When we were staying at La Matha at the beginning of the October, one day, we had lunch at Comptoir de Genès at Saint-Genès de Castillon. We have eaten there a few times before, and always enjoyed eating from the menu du jour.
This time, there was something on the menu that I had not tried before - Duck Hearts. These were to be grilled and served with frîtes. The waitress, who was English, had expressed her own reservations, but had commented that all through the week, customers had come back to eat it second or third times. I decided to give it a try..... Well, what can I say - they were really, really delicious!
They came on a couple of skewers, with a bucket of fries. Just like small sirloin steaks, which I suppose is right, as hearts are muscle and not offal like kidneys or liver.
The wine selection was, as ever good, and all the food we ate was of the highest order. This was definitely the best restaurant we dined in during that stay. Highly recommended!
Friday 26 October 2012
Monday 15 October 2012
Videos
It has always been a frustration the difficulty of conveying how big the house is. La Matha is Tardis-like in its qualities - the large open plan living area is far bigger than most of the photos can convey. For that reason, I took some videos some time ago, but whilst I can take reasonable still photos, I am by no means accomplished at video photography! The results were juddery to say the least.
A family friend who enjoys taking the odd video was staying at La Matha in mid-September, and volunteered to take a promotional video. This was so much better than my efforts, and as a result, I have loaded this onto YouTube and embedded it in the main website: http://www.la-matha.com/videos.html.
I'm not sure if this will attract any more people, but it might help to persuade people that it really is a large house!
Going East along the Dordogne
Last year we did a day trip eastwards, ending up at Sarlat: http://la-matha.blogspot.co.uk/2011/11/another-trip-from-la-matha.html. This time, we decided to do a similar trip, but starting at Sarlat, so that we could spend a bit more time there, and then make a couple of stops heading back more or less westwards, so that the journey home was not so long.
Sarlat is a great place - a Bastide town with loads of history. We found a walk suggested in the Dorling Kinderlsey Eye Witness book, which took us round the centre of the old town.
Sarlat is a great place - a Bastide town with loads of history. We found a walk suggested in the Dorling Kinderlsey Eye Witness book, which took us round the centre of the old town.
After Sarlat, we headed to Domme for lunch. Domme is south of Sarlat on cliffs above the Dordogne river, and is a lovely old town, with spectacular views around the river valley. It does have a Cave, which has plenty of stalactites and stalagmites - a guided trip around the cave takes about an hour.
From there, we headed back to Baynac, which we had passed on the way to Sarlat. Baynac has glorious castle on the top of the cliffs, with the village squeezed down on the bank of the river.
Click on the picture below for a stunning panoramic view:
After Domme, we headed south again for Monpazier - a delightful Bastide town. We arrived at about 17:30, so all was very quiet. We had a glass of wine in a bar on the square before heading back across country to La Matha via Villareal and Miramont - a route with some ridiculously straight roads!
Les Jardins du Sardy
This is a place we have publicised on our website: http://www.la-matha.com/Local%20Area%20-%20Gardens.html, but have never visited. Some family members went recently and told us how good they were, so we paid a visit. They are located just north of the road to the west of St Foy on the way to Castillon.
The gardens have been restored, but, although there is a formal element, they are mainly carefully informal. We are really glad we finally got to go. Here are some of my photos.
Autumn Visit
We're now back from a lovely week out at La Matha, spent with some friends. We did a few chores/DIY stuff, but also did a lot of visiting places, eating out and tasting/drinking wine. Later posts about the trips we made with some photos.
One big thing that was sorted out was additional insulation for the large en-suite shower room - the ceiling had been insulated; however, the wall behind the washbasin was just plasterboard. This was the reason why, when the weather got to -15c last winter, we suffered some damage in that bathroom. As a result, I bought 100mm think insulation sheets and some adhesive. It took me less than two hours to insulate the whole of the back walls, including our cupboard on the landing and the triple bedroom and shower room. Hopefully the problems of last winter will not be repeated.
If the weather does get as cold as it did last winter, I also rigged up a frost thermometer for an oil-filled radiator for the large en-suite. This has now been left so that it will come on if the temperature falls below 0c.
