[Alix here] I had a disturbed night. We are in a quiet lane at the top of the village, but the house next door was converted to a gite a few years back, and occasionally we get a party gang. The music was still going by the pool at 11.40pm, so I asked them to turn it down, which to be fair, they did a few minutes later. But after that, it was difficult to sleep properly.
I woke up at 3am. Suddenly, I thought – we get the boat this week. After 15 months of research, pouring over specifications, lengthy discussions with friends who have boats, and also with the guy who runs the flotilla company we used to work for (plus a few bottles to help the discussions) – this is it!! It just doesn’t feel real.
We are still in Aubeterre. Sari and Thorne (my sister and her husband) will arrive tomorrow from the ferry at Caen, and will drive us down to their place on Tuesday, about an hour from where the boat is. They have recently downsized cars, but we are still living in the world of the bigger one, so they will have forty fits when they see what we still have to get in it. I may even have to get the TGV!
It’s going to be a busy week. It’s going to take us 5-6 hours to get down to the Aude, so that’s pretty much Tuesday gone. We have been invited around to the neighbours for dinner – see the earlier blog for the last time we did that, fabulous hosts but we must remember all we have to do this week and go easy on the wine.
Wednesday will be a shopping day; Sari has been on at me to make a list of what we need. You don’t want to be 15 miles offshore and then realise you have forgotten to buy loo paper. We assume we will go down to the boat on Thursday, ready for our test sail on Friday. And then that’s it. We will stay on the boat and, weather permitting, sail to Port Vendres on Sunday afternoon for a Monday morning check-out on our French visas.
I’m hoping adrenaline will keep us going. And also, if things go according to plan, I intend to stand in our garden tomorrow at 5am, and treat the party house to an hour of “Football’s Coming Home”. And I don’t have a great singing voice.
Alix
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[Richard here: Well, football went to Rome. After a brilliant start and a goal that the Brazil of old would have been proud of, I feel England sat too deep, didn’t push high enough and didn’t use our pace and armoury off the bench. I can’t help feeling that we didn’t use all our assets and seize the moment. Anyway, I hope those English fans watching know, or learn, that it’s best not to place your dreams in someone else. Better to create your own wins. Carp Diem…]