Maison Laurent

A mention in the Independent...

2012-02-10T16:42:00.000+01:00

No, not that one, but the local one....L'Independant.
We had a little soiree last week to welcome the Mayor and his colleagues. It gave them a chance to view the house. We laid on a few nibbles and Monsieur Bonnet was kind enough to bring a few bottles of bubbly and the press. It was a pleasant evening and I even managed a few words to the assembled gathering "en francais"...

click here to see the article

It's cold outside.....

2012-02-04T15:48:00.000+01:00

......but Bella is happy in front of one of the woodburners. There has been a lot of snow throughout Europe in the last few days and this morning when we went out for a walk it was minus four degrees and with the wind chill probably about ten degrees colder. The nearby snow covered Pyrenees look fabulous away in the distance and the ski resorts have had loads of snow.

In this cold weather you really want "comfort food". Rib sticking casseroles and thick gravies, so as we have guests dining tomorrow night I am planning a hearty dinner for Sunday night.

We will start with a little nod towards the Pyrenees and Spain and serve a starter of Morcilla sausage with piquillo peppers and quails eggs. This is a lovely colourful dish of wood roasted, slightly sweet red peppers and delicious black pudding topped off with fried quails eggs.
For our main course we will have slow cooked pork cheeks and belly pork served with boulangere potatoes and savoy cabbage. The pork cheeks cook in red wine, stock and vegetables for a couple of hours until they are dark and sticky and melt in your mouth. By contrast the belly pork has been marinaded with herbs, salt and aromatics and will be served pan fried and crispy.
A simple cheese plate to follow with perhaps a fresh goats cheese and then for dessert spiced poached pears with pain d'epices ice cream.

All sounds like a lot of work but the beauty of a lot of winter dishes is that they can be prepared in advance. So whilst Bella enjoys the warmth of the fire I will be busying away in the kitchen. But I'm not complaining as our guests are dining out tonight and we can have a light supper and then curl up on the sofa watching "Downton Abbey" on DVD. Tomorrow after breakfasts I will slip off to the mountains for a few hours skiing before returning to enjoy dinner with our guests. Bliss, I love my job....

Holidays and Offers: "3 nights for the price of 2"

2012-01-23T09:21:00.000+01:00

Holidays and Offers: "3 nights for the price of 2": now until the end of March. Why not spoil yourself with a quick three night break to the South West of France. There's plenty to d...

Maison Laurent 2012....

2012-01-02T10:44:00.002+01:00

After going back to the UK for an extended holiday at the beginning of December we returned to France in time to see in the New Year. A big thank you to all our friends and family for their hospitality in the three weeks we were away.
We open again today and have visitors arriving this afternoon. Although its raining at the moment, yesterday was truly fabulous and we managed a two hour walk with friends in temperatures touching 18 degrees! The forecast is for more sunshine again tomorrow and for the rest of the week.
I am excited about the coming season and looking forward to opening our doors again to visitors from far and wide. I lost count of the number of nationalities we had visiting last year. I think that's one of the things that make it so interesting. There is always a different perspective and viewpoint to be gained. Well back to it - I need to go shopping for tonight's dinner....pork I think, but let's see what looks good when I'm out.

.....and if you fancy a winter break we are offering "3 nights for the price of 2" until the end of March....

Summer draws to a close....

2011-10-20T13:02:00.000+02:00

The summer seems to have rolled on and on. But at last I have put on a pair of socks and some long trousers. Apart from the odd night out I have lived all summer in shorts and it was with some sadness they were relegated to the bottom draw. It's still sunny but there has been a noticeable drop in the temperature, particularly early morning and evenings.

