St Bloggie de Riviere

Out with the old...

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 10 Jan 2021 11:25:00 +0000

In with the... same.

Unlike the Chernobyl nuclear cloud that stopped at the French borders, Jan 1, 2021 did not see the end of Covid-19. We're still wearing masks, still teleworking, still under a curfew from 8 pm (or 6 pm) to 6 am.

Looking back over 2020, it was definitely a mixed bag of good and bad, like most years, but last year, the bad was a shared global bad.

It started with a nasty shock for me in February. I was told to either buy the house I had been renting for 15 years or leave because the owner wanted to sell. I believe I went white, the agent was quite worried. In the end, he had a solution for me because I had decided to buy a house, just not the one I was living in (too expensive) and he had the very thing. I visited it, liked it and we went into lockdown.

Thanks to diligent notaires, a helpful bank, and technology, I was able to complete the process of buying and spent lockdown teleworking and packing boxes, sending my son on endless trips to the tip, and we moved at the end of May.

Despite the problems brought on by Covid-19, Fate gave me a helping hand with timings. After the luck with the house, we were able to go to the UK on holiday, and the confinement restrictions were lifted the day I had to pick up a rental car and drive us to Wales (which had just opened its borders).

Glorious Rhossili with my mum

Having more online opportunities during lockdown, I explored the internet and found ways to add daily pleasure and exercise. The gyms were all shut of course, but I started doing exercises with Ballet Based Movement for the over 50s with Susan and her mum Elizabeth. Ballet is an excellent way to exercise even if you're not a kiddie or professional dancer, and with the gentle movements and lovely music, it was soothing and also fun.

I got hooked on total escapism with Korean series on Netflix which are wonderfully varied in setting, storyline and genre, often beautifully filmed and well acted too. My link sends you to a list of the series I've enjoyed if you want to try them out.

Last year ended for us with a bang, literally. A couple of weeks before Christmas, my son crashed my car. He was perfectly fine, but the insurance refused to pay for repairs, and we've been without a car since while waiting to find another. Shopping has been a challenge but luckily I have my motorbike and two large side-cases. I can get most of a weekly shop on my bike by keeping to a strict list. Carrefour have been doing regular deliveries too for the big shops. This year has been full of new discoveries by necessity.

Did anyone have the Christmas they were expecting? We certainly didn't. The UK was ravaged by a highly infectious variant of Covid-19 and much of the country was locked down over the Christmas period so we didn't spend Christmas with my mum. Instead I had to hurriedly create Christmas at home along with very many others whose arrangements were totally disrupted. This was a challenge as I'd had bookshelves delivered on the Monday so, together with the 20 boxes of books, there were boxes everywhere. I was thinking I'd have to buy a green marker pen and draw Christmas trees on the bigger ones! Luckily, the guy who was to put them up was able to do the work on Christmas Eve, and I spent the afternoon emptying boxes of books and putting up a few decorations.

A big thank you to Schmidt for the fantastic shelves and helpful staff. What a relief to have a civilised room at the end of it. I even discovered crackling fire videos on YouTube. The one on the tele has acoustic guitar Christmas music playing. It was so beautiful and restful. Christmas was saved.

I had managed to get to the shops for Christmas food and in the end it was all okay.

We are still here, staying safe and, hopefully, well. I hope you are too. Fingers crossed 2021 will see a lifting of restrictions to civil liberties and we can see family and friends again.

Covid-19 Season 2, Lockdown Day 11

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 10:08:00 +0000

It's been 11 days so far in this the second season of pandemic catastrophe Covid-19 lockdown. Back to teleworking, new and improved this time with a printer and set of shelves to tidy up my files, and it's back to limited outings for walkies and essential shopping.

Local to me now

The bookshelves in Carrefour have all been screened off but you can buy books on Carrefour Drive and collect them 20 minutes later. Where there's a will... and all that. If bookshops have any sense, they'll set up a 'Drive' system too. Install a table outside, get customers to tell you what they want, shoot off and get it. Necessity is the mother of invention.

Another variation with season 2 lockdown is that you can't buy alcohol after 6pm even in the supermarket. There was much horrified shock on Facebook and the word spread so that we all knew about the dangers of shopping after 6pm. Forewarned...

Pre-lockdown bike ride to Palavas

Meanwhile I finally got round to some tasks I'd been putting off, but was so in need of variety, I was spurred to action. The hedge in the front garden has been drastically pruned back to allow visibility of the front door and hinder the nefarious activities of potential burglars. And Sunday afternoon was spent shortening two pairs of jeans using the visible hem method. If you don't know it, it's really cool and you don't need a sewing machine (although it would cut down on the time it takes!) although you do need to sew. There are lots of videos showing you how to do it, here's one:

While I sewed away, I listened to a documentary on Melania Trump on ArteTV. Do you remember when she read out a speech that plagiarised Michelle Obama's speech? I was shocked to learn that the White House aids did it on purpose because they thought Melania was getting too much attention. The lesson there is never to read a speech someone else has written for you without checking it first! I'll remember that if I ever find myself in a similar situation.

This is the week when we remember those who were sacrificed in the Great War. I watched a live service from Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge on Sunday as I can't access the BBC live. I've also been reading Ben Elton's 'The First Casualty' set in World War I. A disgraced police detective sent to prison for being a 'conchie' (conscientious objector) ends up investigating the murder of a viscount in France. It was a bit slow to start, but there is some magnificent writing on the war in the frontline, life in the trenches, and the abundance of poets (Elton seems to have a thing about war poets). There's some great humour too.

It's a book that's received some scathing reviews, including one by The Independent's Jane Jakeman who describes it as

a Barbara Cartland story re-written by a dirty-minded schoolboy during a monotonous history lesson.

A bit harsh, it's not at all like that although it was vaguely reminiscent of Blackadder Goes Forth in places. I enjoyed it, she didn't.

To end on a positive note, here's a photo of my purr-sonal assistant being a real help while teleworking at my makeshift desk of cardboard boxes and bookshelf shelves. Fun times.

Living a new life - I've moved

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 14:55:00 +0000

I have moved. I left one bubble of confinement in my old house, and entered a new one, deconfined it's true, but a bubble nonetheless. The new house bubble where everything is different, nothing is in the same place, none of the old habits fit - turn right to go to the fridge, not left for example. The actual moving was as awful as moving always is, and just had to be endured. It was exhausting. The pre-move was also exhausting, the confinement was stressful, and getting used to a new place to live is tiring. I feel zonked.

To get myself out a bit for some fresh air and leg-stretching, I've been to discover the surrounding area. We are now right on the edge of Montpellier and there is a lot of open space with parks and eco preservation sites. In fact, I'm much nearer to walks along paths rather than roads than I was before when living in the middle of a village.

Yesterday I ventured along the riverbank of the Rieucoulon stream. Accessed over a wooden bridge, the path runs alongside an allotment with a view on a Laotian pagoda (of all unexpected things).

Laotian pagoda Vat Xieng-Thong

A little internet digging revealed that it's a cultural centre and temple. With such an auspicious start to my walk, I wondered what other exotic prospects lay before me.

It wasn't all eastern promise however, and there were no mysterious figures flitting among the trees, so I strolled alone through a shady reed tunnel mulling over what might be at the other end...

Shady reed tunnel

I turned a corner and to my surprise, I came across a substantial metallic structure which turned out to be an old windmill.

19th century windmill

According to its plaque, it used to pump water from the water table of the Rieucoulon stream to the gardens and fountains of the Château de Bagatelle, one of Montpellier's "folies" and now a cultural centre (maison pour tous).

Plaque on the windmill

The rest of the walk was pretty but less structurally dramatic. I saw toads and frogs and tadpoles in the stream and these pretty pink flowers on fluffy heads that become lethal weapons when they dry out, turning into a head of deadly spikes. I've been pulling them out in my garden where they are further advanced and have gone from fluffy to razor sharp.

Pretty and fluffy for now...

There must be a lot of water that flows periodically because this water evacuation ditch is pretty substantial. I felt sorry for the crumbling arch which is miraculously still standing despite seeming to defy gravity.

Collapsing arch

The return walk took me along a shady path through small patches of vineyards. It's difficult to believe that a major transport artery is a kilometre away at most. It was so peaceful and hardly anyone about.

I can see myself enjoying living in my new home for very many years (fingers crossed).

Day 56 Covid 19 LAST DAY of Confinement

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 10 May 2020 13:16:00 +0000

Theoretically. If we're too naughty they'll bang us up again.

Just in case anyone thought they could anticipate being liberated and sneak off to the beach, the weather decided to cooperate with the government and we've got a day of determined rain. Further anticipation is being dampened by having to continue to stay at home to telework, and no liberation parties of more than ten people (who are at least 1 m apart), in any case the bars and restaurants are closed until June.

We had our weekly barbecue yesterday when it was fine. They have been a great success, and it was agreed that they will be continued so that's a Covid-win. I have put on a kilo since the start of the confinement which is pretty good as the average is 2.5 kg.

How am I celebrating today? Packing boxes, that's how. All very tedious and boring, so here is some more Covid-humour.

One of the best things to come out of all this is seeing how creative people have been, and praise be for the internet for bringing it all to us in our homes!

