Returning to Europe with pets

[farmer]

Charlie Chaplin American?
Birth name: Charles Spencer Chaplin; Born: 16 April 1889, Walworth, London, England, UK ...

[Old Daffodil]

Have just returned from a long walk with the dogs. The weather is still glorious but there has been a couple of cooler days recently and a little rain,today it is in the 20c area. There are holly trees growing in the woods and two of them are about forty foot high,one has berries and one doesn't. Heather is also growing everywhere and some very exotic looking fungi and toadstools.

We recently visited the coast of Brittany about ninety miles away and saw Carmen performed outdoors at Le Saint Mont Michel island,lovely night with the island lit up as a backdrop. There is a small medieval village on the island with shops,hotels,restaurants and it is good to stay there for a night. The tide rushes in over the sand when it comes in and is very dangerous to anyone walking on it.There are loads of really steep steps up to the Abbey but it is worth visiting. St Michaels Mount off Cornwall is linked with the Abbey. Sheep that graze on the local marshes are well known for the meat they produce and the distinctive flavour. Loads of tourist facilities are in the area which is a change from where we live.

Further along the Brittany coast a photograph was taken in 1989 by  Jean Guichard  of the lighthouse at La Jumet island being swamped by a wave and just missing the lighthouse keeper. The photographer was in a helicopter and the action is on google video too. http://www.alphapix.com/animvague.shtml
 
We are in a more rural location and the highlight this week will be a Marathon de Crepe or pancake race!

I have seen a lot of elderly retired people in the area who go for a walk in high vis vest and thought that maybe there is a law in France to wear them but I was told this week it is due to the vests being given away as a free gift with petrol!:DApparently on the spot fines are issued for non working lights in Europe so carry spares if you plan to drive over to Turkey. In Switzerland pedestrians often have right of way.

[Ovacikpeedoff]

We are seeing the first signs of autumn in that the trees are starting to lose their leaves and the evenings are cooler. The nights are starting to draw in and it is dark by 9.30pm. The autumn colours in the forests are fantastic. You have the classic of the sun shining through the branches and the trees in contrast casting dark shadows. This combined with the light reflecting on the spiders webs making them look like they are covered in silver.The brown leaves falling from the trees drifting slowly to the ground. I stand in the middle of the forest with only the sound of the birds for company watching these sights waiting for our dog, Lennie, to appear from the undergrowth. Even the ferns are now now turning a rustic colour. The farm animals just lazing around in the fields eating grass and seem perfectly at ease.It is the end of harvest time and many tractors and lorries are on the roads transporting the hay bales to the barns for winter feed.The fields that were golden a couple of months ago have been fertilized and are now green giving the landscape a totally different feel and look.

Most of the tourists have gone, not that there were many in the first place.This part of France has got the pace of life spot on.

It is really the first time that I have taken time to look at nature and what is around me.Most of our lives we spend rushing around and too busy to appreciate what nature gives us.

[Eric]

How will you ever be able to leave there?  It all sounds so perfect.

[Old Daffodil]

We are enjoying living here in France but I would not say things are perfect. There is virtually no public transport and without a car I think things would be tough here. Social life is very much a family thing and the ex pat community which is in the area is small and scattered over a large area. Not everyone would like the quiet life.Farming is the main occupation here and that means early to bed for people except when they are working flat out 24 hours a day to harvest the crops. The expats we have met are here because they have a small farm raising sheep,growing apples and keeping horses or dogs.We have not found the French unfriendly,indeed I think the ladies I have met would love a good gossip but our French language skills are not that good,we are working on that though and do try to speak French. If you can master the language to a reasonable level I think the French are quite ready to chat with you about anything.Winter is on the way now and we are told that it is very likely to snow and be cold for a few months,indeed it is a bit like the Alps near here. If you like the rural lifestyle it is a good area for that lifestyle and anyone who wants to start a business connected to rural living would do well I think. We are retired and I think it would be hard to find work here. Maybe we will be back. Once you reach retirement age it means you qualify for health care here and only have to have a top up insurance which costs probably about 1200euros for a couple. Some long term illnesses are treated free of charge.

[Old Daffodil]

Busy today outside the cottage. Trailers loaded with some sort of crops have been driving along the lane since early this morning leaving mud on the roads. French farm machines are huge and the drivers use their mobile phones as they steer just like the Turkish drivers !! :oApples are being picked to provide Calvados and cider.
There are crepes being sold in the village square today and we bought some to have with lemon and sugar. I enjoy cuisine des regions which is food from the local area. Vegetarians are not catered for in the restaurants here, the fruit and vegetables are great from the shops. If you are a fan of Jaffa Cakes a lovely version of them is called Pims.
In the forest there are holly trees,ivy and big clumps of mistletoe in the higher branches of the trees. There are 140 species of trees in France and a lot of them are here.Apart from pine there are oak,chestnut,silver birch,elm as well as others I do not know the name of.
This is the season to join local clubs. Activities such as quilting,amatuer dramatics,keep fit,painting, cycling etc are all on offer and  you just go to the local Mairie office to find out about them. The french are fans of Mr.Bean,Benny Hill and Midsummer Murders on the telly.

The weather here is becoming more autumnal,we may be off south soon to stay with some friends. I am hoping to cross the Millau Viaduct on the way.I hope they have somewhere to walk the dogs!

[Firo]

The Millau bridge is an amazing feat of engineering and well worth a stop.Travelling from north to south there is a small service area just at the start of the bridge to see the bridge in all it's glory.
Enjoy
Fi

[BM06]

Did Ovacik and Daffodil, make it back to the UK with there dogs, anybody know, or heard any news[?]

[Old Daffodil]

Hi still in France, have been staying with friends and living some of the time on the French waterways, lovely scenery.                  

[Old Daffodil]

                                                                This is one of the village ponds that our big dog loves jumping in, we have to be careful that he does not upset any fishing areas!:D