One thing that had been annoying me was that, for a couple of years, a hazel bush had grown so large that it obscured the swimming pool from the master bedroom window (not that I spend a lot of time looking out of that window!). I had bought a good bow saw, and started to be a lumber-jack. Soon the whole party joined in the fun - stripping the leaves and making kindling and firewood. We did not pull up the roots, but will chop down the growth each time it gets too much.
Finally, and all the visitors from this year will be please to know this, we have finally identified the source of the blocked loo and slow draining shower in the main en-suite. This is caused by bad angles/joins in the pipework from the loo and the shower. A French plumber called Nathaniel Botti will be sorting this out the w/c 22 October.
One big thing that was sorted out was additional insulation for the large en-suite shower room - the ceiling had been insulated; however, the wall behind the washbasin was just plasterboard. This was the reason why, when the weather got to -15c last winter, we suffered some damage in that bathroom. As a result, I bought 100mm think insulation sheets and some adhesive. It took me less than two hours to insulate the whole of the back walls, including our cupboard on the landing and the triple bedroom and shower room. Hopefully the problems of last winter will not be repeated.
If the weather does get as cold as it did last winter, I also rigged up a frost thermometer for an oil-filled radiator for the large en-suite. This has now been left so that it will come on if the temperature falls below 0c.
One thing that had been annoying me was that, for a couple of years, a hazel bush had grown so large that it obscured the swimming pool from the master bedroom window (not that I spend a lot of time looking out of that window!). I had bought a good bow saw, and started to be a lumber-jack. Soon the whole party joined in the fun - stripping the leaves and making kindling and firewood. We did not pull up the roots, but will chop down the growth each time it gets too much.
Finally, and all the visitors from this year will be please to know this, we have finally identified the source of the blocked loo and slow draining shower in the main en-suite. This is caused by bad angles/joins in the pipework from the loo and the shower. A French plumber called Nathaniel Botti will be sorting this out the w/c 22 October.
Saturday 29 September 2012
Is this Flash, or Not?
When I first created the website (www.la-matha.com) back in early 2008, I was putting something very simple together. The software I was using was NVU, which is now BlueGriffon, which is freeware. It does not have many rich features in it, although if I knew how to type HTML code, I could have done great things!
The original Pictures page was just a table which contained a series of pared down pictures - it did its job, but it was basic.
Earlier this year, I used some different software to build a website for my business (http://www.opriskconsultant.com/ - have to give it a plug!), and bought an easy to use program called Coffee Cup. This was fine, if a bit stilted - it was harder to customise things in it. I decided not to re-build the La Matha website using Coffee Cup, leaving it as it was. Coffee Cup also produce a Photo Gallery program, so I got that, and very quickly produced quite a good little gallery which could run a slide show. I was happy........ until I tried it on my iPhone. Of course Coffee Cup Photo Gallery produces the slide show using Adobe Flash, which is not supported by Apple - if you don't know, there has been a long battle between Adobe and Apple: Adobe promoting their Flash protocol, and Apple wanting the world to follow them with HTML5. Apple have now won, and Adobe are no longer going to be bringing out new versions of Flash.
Anyway, Coffee Cup announced that the new version of Photo Gallery can produce HTML5 slide shows, so I got an upgrade. However, that only works if you take up their hosting package, which I don't need, as I already have a web service that I use. Not happy.
I then found a new software called JuiceBox. That produces a photo gallery using HTML5, and what's more, there was a free version! Happy days!
The newer and better photo gallery really looks good - see for yourself: http://www.la-matha.com/Pictures.htm and the great thing is that you can view it on an iPhone or iPad!
The original Pictures page was just a table which contained a series of pared down pictures - it did its job, but it was basic.