I had all sorts of high hopes of doing interesting high-brow stuff like listening to serious podcasts but it all fell by the wayside in preference for light-brow humour and absolutely nothing that required intellectual effort. I think my mental charge was sufficiently heavy (what with buying a house in the middle to add to the fun) that I couldn't face anything more taxing than, for example, searching out my ten favourite albums for a Facebook meme.

I was only able to do that because I found my box of old LPs in the garage (moving is so handy in many ways...) and was able to rediscover my old friends which I had forgotten all about.

"Nice tests facial recognition"

Yesterday I was clearing out the kitchen cupboards and found the usual suspects right at the back such as pots of herbs dating back to 2007 - garlic, and fried onions all stuck together. They had to be prodded and excavated out so I could throw the glass pots into the recycling bin.

What has kept me going in all this? Gin and rosé, video-aperos, and regular phone calls, and of course many snuggles with Kittypoo who has established herself as head of the household and has us all thoroughly trained.

Kittypoo relaxing on the piano

Day 50 Covid-19 Korean K-drama on Netflix

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 04 May 2020 15:05:00 +0000

South Korea makes some great tele series, called K-drama. This post is a 'pense bête' for me as I usually look out for actors I've seen and liked in other series when starting another and as I can never remember their names, I've listed them here with photos.

Series I've enjoyed:

Stranger
The Heirs
Life
Black
The Tunnel
Misaeng (Incomplete Life)
The Lies Within
Misty
Healer
Signal
Vagabond
Mr Sunshine - historical
Pinocchio
Cinderella and the Four Knights
Boys over Flowers
Descendants of the Sun
Suspicious Partner
The King - Eternal Monarch
When the Camellia Blooms
The K2
Hwarang - very nifty costumes
Itaewon Class
I can hear your voice
Secret Garden
Memories of Alhambra
Crash Landing on You
Was it Love?
Live Up to Your Name - very interesting about acupuncture
Haechi
Voice 1 & 2
It's Okay to Not Be Okay
Saimdang
Hotel des Luna - beautiful sets and lighting
Dear My Friends
100 Days My Prince
The Empress Ki - 51 episodes of action, intrigue, love, death, battle, betrayal, loyalty, and beautiful costumes.
The King 2 Hearts - Ha Ji-won not too convincing as a shy little woman, but great as a North Korean special agent.
Chocolate - rather melancholy but Ha Ji-won in a wonderful role as chef. Lots of cooking and eating!

Choi Jin-hyuk - The Heirs, Tunnel

Bae Doona - Sense8, Stranger

Cho Sung-woo - Stranger, Life

Park Shin-hye - The Heirs, Pinocchio, Memories of Alhambra

Lee Min-ho - The Heirs, Boys over Flowers, The King - Eternal Monarch

Kim Nam-joo - Misty

Lee Sung-Min - Misaeng (Incomplete Life)

Lee Yoo-young - The Lies Within

Ji Chang-wook - Healer, Suspicious Partner, The K2

Kim Hye-soo - Signal

Cho Jin-woong - Signal

Bae Suzy - Vagabond

Lee Kyung Young - Misty, Stranger, Sense8, Misaeng

Park Min-young - Healer

Song Joong-ki - Descendants of the Sun

Song Hye-kyo - Descendants of the Sun

Jin Goo - Descendants of the Sun

Kim Ji-won - Descendants of the Sun, The Heirs

Jang Hyuk-jin - Suspicious Partner

Nam Ji-hyun - Suspicious Partner

Park Seo-joon - Hwarang, Itaewon Class

Go Ara - Hwarang, Black, Haechi

Park Hyung-sik - Hwarang, The Heirs

Lee Bo-young - I can hear your voice, Pinocchio

Lee Jong-suk - I can hear your voice, Pinocchio, Secret Garden

Jeon Hae-rim (Ha Ji-won) - Secret Garden

Hyun Bin - Secret Garden, Memories of Alhambra, Crash Landing on You

Yoon Sang-hyun - Pinocchio, I can hear your voice, Secret Garden

Son Ye-jin - Crash Landing on You

Kim Nam-gil - Live Up to Your Name

Kim Ah-joong - Live Up to Your Name

Jung Il-woo - Haechi, Cinderella and the Four Knights

Jang Hyuk - Voice

Lee Ha-ha - Voice

Kim Soo-hyun - It's Okay to Not Be Okay, Crash Landing on You

Seo -Ye-Ji - It's Okay to Not Be Okay, Hwarang

Oh Jung-Se - It's Okay to Not Be Okay, Misaeng

Lee Young-ae - Saimdang

Song Seung-heon - Black, Saimdang

IU - Hotel del Luna

Yeo Jin-goo - Hotel del Luna, Moon Embracing the Sun

Go Hyun-jung - Dear My Friends

Zo/Jon In-sung - Dear My Friends

Dear My Friends cast: Kim Hye-ja, Na Moon-hee, Go Doo-shim, Park Won-sook, Youn Yuh-jung, Joo Hyun, Kim Young-ok, Shin Goo

Day 33 Covid 19 Masks Galore

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 14:13:00 +0000

We're still here confined, banged up, locked down. Yay...

This week's main activity after teleworking has been making masks. There has been a national dearth of masks, the government having taken over the monopoly of acquiring and distributing them. Government monopolies rarely result in efficiency or efficacy and the mask situation has been no exception. Even essential health workers have been hard pressed to get their hands on a mask so you can imagine that non-essentials like charities dealing with the homeless and vulnerable get nothing.

The FFMC34 (Motards en Colère) decided to take action and help out by making masks for local groups that go out into the community to bring aid to the homeless and needy. It followed on from watching a video tutorial by an emergency doctor on how to make masks from kitchen paper and tissues that were as effective as the ordinary medical masks.

A number of us volunteered to get to work, and in two weeks we made around 3600 masks that were distributed to four charities. My contribution was 260.

260 masks, an FFMC34 initiative for charities without masks

You might think that having nowhere to go we might be saving money like mad. That's what I thought until I realised that in fact it's costing a fortune in food alone. Added to that the fisc that has started (belatedly) the prélèvement à la source (PAYE) system taking tax money directly from my salary but is also continuing to take it out of my bank account despite action on my part back in February to avoid this. I'll get it back later I expect but in the meantime... YIKES.

My mini trampoline has seen regular action, to the extent that it's lost 2 tabs connecting the springs to the base. It's showing its age but can still be used as long as you jump with care. I'm trying out interval training so doing a 'jog' for thirty seconds then a 'sprint' for twenty seconds and repeat twice more. It's much kinder on the knees when you run on the spot on a trampoline... as long as you don't fall through the hole.

In contrast to the trampoline, I'm continuing with my ballet based movements for the over 50s (http://www.balletbasedmovement.com/), very enjoyable exercises to lovely music, and movement that's a bit different from yoga and my exercise mat. Here's the introduction to the series.

Kittypoo is having the time of her life. She's got us all under control and jumping to attend to her every whim. She looks very contented with life. Glad someone is!

Day 11 Covid 19 How do you pass the time?

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 26 Mar 2020 17:37:00 +0000

Day 11 and I'm getting into a sort of rhythm which it will probably be difficult to quit once the barracks doors are reopened. You know the score... just when you're at cruising levels of containment activities, it'll be back to work and we'll be in shock all over again!

But that is all in the future, something to look forward to.

In the meantime there is telework, exercise and finding things to do.

Exercise
We are allowed to go jogging beyond the front door but I've always hated jogging, so I'm currently congratulating myself at not having thrown out the mini trampoline I bought over a decade ago and haven't used in almost as long. It's proving to be a merry little activity, bouncing in various ways for 10 minutes or so at intervals during the day. I've even got the instruction leaflet which I found when I was going through a bunch of papers. Glad I never invited Kendo Bled (?) into my home to throw out stuff that no longer brought me joy. You never know when it might bring you joy and much needed exercise relief in the future!!

Finding things to do

Housework is very very boring, and there is a whole internet out there to explore. I've drifted into a daily theme. One day I might be listening to some of the excellent podcasts on Radio 4, such as File on Four or Out of the Ordinary, with lots more to explore on Sounds.

The other day I watched video after video of Dame Emma Kirkby, enjoying the brilliant lightness of her soprano voice singing early music, plus a masterclass that she gave which was very interesting. There's a wonderful recording of the Messiah from 1982 with Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient music performing in Westminster Cathedral. Emma Kirkby's voice is that of an angel. Here she is singing some Purcell.

Another day the theme was ballet and I watched a number of beautiful performances and discovered the videos by a former Royal Ballet Company dancer Claudia Dean. I am no ballerina. I had some ballet lessons when I was knee high to a grasshopper but was convinced my teacher didn't like me. At the end of each lesson we finished with a butterfly dancing in the middle of a circle of the other dancers. I always wanted to be the butterfly, but her choice was based on who had been the best pupil, and obviously even at that young and tender age, it was clear that a career as a ballerina was not going to be my path in life, and I never got chosen. Even on my LAST DAY! I've never forgotten it (as you can see...).