Nearby Limoux

We have had the busiest summer imaginable and are looking forward to a quieter period over the winter. The garden is really maturing well and we will complete some more planting and extend the boule court amongst other things in the next few weeks. Olivier our builder is also due to arrive this week to render the outside of the extension and commence work on a few new projects we have lined up ready for next year. We will also then be able to look at completing the new courtyard garden below the extention. Once that is done I will feel like we can stop apologizing for the fact some things dont look finished. Not that this has stopped our guests enjoying their stays with us. Last year in November I wrote:-

"Thank you all for your kind reviews on Trip Advisor we are now rated 4th most popular B&B in the whole of Languedoc and are really looking forward to next summer. No 1 next year? No, I said I was coming to France to get away from all that competition stuff, but who knows, if we carry on enjoying what we are now doing and our guests enjoy it too....maybe..... "

This year we have spent most of the year as No 1 thanks to plenty of encouragement and positive feedback from our guests. But we need to maintain this and to do that things constantly need to be looked at and hopefully improved. Quiet winter? I dont think so.....

Maison Laurent....a short film

2011-09-23T15:22:00.000+02:00

We have just had this fabulous little film of a day at Maison Laurent done by Bella and Dale of MEU images. We love it and it will soon be on the main website. But here is a sneak preview for you.....

Maison Laurent Chambres D'hotes, Pieusse, France from meu images on Vimeo.

We think they have caputured Maison Laurent and our area perfectly. If you have visited us or just like the look of our place why not forward it to your friends...

Summer is almost over.....

2011-09-10T14:48:00.006+02:00

The summer is drawing to a close and we can reflect on our first full season. We are tired...very tired! We have had a fantastic year and have been virtually full all season since early May and forward to mid October. So if you fancy staying next summer, book early!!

Thanks to all your kind comments, we have also managed to stay at No 1 B&B in the Languedoc on Tripadvisor for most of the year. If you have stayed with us but didn't comment, please do, as we really appreciate it. Personal recommendations and guest feedback are the best advertisements. To make it easy there is a quick link on the right of this page.

Things should start to quieten down in October (we think!!) so we should have time for a little sightseeing and relaxation, but if you fancy a weekend away why not visit....we may get an Indian Summer!

Old fashioned entertaining....

2011-08-17T23:48:00.002+02:00

A very French supper the other night....
Crepes fruit de mer with a green salad followed by chocolate mousse and coffee ice cream - simple but delicious.....

Maison Laurent today.....

2011-07-31T14:24:00.004+02:00

It's a fabulous day today and all is well at Maison Laurent...We've watered the pot plants and cleaned the pool. All our rooms are full tonight, our guests are out for the day but are coming back for a swim later and will be dining on the terrace this evening. We have even been out for a walk..... we are just enjoying being here!

Cooking and Cleaning...

2011-07-26T22:45:00.007+02:00

Last nights dinner went well. Five of our seven guests chose to dine with us and the atmosphere and chat around the table was lively and stimulating. I was happy with the menu and everyone enjoyed our offerings....

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Tomato Crumble with Parmesan and basil ice cream

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Boned and stuffed chicken legs with a mustard and chive sauce

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A selection of cheeses

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Chocolate Mocha Tart with coffee ice cream

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Our diners picked really well on the wines. For apero's Cremant de Limoux "Clos des Demoiselles" 2008 from J Laurens. This in my opinion is the best sparkling wine available in the area. With dinner they went for red wines and had a Domaine Gayda Chemin du Moscou 2008 and two bottles of O'Vineyards Proprietors Reserve 2007 --- great choices and they very kindly gave me a glass of the latter which I really love.

The house has been quiet most of today as everyone has been out and about sightseeing. Our two Polish guests left this morning after what has unfortunately been a week of poor weather. I feel really sorry for them, but hope they enjoyed our house and hospitality despite the rain and wind. Rachel has been busy getting the room ready for the new arrivals from Spain. She never stops and is feeling the strain of the long days and physical work. It's not all sunbathing and wine here in the South of France you know! I try to help with the cleaning but sadly seem to get in the way! But there is always plenty to do. Paperwork and invoices for next months arrivals, bills to pay and emails to answer. Then back to the kitchen where I am most happy and comfortable. Perhaps a bit of advance work for the party booking arriving next Tuesday. Although we are only accomodating eight we have dinner for twenty that night and a couple of BBQ's for similar numbers. I have prepared a big batch of pork with orange and mustard which freezes really well and have minced the pork off cuts and made spicy meatballs with spring onions,coriander, cumin and chilli. Rachel and I have these for supper. They taste great with sweet chilli sauce but not so good with the peanut butter satay sauce so thats one idea sorted for the BBQ's. I really hope the weather picks up because I need them to eat on the terrace!