Earlier this year, I used some different software to build a website for my business (http://www.opriskconsultant.com/ - have to give it a plug!), and bought an easy to use program called Coffee Cup. This was fine, if a bit stilted - it was harder to customise things in it. I decided not to re-build the La Matha website using Coffee Cup, leaving it as it was. Coffee Cup also produce a Photo Gallery program, so I got that, and very quickly produced quite a good little gallery which could run a slide show. I was happy........ until I tried it on my iPhone. Of course Coffee Cup Photo Gallery produces the slide show using Adobe Flash, which is not supported by Apple - if you don't know, there has been a long battle between Adobe and Apple: Adobe promoting their Flash protocol, and Apple wanting the world to follow them with HTML5. Apple have now won, and Adobe are no longer going to be bringing out new versions of Flash.
Anyway, Coffee Cup announced that the new version of Photo Gallery can produce HTML5 slide shows, so I got an upgrade. However, that only works if you take up their hosting package, which I don't need, as I already have a web service that I use. Not happy.
I then found a new software called JuiceBox. That produces a photo gallery using HTML5, and what's more, there was a free version! Happy days!
The newer and better photo gallery really looks good - see for yourself: http://www.la-matha.com/Pictures.htm and the great thing is that you can view it on an iPhone or iPad!
Tuesday 11 September 2012
End of the Summer
We're now at the end of the summer. We have family staying at La Matha at the moment, and one more set of visitors staying at the beginning of October, before we go out on 6 Oct. We really can't wait, as we haven't been able to go there as much this year as we did last year.
At this time of the year, thoughts turn to improvements we would like to make for next year. We have done a large number of improvements over the last couple of years, as chronicled in earlier posts. What more is there to be done?
One thing we would like to do is render the walls in the utility room, and then paint them and the ceiling. We will probably have the stone walls finished in the traditional "pierre apparente" that we have outside and on some internal walls - strangely, it is a cheaper finish, and looks so good! Doing that, and then painting the concrete floor should make the room (which is just used for storage and as a utility room) much less dusty and be a tad more inviting than it is at the moment. Oh yes - we will also have to see what we can do to replace the cracked glass in the sliding patio door in that room.
Another idea we had for an improvement was to build a large pergola on the hard stand to the left of the house. With some shade over the top, that will be an ideal area to have the table tennis table, which, unless people bring it outside, is a bit cramped in the utility room. That area to the side of the house is the least attractive part of the grounds, and is in need of a tidy-up even if we don't do the pergola.
A final thought on the pergola is that we have not been able to find any for sale in France, which will mean buying a kit in the UK and taking it over. That means hiring a van again, which will also be a good excuse for buying a load of wine again - memories of bringing back about 700 bottles last year.........
Further posts will be made of what we decide to do.
At this time of the year, thoughts turn to improvements we would like to make for next year. We have done a large number of improvements over the last couple of years, as chronicled in earlier posts. What more is there to be done?
One thing we would like to do is render the walls in the utility room, and then paint them and the ceiling. We will probably have the stone walls finished in the traditional "pierre apparente" that we have outside and on some internal walls - strangely, it is a cheaper finish, and looks so good! Doing that, and then painting the concrete floor should make the room (which is just used for storage and as a utility room) much less dusty and be a tad more inviting than it is at the moment. Oh yes - we will also have to see what we can do to replace the cracked glass in the sliding patio door in that room.
Another idea we had for an improvement was to build a large pergola on the hard stand to the left of the house. With some shade over the top, that will be an ideal area to have the table tennis table, which, unless people bring it outside, is a bit cramped in the utility room. That area to the side of the house is the least attractive part of the grounds, and is in need of a tidy-up even if we don't do the pergola.
A final thought on the pergola is that we have not been able to find any for sale in France, which will mean buying a kit in the UK and taking it over. That means hiring a van again, which will also be a good excuse for buying a load of wine again - memories of bringing back about 700 bottles last year.........
Further posts will be made of what we decide to do.
Wednesday 8 August 2012
Flying Visit - the Results
Hmm -how write this and paint it in a positive light?
In May this year, we organised internet access through SFR. This was set up with the help from a former colleague in Paris, as the number you have to use for this can only be dialled from France..... Anyway, it all went smoothly: the kit arrived in the post, I was able to set that up, change the password etc, the engineers arrived and set the line up. It was working well, as evidenced by blogs on this site posted from there. However, when our daughter visited in mid-July, she reported that, whilst they could access the wifi, but there was no internet access.