Anyway, I'm sure my whole life would have been different if I'd had Claudia Dean as my teacher. She is motivating and fun. She is no longer dancing, but is now a ballet coach and she makes these merry videos not just of coaching, but dealing with ballet issues, messing about with her sister (who is not a dancer), and doing little tests. One that I enjoyed was testing the English way of dancing to the Russian way. I didn't know there was one, but now I do!

Starting the day with humour is definitely one way of beating confinement blues, and I have a good laugh watching Tripp and Tyler videos. If you have ever participated in a video conference, you'll recognise this:

Finally, I've also been watching L'atelier des Chefs chef Nicolas Bergerault who has been making cooking videos from his home. He is stuck at home, like the rest of us, with his family, and so his daughters are filming the cooking with a phone, and he cooks dishes that he can rustle up easily from the stuff in his cupboards. On day one he made a salad of frozen peas with lardons and a homemade curry mayonnaise. On another day he made a spinach lasagne, and on another day he did pasta with an anchovy and caper sauce. His daughters amuse themselves adding the odd silly filter and giggling behind the camera. It's all very homely and merry.

Fun times!

Day 7 Covid19 Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 18:28:00 +0000

I'm going to lose track of the days, I just know it. Unless I do something organised like count them off on a calendar. Or I could even scratch bars in groups of 5 on the wall... May not go down well with the rental agency when they bring round prospective buyers after-this-is-all-over though, whenever that may be. If ever.

Anyway, I told the boys it would be a good idea to share the cooking. My youngest immediately offered to do a barbecue. My eldest muttered something like 'yeh if I must' in one of those 'at your own risk and peril' voices.

We have a barbecue but needed everything else, so my youngest who can now drive armed himself with the ~~Gestapo-approved~~ food-buying attestation, hopped gleefully into my car and drove to Intermarché. He came back with everything he needed plus one or two essentials such as iced tea.

I remember last year he and his friends wanted to do a barbecue by the river, so I took them to Intermarché, stocked him up with sausages etc. and drove them as far as I could. They had a great time and became great barbecue experts.

So it was with total confidence that I abandoned lunch into the competent hands of my son.

Barbecue champ at work

Actually, when I say 'abandoned lunch', if we were to eat anything other than sausages, it was up to me to rustle it up, so I kept it simple and did pasta and salad. Then we actually sat round the garden table and ate. You might think this is no big deal but my boys wage an anti-table campaign, extremely successfully, and meals are usually taken together but on the sofa. I wage other battles...

A rare experience

We had a nice lunch, talked and chatted and I said how lovely it was to eat and chat around the table, and was told that, yes it was nice, but I shouldn't expect it to happen too often because it would cease to be a pleasant, extraordinary event, and would become boring and annoying. So that put me in my place.

I am, however, grateful for small mercies and will treasure this rather extraordinary UK date Mothers' Day (it isn't until June in France) thanks to the little bugger of a coronavirus. Every cloud, as they say...

Day 5 Covid19 - Shopping

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Fri, 20 Mar 2020 16:36:00 +0000

We were out of crisps, and running low on various essentials so instead of waiting until Saturday to do the weekly shop, I went on Friday thinking that there may be fewer people.

If you thought you could still pop to the shops for a quick shop, think again. The supermarkets have instigated a restricted flow of people, no more than a certain number inside at any one time. I had to wait with my trolley outside in a nice orderly line. This being France, you might expect a disorderly line, pushers-in and so on, but no, we were all meekly waiting with our barrier-trolleys ensuring a distance of 1m between us. The over-70s and infirm could legitimately jump the queue and were invited to by kindly security guards as they watched over us...

I waited for an hour to get inside. Luckily the sun was shining and it was nice and warm. I worked on dosing up my vitamin D levels and texting my son on which specialised shampoo he wanted.

Once inside the hallowed halls, we were exhorted over a loud-speaker to hurry up and get on with it so that the people outside could have their turn. No dawdling please, no perusing every single aisle. Just grab what you want (in sensible amounts) and go!

I found just about everything on my list, and chucked in a leg of frozen New Zealand lamb at the end because by that time, I'd been there for 2 hours (including waiting) and was aching for something to look forward to.

When I'd finished I went to the checkout. I had to stand at one checkout, and ping my little hand-scanner at the one next to it. When the woman ahead of me went to pay, she walked down our line, went through the security gate then crossed over to the checkout with the caissière in order to pay presumably so we weren't breathing all over her. She also had a plexiglass barrier between her and the customer.

I felt quite queasy after all the stress of a simple shop and could practically feel my temperature rising as I walked out of the side door to avoid the queuing shoppers. It's a brave new world!

Day 4 Covid19 - A Little Ditty

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 19 Mar 2020 14:29:00 +0000

Coronavirus stalks the earth,
With current killer Covid-19
Targeting the old and fragile
Without discrimination.

We are 'en guerre'
Says Macron
Who speaks solemnly
And in as deep a voice as possible
(Though not so deep...).

No longer free to move about
We're confined to barracks
With outings just for food and meds
And a signed paper,
And fines for those who flout the rules.

The aged mutter of Vichy France
As they do their market shopping outside
Too close together.

Meanwhile, supermarkets
Are stripped of pasta, rice and
Toilet paper.
Just in case...

The neighbourhood is quiet,
A bit like Christmas Day
But with better weather.
Birds are singing and we can hear them
For once
Without the constant rumble of
Society in action.

When will it end?

Day 3 Covid 19 Confinement

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Wed, 18 Mar 2020 15:28:00 +0000

Kittypoo (NotMyCat) teleworking

Thus spake the Prez unto the nation - thou shalt not go out except to purchase victuals and toilet rolls. It is now Day 3 and we are bearing up under the pressure of teleworking in our PJs, watching Netflix, Prime Video, reading books and playing computer games, etc..

Frankly, it could be worse.

Kittypoo has made herself very much at home and is enjoying the Covid19 crisis enormously. She is helping everyone with their teleworking, providing solace and a source of snuggles.

My eldest has set up a whiteboard outside propped up on the shutter catches.

Meanwhile, Wednesday afternoon is my afternoon off so I've made some waffle batter because it looks like we're going to take to comfort-eating and tomorrow is another day. Last night we tested out the pizza delivery options. There were none, but we could pick up at a distance swapping boxes for cheque in a parody of a dodgy spy scene.

People on Facebook have been sharing useful sites where you can watch rare films, shows from l'Opéra de Paris currently free online, and virtual museum tours. Maybe later... Plus things to do with kids inside. Not my problem any more. My youngest is watching an action movie with the woofer connected which is shaking the house to its foundations (and the neighbours' probably), and my eldest is on the XBox. Thank goodness the internet is Covid19-proof!

Here in France there is no going out any more unless you have a signed paper which states your reason - and it had better be a good one! Going to buy food, okay; going to the pharmacy, okay; going to buy cigarettes, okay... but not okay is wandering aimlessly about in search of inspiration. You can do that at home.

I have set myself a little challenge to do 30 minutes of exercise per day. I found an exercise mat when I was sorting out the very dusty top of the cupboard in my eldest's bedroom and it has some suggestions printed on it. So I'm doing a mélange of those exercises, some yoga and the plank. I tried to do some press-ups yesterday. Managed two lots of 3, then tried to do a series of 5 and collapsed at four and a half. Something to work on...

Time for a cuppa and a waffle. Stay safe and well and tune in again for another fascinating insight into a life on hold confined to barracks.

Almost-fully-fledged motarde

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 20 Oct 2019 14:26:00 +0000

My new bike. Photo courtesy Florence Joffre

I passed my motorbike license in August. Took the road test on a Thursday, got the result on Saturday morning and on Saturday afternoon I was trying motorbikes. Motivation moves arses.

In the end I bought a new Honda 500 CBF in stylish grey and pale bronze. I had wanted the version in fluo yellow but it was produced in 2017/2018 and all the second-hand bikes available were located in the north of France. A bit tricky to deal with, and the price used was not so different from the price new once you'd added the cost of getting it.

The photo is is of me on my birthday, on my new bike. As you can see, I look very chipper. It not only looks good, it's great fun to ride. The biggest difference is being able to keep up easily with my biker buddies while out on rides. I'm no longer flat out going up hills, I can just sail up with a little touch of accelerator.

A couple of weeks ago, I met up with my WIMA / WRWR buddies and we spent the weekend in Haute Loire. I rode a total of 707 km over the three days. We stayed at a "relais motard" which are biker-friendly hotels. Some are better than others. The Hotel Rives de l'Allier is definitely one of the better ones. Owned and run by a biker couple, it has everything the travelling biker needs - video-surveillance in the ample car-park, couple of garages for bad weather, a workshop, comfy beds and delicious food, and very good value for money.

Lavoûte-Chilhac

We stopped for coffee in Lavoûte-Chilhac which turned into a picnic lunch on the handy picnic tables in superior surroundings.

Wet weather gear fashion parade

The weather was pretty kind even though we had some drizzle. The wet weather gear was useful for keeping out the Auvergne chill too. We had a lovely ride up, but it was great to arrive and get into the warm in time for the apero. We ate extremely well, with all the food freshly made with local produce.

Clyde - my bike is called Bonnie

I couldn't resist this little bit of Chinese silliness. He quacks, and flashes on and off if you press him.