Our visitors from Barcelona are checked in and happy and everyone has now retired to bed except me. I'm still planning tomorrows menu, it will be printed up ready for our guests to see in the morning at breakfast. After this glass of red wine I too will be off to bed.

Dinner with Jazz....

2011-07-24T23:13:00.005+02:00

Just tidying up after dinner whilst listening to new Stacey Kent album Hushabye Mountain. Guests all tucked up in bed, hopefully all happy with dinner. Dishwasher on, breakfast table set for the morning and menu planned for tomorrow nights dinner. Five new arrivals due.

Ville de Carcassonne : Embrasement 2011

2011-07-23T23:12:00.000+02:00

What a week...

2011-07-17T14:51:00.007+02:00

Well we continue to be as busy as ever. This week we have had French, British and Canadians guests staying. The weather earlier in the week was fabulous and there has been an enormous amount going on around us. Our French guests were here for the Carcassonne Festival and had tickets for Supertramp - remember them?

Everyone was here for Bastille day and the spectacular fireworks over Carcassonne...

and our Canadian guests are here for The Tour de France, which came right through our little village of Pieusse this morning on the section from Limoux to Montpellier. The weather has been wet overnight and the temperatures have dropped off so perhaps that will suit the riders.

I slipped out earlier to catch the race and am now back preparing dinner for our guests.
Tonight they will be dining on:-

Chilled Melon soup with a crab garnish

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Moroccan Lamb Tagine
Steamed Couscous flavoured with caraway and fennel
Green beans with hazelnuts and orange

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Cheese

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Orange and Almond Torte
with citrus cheesecake cream

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Coffee and chocolates

I think the weather is brightening up again so dinner will be on the terrace, but if not the dining room has a cosy atmosphere. Let's hope they all enjoy it!!

Living France

2011-07-10T13:19:00.009+02:00

Imagine our surprise when we received a call the other day asking if we had any availability, as our potential guests had just read an article about us in a magazine! We had been interviewed about our renovation and new life in France by Living France and were expecting the article to appear later on in the year. But here we are in print for the new August edition. Did we really do all that?! How far we have come in such a short time. We will be celebrating our first year in business tomorrow and the smiling faces at the windows in the article were our first guests a year ago. Many have already returned and we would like to thank them and all our other visitors for their support and generous comments. Without you this would not have been possible.

Thank you!!!

Food and Wine matching...

2011-06-24T16:00:00.010+02:00

Last night we had our inaugural food and wine tasting dinner for guests. Wendy Gedney of Vin en Vacances very kindly visited us and brought along wines to discuss and taste with a dinner prepared by yours truly.

I tried to give Wendy some different flavours to work with, not all easy and obvious and she really suprised us with her choices.

The menu for dinner was as follows:-

Starter - Chilli Prawns – King prawns and red pepper in a spicy tomato,chilli and spring onion sauce served with peppery rocket.

Main - Fillet of pork stuffed with Roquefort. (pork fillet with Roquefort and tarragon wrapped in lightly smoked bacon and cooked with light chardonnay). This produces a lovely creamy, salty sauce with hints of aniseed from the tarragon.
This was served with rosemary and garlic roasted potatoes and haricot vert with oven roasted vine tomatoes.

Cheese board – Brie de Meaux, fresh goats cheese, Cantal and quince jelly.
We also added some Roquefort later as Wendy wanted to try this with her wine selection as well.