After contacting SFR, it turned out that they had cancelled the contract for a "technical reason", but with no notice. We then had to go through the process of setting it up again: why didn't I walk away then?
Anyway, we had to have new kit and return the old stuff (no chance!), and then an engineer had to come to set the line up - why that had to happen when there was no need for an engineer to turn it off, beats me! The visit was organised for 25 July, when some visitors were already staying there. I decided that it would be better for me to pop out for 24hours to meet the engineer, and set up the wifi box. I took the advantage or sorting other stuff out as well (below).
Engineers were due to arrive between 13h and 15h; however, at noon, I received a call saying there were no engineers available, and therefore, the visit was cancelled........ Numerous calls to attempt to resolve it failed.
On my return to the UK, I called on daily basis to find out when the engineer was going to visit, with no success - I kept on being told that they would let me know. After a week, I gave up, and decided to go with another provider, France Telecom, and cancel SFR. When I contacted SFR, I was told that the contract had been cancelled! They had done it again, without telling me!!!
OK - France Telecom have given us a good contract: slightly more a month, but it can be turned off when we're not there. Engineers have already been, and internet access has returned!
The other little things to sort out were electrics and the boiler. This year we noticed that whenever we turned the oven on, the power would cut out. It turned out that the heat pump and pool filter kit were on the same electric phase as the oven, which meant it was over-loaded when the oven was turned on. The electrician arrived and simply moved the pool stuff onto a different phase of the power supply - problem sorted.
The heating engineer needed to come as the hot water was either too cold or too hot - the boiler didn't start until the water was less than 40c and only cut out over 80c. A new thermostat and control has now been installed.
Finally, I have to say it was very strange being in the house when guests were there - a bit like being a stranger in your own home! The visitors were charming and very kind to me - I had to hang around all day, waiting for the heating engineer to arrive, and he didn't turn up until 18h.
All in all it was frustrating. I managed to get a couple of niggles sorted out, but the lack of the internet, the whole reason for the trip, was very annoying. That has now been resolved, which is why I feel I can share this with you!
In May this year, we organised internet access through SFR. This was set up with the help from a former colleague in Paris, as the number you have to use for this can only be dialled from France..... Anyway, it all went smoothly: the kit arrived in the post, I was able to set that up, change the password etc, the engineers arrived and set the line up. It was working well, as evidenced by blogs on this site posted from there. However, when our daughter visited in mid-July, she reported that, whilst they could access the wifi, but there was no internet access.
After contacting SFR, it turned out that they had cancelled the contract for a "technical reason", but with no notice. We then had to go through the process of setting it up again: why didn't I walk away then?
Anyway, we had to have new kit and return the old stuff (no chance!), and then an engineer had to come to set the line up - why that had to happen when there was no need for an engineer to turn it off, beats me! The visit was organised for 25 July, when some visitors were already staying there. I decided that it would be better for me to pop out for 24hours to meet the engineer, and set up the wifi box. I took the advantage or sorting other stuff out as well (below).
Engineers were due to arrive between 13h and 15h; however, at noon, I received a call saying there were no engineers available, and therefore, the visit was cancelled........ Numerous calls to attempt to resolve it failed.
On my return to the UK, I called on daily basis to find out when the engineer was going to visit, with no success - I kept on being told that they would let me know. After a week, I gave up, and decided to go with another provider, France Telecom, and cancel SFR. When I contacted SFR, I was told that the contract had been cancelled! They had done it again, without telling me!!!
OK - France Telecom have given us a good contract: slightly more a month, but it can be turned off when we're not there. Engineers have already been, and internet access has returned!
The other little things to sort out were electrics and the boiler. This year we noticed that whenever we turned the oven on, the power would cut out. It turned out that the heat pump and pool filter kit were on the same electric phase as the oven, which meant it was over-loaded when the oven was turned on. The electrician arrived and simply moved the pool stuff onto a different phase of the power supply - problem sorted.
The heating engineer needed to come as the hot water was either too cold or too hot - the boiler didn't start until the water was less than 40c and only cut out over 80c. A new thermostat and control has now been installed.
