tubing , of course!

Then there was Jacqueline and her family who lived just outside the village in such a pretty house. They had dug out and filled a huge lake on their property, what a setting that was. Not only was she our friend but she became our cleaner, and I don't know what I would have done without her. When we finally sold la Roche hue, she stayed on with the new owners and only retired from there about two years ago. We also became very friendly with our Notaire , our insurance agent and our electrician and their wives and families. François , is still my Notaire and we meet often.

The local village was small and pretty and had a lovely old church ( 13th century) whose bell we would hear tolling, from the Chateau. Below is a postcard picture from 18/19th century, I think.

Apart from the church there was a small alimentation ( food shop) Bar ( of course) Boulangerie ( of course) and a post office and that was it! If you were driving through the village and blinked you would have missed it! ( I know - old joke!).

Below is a picture of a family member cutting the grass at the rear of the Chateau, and you can just see the village in the background.

Little did I know it at the time, by my daughter would be getting married in the lovely old church!

SPRING ARRIVES , AND AXLE GOES MISSING!

2009-03-21T10:35:00.000-07:00

We survived our first winter at la Roche Hue without any other mishaps except perhaps for feeling the cold. Even though the Chateau had a reasonable central heating system , it could not compensate for the vast rooms with the very high ceilings. Fortunately Mum was very cosy as her apartment was on the lower ground floor with normal ceiling height and her rooms were standard size. Strangely enough though we soon seemed to adapt to our new temperature. When friends or family came to visit during those winter months they all walked around with about six woollies on! ( er-a bit of an exaggeration)! We later realised that none of us had gone down with the flu or even a cold, so the cooler atmosphere must be better for the health?

Soon Spring came streaming in , giving warmth and light again and came sparkling through to the bridal paths, spooking the horses! The work in the apartments was progressing more rapidly now which was fortunate as we had already received some bookings around the Easter period and beyond. We had decided to name all the 15 apartments after members of the family starting with ' Priscilla', my Mum's name.

The days were lengthening and three deer came to call and I just managed to get a picture of them:-

I began to notice a change in the behaviour of axle, our eldest doberman, who was nearly three years old. He seemed to be distant and constantly looking out towards the boundary of the parkland.

Then one day he went missing! We assumed he was in the woods , but it began to get dusk and Rocky was fretting, so we went out and combed the entire property calling him, but to no avail. It was not normal for either of the two dogs to disappear as they had been trained to stay in the grounds, which were mostly fenced or gated. It became dark so I phoned the local police, who seemed totally unconcerned and said that he had probably gone in search of a female dog. This did not help and I was beside myself because it just wasn't his nature to disappear, he was a home-loving dog.

Two agonising days went by, we put out all sorts of messages and toured around the roads in the car, just dreading to find a crumpled heap. On the third day I went out again with my daughter who was driving. We started to tour the whole neighbourhood slowly, with me hanging out of the ca window, calling Axle's name, because I knew that if he was lying hurt somewhere, or whatever, he would respond by barking if he was able. We were cruising slowly down a side road less than 1km from the Chateau, I was yelling his name, then stopping and waiting for a response, when, suddenly I heard him bark -- I knew it was definitely him-- we couldn't believe it! We kept on calling and following the sound of his barking. It led us up a drive into a courtyard of a farm and there in the middle was a pound with an assortment of dogs in it, including Axle!!! I banged on the door of the farm and a dishevelled man came out. I asked him why my dog was locked up in his pound, and he replied that it was his dog not mine!! My reaction is unprintable!! I threatened to call the gendarmes immediately, when suddenly, he unlocked the cage and thrust Axle towards us. The relief was enormous!

Apparently Axle had followed a female dogs' call which had led him to this pound , so the man had obviously decided to keep him and then perhaps re-sell him or breed him? I don't know to this day. The memory still riles me.

OUR FIRST CHRISTMAS NEARLY GOES UP IN SMOKE

2009-03-19T11:00:00.000-07:00

I shall never forget our first Christmas at Chateau La Roche Hue.

My second eldest daughter was due to come over from England with her family the day before Christmas Eve, and we wanted everything to be perfect for their visit. Our first priority was to buy the biggest Christmas tree we could find so that it wouldn't look lost in our large salon. The ceiling height was not far short of 5 metres, so finding a tree that big was no easy task. The local garden centre managed to come up trumps and delivered the tree, but that was the easy bit-- getting it into position and securing it was tricky! In the end Alex found a large metal hook and he went up a ladder and managed to screw it discreetly into one of the beams-- so he was then able to rope the top of the tree to the hook, hiding the rope under a cloud of tinsel!! HOORAY!
It worked a treat! and this is the finished decorated tree- sorry the picture is not too clear......

By the time the weary travellers arrived all was ready and we felt quite festive as we sat around the crackling log fire, catching up on all the news. My daughter Victoria and her boyfriend were at home as well so we had lots tales to swap. The dogs snoozed away happily and, for once, didn't hog the fire!!

That's Rocky on the left, and Axle curled up on what was their sofa! I KNOW! Yes I did spoil them a bit :)

Christmas Eve Morning arrived , and I was up early as I had to turn out the horses into their field. I looked out of the window and - MAGIC- it had snowed quite thickly in the night! Could you believe that? Perfect for our first Christmas!

Needless to say, we found what trays we could and all trooped out into the snow after Breakfast to enjoy it! The trays were makeshift toboggans and there were some good slopes to cruise down. Alex and my son-in-law went off into the woods with my little old car to chop and stack more logs ready for the fire and we went snowballing. It was not long before the car became stuck in the snow so our fun ended suddenly and we all had to put shoulders to the metal. Why is it that episodes like this which are such a drag at the time are rembered fondly as being a hoot!

Christmas Eve was spent singing carols with the children and grandchildren who were getting really excited about the visit from Father Christmas. They were finally persuaded to go to bed after placing their pillow cases near the fireplace.

In order for Father Christmas to visit a certain amount of presents had to be arranged -if you know what I mean. One of those presents was a Barbie Castle for my young grand -daughter and her Dad thought it would be great if he assembled it then, instead of having to do it in the morning, and she would be able to play with it straight away! That was a good idea, but throwing all the cartons onto the fire after he had assembled Barbie turned out to be BAD idea!!!!