Dessert – Apple and Amaretti tart with homemade vanilla ice cream - apples and cinnamon on an amaretti biscuit base and a simple,delicious ice cream.

Wendy started the evening by asking people about the wines they liked and disliked. She then proceeded to try and breakdown our obvious preconceptions and preferences by explaining the differences between wines from different climatic zones and the fact that climate is probably a more important factor than grape variety.
How many people say "I don't like chardonnay" but then go on to add that they love Chablis? What they may well mean is I don't like hot climate chardonnay but adore those from cool climates. There are many factors affecting the finished item we get in our glass and they are all important. But probably the most important is the wine producer and his skill at creating something marvellous from grapes in the same way a good chef can with raw ingredients.

We tasted five white wines and one red and all were extremely good. The less obvious matches were incredible! The lovely sweet white wines were definitely the best with the cheeses, and the real star was a Methode Ancestrale Blanquette de Limoux with the dessert. This is a sweet sparkling wine and I must say I would never have put the two together, in fact I would go as far as saying I previously didn't like this wine, but it was a match made in heaven!

We tasted Domaine Jones Blanc 2009 - a fresh grenache gris with a hint of muscat for fruit, which complemented the starter beautifully and stood up well to the chilli.
With the main course, Domaine Jones Red 2009 - rich soft grenache noir which worked well with the salty flavours from the roquefort and the intense roasted tomatoes. We also tried a Clos du Gravillas L'Inattendu 2009 which again worked well.
With the cheese course all the wines were tried and Bertrand- Bergé Grande Réserve Rivesaltes Ambré went particularly well with the blue cheese and Clos du Gravillas Doux Providence a well balance sweet muscat was really excellent with all the cheeses. This would also be nice as an aperitif as although it is sweet it has a really clean finish.
The sparkling wine with dessert was Blanquette Vergnes methode ancestrale from Domaine de Martinolles.

The evening was a great success; I didn't burn anything or forget to serve anyone, so I think everyone was happy with dinner! No one had to drive, everyone enjoyed themselves and I am sure we all learned a little more about wine. We will do it again soon. If you are due to stay with us and fancy a similar night, please ask and we will be happy to try and organise an event.

Popular girl.....

2011-06-20T16:30:00.008+02:00

We have been staggered by the attention our wonderful pooch Bella receives. Visitors and guests sometimes ask us if they can have a photo of us all before they leave when what they really mean is "can I take a photo of Bella". She is developing quite a fanclub. She gets taken out for walks, constant attention, presents, the odd offer of a new life elsewhere and even mentioned on tripadvisor! She is definitely our unique selling point!

Here are a couple of the photos that have been sent to us. If you have one please don't be shy and email us a copy. We would all be grateful! Have a good summer - Bella is loving it here and so are we!!

Sorry.....

2011-06-03T13:26:00.007+02:00

For the first time since our blog started I have made no comments at all throughout the month....Sorry!!!!!!
April and May have been rather busy though and perhaps this award explains why.

Maison Laurent

Enough said?

As we gear up for the summer I promise I will find time to fill you in on our day to day progress.

A big THANK YOU to all our guests for your support and comments. We have met many interesting people from all over the world in the last twelve months and are delighted you like what we are doing enough to take time to give us such wonderful reviews.

Spring has sprung....

2011-04-30T16:53:00.005+02:00

April has been a busy month. Hence the lack of blogging. I'm not making excuses, but it really has been hectic. The Fecos finished one week, the weather has been stunning, we have had plenty of guests and then another big street party. No not the Royal Wedding - this is a republic in case you'd forgotten!
Toques et Clochers - a celebration of Chardonnay. A weekend of fine wine and Michelin Star food for the chosen few and for the rest of us a superb street party. Live music, entertainers, food and of course plenty of wine. Between 30,000 and 50,000 people turned up to have a great time. No police presence necessary, no rowdiness, just people enjoying themselves and having fun. A great event not to be missed next year!!