Finally, I have to say it was very strange being in the house when guests were there - a bit like being a stranger in your own home! The visitors were charming and very kind to me - I had to hang around all day, waiting for the heating engineer to arrive, and he didn't turn up until 18h.
All in all it was frustrating. I managed to get a couple of niggles sorted out, but the lack of the internet, the whole reason for the trip, was very annoying. That has now been resolved, which is why I feel I can share this with you!
La Terrasse
As mentioned below, a few days ago I stayed at La Terrasse during my flying visit, and am happy to report back my findings. The restaurant and rooms (difficult to call it a hotel!) have been taken over by a husband and wife from Belgium, and their son. In the morning, I had a good chat with Eric, the husband, who was charming.
My room was fine, although when I was let into the room, the windows were closed and the shutters open. It had been a very hot day, well over 30c, which meant that the room was like a furnace. The temperature did not abate until the early hours of the morning - I did not manage to sleep very well.
Now for the restaurant. What we liked about La Terrasse was that the menu was quirky - a little bit different, and not traditional french cuisine. Unfortunately, that has changed. There are now a series of menus, starting with the "Menu Touristique" at €19.50. This now implies that it is just like all the other French Restaurants. That said, the food was good and interesting. I was a bit disappointed by my faux-fillet, which was tough. Other diners had what looked good main courses, for instance, an interesting mixed grill, served on a wooden model wheelbarrow.
I did enjoy my meal, but not as much as I used to there. As a result, I am disappointed - we will eat there again, but not as regularly as we used to.
My room was fine, although when I was let into the room, the windows were closed and the shutters open. It had been a very hot day, well over 30c, which meant that the room was like a furnace. The temperature did not abate until the early hours of the morning - I did not manage to sleep very well.
Now for the restaurant. What we liked about La Terrasse was that the menu was quirky - a little bit different, and not traditional french cuisine. Unfortunately, that has changed. There are now a series of menus, starting with the "Menu Touristique" at €19.50. This now implies that it is just like all the other French Restaurants. That said, the food was good and interesting. I was a bit disappointed by my faux-fillet, which was tough. Other diners had what looked good main courses, for instance, an interesting mixed grill, served on a wooden model wheelbarrow.
I did enjoy my meal, but not as much as I used to there. As a result, I am disappointed - we will eat there again, but not as regularly as we used to.
Thursday 26 July 2012
Les Coquelicots, Landerrouat
I think that I've mentioned this before, but an old bar in a near-by village, Landerrouat, has had a make-over. New owners took over 6 months ago, and have created a bar/café, an épicerie, and a crêperie. These are all linked, although if you go into the épicerie entrance in the middle, you will be hemmed in by the shelving. That section has some basic supplies - useful if you need something urgently say at lunchtime when the supermarket in Pellegrue is closed.
The café has a weekday set lunch menu for €11.50. I went there yesterday, and had vegetable soup, tomato tart (which was delicious!), lamb steak with garlic served with kidney beans, cheese and a creme caramel. Oh yes, the price also included a demi picher of red wine (50cl) and a coffee at the end.
The Crêperie as a wide menu of savoury and sweet pancakes. This is open up to 10pm - it may be good for desert after a bbq at the house!
The food from the café was good, honest stuff, and well worth a visit if you are happy to take the risk on the set menu. Of course that risk is off-set by using the Crêperie menu!
The café has a weekday set lunch menu for €11.50. I went there yesterday, and had vegetable soup, tomato tart (which was delicious!), lamb steak with garlic served with kidney beans, cheese and a creme caramel. Oh yes, the price also included a demi picher of red wine (50cl) and a coffee at the end.
The Crêperie as a wide menu of savoury and sweet pancakes. This is open up to 10pm - it may be good for desert after a bbq at the house!
The food from the café was good, honest stuff, and well worth a visit if you are happy to take the risk on the set menu. Of course that risk is off-set by using the Crêperie menu!
