Kat and Ben

Having left earlier than expected and the French speed limits being 130km on dry days we made it to Kat’s parents (Louise & Steve) house in Nieuillet in good time. We arrived on the 19th March about 2pm, just in time for French bread, cheese and a cold beer as the weather was boiling hot. They had converted their upstairs game room to accommodate a bedroom for us to stay in whilst we were there, which was cornered off from the rest of the room with a curtained wall. It was really cosy and it gave us a little space from Kat’s parents so we didn’t end up killing each other as previously anticipated due to it being 5 years since Kat had lived with her parents.

me and dad

me and mum

Funnily enough we all got along really well and the rest is history as we stayed there for about two months preparing for the next step of our travels around Africa, getting Ben’s rabies jabs, sorting out anti-malarial tablets (what a nightmare) and going through all of our belongings again to get it all to fit in two 65litre rucksacks. When we were not pulling our hair out about visas etc.

we helped Kat’s parents restore all of the brick work in their courtyard which was once an out-building. It had previously been knocked down to one level and all cleared out of rubble ready for us to start mucking out the shit between the stones and begin pointing. Our friend Kelly came over for a few days and got roped into the work where we all had a laugh and Kat managed to catch up on some girlie time.
We loved working outdoors and the weather was really good most days. Although the physical work was meant to make us fitter, we found ourselves putting on weight! No doubt it was from all of the cheese, bread and alcohol consumed… best get it all in now and make the most of it!

edna's owners

Life in rural France has a lot more of a slower pace than what we were and are used to, but we mixed in well with the locals and played boules on Thursdays and were regular visitors at the local café, Edna’s. Everyone was really friendly and made us feel welcome; Kat even managed to learn some notes on her guitar from Jim (mad Scotsman) which she’s sadly had to leave with her parents.

snake catching

pesky snake

We definitely had some experiences whilst we were in France, one of which was catching a meter long grass snake in the garden so Kat’s mum wouldn’t freak out at the sight of it. Another sight we won’t forget is Kat’s dad doing the hula hoop on Julia and the girls’ Wii Fit… So far we have been very lucky and were sad to say goodbye to the friends we made out there, especially to Kat’s parents neighbours who seemed like family when you got to know them and run a really lovely B&B if anyone fancies a mini-break in the future…

Kat’s parents had left for their villa in Spain about a week before we left so the house seemed really empty without them, but it gave us time to have a last flap about what we needed to pack, throw and store. It was also Ben’s birthday in the 17th May so we went over to Julia and Bob’s for a Sunday roast and went to the pub quiz after to meet our team buddies, Jim and Margaret. We cut it fine with the timing and apparently held up the quiz from starting (oops), but as we entered everyone started singing Happy Birthday to Ben. It was also Jim’s birthday that day and Margaret’s the day after so there was quite a bit of celebrating and ended in the two of us zig-zag walking the very dark and spooky way home in high-res jackets and using the torch from Ben’s camera.
Making it home in one piece and after Kat suffering a hangover from hell the next day, we found ourselves getting to our last day in France.

edna's cafe

friends

After going through all of our possessions during our last day we popped down to Edna’s one last time to say our goodbyes, before going back to the house and finishing the packing and tidying 2am. The majority of it was done, but ended up sleeping in until 7am, which was our original leaving time. Rushing around like crazies to tie up all of the loose ends, we packed up the car, said ‘au revior’ and left at 10am for Barcelona.

Trips:

Shorthand link:

Saying Goodbye And Saying Hello

Granada, Spain

The Villa

Mazarron, Spain

Barcelona

Barcelona, Spain

The Tunnel

Andorra la Vella, Andorra

Kats Parents and Friends

Vouleme, France

Goodbye ENGLAND

Dover, United Kingdom

Hello France

Dunkerque, France

Dreaded Draveil

Draveil, France

Goodbye Bens Parents

Rollesby, United Kingdom

Angle of the North

Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Heading South?