The first sign of a problem was this awful roaring noise-- we all listened and wondered , then Alex suddenly said " OH NO" and rushed out into the garden........ Oh dear- the chimney was on fire, flames were pouring out of the top ; you must bear in mind that this was Xmas Eve and it was nearly midnight, so you can imagine what sort of response we got when we had to phone the fire-brigade! Midnight on Christmas Eve is the time that the french exchange their presents!

We were lucky that night -- they sped to our rescue in true film fashion, but given the height the chimney reached to, they had a difficult job in getting the fire under control, as you can imagine. Bu what a great lot of chaps they were though, they laughed and worked well and had a good tot of whisky before they finally left.

We wearily cleaned and mopped up and , finally exhausted but happy, crawled into bed! Yes, as I said , we will NEVER forget our first Christmas at La Roche Hue!

MUM IN HER HEY DAY!

2009-03-18T09:05:00.000-07:00

I have spoken a lot about my mum and how in her 80's she helped us so much with our move to the Chateau in France, sadly she died a few years ago at this time of the year, so I thought I would post a photo of her today as she was before I knew her ..................

wasn't she lovely!

20's bathing belle!

.........and as I last remember her at the age of 98 yrs still lovely!!

A FEW PICS FOR MONDAY

2009-03-16T11:13:00.001-07:00

A birds eye view of my beloved Chateau. I must say that out of all my Chateau homes, this one is my favourite!

The finished gallery or one end of it, note we have added a Bar! Luckily a class four bar licence came up for sale in the village, so we decided to buy it. We hadn't worked out who would be the one to work in the evenings - I guess we were going to draw straws for that one!

The gymnasium was now finished, this is Victoria's boyfriend trying it out. I was excited and made all sorts of resolutions to work off the pounds gained from all the fantastic breads and patisseries and cheeses of France . Did I ? well, I think I used it about three times! So much for the good intentions!

Last picture of the day -- the games room! Visiting friends ' having a go'. The pool table was great and we all got quite competitive about that. Table tennis - I am hopeless at that.

So everything was ready for the customers except for the apartments, they were taking longer to complete than we had anticpated , and we had taken a ' group booking' of young people for our Easter opening!

OUR FIRST MISTAKE!

2009-03-15T04:03:00.000-07:00

THE BROCHURE

Alex and I had to start thinking about getting the business underway for the next year's season. We decided that we would only open for bookings from Easter to the end of September, giving us the rest of the year to relax and enjoy our new home. The picture for the front page of our Brochure , was taken, and the result is above. The rest of the brochure, though, was very tricky as the apartments were nowhere near finished, and that would obviously be of prime importance to the customer. However we found a very good printers and they designed the interior of the brochure with " artists impressions " coupled with other exterior shots.

We knew where we were going to advertise and that was with an established rental Company called " Chez- Nous " who produced a good looking, professional magazine at that time. We booked a whole page for the 1990 season which cost us a whopping £1,500! It was frightening because all the time we were dipping into our pockets and nothing was coming back in! But to go forward it had to be done. Then we had to make the decision-- to charge in pound sterling? or in french francs? We agonised and looked at what other owners were doing; we made our decision-- we would charge in pound sterling, as we thought our customers would be comfortable with that and more willing to book !

That turned out to be such a WRONG CHOICE! How were we to know that a recession would be on it's way in a year's time and that the franc's value would drop drastically from it's present value of 11FF to the pound . We were blissfully unaware, fortunately, and we carried on with our ambitious plans.

Next we had to concentrate on fittings and furnishings, and perhaps a visit to the Bank.....

WORK AND PLAY

2009-03-13T02:37:00.000-07:00

Now I am delving back into the past again, and so enjoying this journey.

The pool was in place-- the horses grazing-- an assistant to help the grooming etc-- the workmen were all beavering away, or were they?

Well, they weren't this bad! haha... But as the tennis court was finished, we would find them relaxing with the racquets during their lunch break, either that or dipping in the pool, as by now it was really hot and sunny.... leading a life of " Old Reilly", now where does that saying come from?

Caught on camera!!

I was happy because my kitchen had finally been finished and I had all mod cons for the first time in months. With all the family descending upon us on a regular basis it had been chaotic in my make-do kitchen which, incidentally , had now been turned into our bathroom which was ensuite to our bedroom which used to be the salon !!! Confused? I am not surprised , our heads were in a whirl that first year.

The new kitchen was installed in what used to be the serving room for the original kitchen , which was in the basement , as was normal in most of the Chateaux. Just out of the photo frame ( below) was the dumb waiter which was huge and which we kept as a feature;

Myself and our two lovely dobermans in the kitchen--Axle and Rocky.

Oh , also an australian peroqueet called Dandy. I originally bought Dandy for my Mum as she had moved into her apartment downstairs, and I thought he would keep her company. After her first night with Dandy 'chez elle' she appeared at breakfast the next morning as white as a sheet. I thought she was ill, but, no--apparently she had been up all night worried about the bird, thinking she ought to let him out. I never knew before this, that since her childhood she had a ' thing' about birds in cages and their lack of freedom! So Dandy then took residence with us and Mum could relax again!

AN ANNOUNCEMENT!

2009-03-12T05:04:00.000-07:00

An up to date piece of family news which I would like to share with you all!

The day before yesterday my grandaughter gave birth to my sixth great granchild, a lovely little girl who weighed in at 6lb 12oz. And here she is less than 24 hours old... her name is Natasha.

My family now consists 4 children ( all girls), 11 grandchildren ( 5 girls and 6 boys) , and 6 great grandchildren ( 5 girls and 1 boy) , isn't that wonderful. That is what life is about for me - families!

Good job I have a big house ( smile).....

WHERE TO PLACE THE POOL

2009-03-11T02:12:00.000-07:00

The swimming pool , we had decided, was a must for a holiday establishment , and, for us too :) The position for the pool, though, actually presented itself to us! At the rear of the Chateau was a raised area with steps already in place leading up to it -- ideal for all, the position was grand.