A room with a view...

2011-03-23T11:43:00.008+01:00

For one night only the sitting room became a dining room to celebrate the 50th wedding anniversary of our French neighbours and their delightful visiting family. A total of 17 diners enjoyed..

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A little salad with Roquefort soufflé and parmesan cream

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Coq au Riesling
roasted new potatoes with garlic and rosemary
Sauted savoy cabbage and carrots

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A selection of French Cheeses

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A choice of desserts

Tart au Citron with creme fraiche
Mousse au chocolate with caramelised orange and cointreau
Tart au Pommes with homemade vanilla ice cream

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The night was a great success and then by Monday the dining room was no more and at last we have our new sitting room.

A year in the Languedoc...

2011-03-17T12:36:00.004+01:00

Well, it will be by the 28th of this month! A year on and what have we achieved, apart from a big overdraft and mortgage? We have been voted No 1 B&B in the Languedoc on Tripadvisor. We still can't speak fluent French, but it IS improving! And.....at last the inside of the house is complete. The new extension was finished yesterday. This Saturday it will be a temporary dining room for a party of seventeen celebrating a wedding anniversary and all our rooms are full. Afterwards the sofas and furniture will go in to open up our brand new living room. We can't wait!

Summer bookings are looking good and we hope our visitors and guests will enjoy the new spacious sitting room. More photos to follow after the weekend, when we have furnished the room. Exciting, but I need to get back to work, guests arriving soon.

I love my new job!

I wish I could paint....

2011-03-07T19:12:00.007+01:00

I really wish I could paint! There is so much of interest around where we live that just begs to be captured on canvas.

The scenery is breathtaking at any time of the year and if it happens to be raining ... still life anyone?

But it doesn't rain often and just to prove it here's a couple more photos taken this weekend at the Limoux Carnaval. I really need to learn to paint!! It's more relaxing and satisfying than clicking away with my camera ...

If you feel like me, why not join us for a day's painting, or a weekend or even a week! It's up to you. We have teamed up with Nicola Blakemore who will, subject to availability, join us for some fun with colour and paints in our sunny part of the Languedoc region of the south of France.

"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up" ~Pablo Picasso

For more details click here....

Fécos - Carnaval de Limoux

2011-02-21T17:17:00.007+01:00

So now you live in the middle of nowhere what happens in the winter people ask me! Well quite a lot actually! Typical French village fêtes are held in summer but the annual fête in Limoux, is different in almost every respect. For a start it goes on for over two months and not in summer but mid winter. It is the earliest and longest fête in the French calendar, starting in January and continuing until two weeks before Easter Sunday. Every Saturday and Sunday (and on Shrove Tuesday - Mardi Gras) a "bande" will make a number of outings in and around the Place de la Republic.

Each bande consists of a group of masked pierrots and their accompanying musicians who follow the pierrots from one café to another in the square, playing as they walk along through the spectators lining the ancient arcades.

There are over twenty bandes and they all get a turn to strut their stuff on just one day. The origins are shrouded in mystery and there are many theories but it's quite a spectacle and well worth a visit. Judge for yourself - these are just a few of the photos I took yesterday, and I am sure I will be visiting again for more.

I don't like Mondays...

2011-02-08T14:08:00.011+01:00

Yesterday, following breakfast, I took our guests on one of the lovely half-day guided walks we are now offering. The countryside surrounding our village is varied and beautiful, and a pleasant two-and-a-half hour circular route took in both vineyards and woodlands, with some breathtaking views of the Pyrenees in one direction and the Montagne Noir in the other. Fantastic for nature lovers with so many different trees, shrubs, plants and herbs to see and even a buzzard or two flying around. For photographers or happy snappers like me there is a perfect picture around every corner.