Viaduc de Garabit

On the Saturday, we had a bike ride out into the region which included a stop at the impressive Viaduc de Garabit built by M Eiffel. Practice run I expect.

Lovely Auvergnat view

and another...

A horse, a horse...

We ate our return picnic in the shadow of Château de Montréal where we saw this suit of armour clutching a flower in one hand and pretending to type on a sky blue laptop with the other. Unusual...

When I'm not going off on a biker weekend, I'll be going for local rides with local biker buddies. You wouldn't believe how many biker groups there are around here. Most can be found on Facebook, and many get together regularly to ride together for the day or less. Recently I enjoyed a ride along the Gorges de la Vis, with a stop at the St Laurent le Minier waterfall which looked very atmospheric with its autumn colours and soft lighting.

St Laurent le Minier waterfall looking very autumnal and mysterious

If I'm not riding, I may well be joining in events with the FFMC34. Most recently we did the Relais Calmos for bikers going to and coming back from the Bol d'Or. We had a very merry time and met lots of bikers who were very grateful to take a break with coffee and snacks available.

Guess which is me

My bike license is provisional for two years. After then, I can do a day's training in order to obtain the full biker license. Currently I'm limited to a bike of no more than 47.5 HP. If I do the training in two years' time, I'll be able to ride any bike. The sky's the limit!

Looking back on my first year as a Motarde

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 02 Jun 2019 15:08:00 +0000

It's the end of my first year as a bike rider, or 'motarde' as they so beautifully put it in French. What a year of adventure, new friends, new experiences, and a wonderful feeling of freedom. I take my bike everywhere - everyday to work, and for weekend fun - a total distance of 16,000 km.

Me and my Honda 125 cc plus new helmet

After my training forays to Millau and Gordes (already written about before), and my big trip to Loupiac for the Horizons Unlimited Adventure Biker weekend, I started taking part in demonstrations organised by the FFMC34 which coincided with the now infamous Gilets Jaunes demos.

At Christmas, there was a more lighthearted parade in aid of charity when we all dressed up in Santa costumes.

Ready for the FFMC34 Santa parade in aid of charity

A sea of red Santas

Having enjoyed the camaraderie of the group and the friendly welcome I received even with my little 125 cc I decided to join the FFMC34 in January and have participated in the monthly meetings ever since. The demonstrations gave way to roadside Relais Calmos in the nicer weather to encourage bikers to stop and have a rest, cup of coffee, and chat about bikes, equipment and maintenance.

Demo in Sète to protest about the state of the roads in villages

We also attended the Cevenn'Oil gathering of old bikes where we provide fun and laughs for the kids with mini motos. I of course had to have a go...

Recently we spent a weekend on a motorbike-only campsite near Lunas in Haut Languedoc, with lots of winding roads and beautiful views to get there.

First tent camping I've done for 16 years! The tent was ready-mounted with a mattress inside..

5 of the 22 happy campers; we took up almost the whole campsite

In May we went to a giant picnic at Lake Salagou organised by le Gang des Motards where there were over 900 bikes and 1200 bikers.

On Ascension Day, a day off, we got together for a barbecue at HQ before the monthly meeting. The Hérault FFMC is very active and they're a great bunch of bikers both motards and motardes.

In February, I learned about the Women Riders World Relay which is taking place this year. A baton is being passed around the world by women bikers - different ones along the way - and riding to a strict schedule so in rain, wind, even snow, whatever the conditions! It's an amazing adventure and one I wanted to be part of, but with only a 125 cc, I couldn't join the official relay. So I volunteered to organise the France-wide off-shoot, the Ripple. We have a flag rather than a baton and it is going around France so that all the women who wanted to join in the relay but couldn't can participate in the Ripple.

WRWR logo

Through the WRWR, I met a group of amazing women bikers who were the riders for the official relay. I was there when the baton passed through Montpellier, and with my Ripple hat on, I was part of the group that stayed overnight nearby. They were such a friendly, fun bunch, we all stayed in touch and have been riding and getting together ever since.

Thanks to the WRWR, I learned about WIMA the Women's International Motorcycling Association and WIMA France. WIMA France helped me with the start of the Ripple during the Touratech Travel Event held in Orange.

Start of the WRWR France Ripple in Orange 18 May 2019

I was camping in Chateauneuf du Pape over the weekend of the event with my WRWR buddies and had a fantastic time with them and the WIMA motardes. The campsite laid on superior aperos each evening with local (Chateauneuf du Pape) wine producers which gave us a superior state of merriment...

Camping in Chateauneuf du Pape (mobile-homing at least)

Although it rained on my way there and on the way back, the rain kindly held off on the Saturday when it was all happening!

This year I also participated in my first ever Poker Rally which was organised by MCT2000 who are based in Clermont l'Hérault. Another merry group of bikers, they organise biker rides in the region and beyond. The poker rally involved solving clues to the names of local places which provided the itinerary for the circuit. I was hopeless, but got teamed up with another woman who was a bit more with it, but we needed the kind and generous help of others if we were to get off the starting blocks. At lunch time we all stopped for a merry picnic together, and someone sat on a ripe banana which of course set us all off (again).

For International Women's Rights Day, I joined about 500 other women including WRWR and MCT2000 buddies in Nimes for Toutes en Moto.

There was a lot of pink about...

Nice piccie taken by Yagura Photos

I'm currently taking lessons to sit the motorbike licence test. I've had such fun on the little Honda, but I'd like to be able to keep up better with my buddies who have bigger bikes, go further and have even more adventures. It's been an amazing year. The biggest thanks go to my former DB who bought me the bike and encouraged me to become a rider rather than remain a passenger. It's changed my life. So have all the people I've met, and especially the great friends I've made and had such fun with.

Easter Day FFMC34 operation 'nid de poule' to protest about the potholes ('nid de poule') in the roads

Gilets Jaunes/Motards en Colère Demo 17 Nov 2018

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 18 Nov 2018 09:07:00 +0000

Starting point at the Zenith (my photo). The noise was incredible!

On a very unprepossessing day for a demo when enthusiasms could be easily be dampened by rain, drizzle, and dark heavy clouds, over 1000 bikers grouped together at the Zenith (concert hall) car park just outside Montpellier. There were local bikers, bikers from Béziers, Nimes, Lodève and Aveyron, and the noise was deafening! There were of course the hotheads who revved the engines of their sport bikes to create as much noise as possible, but even just the number of large engines all running at the same time made a low level rumbling that was quite incredible.

Link

The demo had been declared at the Préfecture so it was all legal and above board, and as a result, we were escorted by the gendarmes and police (who are themselves bikers and car owners) although of course, they could never show us any visible support...

On the A709 (my photo)

We crawled onto the A709 which was totally empty, the Gilets Jaunes having blocked all the entrances to the motorway. Half-way along our route, we met a number of cars crawling along in the other direction, with much tooting, honking and yelling support.

Link

I woz there! Wet but having a merry time.

Link

From the motorway, we came off at Montpellier Ouest, and made our way along Avenue de Toulouse and Gambetta towards the Place de la Comédie. The atmosphere was relaxed, everyone was smiling. The cortège was very impressive, and many young lads along the way were delighted to see it, nudging each other and pointing.

Avenue de Toulouse waiting for the police to clear the roads ahead (my photo)

Our destination was the Esplanade in the end rather than the Place de la Comédie which is like an ice-rink in the rain. We parked all the bikes on the Esplanade and walked up to the Préfecture. After some stirring words by the boss of the Motards en Colère de l'Hérault, a small contingent of 5 bikers was met by the Préfet's representative to have a nice cup of tea and chat (I expect...).

I had a rdv so had to bugger off at that point, but it was an amazing experience being among so many bikers on such a day of mobilisation.

What was it all about? Basically the people are being blamed and taxed for the mistakes of government policy over the last 20-30 years. We drive petrol/diesel cars because all the clean car patents were bought up and squashed by either the energy companies or car manufactures, and it's now our fault that we drive polluting cars.

The French government is incapable of self-analysis to discover areas for improvement, and takes no notice of the Cours des Comptes which regularly points out scandalous public spending wastage.

So everything comes back to inventing ever more taxes, a ruthless money-making scam campaign against road users, and punishing the retired because they are no longer 'productive' (except for looking after grand-kids, being active members of every single charitable association, caring for others, etc.), and the rise in petrol taxes was just the last straw.

The French are always being criticised for being 'des veaux', just accepting what is imposed on them, but there comes a point when they say 'enough is enough', and that point was reached and expressed during the demonstrations.

Here is a resumé by Midi Libre of the day's demos in the whole region here: RESUME.

Here is an analysis in French of the whole mess that France has become: HERE.

And a little video of our own motard demo with sound.

Hérault Tourisme Motorbike Circuit

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 17:21:00 +0000

The good folk at Hérault Tourism have been hard at work for enthusiasts of all means of transport. On their website you can now find circuits around Languedoc for:

This weekend promised beautiful weather - sunshine and warmth, maybe the last one this year. There are three circuits in the motorbike list:
Between vines and the Orb valley (155 km)
From southern Larzac to the Mediterranean (165 km)
Hérault gorge and garrigue (120 km)

You can expect good roads, fabulous twists and turns and stunning scenery. I decided on exploring the villages and vines that make up the Beziers back country and then up along the Orb valley. You can download the roadbook which tells you some of the sites you can visit, places to eat, places to buy petrol, and places to repair your bike, as well as clear instructions on what roads to take and where to turn.