Alex bargained with several swimming pool operators, and finally decided on the most local man, who had many years experience. We thought it would need to be big to balance against the size of the Chateau, and the amount of guest we could be welcoming, so we decided on 8mx15m. It took 2/3 months to complete, but when it was finished we saw that it fitted in perfectly.

There seemed at that time to be workmen everywhere! Mum loved it, flirting with all the young men, making cups of tea for everybody. Apart from the 6 guys on hire from England we had also taken on 6 frenchmen from the local ' chomage' who find temporary work for the unemployed. Although there was a language barrier, all the guys seem to get on really well together. The atmosphere was good, and work was advancing.

As we added more horses to our stock, I decided that I would need help to excercise them , as Alex was involved with the renovations. Then along came Isabelle. She was a young Mum who lived on a smallholding with her husband Thiery, who was a long-haul lorry driver, and for us she was a life-saver! Her expertise with horses and her friendly affectionate nature was heart warming. I knew that my horses would be in good hands. She already bred her own horses , the following picture was taken at her place , its Isabelle with one of her mares and it's foal......

Isabelle really helped me regain my confidence in riding and we would go out each morning hacking through the local woodland. Bliss! I even persuaded my daughter Victoria to join us occasionally . Displaying their native hospitality Isabelle and Thiery invited us and our English workers to a barbeque at her place one evening. That was so good, we didn't eat till 10 pm having sampled aperitifs and munchies for at least 2 hours, then the steaks were bought out and sizzled on the pine cones-- yes they used pine cones as they had pine trees all over their property, and, believe me they are just as good as charbon! Hunks of french bread, followed by cheese and fresh fruit. What a life!

THE HORSES CAME FIRST

2009-03-09T03:23:00.000-07:00

So it was now July in our first year at Chateau Roche Hue. We had set out our plans, see previous post, and wanted our business to be up and running by late Spring the following year i.e. 1990.
As a riding establishment for the customers had been one of our agreed facilities, I was buzzing with excitement at the prospect of horses, and keen to put that plan into motion. Since early childhood I had adored horses and lots of birthday presents came in the form of riding lessons. Alex and I had ridden a bit early into our marriage, but just hacking really. When our daughters were growing up we had invested in a small horse and a pony for them and so we had experience of all the work that goes along with the pleasure. I ' put the word around ' and met lots of horsey people and started the long business of choosing. For myself I need a quiet well behaved ride as it had been a long time since I had ridden and I needed to regain my confidence. Then along came my dream horse Hortensia.

Hortensia , in spite of his name, was a gelding, a Selle Francaise. He was originally from ' le Cadre Noir' at Saumur , and beautifully dressaged. Apparently they retire their display horses at the age of 12 yrs ? and at this age he was bought by Danielle, a good rider who entered him for shows and jumping etc. By the time he was 16 she decided that he needed a quieter life, and thought he would be perfect for me as he was virtually ' bomb-proof' ! I would be perfect for him, as I wanted to ride but not jump him. So began a long love affair. Sadly I heard that he passed away two years ago.

Next choice was Black mischief, here he is on the right of Hortensia in their stalls....

Black mischief was an ex- race horse . I was told that he had been raced too young and had suffered ' clacked tendons ', so could never race again- but -with a 4 month rest, and with daily

' argyle vert ' dressings and hosings on his tendons he might well recover enough to make a good riding horse. He was part arab and very beautiful so I decided to take the chance as there was plenty of time before he would be needed. This worked out well and he did recover .

Next we decided that we needed a couple of gentle ponies for the children, and we found Fantasia, pictured here with my daughter Victoria.....

She was and is a lovely pony as gentle and willing as can be! I heard this week that she is still alive , and still grazing in her pastures at la Roche Hue. She must be 31 years old this year -- quite remarkable. The other pony I bought was a barrow-load of trouble and miscief, a little shetland called U.S.A. Can't you just tell he is a tinker looking at him?

Finally, the last buy that year was Pivoine, an ex trotter, who was such an amazing ride, because she had been trained never to go into a canter or gallop, so you could ride her at gallop-speed whilst she was trotting -- really bizarre!

And so this is me! On Pivoine outside our lovely Chateau. à demain......

LINK TO CHARLIE

2009-03-08T12:15:00.000-07:00

Please meet Charlie who was my adorable ram. I have posted his story on

http://thoughtsaboutlifefrombeyondthegrave.blogspot.com

à demain

THE PLAN ,THE FACILITIES, AND MY DREAM

2009-03-07T09:29:00.000-08:00

We knew after that meeting with the builder that our finances would not stretch to his costs, so, after long discussions and financial estimations, we decided to do all the floor-plans ourselves, and hire certain family members who we knew had tackled decoration and construction before and who might be available for a period of approxmately 6 months. We telephoned my cousin who was in the building trade and he found three men who might be interested. They would live-in, downstairs in the sous-sol, which used to be the infirmary of the Chateau when it was a ' Colonie de Vancances ' for children. It had a kitchen ( of sorts), bedrooms and good toilet and shower facilities. We estimated we needed about 6 men, so after a few more phone calls we had another three willing workers. All were young guys without committments, who were eager to experience a ' work-shop' in a Chateau in France .

In order to attract good rental bookings we needed extra facilities. First essential, had to be a swimming pool, which would have to be professionally installed . Then we needed a leisure lounge, we already had a pool table and table tennis for that purpose, so that was fine. In the grounds we had discovered shortly after we first moved in, a hard tennis court base, which was in the ideal position, so we just needed the high fencing, net posts and net, and the obligatory white lines. Finally- my dream! We already had lovely old stables--

Why not buy horses and have a riding establishment for the use of our visitors, and myself, of course!

We needed to create an attractive brochure to advertise the Chateau apartments and all the facilities. The problem was we needed this brochure in advance to get the bookings but we couldn't take any photos as nothing yet was finished, or , should I say begun!!

VISITORS GALORE!!

2009-03-06T09:32:00.000-08:00

Phew , we had passed the first test! The wedding had been a success, with no calamities. All was calm again and we thought we would take a breather and put our feet up

THEN THE PHONE RANG!

"Hello-- is it true you have really bought a Chateau? Is it alright if we come over to visit you?"