A bit of excercise deserves a treat and bacon sandwiches with a mug of tea were waiting on our return. Not enough of a treat? Okay you're right, so off we went for a very interesting visit to Domaine O'Vineyards for a wine tour and tasting.
O'Vineyards is a family vineyard owned by Joe O'Connell, his wife Liz and their son Ryan. Previously from the USA "Les Américains", as they are known locally, fell in love with the Languedoc and in 2004 bought a parcel of vines and started wine making. Their passion and enthusiasm is evident and through sheer hard work and determination, coupled with a strong belief in ecological methods, they are now producing amazing wines.

After an introduction and a look over the vines from the huge panoramic window in their sitting room we were treated to a tasting straight from the barrels in the cellar. We tasted a 2009 Syrah which was big on fruit and suprisingly smooth for such a young wine. The following 2010 Syrah was a marked contrast as it was still very young and lively. These wines are fermented in stainless steel but they also use both French and American oak barrels and the 2008 Cabernet/Merlot we tasted was already well on it's way to being a superb wine.

Back inside for some tasty nibbles provided by Mrs O'Connell and Joe treated us to a very generous tasting of some of the finished goods. All 2007 vintage and all exceptionally good. I loved the spicy O'Syrah and the fruity and amusingly named Trah Lah Lah but the star of the show was the Proprietor's Reserve. A powerful, full bodied blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, this wine has all the charactaristics of a top Bordeaux. Bags of red fruit flavours, a little spice and chocolate with subtle aftertastes. Far less tannin than expected, really well balanced and oh so smooth! I could have stayed on the sofa and drunk the whole bottle!

Expect to see these wines on our new summer wine list, assuming we can manage to get hold of a few bottles before they sell out.

All this on a Monday! Maybe it's not such a bad day here in the south of France.....

Killer heels and Birthday Girls....

2011-01-25T16:57:00.006+01:00

So, Rachel celebrated her 40th birthday again. That's now the tenth year and I think she looks better than ever!! It was great to welcome many of our friends from England and also some of the new friends we have made since we have been living here in France.

To all those who managed to bring killer heels in their Ryanair hand luggage - respect! We had a fantastic weekend and it was lovely to see everyone. Here are just a few of the smiling faces who made it a great party!!!

Happy 50th Birthday to my darling wife.....

Tripwow...

2011-01-20T20:07:00.002+01:00

Luxury Bed And Breakfast in The South West of France Slideshow: Maison’s trip from Pieusse (near Ladern-sur-Lauquet, Languedoc-Roussillon, France) to 3 cities Carcassonne, Limoux (near Alet les Bains) and Rennes-le-Chateau was created by TripAdvisor. See another France slideshow. Create your own stunning slideshow with our free photo slideshow maker.

It's a New Year...

2011-01-05T09:37:00.007+01:00

We are almost a week into 2011 and I still haven't had a chance to wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year!

We are looking forward to this year and at last feel like we are not playing 'catch up'. The extention will be completed over the next eight weeks and we will then have a fabulous large 'L' shaped sitting room with glass walls on two sides, oak floors and the wonderful woodburner we bought last year. Our furniture can be uncovered and brought up from the basement and our home should feel complete.

The website is looking amazing. A big thank you to Greg at Mywebspinners for his creative hard work and Bryan and Alyson at Brylliant Images for the terrific interior shots of the house. Enquiries are already coming through for this year so let's hope we can build on last year's excellent start. With the website now up and running and our new ideas for this year, I am very confident we will be happy but exhausted by the end of the summer!

Life in France has definitely been a massive change for us and probably the greatest challenge is the language. We are trying hard but I think we are also going to need to start taking lessons to reach the next level we need. We are fine in the supermarket or in restaurants and at exchanging niceties when you meet up, but don't yet have the skills for a proper conversation. Does that sound like I am making a New Year's resolution? - possibly.

A new look for the blog...and a website!!

2010-12-23T09:26:00.007+01:00

You will have noticed our new stylish look to the blog! This has been done to match the new website which is approaching completion and which we hope to launch in January. At last the copy has been written and all the photos have been selected so just as soon as the web designers return from their Christmas break it will be finished!