We had to reach Villeneuvette near Clermont-l'Hérault where the circuit starts - worth a visit as it was originally built as a clothing factory with housing for workers. Then the route takes you south to Cabrières and Pouzolles through many charming little villages and past vineyards as far as the eye can see. We stopped for coffee and a picnic in Pouzolles in the shadow of the impressive château sitting on some handily grouped seating on the esplanade just made for getting together and chatting.

Pouzolles outsized château for such a small village

Refreshed, we set off again towards Roujan which was very pretty and then up into the Orb valley where the seriously gorgeous scenery makes for fantastic riding, starting with the "Plus Village de France" of Roquebrun.

Roquebrun in the sunshine

The big guns as you can see!

Beautiful curve of the river at Roquebrun

Not far away is another "Plus Beau Village" - Vieussan.

Vieussan, vines, oliviers, garrigue, blue sky

After Vieussan, the route takes you through a variety of picturesque scenery with views of the mountains of Haut Languedoc. We stopped next to a river with an exciting crossing that I just had to ride over.

The river Orb with exciting crossing.

Me on my bike - the crossing looks quite tame...

Riding north into the Haut Languedoc park, the hillsides closed in and the road followed every nook and cranny contour of the gorges. Seen along the way, the barrage des Monts d'Orb:

Barrage des Monts d'Orb

No lack of water here!

61,75m high, 240m long, it can stock more than 30 Mm3 of water in 180 ha.

It produces hydro-electricity and controls the flooding of the river lower down the valley.

Elsewhere might suffer from drought, not Hérault!

We took it easy on the twisty roads with their hairpin bends, climbs and descents, avoiding spiky chestnut shells on the road and groups of people collecting them. It got chillier as we went up, evidence that we were climbing towards the Larzac plateau.

The circuit ends at Roquedonde which is famous for the Buddist temple Lerab Ling. We didn't visit it, but took the scenic road back to Lodève with the intention of finding a bar for a cup of tea. There was nothing that looked open or friendly, so we carried on to Gignac where a book market was finishing up for the day, and the bar was open and filled with merry people on both sides of the road. It was good to sit and reflect on all we'd seen and ridden. So much to take in both visually and physically.

It's an amazing circuit with a great variety of scenery - everything except the beach in fact, it's Hérault in a nutshell and definitely one to do again. Perhaps not all in one day so that the sites can be visited on foot, and perhaps the other way round to see everything from the other side. It should take 4 hours to do but we started at 11.30am, took 45 minutes to get to Villeneuvette, stopped for lunch and coffee, for rests, for tea, and took half an hour or so to get back from Gignac which is itself half an hour or so from Roquedonde, and arrived home at 7.45pm.

I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to explore a fabulous and varied part of west Hérault.

Birthday weekend chez les Horizons Unlimited bikers

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 24 Sep 2018 05:55:00 +0000

I'll certainly remember this birthday weekend!

Bike ride Home to Loupiac, and back via Severac le Chateau - 645 km round trip
Click on the photo to see it better

Horizons Unlimited is a website set up by a couple of adventure bikers. Over the years they have organised meetings for other adventure bikers. The French branch had its meeting this year in Loupiac near Rocamadour.

View from the campsite

Although I'm hardly an 'adventure biker', I love hearing about the adventures of incredible people who have travelled around the world. For me, getting to Loupiac is an adventure. I left home at 8.30am, stopped for coffee and lunch and got to Loupiac at about 3pm. The bike meeting was taking place at the Camping les Hirondelles which is where most of the other participants were staying too. We had a mobile home (with hot shower) so it was la luxe!

Proud little 125cc in front of the chalet

Many other hardy bikers were camping... by choice.

Definitely a biker take-over!

The BMW is the adventure bike of choice for many.

What impressed me most was that you could talk to anyone, including the presenters. Lots of people knew each other from previous meetings, but there were those who had come alone and for the first time. We all ate at long tables and of course the chat was essentially biker-oriented but it could veer right off. I met retired university professors, a Welsh fire safety inspector, an Aussie, a croupier, a restaurant chef, a graphic designer...

I watched a presentation by Eric Lobo called Arctic Dream on his amazing journey both physically and spiritually across Russia and through Alaska with the aim of riding the polar ice road to Tuktoyatuk, a road which ceased to exist from this year.

He faced minus seventy-four degrees C, a polar tornado, and recalcitrant authorities, but with help from unexpected quarters, and the addition of skis to his Harley Davidson bike, he made it. Everyone who watched his film left it moved by the experience.

The Harley (with skis) that rode the Arctic sea ice

I watched other presentations by bikers who had travelled across Europe and Asia to Mongolia, and even Japan; one who had ridden to and around Iran; and another who had been down South America. It didn't matter where they had been, they all said that the encounters with people along the way was what marked them the most.

They came back with the most amazing, stunning photos, and films shot while riding or from drones. Some showed scenery that stretched as far as the eye could see across the steppes, others showed problems encountered along the way - bikes that had fallen down, or broken down, terrible traffic, an accident... One of the most important things about adventure biking is how to deal with issues and problems, especially when on a tight budget!

During the weekend, some bikers were taken through their paces on the campsite on a little course among the trees that included a large sand pit that they had to navigate with the help of a professional trainer. That was great fun to watch. I did not join in as I'm hardly experienced enough, and don't even have my biker's licence.

Gently does it over the (Saharan) sand...

I expected a lot of ribald joking about my little Honda 125, but everyone was very nice, and said they had started on something similar, and what fun they'd had. The most popular bike was of course the BMW GS1200 but there were all sorts although only one 125!

Funnily enough, on the way up, I was riding along the road about 150 km from Loupiac when a biker who had been taking a break took to the road in front of me. I wondered if he was going to the meeting, and I suppose he did too, because we ended up riding the rest of the way together. He very kindly held back because I respect the speed limit and go up hills with difficulty. We got to say hello once at the campsite where I introduced myself. I thought that typical of the esprit de biker of the meeting.

The journey back home was very similar to the one there, but I went via Severac le Chateau and stopped for coffee in Millau. Lunch was taken next to the dinkiest little single track bridge along the road.

Dinky bridge for a perfect picnic spot

I sat on the bridge and watched the fish and the ducks and enjoyed the peace and quiet away from the main road.

The view across the dinky bridge

Seen along the way, a menhir 3.5m high.

My bike with its tank bag and Rok Straps, and the menhir de Bélinac

I got stopped along the way too, by the gendarmes who checked my papers and made me blow into a breathalyser near Arboras. The gendarmes were out in force - I saw three lots within a short space of time!

The temperature was very different in Hérault and I was very happy to arrive home and shed my leather jacket and trousers, and grab a cool beer from the fridge.

It was a fab weekend, with some great people, new friends, lots of ideas and even more dreams. Certainly a birthday weekend to remember!

Motorbiking to Gordes

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 09:44:00 +0000

Summer is drawing to a close; you can feel it in the air, and the fresher morning temperatures. What a relief it is to wake up cool.

However, fluctuating morning/afternoon temperatures poses slight biking difficulties, especially on a day-long ride. What jacket to wear?

Yesterday, the morning was a frisky 20°C but it was set to rise to 30°C in the afternoon. For my ride to Gordes, I decided on the summer jacket with a fleece underneath, and very happy was I to have the extra warmth.

I had a Biking Buddy for my ride this time, and picked him up at Carrouf where we filled up with petrol before setting off. First stop was to be coffee in Arles.

Itinerary to Gordes in the Luberon and back, total about 330 km
Click on photos for a better look.

We crossed the city and took the airport road to the coast and carried on to La Grande Motte, then up through the Camargue with its vin des sables vineyards dotted along the road, and empty fields. It was very windy and I got buffeted about but my sturdy little Honda kept a true path (at 80km/hr) and forged its way despite the best efforts of the Mistral.

It was a relief to stop for coffee in Arles. We rode into the centre, right into the mostly pedestrian part to a pleasant little square that had tables in the middle shaded by a huge old tree.

Trying to find this square I came a bit of a cropper as I manoeuvred my bike to turn around and it fell on the ground. As I waited for BB to come and help me pick it up (it had fallen on the side with the side-stand and I didn't want it toppling over onto the other side when I got it up because I do actually know how to lift it up, I've had some practice...), a guy came out from a nearby house (with a bike in front) to see if I needed help. By that time BB had arrived and we didn't require his physical assistance, but we did ask for the way to the little square and he obliged, telling us to ignore the one-way street signs. Which we did and so we came to the little square with no more problems.

After a nice break, we set off again for the Luberon, and decided to eat our picnic lunch in Menerbes, made famous for most of us by Peter Mayle, and one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France.

Picnic bench at communal watering hole, Menerbes, Luberon

It's a lovely little hillside town with magnificent views across to Mont Ventoux. Click on the photos for a better look. It's the sort of place you need to walk around and admire the creamy limestone buildings at leisure.