Obviously our daughters had been to see our new home, and we got excited then at the prospect of welcoming other family and friends to see how we were adapting to this new life-- but -- from June that first year we had someone staying every month! I do remember us being tired, as we hadn't set up any extra bedrooms, also my daughters boyfriend was still busy constructing a new kitchen for me. But we were happy and proud to show people around. The wow factor was always the staircase hall with its magnificent white stone winding staircase in the style of Louis Xlll

It wound up to the second floor of the Chateau....

these pictures are by courtesy of Karel and Marja, who currently own one of the appartments

All the in between times we were working out how we could set up our business and what facilities we could provide. The first thing was, obviously, to sort out the accommodation. Alex contacted a builder and asked him round to give an estimate for changing the current rooms on the first and second floors into 15 luxury self-catering apartments. He duly arrived and we took him up to the two floors which he inspected at length. In typical french manner, he stroked his chin , he shook his head, pondered more , then looked at us both and said one word --"Impossible!" . Not to be outdone Alex took him down one end of the first floor to a huge room and asked him if he could turn that into a one bedroomed apartment. " Oui! ", he said-- " Great " said Alex with a grin, " then just do that 15 times !" pause " Impossible !" said the builder. Typical. to cap that he wanted the equivalent of £15 per hour per workman-- which at that time was HUGE. So it was a good job he wouldn't tackle it!

We sat down that night with a good bottle of red, and put our heads around working out a plan 2.

WHAT A RUSH- BUT THE WEDDING WAS WORTH IT

2009-03-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

I couldn't believe it! We had actually booked a wedding for the coming June , it was already February, and there were two huge areas which needed complete renovaton, the long gallery and the Grand Salon. The reception hall was where work had already begun, so we decided to continue with that first of all. Archie continued with the walls and Victoria, my daughter, and I decided to tackle the original floor tiles. They were beautiful, the pattern in cream and rust colours, but the condition was not good with thick layers of old varnish and spattered with paint here and there. We spent at least two weeks on our knees and gradually cleaned back the tiles to their original brilliant colours. Mum helped too, particularly with providing tea breaks!

The long wood panelled gallery was 60 feet in length, with large windows and french doors opening out onto the south facing terrace over-looking the rear grounds down to the lake. The flooring was herring bone parquet which needed stripping back and re-staining and waxing. Some cracked windows needed replacing, and the panelling needed re-staining. We decided to live with the wallpaper, and just hang pictures.

This the end part of the gallery when we first moved in, unfortunately it doesn't show the lovely l windows .

So, over the following months we all worked so hard, the men more than the 'gals because of the 'nature of the beast'! Alex needed to go and buy a mobile scaffold to enable the decoration of the ceiling in the grand Salon! The work needed was so intricate, with all the garlands of flowers, and of course, the ceiling height was just short of 5 metres . He came back , proud as punch, delighted that he had got a real bargain for this 4 metre square "échafaudage" with wheels- saying that it had only cost £150 !!! When they went to collect it in a borrowed van the next day he came down to earth with a bang-- it was really £1500!! After getting over the shock, we laughed a lot and all decided that Alex had better swot up on his french! So, little by little the work progressed and it was hard but fun. Finally the Grand salon was finished....
We decided on different shades of green, with multi-coloured garlands.

The floor had been restored beautifully by Archie ...

Finally June arrived and everything was ready. Our only commitment was the hiring of the rooms, all the catering was being provided by a company of caterers who would staff the occasion and also provide 'le vin d'honneur' which would take place in the reception hall. Guy had also taken care of the music which was to set up in the Grand Salon; the wedding breakfast was to be in the gallery. To our surpise and great pleasure we had been invited to join the wedding party.

This is the gallery set up for the wedding breakfast, as you can see it leads into the G.salon

The bride at the ' vin d'honneur. Bizzarely I do not have a photo of the bride and groom together;also the quality of my photos are poor - sorry!

Some of the wedding party gathering for a photo on the steps from the terrace.

Like all french weddings, the food was superb --10 courses-- we were still eating at 1am. The ambiance was fantastic and we joined in the dancing. It continued until 5am ( we had not put a time restriction on as we were attending) when the onion soup was served! YUK! But it is a traditional french custom sometimes observed at french weddings and is supposed to have a sobering effect. After this the marital couple left for their honeymoon! AAAAHHHHH bless!

THE WEDDING CHALLENGE

2009-03-04T07:13:00.001-08:00

Chateau La Roche Hue in the snow...... click to enlarge

It was February and although we didn't actually have snow that first February, we did need to get someone to revise the central heating system, so we searched the french yellow pages and came up with a Guy , capital 'G' because that actually was his name! He lived nearby so we decided to call him for an estimate. It turned out that he was a good friend of our Notaire, who, by now had become a good friend ( and still is to this day) so we felt, that was all the recommendation he needed. We explained what our plans were ( creating 15 apartments on the first and second floors) and he set about the long assessment. I am unable to remember the first estimate he came up with, but I do remember that we both balked at it! The one thing we learned fast about living in France is that everything is " discutable" and Alex and I at that time needed to bargain to achieve everything that we had planned to do. To take a break from the 'discussion of pricing' we took him on a guided tour of our plans for the ground floor, which seemed to interest him . The visit suddenly ended then and he announced he would return the next day with a written estimate.

Early next morning Guy arrived with a smile on his face ! He had reduced our estimate, however he had a new proposition to put to us, one that would make our eyes pop!

He wanted to hire main ground floor salons for the wedding of his daughter!!! Bearing in mind that the whole of the ground floor needed renovating ,floors- windows- paintwork- walls etc etc. We asked him when the wedding was planned for. " June" he replied! -- WHAT!!! we thought!

This is a photo of theoriginal state of the paintwork in the ballroom, flower cornice black with mould, paintwork a grey wash , horrific institution lighting etc.

BUT......

Yes you've guessed -- we had to accept didn't we! How exciting-- and would we get finished in time ??

ARCHIE AND THE MODEL

2009-03-03T09:33:00.000-08:00

So, there we all were, Mum, Alex, me, Archie, our dear friend, daughter Victoria, and Richard her boyfriend all beavering away inside this huge beautiful Chateau.