Tuesday 24 July 2012
Flying Visit
About to fly out tomorrow morning, coming back the following day. Need to sort out a couple of things. Main point of this post though, is to report that I will be staying and dining at La Terrasse in Duras. As blogged earlier, Millie and Arnaud have sold up, so it will be interesting to see what it is like now.
One interesting point to note - if you put "La Terrasse Duras" in Google, our website comes second in the search results - it certainly does in the UK. It will be interesting if it is the same in google.fr! Watch this space......
One interesting point to note - if you put "La Terrasse Duras" in Google, our website comes second in the search results - it certainly does in the UK. It will be interesting if it is the same in google.fr! Watch this space......
Friday 18 May 2012
Successful Trip!
I'm now back and rested after my two weeks at La Matha. Virtually everything that I wanted to get done was done, and more. Improvements carried out:
Here are some photos of the completed work
- Swimming Pool heated, and working very well
- Wi-fi up and running
- Kitchen "extended", by building new units, a large worksurface
- Kitchen tiled
- Wine Fridge installed, which will take the strain off the normal fridge, and ensure that your white and rosé wines are chilled correctly
- New oven installed
- New lighting in the living room
- Small shower room made larger and lighter, with new sanitary ware - looking cool now!
- New door on the pool-house. Whilst this is aesthetic, it will ensure the pool house is clean, but also has the benefit of keeping the noise of the pump/filtering down
- Sorting out the thermostats on the boiler
Here are some photos of the completed work
Saturday 12 May 2012
La Terrasse
There is a restaurant in Duras that we like to frequent - we have got to know the owners, Millie & Arnaud quite well. We were there last night for dinner when Millie told us that they have sold the restaurant! That is a real shame, as their food was french, but a bit different, and we really enjoyed going there every time we visit.
They have been there for five years, and have decided, for the sake of their children to give up the restaurant business, so they can enjoy holidays etc!
They have sold to a Belgian couple who have been running a restaurant in Luxembourg. The chef is relatively young and trained in traditional French cooking. Will it be moules-frites from now on?
A sad day!
They have been there for five years, and have decided, for the sake of their children to give up the restaurant business, so they can enjoy holidays etc!
They have sold to a Belgian couple who have been running a restaurant in Luxembourg. The chef is relatively young and trained in traditional French cooking. Will it be moules-frites from now on?
A sad day!
Friday 4 May 2012
I've been Swimming!
Whilst I am a strong swimmer, I do not like swimming in cold water. The med in the summer is fine, but an un-heated swimming pool in May, even in the south-west of France, nah!
The heater said the temperature of the water should be 24.5c - that was about the same as the air temperature, so I gave it a go. I dived in, and: it did not take my breath away, like it normally does! Whilst I would not have described it as warm, it certainly wasn't cold. Big, big improvement, then. I think the temp should probably be set a bit higher (the pool has been getting warmer by the day).
The heater said the temperature of the water should be 24.5c - that was about the same as the air temperature, so I gave it a go. I dived in, and: it did not take my breath away, like it normally does! Whilst I would not have described it as warm, it certainly wasn't cold. Big, big improvement, then. I think the temp should probably be set a bit higher (the pool has been getting warmer by the day).
Thursday 3 May 2012
Swimming Pool Kit
Did I mention that the pool is now heated?
Here is the Heat Pump:
And here are photos of the thermal pool cover:
I still haven't plucked up the courage to swim in it yet - the weather today is not as good as yesterday: maybe I should have gone then!
Wednesday 2 May 2012
Well, Here We Are!
This is a momentous occasion - the first post of the blog from La Matha! Wi-Fi is now set up - I've managed to change the password, but I have a feeling I will have to type out instructions on how to reset it in case it goes down......
Anyway, things are going very well. Kitchen cabinets being built. Have moved an electric socket so that the Wine Fridge (arriving tomorrow!) has power. Work-surface arrives on Monday, but I will have put all the pieces together (hopefully!) by then.
Heater for the pool is doing a great job - with the warm weather of the last two days, it has now got to 24c. I may give it a try tomorrow!
New shower room has been painted - just a small bit to finish off. Door to the pool house also painted.
Will post some photos tomorrow!