View from picnic site across the Luberon to Mont Ventoux

My picnic lunch was a classic jambon beurre sandwich which I made with a delicious cereal baguette, superior additive-free ham from a local artisan, organic cherry tomatoes with bags of taste, crisps (no one's perfect and picnics = crisps for me), and some watermelon for puds. I did enjoy it!

After lunch we set off for Lacoste, famous for the chateau belonging to the Marquis de Sade, to find a nice cup of coffee. We found a restaurant perched on the cliff by the side of the road with more fabulous views and decided it was just the spot.

View from Lacoste coffee stop towards Bonnieux

Fortified by the coffee, we set off again for our final destination - Gordes. The region is fabulous for its scenery, and the roads are excellent. It's a real pleasure riding around and taking in all there is to see.

The traffic going up to Gordes was, however, heavy. It's become THE place to visit so we followed coaches, cars and lots of bikes up the winding road. If you're on a bike, you don't pay the parking, but cars in the town were being asked the extortionate sum of 10 EUR!

Classic view of Gordes

Squashed-face me and classic view of Gordes

Inside the town, we had a little look around, along with everyone else.

Busy busy Gordes

There are very steep, perilously cobbled roads to tackle, probably best explored without those romantic summery heels.

Photo captured in a gap in the throng

It is all delightful to look at, from the beautifully constructed creamy limestone houses and shops, to the expansive views.

View from Gordes

By now it was 30°C so I removed my fleece when we returned to the bikes to set off on our return journey. We had no particular stopping points, but I had programmed Google Maps to tell me the route to Avignon via L'Isle de la Sorgue, then Sommières via Nimes using earphones. However, it's not a perfect system I have going here. To start with, the earphones keep getting dislodged from my ears inside the helmet so I can't hear a thing. Then the voice telling me where to go is at odds with the map, which is the most confusing element.

Anyway, we didn't get lost, but did have to stop to re-inject life into numb backsides. My bike seat is not the most comfy, and trying to sit on a fleece pully didn't work to improve things as it wasn't long enough. Riding these long distances takes a lot of practice to get things right!

Finally, as the day was ending, we stopped for a refreshing Perrier by the river in Sommières.

Me looking shattered with helmet hair by the river in Sommières

Having started out at 10am, I got home at just after 8pm. It was a long day, and a long ride, but a fabulous trip.

Assumption Day in the Cevennes

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Wed, 15 Aug 2018 17:43:00 +0000

What could be a better way of celebrating Assumption Day than by going for a bike ride? I intended going to Mont Aigoual for a bit of fresh cool air, I ended up doing this:

Fab bike ride along teeny weeny single-track roads with grass down the middle

It was an afternoon ride after some shopping and a session at the gym this morning. I bought myself a little treat of Madagascan prawns for lunch so I was well fortified for a good ride.

There were a lot of people on the roads, the main roads at least. I was following what I thought was the route I'd chosen on Google Maps back at home, but there was a hiccup and the Voice was sending me up to Mont Aigoul on the very road I knew well and wanted to avoid.

So I came off at Le Mazel and took the D323 in the direction of Mandagout. It's a tiny single track road with grass growing in clumps down the middle and some optimistic lines painted in the places not covered in grass which served no other purpose than to show you where the road was.

Valley of sweet onion fields

I was riding deep into the middle of nowhere except that every now and again I'd come across fields of sweet onions being cultivated along the river valley or orchards of Reinette apples or olive groves, and the ubiquitous sweet chestnut trees. At one point I saw a woman beneath a tree next to a field of harvested onions in crates who was doing yoga. The Cevennes is the sort of place where people do yoga. It fits in with the mystical atmosphere of the mountains, the desire to be close to nature and out of the rat race. You can't be in the rat race isolated in a hamlet of 3 houses half an hour drive at least to the nearest shop.

I drove through many well-kept tiny hamlets of old stone houses like this:

Isolated hamlet surrounded by a lot of countryside...

They were usually perched on hillsides in picturesque layouts of roofs and stone walls. The scenery changed dramatically when I reached the plateau.

Stark vegetation on the higher plateau

This was near the col des Vieilles which is a popular route with cyclists. I didn't see anyone on the road today though. They were all down in the valley in crowds on the rivers which were alive with colour from canoeists, bathers and families.

Mandagout (?)

The views of the forests and mountains were magnificent. The Cevennes region is one of my favourites for the wonderful emptiness of its landscapes and delightful villages sporadically situated.

Le "Chateau"

Click on the photos to get a better look.

I needed petrol so I headed for Le Vigan where Super U was open. I filled up and then went inside to use the facilities. Afterwards, I sat to look at the map and got talking to a retired chap who told me about his children and grandchildren (all doing things like medicine, dentistry, computers) and who was impressed that I was riding around the area by myself and tackling the tiny roads. I felt quite impressed with myself too after listening to him.

From Le Vigan, I crossed the river and went past the Well factory to a glorious little aqueduct.

Le Vigan aqueduct

I had to stop and take a photo of course as it was so beautiful. It was right near a campsite too which was chockablock with happy campers. The Google Map voice took me towards Saint Bresson on some more tiny roads. Then to Saint-Laurent-le-Minier where there is a rather lovely waterfall. It was heaving with people of course, and there were cars parked everywhere.

I rejoined the main road at Saint-Bauzille-de-Putois having crossed the sky-blue suspension bridge at Agonès and got home in time for a lovely refreshing glass of rosé. The whole trip took about four and a half hours.

I fully intend to go back and do it more carefully, perhaps from the other direction, when I'm not half-worried about petrol levels. I should have filled up before I left. Lesson learned. I've now done over 2000km on my bike!

My First Ever Long Ride on my Honda CB125F

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 12 Aug 2018 17:04:00 +0000

I've had a lovely day today on my motorbike - a Honda CB125F that I've had since May.

My lovely Honda CB125F

I was intending combining my coding skills with creating a new blog for my motorbike adventures, but I'm not quite there yet, so as I wanted to document this trip, I'll do it here.

I'm just back from my longest solo motorbike ride: home - Millau - home

Today's ride - not a circular route because you see different things from each direction

The furthest I'd been until today was to Mèze for an oyster lunch, a mere 40km away. Millau is 154km and, avoiding the motorway, a nearly 3 hour ride.

Before leaving home, I popped down the road to buy a crusty baguette and dried ham to make a sandwich for lunch, downloaded the itinerary into my phone and set off around 10am.

First stop for coffee was in a dinky village called Arboras which is a favourite area for mountain bikers. My son has been there to practice downhill riding with his group and had a lovely time.

A stop for coffee in Arboras

The coffee cost €1 and came in a locally made pretty pottery cup. I got chatting to a merry family group of dad, brother (visiting from Milan) and three boys. Apparently the men are both divorced and have cried off the bother of women. Mostly...

The café terrace (and my bike)

The local one is a biker, admired my bike, and told me that a good biker is an old biker...

Book-sharing shelves, and washing machine bar table

I left them enjoying a plate of local goats cheese, honey and bread, and continued my route. From the winding roads of Hérault, I climbed onto the Larzac plateau and the trip took me right down memory lane. I used to come this way a lot when I was married, before the A9 autoroute was built, and we had to take the National 9.

The road is now the D9 and a lot quieter. I always wanted to linger going through Le Caylar and L'Hospitalet-du-Larzac, and on the bike I could. I could dawdle along on the empty road, stop if I felt like it and admire the old stone houses, and take note of the appealing menus in front of the restaurants. It was too early for lunch though so I stopped instead to take a photo of an iron sculpture seen along the way at Les Infruts.

Seen along the way at Les Infruts

It felt much fresher up there on the plateau and I had a lovely time flying along in the cool breeze past the military training grounds, the Millau-Larzac aerodrome, and parallel to the autoroute. I thought of all the poor sods going north, their holidays over, and revelled in the fact that I live here year round.

I wanted to eat lunch with a view, so I picked the spot where I knew I'd get the best one possible - of the Viaduc de Millau.

Overlooking Millau with the viaduc in the background

There was shade, there were picnic tables, there was a panoramic view. I couldn't have enjoyed it more. I shared a table for a while with a family who were on their way home to Brest having had a lovely time in Aveyron and the Camargue. The picnic spot had a special kind of loo which used no water but you had to press a lever ten times with your foot to work a moving belt. Intriguing.

Millau was my target, so after I'd finished my very tasty sandwich, looked down on the soaring condors and counted a dozen para-gliders having fun in the rising thermals, I rode down the hill and stopped for a coffee at the river beach where there was a playground, pizza shack and bar. This time it cost €2.40... and came in a bog-standard white china cup. The location was pretty though and there were lots of people enjoying Sunday lunch with kids playing in the river in the cordoned off zone.

It was very warm down in the valley, so I was keen to be back on the bike and on my way home. The 125 is not very powerful so I took it at a leisurely pace climbing back onto the plateau. Luckily no one was following me and getting impatient so I didn't need to push my bike to the limit.

I took the same route home because you see different things from the other direction, and you can also stop and check places that you noted on the outward journey. A working windmill at Saint Pierre de la Fage, for example.

Restored windmill at Saint Pierre de la Fage

I came off the beaten track to admire the views from another high point of note - on Mont Saint Baudille at an altitude of 848m.