When we pulled off that paper in the grand entrance hall we could see a beautiful smooth plastered wall which had lines painted on it resembling brick work ( if you know what I mean), you can actually see it in the photo in the last post. Archie set about re-painting the walls and re-doing the lines! What a task that was, but he could really work miracles , nothing seemed too difficult a task for him. Whilst he was with us at Roche Hue, he painstakingly made a beautiful complete model of the Chateau by hand, even down to copying the detail of the interior decoration. Each floor lifts out. It took him six months to complete. I still have this generous gift, and I am proud to show you the photo below.

This picture was taken at my third Chateau . It gives a good idea of the model's proportions and of Archies' artisitic craftmanship. He was a sign writer too, and made our entrance sign-board which we erected at the entrance to our driveway .

I found this picture of Archie, fishing in the little lake at La roche Hue.

Sadly Archie died in 2001 just three weeks before my lovely husband passed away. I like to think that they are together, as they were such good pals, and that they are both following my blog memories of such an exciting time.

GUESS WHAT I BOUGHT BACK WITH ME?As well as photos!

2009-03-02T07:27:00.000-08:00

YUP! That dreaded lurgy, the common cold!

One kiss on the cheek at a gathering was all it took, and we were both hooked. True to form three days later the signs began to arrive! Sore throat, sleepless nights, am I piling it on thick enough? What is about cold that turns the clock back for most of us and we become dependant snivellers in need of cosseting? Ot is it just me?It did not spoil our holiday though, in fact it improved my partners' greatly, because I completely lost my voice -did I hear a snigger?

You know that old adage, Feed a cold, starve a fever? Well I have just found out that it is actually correct -- see http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn1777-feed-a-cold-starve-a-fever-may-be-right.html; As a result of reading this article I am getting through lots of cups of tea and coffee, and must surely put on a few pounds with the amount of food that I am enjoying- so its not too bad!

Enough of this! Let me show you a some of the photos we took on our short travels.

The snow in Switzerland seen through the window of our camper.- It wasn't very deep when we were passing through, so didn't get any lovely snowy pictures;

Our camper parked up for the night! It looks deserted, that's because it was! not the time of year I suppose. This was just below Lyon on our way to the Var in the south of France -- in search of the sun!

The lovely clear blue skies of the south, and the beautiful tree-lined road so typical of this country. This was taken south of Montelimar. Toujours en route.

The vignes looking so dry and cropped in their stony earth, which will burst forth shortly into a luscious green, changing what looks a bleak landscape into a land full of promise.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of this lovely old gnarled tree, with a manoir behind. This was in the Var just south of Brignoles in a 'petit village' called Besse sur Isles.

Finally the beach at Nice. A group of schoolchildren are chanting and dancing with their two teachers, whilst their picnic lunches await in their casually tossed bags, and the sun shines on!

I look forward to taking up my Chateau story again tomorrow. à demain.

GETTING USED TO THE SPACE

2009-02-19T03:23:00.000-08:00

This a photo which I took on our first viewing visit to La Roche Hue , and it shows how the Chateau stands high in its grounds with the outbuildings placed unobtrusively. This is the rear of the building.

In those first few days we thoroughly toured the grounds with the dogs. I remember the weather being extremely pleasant, surprisingly, as it was still January. We later learned that it had been a particularly mild January in the Loire Valley that year. One day walking in the front park we noticed that in one area the trees seemed to have been planted in an open ended square shape. Most peculiar, we thought! So we investigated the area and began to scrape the leaves and earth away with our feet as the ground felt quite hard beneath. To my amazement I uncovered a white painted line; We got a shovel then and began to uncover a full sized hard based tennis court!! UNBELIEVABLE! Particularly as the agent hadn't a clue that it had been there. It was still in a reasonable condition but, obviously, had no net or fencing ; it went down on to our growing list of must do's!

We re-contacted our friend Archie who agreed to come over for a three month period to work alongside of us and , shortly, our daughter Victoria and her boyfriend would be moving in to work with us as well. So that would be 6 workers ( including Mum)!! Our first project would be to create a separate living area for Mum, who, at that point wanted to be independant. There was a great area on the sous sol , lower ground floor, which had previously been for staff. It consisted , a salon with doors opening onto the garden, a tiny kitchenette and a WC/shower room--ideal! That would be Archie's first job. Meanwhile Vicky and I ( & Mum) would tackle the huge entrance hall. We needed to strip off all that horrific paper and remove the old varnish off the original floor tiles.

These are not a good quality photos I'm afraid, but this is in the entrance hall--it shows the awful paper peeling off; That fireplace is enormous, but doesn't look it in the photo.

Above photo is the front door . Dwarfed by the camera, and more of that ghastly paper!

We were becoming used to the big space little by little and getting to like it. The problem most of the time was finding each other, because once one of us went ' walk-a-abouts ' it might be half an hour before they could be located.

I used to end up at the end of nearly every day in the lovely old stables, dreaming of having a horse, or two...............................

TODAY HOW TIME HAS FLOWN

2009-02-18T10:40:00.000-08:00

Today in the present time, I have been searching through all my boxes of photos for some that we might have taken on those first few weeks in the Chateau, and , HOORAY , I have found a few. Trouble is the day has absolutely sped by ( with other issues) and I have not had enough time to scan the photos, which I will do tomorrow. However I have pestered my lovely four daughters to also search through their photos and my second born, Danielle, has triumphed and sent two pictures which she took of the front and rear of La Roche Hue. I thought I would publish them today as I had only just remarked on Monday's about the difference between the rear and front of the east wing. So here they are -- sorry they are a bit small :-(

My other daughter, Michaela has sent me a picture of part of the magnificent staircase , so I will post that up too, so here it is....

I look forward to continuing my story tomorrow,
Bon fin journée.....

WE MAKE OUR FUTURE PLANS

2009-02-17T09:54:00.000-08:00

The days began to speed by in a frenzy of-- unpacking --keeping Mum busy--searching for the dogs ( 27 acres is a lot freedom for 2 dobermans)--trying to find each other--trying to find simple things like knives and forks--locating the most convenient food stores-- getting to know the chateau--etc etc.