Anyway, things are going very well. Kitchen cabinets being built. Have moved an electric socket so that the Wine Fridge (arriving tomorrow!) has power. Work-surface arrives on Monday, but I will have put all the pieces together (hopefully!) by then.
Heater for the pool is doing a great job - with the warm weather of the last two days, it has now got to 24c. I may give it a try tomorrow!
New shower room has been painted - just a small bit to finish off. Door to the pool house also painted.
Will post some photos tomorrow!
Thursday 26 April 2012
Getting Stuff Together
The annual task of making sure everything is ready for the DIY trip. It is slightly different this year in that I am not going in a van, which is a different challenge. We have a couple of packages (eg the wine fridge!) ready for UPS to pick up. I have organised for an SFR engineer to visit to set up the Broadband (actually it was a former colleague in Paris who did it, as SFR do not have a phone number to use from the UK to set up new installations!). I have arranged for a "chauffagiste" to visit to service the boiler. My list of tasks is complete (but will probably be added to.....).
Swimming pool heater is installed, and the pool has been de-wintered, although given the weather there at the moment, I may not be using the pool!!!
One thing I hope to be able to do is create blog posts and upload photos whilst there. That will, of course, depend on the efficiency of SFR to get the broadband working. Watch this space!
Swimming pool heater is installed, and the pool has been de-wintered, although given the weather there at the moment, I may not be using the pool!!!
One thing I hope to be able to do is create blog posts and upload photos whilst there. That will, of course, depend on the efficiency of SFR to get the broadband working. Watch this space!
Friday 13 April 2012
Oh yes!
A quick PS - we've just heard that the heating for the swimming pool has been finished. Testing is under-way, and it is expected to be ready very shortly!
It's all coming together (again!)
Plans are always good when they start to come off! We have been planning to expand the storage and work surface in the kitchen by building a peninsular unit the other side of the door to the "utility room". When we were over in March, we ordered the custom worktop: we've had a call to say it's ready for delivery.
Now we've taken delivery of the wine fridge, which will be installed within the peninsular units. All we need to do now is organise shipping to send it over to La Matha to co-incide with me being there at the end of the month.
As ever, photos and updates will follow to show progress!
Now we've taken delivery of the wine fridge, which will be installed within the peninsular units. All we need to do now is organise shipping to send it over to La Matha to co-incide with me being there at the end of the month.
As ever, photos and updates will follow to show progress!
Monday 19 March 2012
"Expanded" Kitchen
One of the problems we've always found with the kitchen is the lack of work surface for food preparation. To get round this, we have just ordered new kitchen units, which we'll be installing in May. This will be a peninsula just over 2m long by 90cm wide, and will be just to the left of the door into the utility room. There will be three cabinets helping with storage.
We will also be installing a wine fridge, which will ease space in the main fridge, and help visitors ensure they always have enough wine chilled!
Photos posted here when completed.
We will also be installing a wine fridge, which will ease space in the main fridge, and help visitors ensure they always have enough wine chilled!
Photos posted here when completed.
Landerrouat - a Ghost Village Comes Alive
Landerrouat, a nearby village, and home to both our gardener and swimming pool man, has always seemed to be a bit of a ghost village. There was a bar there, although we've never been there for a drink. When we were visiting in November, I was concerned that the bar had closed.
That concern has now been put to bed. The Bar has now re-opened, there is an epicerie next door, and also a creperie! Next time, we will have to make sure we try them out. We hope that they will have enough business to keep them going!
That concern has now been put to bed. The Bar has now re-opened, there is an epicerie next door, and also a creperie! Next time, we will have to make sure we try them out. We hope that they will have enough business to keep them going!
"Utility Room" Ceiling
The "utility room" adjacent to the kitchen is in reality an unfinished room, used as a store room and contains the washing machine and (very large) boiler. One thing that makes it unfinished is the lack of a ceiling, as seen in these photos.
When our builder was refurbishing the en-suite, we also got him to put plasterboard up to make it look more attractive. As you can see, it's a big improvement! I'll be painting the ceiling later in the year.