Mont Saint Baudille in the background with the television antenna

I thought I'd be the only one trekking over there on the single track bumpy road, but the car park was pretty busy, to my surprise. There's an observation point where you can admire the view that extends on a good day from Mont Ventoux in the east to the Spanish border and Mount Canigou in the west! It's used in the summer by the forestry service to keep a look-out for forest fires. Two members of staff were there to hand out leaflets on how to not start a forest fire as well as keeping their eyes skinned. They spot at least one fire per day in the dry season.

Looking east with the Pic Saint Loup in the background

The views were fantastic - I could see the Pic Saint Loup, the Lac de Salagou, and way in the distance Montpellier and the sea. The forest service man very kindly took a photo of me - he's a biker too so we bonded... He told us that despite the place being isolated, there is a lot of crime in the car park, with cars full of holiday treasures broken into, and one woman even had her tyres slashed so she couldn't go after the thieves! There are some very nasty people out there.

My bike was safe and sound when I got back to the car park I'm happy to say. I stopped briefly on the Col du Vent just to have a quick rest. There were no cyclists there on the return trip. Going up, I video-bombed a guy who was being filmed by his mates arriving at the top. I'm sure it was very hard work going up. I was happy not to be making that effort in such hot weather!

I got home at 5pm to a nice cup of tea and piece of cake. It was a lovely ride full of varied sights and smells and I felt like I'd been on a mini holiday. I love my bike.

RIP Ulysse

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 08 Jul 2018 08:53:00 +0000

Ulysse 2004-2018

Last night there was a ring on the door bell at about 10pm. One's thoughts immediately fly to one's son, out and about with his car... but it was the door bell, not someone banging on the door as the police are wont to do.

I opened the door to some stricken-looking neighbours who asked me if I was the owner of Ulysse. They said something had happened to him and I should come immediately. I called for Christophe and we followed the neighbours down the road.

They said he'd been in a fight with their dog. He had gone into their garden, they weren't sure what had happened exactly but they tried to separate the balls of fury. They got them apart, and lay Ulysse on the ground where he died, maybe of a heart attack.

I arrived on the scene, and thought, that isn't Ulysse. His fur was all fluffy, his tail bushy. Then I saw the white spot at the end of his tail and I knew.

I reassured the neighbours - the mum was in tears and everyone was terribly upset. I thanked them for letting us know what had happened, picked him up and took him home.

Ulysse 'helping' me learn Csharp

Ulysse had always been the 'chef du quartier'. He picked me out at the SPA when he was six month's old, and immediately set about claiming his territory in our road. We had recently moved there and there were very few cats. Ulysse had no trouble proclaiming himself king, and was the scourge of all the cats that arrived after him. Until he got too old to care.

He was not terribly cuddle-friendly for years. He would sit near us, but never on our laps. If I sat in the garden, he would join me, and if I went down the path towards the shops, he would accompany me as far as the road, and then sit and wait for me to come back.

When he started getting on a bit, he took to our laps, and he loved it when we were ill and had to stay home. His nursing skills were unparalleled and greatly appreciated.

Ulysse on my lap during a bout of 'flu

Not so appreciated was the revenge he took when we went on holiday. On several occasions I arrived home to find he'd poo'd on my duvet and peed on the bed. He could be quite a little bugger!

He had a very discerning eye for our visitors, and you could trust his judgement as to who was a decent person.

Not long after he arrived here, he tried crossing a road without looking, and was hit by a car. He managed to hobble home, and I had to take him to the emergency vet. His jaw had been broken so they had to reset it and keep him under observation for a few days. Ulysse was a lot more careful after that experience!

Ulysse flaked out on the compost bin

He could recognise the sound of all the cars and motorbikes that mattered to him. When he heard mine, he would often appear from the bushes and sit and wait for me. He had his favourite spots for a snooze, or bedtime, and these would change every so often. If he determined that a particular bedroom would be his chosen place to sleep, woe betide anyone who tried to stop him getting there. He would miaow persistently until he got his way.

Fleas loved him too. Despite regularly dosing him with Frontline, he would be incessantly bothered by them. We fought a losing battle with the little buggers. They'll have to look elsewhere for a cosy nest and tasty morsel from now on!

While I'm very sad that my darling boy is gone, I'm also relieved that he will not become decrepit in his old age. This past year, he seemed to age before our eyes. He lost weight (to his correct weight for his size...), his black fur turned a rusty brown and his joints were starting to seize up.

I've had cats before that lived a long time, and I'm not sure that the last years were very pleasant. Ulysse died as he had lived, in battle. As Christophe said, 'Super U-cat' died a warrior.

Much loved, he went out with a bang.

RIP my little darling boy.

The New French System of PAYE

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 27 May 2018 15:41:00 +0000

On January 1, 2019, the revolution that is PAYE will hit French taxpayers. Up until now, we paid tax on income from the previous year's tax declaration. The main problem with this is that it is inflexible in the case of major life changes, like redundancy.

So from next year, if something changes, we will be able to reflect this immediately in our tax payments. All good.

Except that, and there's always an except that, it's not all good. Last year, I enjoyed the services of a cleaner. She was employed through a service agency and thus made social payment contributions, got holiday pay, sick leave and all other advantages of the legally employed. I got half the money I paid to the agency directly taken off my taxes.

It's one of those French tax niches that are widely popular, and that the government have been trying to reduce. It meant that instead of paying, for example, 200EUR/month for the cleaner, with the tax relief I was effectively paying 100EUR because my monthly tax direct debit was 100EUR/month cheaper than it would have been.

Now though, with the new system, the reimbursement will not occur immediately, but will come as a lump sum twice a year. The result of this is that I will probably never be able to have a cleaner again.

Why? Well, if I pay, for example, 400EUR/month in tax, I will not be able to add a further 200EUR to pay for the cleaner. It's just too much. Even I get a reimbursement in a lump sum, the monthly total is just too high.

So does this mean that the government has found a way to kill off the niche? By making it impossible for people like me who are not rich enough to pay full taxes AND a cleaner, or gardener, or any other regular personal service?

I should think the people employed in the previously flourishing personal services industry must be horrified at the (intended?) potential consequences of this nasty little tax manoeuvre. And it makes the tax system a system of finance rather than economy. Obviously it gives the government the opportunity to use the tax income before paying out on the 'credit impots', but doesn't take into consideration the probability that the personal services industry will take a huge knock, and jobs will be at risk. Jobs done by those who are often in a vulnerable situation.

So thanks Macron. WBanker extraordinaire.

The Big Snow 28 Feb 2018

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 07:53:00 +0000

Yesterday we had the heaviest snow fall since I can remember, and I've been here for more than two decades.

It started when I was at work. We didn't worry, it was supposed to turn to rain in the afternoon. As midday approached, it showed absolutely no signs of turning to rain. The temperature stayed obstinately low and the warm air from the south was stuck out in the Med somewhere.

View from my window at work at 11.30 am

People started leaving. I hung on for a bit hoping for things to improve, but finally at 1.30 pm it was leave or risk not leaving because obviously I had left my tyre chains at home thinking that as usual, the Orange Snow Alert would be exaggerated.

It wasn't, so I brushed the 10 cm or so of snow off my car and crept out onto the road. It was actually not too bad if taken carefully. I made it to the bottom of my road, a steep hill, and parked. There were no tyre marks going up the hill and I knew there was no hope of success.

Near my house at 2.30pm

I climbed the hill, got home and immediately dug out my fluo pink ski suit, snow boots, and gloves, found the plastic sledge I'd bought when the boys were younger (which coincided with the last time we went sledging...) in the garage and went back out to sledge down the hill. I wasn't the only one out. There were kids throwing snowballs with their parents, and bigger kids attacking each other.

After lunch, I went to find my sledge which I'd left outside, but my son had taken it, so found the old sledge that I'd had when I was a child. It hadn't been used since a feeble attempt on a thin layer of soggy snow some years back which it proved too heavy for. The several centimetres of dry snow was perfect for it, however.

My old sledge which had been red but was repainted by my dad years ago and not been used since

It took some steering, but eventually I got the hang of it, and instead of banging systematically into the snowy kerb, I got all the way down the hill, slight bend included by using my feet. I felt quite the Winter Olympic Luge champion, as there I was flat on my back on the sledge dashing feet-first down a steep hill. Fun!

I was the only adult on a sledge, to the embarrassment of my eldest. One of his friends skied down the slope, others used my other sledge, and then they went off. I'm not sure if this was in the natural progression of things or to get away from an embarrassing mother on the instigation of my son.

This morning, March 1, the snow has started to melt and is already too deep, soft and soggy for the old sledge, the the modern plastic one has not reappeared. Good thing I made the most of it yesterday!

For more pictures of Montpellier and the region in the snow, the local newspaper, Midi Libre, posted a good selection sent in by readers here.

Lost in Oppidum

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 15 Oct 2017 09:02:00 +0000

An oppidum is A Roman provincial town built often on high ground which is fortified and walled. Hérault's most impressive oppidum is at Ensérune but there's another one at Murviel-les-Montpellier, one which I've been wanting to visit for years but never got round to although I've been through the village many times.