We managed to get the heating turned on , and gradually the guardians flat began to resemble a home. We knew that that once we got ourselves organised we could start spreading out into that east wing, and create a proper kitchen, use the two grand salons as a dining room and a lounge and install a bathroom in what we were currently using as a kitchen. Our bedroom was going to be in the room that was our present lounge. Then we had to tackle the plans for the renovation. The ground floor consisted of the east wing , which was our private area. The rest of the area consisted of a lovely large reception hall, a staircase hall with a massive wide white stone winding staircase( both of these areas had their original tiles), a long gallery room which gave on to rear terrace , and a large beautiful ballroom. Both the ballroom and the gallery had original parquet flooring , but which needed restoring. There was also another large salon, and a chapel with stained glass windows. The floor area on each floor was 1000 m2.

We studied the bedrooms at length and our plan was to establish 15 self-contained apartments on the 1st and 2nd floors ranging from studios toone, two and three bedroomed appartments. So it was quite an ambitious plan for a couple with no previous experience in that sort of thing. We wondered what the cost might amount to......................

ITS A NEW DAY! ITS A NEW LIFE!

2009-02-16T09:43:00.000-08:00

This lovely old building hadn't changed in all the years it had stood, and for us it had been an immediate love affair. This old postcard shows the rear of the chateau which, if you scroll down to an earlier picture, you will see is different from the front because of its rounded west wing. Between each wing is a long balustraded terrace overlooking the wooded park and lake. That is where we were both standing on that first morning-- a beautiful sunny day January 10th 1989-- quite euphoric.

Believe it or not we had all immediately fallen to sleep the previous night( with no hauntings) and awoke to the removal men banging on the front door to wake us up! They were anxious to start! I must give them credit , it was quite a task, however it was confined to just the guardians appartment which ,we had decided, was the best place to start from. There was plenty of other storage space for boxes yet to be opened and all the paraphanalia that one seems to collect.

We took our sandwich lunch onto the terrace ( la-di-da) in the sunshine ; to be shortly interupted by our first visitors. The Mayor of the local village, and our nearest neighbours arrived to welcome us into the community. The wife of our neighbour turned out to be the grand-daughter of the Count and Countess who used to own the chateau at the turn of the century. The family had retained the Chateau's farm buildings which were very elegant.They are still there today and is run as a working farm. So there they were welcoming us the french way with a bottle of champagne. As you can imagine we didn't achieve too much on that first day, and the day drew to a close with us happily in the midst of chaos.

Tomorrow we would make a real start to sort out our living area , then start making plans on how we were going to make this work! All we had at this stage was 80 empty rooms, no heating , no income, no food ( yet to locate the nearest supermarket to stock up), -- but were we down? OF COURSE NOT!

AND YOU HAVE LIGHT !

2009-02-15T02:45:00.000-08:00

HOORAY! Although it was dusk , we could see a Pickfords lorry trundling up the drive. The driver jumped out , looked up at the building and cussed - obviously realising the enormity of his work tomorrow. He explained that the other two trucks had bedded down for the night en route as it was so late ,and that they would be arriving the next day. We were so thankful when he said his lorry had the beds and kitchen equipment on board . Alex sped off in the car to the nearest telephone box and rang EDF emergency number and they promised that they would send someone to turn us on ' toute suite' ! Our spirits lifted and we wandered through the ground floor of this vast building trying to locate a suitable ' smallish' area where we could set up a temporary nest. Mum was tired and we needed to eat and she needed to rest. Lo and behold the EDF were true to their word and a technician soon arrived and within half an hour we had some form of lighting on the ground floor. The problem we hadnt considered was the lack of light bulbs, but we made do.

Trying to ignore the dead flies and what looked suspiciously like mouse droppings we chose to set up in what must have been the guardians appartment located in the east wing on the ground floor of the chateau. It had a toilet ,which was in reasonable condition, and two rooms, one which could be a kitchen , then there was a wooden staircase which led up to a mezzanine to three rooms which could be bedrooms. The Pickfords man carried in some hard chairs and a table, so we sat Mum down and hunted for a broom. The dogs meanwhile had been going bonkers in the grounds, so we had to rake them in. Surprisingly they did as they were told and settled into their boxes, obviously glad to be finished with car travelling. So that was all good news! The bad news was, the beds were right at the back of the lorry, and so was the cooker!!! Then good news again, a microwave oven was reachable, and sleeping bags, also one put-u-up for Mum. I had been prepared for an emergency dinner, so we microwaved some jacket potatoes, heated up some tinned vegetables opened a tin of ham, and the most important of all, cracked open a bottle of good red! Here we were now all of us , including the Pickfords man, seated around this little table and dining ( we felt) like - Kings!

Time for bed, and we were so tired and warm with wine that we didn't notice how hard the floor felt beneath the sleeping bags. Mum was comfortable and thought she was ' camping'. The P man was totally spooked though and he decided he would sleep in his lorry. When he said that, it occurred to us that we hadn't even thought of the possibility of GHOSTS ? Now that was on our minds as we turned off the lights and noticed all the sounds that a huge house makes as it settles down for the night, that and the odd mouse scurrying. Did we care? NOT A BIT ! Come hell or high water we were going to enjoy this experience!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY FROM ME TO YOU!

2009-02-14T02:14:00.000-08:00

WE HAVE ARRIVED !

2009-02-13T10:25:00.000-08:00

LA ROCHE HUE

The morning finally arrived and we gathered ourselves, Mum, the animals , baggages and guns and headed for the boat.

I cannot begin to tell you how we felt as we saw the french coastline looming up! Here we were , after burning all our bridges back in England, leaving behind four daughters , one married , two courting and the other one a petty Officer on the QE2 working her way around the world! We were facing a new era, totally unknown to us. Admittedly we had a smattering of french , learnt at school and on camping holidays in the south of France, but that was it! The prospect of running a business in France apparently did not seem to daunt us at all! AH- the confidence of the young!

It was a long slow drive down to the Loire Valley region, Paris was manic ( as always), and Mum needed to stop for loo breaks as did the dogs. Pickfords were making their own way and the arrangement was that we would be meeting them that afternoon at the Chateau.