Refurbished En-suite Shower-room
In the triple bedroom upstairs, there was a small en-suite shower room with a loo and washbasin. It was very small and dark - these photos don't really do it justice.
We realised that there was about 20cm of boxed in space wasted, so we were able to make most of the room wider, and then also made it lighter by having a small velux window fitted. These are the first photos - we will be decorating this in the next month or so.
We realised that there was about 20cm of boxed in space wasted, so we were able to make most of the room wider, and then also made it lighter by having a small velux window fitted. These are the first photos - we will be decorating this in the next month or so.
A Weekend Away
We've just been over to the house for the weekend, the first time since November, and we were anxious to see the results of the work that had been done. I will do posts on the refurbished en-suite and the utility room, as well as other things we discovered whilst out there.
One of the small things done, was to have a door put on the pool house. Whilst this isn't needed for security, the pool house had been home to swallows - lovely to see them swooping around the garden, but not the mess they make from the nest in the rafters. The door will now keep the pool house clean, and will mean that all the pool paraphernalia will be safe!
Other posts to follow!
One of the small things done, was to have a door put on the pool house. Whilst this isn't needed for security, the pool house had been home to swallows - lovely to see them swooping around the garden, but not the mess they make from the nest in the rafters. The door will now keep the pool house clean, and will mean that all the pool paraphernalia will be safe!
Other posts to follow!
Thursday 16 February 2012
Where does the time go?
We have just booked a couple of trips for us to go over - a weekend in mid-march and then a week at the beginning of May. The March trip will be to view the improvements which have just been finished. These should make a big difference in the triple bedroom upstairs - mainly a larger shower-room with new fittings and a small velux window, as well as a now firmer floor in the bedroom!
As ever, photos of the improvements will be posted here when we get back.
We will also be working out what we need to buy to build a new set of kitchen units to form a peninsular between the kitchen and the dining room. We intend to include a wine fridge in this area, which will be very useful and will leave more space in the main fridge for food! Installation of the kitchen units will be my work when I'm out there in May.
We have heard from our builder that Gironde has not been immune to the cold weather we have been experiencing in the UK. Apparently, one night the temperatures reached -17c, and they have had 15cm of snow. The south-west of France does not normally see much more than a dusting of snow, and therefore are not equipped with gritters and snow ploughs. Roads were closed for a number of days and schools and businesses were also forced to close.
We will of course ensure there is plenty of heating oil for the boiler, so if the worst comes to the worst in August, the central heating will work!!!!! (I can't for the life of me believe that would be necessary!).
Finally, we initially thought that bookings were coming through a bit slower than the last couple of years - or at least none of the enquiries we received seemed to be coming off for various reasons. We felt that the recession might be starting to bite. However, we have just had a couple of bookings in quick succession, which means that August is now fully booked. Hopefully the interest will continue and we will also let July and most of June, as we did last year.
Thank you to all our visitors for keeping the faith with us!
As ever, photos of the improvements will be posted here when we get back.
We will also be working out what we need to buy to build a new set of kitchen units to form a peninsular between the kitchen and the dining room. We intend to include a wine fridge in this area, which will be very useful and will leave more space in the main fridge for food! Installation of the kitchen units will be my work when I'm out there in May.
We have heard from our builder that Gironde has not been immune to the cold weather we have been experiencing in the UK. Apparently, one night the temperatures reached -17c, and they have had 15cm of snow. The south-west of France does not normally see much more than a dusting of snow, and therefore are not equipped with gritters and snow ploughs. Roads were closed for a number of days and schools and businesses were also forced to close.
We will of course ensure there is plenty of heating oil for the boiler, so if the worst comes to the worst in August, the central heating will work!!!!! (I can't for the life of me believe that would be necessary!).
Finally, we initially thought that bookings were coming through a bit slower than the last couple of years - or at least none of the enquiries we received seemed to be coming off for various reasons. We felt that the recession might be starting to bite. However, we have just had a couple of bookings in quick succession, which means that August is now fully booked. Hopefully the interest will continue and we will also let July and most of June, as we did last year.
Thank you to all our visitors for keeping the faith with us!
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