Yesterday I found myself with a couple of hours to spare in Murviel. My first thought was 'coffee' and I went in search of a café in the tiny medieval quarter of the village. The stone houses all nestled together were charming, and there was many a cat dozing picturesquely or out on the razzle, but café there was none.

That was when I remembered the oppidum, and, thrilled that I had at last the opportunity to see it, and remembered before it was too late, I followed a signpost that indicated the direction. Little did I know but that would be one of a total of two useful signs.

I was starting to wonder at the distinct lack of directions when I met a man, who turned out to be a local Brit, and was very helpful and told me that all paths lead to the oppidum. I just had to climb to the top of the hill, turn right, and I'd be overlooking it in all its splendour.

The path was steep and rocky, and promised to provide quite enough exercise for the day without me needing to go to the gym too.

Steep path up

A couple of faint blue lines on a rock indicated a circuit of some sort, but without a sign of any sort, it was impossible to know whether it was going to the oppidum or not. Still, I followed it, and turned right at the T junction at the top where I saw a 'useful' sign.

'Useful' sign

Don't try and search for information on it, there is none. There probably had been, once, but now it was just a post with a white board on it. I couldn't see through the trees either to overlook the alleged oppidum. Maybe it was there, maybe it wasn't...

After walking through a tiny olive grove in the middle of nowhere (it seemed), I found some ruins.

Roman ruins

Was this the oppidum? Was there an information panel to tell me? They were pretty underwhelming as far as Roman ruins go, and, in the absence of a useful signpost, I decided that I probably was not looking at the oppidum.

Thick Roman wall which may or may not be part of the oppidum.

I was enjoying my walk in lovely undulating countryside, with garrigue plants and trees and delicious smells of herbs and pine despite not knowing where I was. Another signpost did nothing to help, and I could see I wasn't the only one to experience mounting frustration, because someone had expressed his/her annoyance with a clear message on the blank panel: Information NULLE !! Justifiably so.

Disgruntled visitor message: 'Information NULLE !!'

The faint blue lines had also long since disappeared, so it was with interest that I finally came across something clear and precise. Almost.

Clear signpost with a fatal flaw

A map! At last! A lovely map showing all sorts of useful bits of information. Except one. The 'YOU ARE HERE' spot. What a tease. I was obviously not the only person to spot the fatal flaw because someone had written on it: 'On est où ?' - Where are we? The mystery continued.

Bushy 'access-friendly' path

I continued taking random directions, and noted the different types of vegetation along the various paths. They were solid proof of the diversity dream.

At one junction, I met a jogger who optimistically asked me the direction to the village. He was lost too. He had been following the faint blue paint marks until they petered out. We struck up a matey chat of fellow lost-ees until I cracked and got my phone out to consult Google Maps. The jogger decided to try one direction and, while I was still waiting for my return itinerary to load, he came back to try another as the one he took just stopped.

Tree-lined stony path

Thanks to Google Maps, I discovered I was a mere 15 minutes from my point of departure despite having been walking for almost an hour going up and down and along. No sign of the oppidum, natch, although I thought this immaculate olive grove very impressive.

Immaculate and very posh olive grove

I didn't quite follow the directions correctly (and got reprimanded by The Voice), but did discover an abandoned home with a well nearby, which brought up images of a wizened old farmer's wife trekking down the hill in the depths of winter to draw water.

Abandoned well 50 m from abandoned house

I got back on the right path to The Voice's relief (it was palpable).

Another picturesque path

I never did find the oppidum. I suppose it's there somewhere, and next time I have a couple of hours to spare there I'll try again, this time having printed off directions and a map, because I know you get no help once there!

This is what I didn't see (to some lovely music):

#SNCF Christmas Train Ticket Wind-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Thu, 12 Oct 2017 16:28:00 +0000

#SNCF have excelled themselves today winding up hundreds (and possibly thousands!) of customers wanting to travel at Christmas.

Back in September when I bought my Eurostar tickets (because they go on sale way before SNCF, but that's another story/bone of contention), I signed up for the alert telling me when I could buy my TGV train tickets at Christmas. I wanted to be there at the starting blocks, in time to get the cheap Prem's tickets. I got myself organised. I couldn't fail!

This is the message I got the day before T-day (T for ticket), that got me all excited about the 'best prices' starting October 12:

Very 'clear' information from #SNCF

Ready, steady... hang on, what time is "aube"? Dawn breaks round about 7.30am at the moment. Did SNCF mean actual dawn or pick-a-time-early-in-the-morning?

I got up at 6.45am and dashed to the computer, as fast one can dash still half asleep. The SNCF ticket page was open and ready from the previous night (organised, see?). I clicked on 'Trouver' and... up popped not nice cheap Prem's tickets, but bog-standard pretty expensive ones.

What time, I wondered furiously as I went through the process (whilst grinding my teeth) of buying them, is effing aube?

I set about trying to find out. I sent a message on Twitter and entered into the twilight zone of a 'dialogue des sourds', on their part, anyway.

My question was clear, was it not? Why wouldn't they tell me? Was there a conspiracy afoot to thwart those of us not-in-the-know getting cheap tickets so only the favoured informed few could travel cheap and have enough left over to buy the odd Christmas present? Things didn't improve:

With my frustration levels rising at an alarming rate, I tried putting a message on Facebook, but none of my friends knew what time the tickets went on sale.

Then I tried ringing SNCF but all their salespeople were on the phone, I should ring back later.

Then I tried SNCF on Facebook. I put a message on their page and up popped a message window. I copied the message into the window and immediately got a link to a Q&A page that is deeply embedded (or so it seems) on the sncf.com page, not the usual voyages-sncf.com page.

Would I get a precise answer, or wouldn't I?

YES! At last! For SNCF, 'aube' on October 12 is at 6am! And note that this information was only available because Gerry had taken the time to find the page where you ask questions and write the request. Had no one done that, we would all be none the wiser! This is in the age of communication, too. Opaque? It's like getting blood out of stone.

In any case, at 6.50am I was too late! All the cheap tickets had gone. Or had they?

I then started reading messages from irate customers who had been there at 6am on the dot in order not to miss a thing, and already there were no Prem's tickets. What is this 'arnaque', this scammy wind-up? Why get us up in the middle of the night (it's still black out at 6am!) for nothing?

Five hours after my initial conversation with SNCF on Twitter, and after I'd already got the answer I wanted, they kindly deigned to tell me the exact hour, and that all the Prem's tickets had been sold in record time:

I concluded, along with many others, that there had been NO Prem's tickets on certain trains. Or perhaps one or two, and that SNCF had set us up to fail. So thanks, SNCF for a morning of frustration, rage, anxiety, nervous exhaustion, and much time-wasting.

And as an exercise in communication, let me tell you for nothing, SNCbloodyF that it FAILED! If you need further advice, you know where to find me...

OnVaSortir... or not?

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Sun, 01 Oct 2017 11:09:00 +0000

It's now the demi-saison, that lovely time of year with vivid autumnal colours and ideal temperatures for outside activities.

This morning I went for one of my favourite walks in the park of Restinclières. There were few people about, the sun was shining, and as it had rained yesterday, drops of water glistened on every plant. The warm air brought out smells of wet earth, herbs and pine. I took this photo of herbes de Provence growing wild. They look very dry because we've had so little rain, but walking past, they smelled wonderful.

Wild herbes de Provence (rosemary and thyme)

I ambled along and thought how delightful it was to be there, alone, and thus able to think, stop to admire the views and really look at everything.

Walk through a pinède carpeted with herbes de Provence

A group of three people came towards me talking and moaning. They were not appreciating the views or walking 'in the moment'.

It made me think about the website OnVaSortir.com where you can either organise an outing or sign up for one organised by someone else. It's a good way of meeting people and not doing stuff alone all the time. As you can see from the screen shot below, there are lots of different types of activities.

from onvasortir.com

At 14:00 'Randter' has organised a walk at Restinclières, although no one has signed up for it (1/10) so why didn't I want to go with her this afternoon? Because when you walk with others, especially people you don't really know, you have to talk to them. When I go for a walk, I like to walk in peace. I like to concentrate on smells, sights, sounds and think about how lucky I am to have such splendours on my doorstep.

Call me an unsociable old bat, but I don't want to have someone yakking at me barely pausing for breath, or me realising that I don't like the person and then feel bad for a) thinking uncharitable thoughts; and b) wasting my time being there.

What I would enjoy more is a mountain-bike outing. Not the super enthusiast type that has you going up nearly vertical slopes and slogging over 20km+ of rugged terrain, but a more leisurely ride without too much up and down. Then if you get into trouble, you've got help at hand, and it's quite difficult to talk to people on a bike, so you'd have to do all that during rests. Yes, that is more my thing. My youngest's VTT (mountain bike) club organise family bike rides twice a year so that parents can join in, and they are always very enjoyable. That.

Someone told me this week that people also use OnVaSortir as an unofficial dating site. I suppose this is to be expected because one way of meeting other people is to be active, so you're bound to meet like-minded types, especially if you target your activities wisely.

So, I haven't signed up for anything yet or thought about organising something (no thanks!). There's a time for everything, and I do like to take plenty of it.