We finally arrived, and were grateful to see that the tree which had been blocking the drive had been removed, so we drove majestically up the drive to our NEW HOME and what a home! We were bursting with pride as you can imagine until Mum looked up at this vast building and said " What on earth have you bought this old thing for?" Bless her! I mean that sincerely, I am an only child and she was the most beautiful person for me.Her name was Celia ( short for Priscilla)and she had been living with us since Dad died in 1986. She died sadly in 2006. In 1989 she was fit and seemed strong, just a little forgetful, but still ' quite a girl'!

Back to the story--- We entered the cold interior and found that the electricity had not been turned on!! Pickfords ( the removal firm) hadn't arrived, there was no running water, and no kitchen in the Chateau.
Everywhere was dirty and we had nowhere to sleep and darkness was beginning to fall...... to be continued.....

MOVING DAY-JANUARY 9th 1989

2009-02-12T10:16:00.000-08:00

Well, it wasn't as bad as this, but I couldn't resist posting this wonderful picture!

We were moving from a mobile home, posh name for a large caravan! But you wouldn't believe how much we had to cram into the large Pickford lorries. Huge amounts! Where did it all come from? I must admit we were both hoarders-- I have never been able to throw anything away . Honestly, I still have outfits from the '60's ( keeping them for 60's parties that I'm waiting to be invited to!!!) . Alex was the same, thank goodness, or I would not have all his papers and poems which I am posting on my other blog . Anyway back to moving day. On top of all the boxes , cases, furniture etc etc; there were two male Dobermans, Axle & Rocky, one ginger tom, Ginger paws , and my 81 year old mother, Celia ! My daughter and her boyfriend were going to baby-sit the caravan business until the new owners arrived.

By the time the lorries departed, it was getting late, we were in the Isle of wight, so our plan was to stay in Dover at an hotel for the night and catch the boat the next morning. I didn't mention that Alex belonged to a shooting club and had a passion for guns,and there was no way he would entrust them to Pickfords, so we actually walked into the hotel with two dobermans and a large gun case that resembled Al Capones'. All credit to the hotel receptionist, he didn't bat an eyelid!!

Got to cook dinner now, so, more tomorrow......

DECISION TIME- WE TAKE THE BIG GAMBLE !

2009-02-11T02:54:00.000-08:00

LA ROCHE HUE

So, we were back at the Hotel, still buzzing. All sorts of questions popped into our minds-- Could we afford the renovation? Would a bank take us on? Would it generate enough income?How would we do the work? Our idea was to turn the first and second floors of bedrooms and large rooms into self-catering appartments each one with a kitchen bedooms and bathrooms. But given the layout of the chateau that wasn't going to be easy, plus the fact that was- we had never attempted anything like that in our entire life! Previously we had worked in London and then bought and ran a caravan park. Renovation was not our metier. The total floor area of the chateau was 3000 sq.metres- the mind boggled! That was our first ( of many) sleepless nights.

The next day dawned bright and clear and so we pushed La Roche Hue to the back of our minds and looked forward to seeing the other chateaux. Unfortunately, there is not a lot about the rest of that week that I can relate here, because I had already fallen in love with the first one and all the others paled in comparison, and I don't remember them in detail. We looked in the Dordogne area at a moated chateau, one in the Auvergne and others further south. They didn't have the potential, they were ( of course) all smaller, less beautiful, either not in the right situation, or would just not be suitable for the type of conversion that we had in mind. So the rest of that week is just a blur in my mind and I cannot find any photos to post up for you. It all felt like an anti-climax.

The three of us arrived back in England absolutely exhausted. We needed to take a step back and collect our thoughts, which were still running away with us. A good night's sleep was needed and we thought we would awake the next morning realising how stupid we were to even think about taking on such a huge project!! Well - THAT didn't work! By 10am the next morning we were on the phone to the London agent and made him an offer of £160 000! When we told him that it was for Roche Hue he said " Why are you buying that old Victorian pile ?" I asked him if he had ever visited it and he replied no, but he had sent his young lady assisant. She had obviously thought it was dreadful ( obviously she wasn't into chateaux) --how wrong could she have been!

However, they did turn down our offer! We made a final offer of £190 000 which accepted!!! "OH MY GOODNESS " I thought what have we done?..................................

THE AGENTS GUIDED TOUR

2009-02-09T10:06:00.000-08:00

So this was the day we got the official guided tour of la Roche Hue with the agent, who was initially totally unaware that we had ' broken-in' the day before. It was interesting to note that he tried to avoid the areas which needed the most attention ( ie the attics), but we insisted on seeing everything! To our amazement there were the most beautiful outbuildings included in the sale, and a small lake loaded with carp ( see pics). There were also stables with 4 stalls and two birthing boxes, in not too bad a condition. The total parkland was 11ha ( approx. 27 acres).

It seemed to us unbelievable that the asking price was £200 000. We were told by the English agent who was handling the property that it was an old Victorian pile -UH? No way! It had stood empty and neglected for five years , but generally was in good condition. Apparently it was nearly bought by the Russians for an International School but the sale had fallen through. We took a good four hours looking around and then after confessing to our break-in ( the french agent just chuckled) headed back to the Hotel for some serious thinking and discussion. We knew that we had another Five Chateaux to look at so decided to squash our feelings for making an immediate offer and do the 'sensible' thing and look at the other chateaux.

A SNEAK PREVIEW

2009-02-07T07:44:00.000-08:00

Update: we had turned up uninvited at the Chateau we were about to view with an agent the following day ( year 1988).....

The tree lined drive seemed to go on forever, but we stopped at about halfway as a huge tree had come down across the driveway. Undaunted, we leapt out of the car, climbed over the tree and continued up the drive which was now winding through the parkland. Suddenly Roche Hue loomed into view and it really was breathtaking. It rose from a 'sous sol' ( in a dry moat) to the attic rooms , five floors in all. The agent had told us that it had been empty for five years, so we didnt feel like we were traspassing. Archie, our scottish friend wandered off , and Alex and I just stood open mouthed and gazed at the grounds surrounding the Chateau . Suddenly the huge great door started to creak open,and to our total astonishment Archie's grinning face peered out! HE HAD CLIMBED IN THROUGH A BROKEN WINDOW !! So, guiltily , we entered, feeling like Christmas had come early. A chance to take a thorough look without the agents blurb, was a real bonus! We examined every floor , every nook and cranny and looked for all the obvious defects. It was actually late 18th century, so , inspite of the institutional wallpaper ( from when it was a school) it was in a reasonable condition and, unusually, most of the beautiful fire-places were still intact. The entrance hall was magnificent and large with original tiled floors and a fireplace , then there was a separate hall just for the staircase. A long parquet floored gallery room led from the entrance hall, and that in turn gave on to an outside terrace overlooking the parkland. We travelled from room to room, floor by floor and loved it all, but it was sooo big, and we were beginning to doubt attempting such a huge project. It was beginning to get dark, so, reluctantly we dragged ouselves away, carefully closing up and returned to the hotel BUZZING with our find!

'COUP DE COEUR'

2009-02-06T01:05:00.000-08:00

So, back to my adventure! It was 1988 and we had just returned from France after signing on with quite a few agents......

We had good results from the agents , soon envelopes of all shapes and sizes began pouring through the letter box filled with Chateaux and Manor Houses big and small! Then the sorting had to begin. Firstly we looked at their situation - it had to be in an area that was popular with the tourists! Secondly we looked at size--if we were intending to create some sort of business within a Chateau, it had to be big enough to accomodate enough people to generate an income for the upkeep of an old building. Thirdly, we looked at cost, obviously the cheaper (don't like to associate that word with a Chateau) the better. Then forgetting all of those things, we just chose the ones to view that gave us a ' coup de coeur '( started our hearts thumping) , and there were about six of those scattered all around France. To start with we decided to choose the biggest (trust us!) and it was an 80 roomed beautiful white Chateau with 11 hectares ( approx 27+ acres) in the Loire Valley near Angers! Then we decided we would work our way southwards to view the properties in the Auvergne , Dordogne, and Languedoc. We left just three weeks later, taking with us an old pal , Archie, a scotsman who could turn his hand to anything , and he had a good eye for seeing faults . He was also a craftsman and painter,and most of all he was a very dear friend.

We arrrived in the Angers area late afternoon. Having arranged to meet the agent the following morning, we decided to go on a hunt beforehand to see if we could find " La Roche Hue" , the chateau we were due to visit. We knew roughly where it was supposed to be and on the way passed a fantastic HUGE Chateau, ( see picture above) set back in its own land . We sailed past dismissing that one as being 'too good' . Half an hour later, not finding anything else we decided to take a closer look at the one we had passed by. We knew that Roche Hue had been a ' Colonie des vacances ', which means that it had been used as a summer school holiday residence, like many of the larger abandoned chateaux in France. As we drove up the long tree lined drive there was a Board which showed we had actually found the right place. IT WAS AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL , but far bigger than we had expected. It was a definitely love at first sight!

SNOW HAS REACHED US!

2009-02-03T04:02:00.000-08:00

Yesterday here in mid France we had temperatures of 10° and sunshine; I telephone my daughters in England and they were buried under thick snow--how I chuckled. BUT this morning soon wiped the smile from my face , I looked out of the window and it was snowing and below freezing , what a contrast in less than 24 hours! When I got over the surprise I donned hat and gloves and became a child again--why does snow always do that to people? I took a couple of pics too one which is here. England is getting it pretty bad, apparently 800 flights were cancelled in London yesterday, and today doesn't look much better for the travellers. Sky News Active is putting up photos sent in by viewers and I noted that one family have acually built a real Igloo in their back garden, now THAT is dedication! To all those who are snowed in, ENJOY before it turns to slush. I will be back later to continue with my story and the first Chateau which we decided to buy. It had 80 rooms!

THE MANOR HOUSE IN THE LOT VALLEY

2009-02-02T10:35:00.001-08:00

This is the Manor House that got us buzzing......

As soon as we could we packed our bags, loaded up the car and took off for France to search for our new life.

The manor itself was very elegant, with far reaching views at the back of the property. The owner kindly showed us all around, they had already converted the outbuildings into Chambres for letting, but they appeared to us to be gloomy with not a lot of potential to change things. Overall we were a little disappointed, and realised that this particular property was not going to be the one to get us to move to France.

After a superb lunch and a glass of red in Villeneuve sur Lot, our mood lifted and we wandered through the town looking at the many Agences Immobiliers. To our great surprise we found that they had quite a few ' Chateaux' at amazingly low prices; so we signed on with the agents who all promised to send us suitable properties for our project...............

AIM FOR THE STARS

2009-02-01T03:28:00.000-08:00

At the time I saw the advertisement for the Manor House, we were living in a caravan in Sandown on the Isle of Wight -- a lovely little island for those who are not familiar with British shores-- it sits in the solent and its climate is sunny warm and welcoming. We were running a caravan park for the summer season. Our dream had always been to own a large country house and turn the bedrooms into self-catering apartments,

but buying a large property in England was not an option, and, also France was our most favourite detination . With four children our French holidays consisted of a tent , sleeping bags, pots and pans and tinned foods all loaded into and upon our old banger--AHHH ! times were hard :) The thought of being able to afford to buy a "MANOR HOUSE" was thrilling, and the viewing of it would be the first step towards our ambitious dream....

LIVING THE CHATEAU DREAM

2009-01-30T10:16:00.000-08:00

If I could pin-point the moment which changed our lives forever, I would choose the day I was recovering in hospital following a biopsy! Oh, the results were good- I was fine-but it was the magazine that did it! I had been leafing through " Country Life" when I came across an ad for a french Manor House in the Lot Valley. It was gorgeous, with turrets and land - for only
£85 000! I mean even in 1988, that was cheap. Well, I was 40 something, desperately searching for some excitement to forget the rapidly approaching 'old age'---and that did it! I knew at that moment which direction our future should take. When Alex ( my lovely husband) arrived for visiting I was all fired up and suggested we spend my recovery time in France to check out the Manor House. To my amazement he agreed, and so our adventure began!