It has been very difficult trying to write about our own house in a way to promote it, but not appear gushing and smug! We wanted to try and convey a feeling of warmth and casual hospitality, but still get over the fact that it is a luxurious house in a fabulous area. Hopefully we have achieved this, but would welcome your comments....maybe!!

It's cold outside.....

2010-12-17T13:59:00.015+01:00

The weather has turned really cold the last few weeks and we have had our first flurry of snow. The Christmas decorations have gone up in the villages and towns and the market stalls in the town squares are all selling luxury food items and artisan made presents. Not an Xbox 360 in sight!
With the colder weather I have had time on my hands in the house so have been experimenting in the kitchen. Currently I am trying out different bread recipes with a little help from my friend Phoenyx. Here is today's offering, a "pain de campagne" or country bread. I am planning some cookery demonstrations as part of the food and wine weekends we are organising next year so as they say practice makes perfect! So good the crust had disappeared by the second photo! Phoenyx!!!!

Where we live....

2010-11-25T11:14:00.005+01:00

Blanquette de Limoux

I took these photos this morning.....Our historic village has it's own Cathar castle, fabulous sparkling wine and fantastic views of the Pyrenees - I love it here!!!

The Pyrenees seen from Pieusse

Surely one of the best places to eat in Narbonne...

2010-11-22T09:26:00.010+01:00

Chez Bebelle in Les Halles

Absolute street theatre in the middle of the market!!! This place is run by Gilles Belzons a former captain of Narbonne rugby club and his sister Joanna. There is a limited menu of steak, duck or horse meat! But don't be put off. Your order is barked out on a megaphone to the waiting butchers on the market stalls and the meat is then cut fresh, wrapped and launched over the heads of shoppers and diners for Giles to catch! Straight onto the griddle plate and then out to you with chips and salad. No Haute cuisine here, just fresh food well prepared and a wonderful atmosphere and buzz. Be prepared to wait to get a table or book ahead as it's always very busy.

updates....

2010-11-20T00:22:00.008+01:00

Why I love it here... November in the sun......

Again it's been a while since I wrote anything but life here seems to be so busy! I can't believe we have been here over six months now....how time flies. So we have now had over a hundred guests, served a few hundred meals, slightly improved our French and had a wonderful summer. We have had some delightful people staying with us and yes that includes you if you are reading this! There has even been a proposal of marriage. I hasten to add not to me or Rachel, but Tom, one of our guests, was so carried away with the atmosphere at Maison Laurent he proposed to Caroline and she said "YES"!!

Congratulations Tom & Caroline, we wish you every happiness for the future.

Thank you all for your kind reviews on Trip Advisor we are now rated 4th most popular B&B in the whole of Languedoc and are really looking forward to next summer. No 1 next year? No, I said I was coming to France to get away from all that competition stuff, but who knows, if we carry on enjoying what we are now doing and our guests enjoy it too....maybe.....

The Vendange

2010-10-02T12:07:00.011+02:00

We managed a day off this week and this is where we went for a walk.... and the first snow has appeared on the Pyrenees - spectacular!

After a very busy summer things are quietening down a little now and we may at last have time to start enjoying the wonderful countryside that first brought us here. Autumn brings a riot of colour to the area and the vineyards and fruit orchards look stunning.
For the farmers this is one of the busiest times of the year as it is grape picking time. Vendange is French for grape harvest and it signals the excitement and promise of the annual vintage. It is now well underway and its interesting to see the different methods of harvesting. I have been told that the better wines are always hand picked. I don't think I could tell as all the wines I've tasted have been anything from pretty good to absolutely exceptional! This area is so under rated in terms of quality, particularly for the reds. But things are changing and I don't know how long it will be before the secret is out!

Out walking this morning...

2010-09-16T23:21:00.002+02:00

I thought I would post a few photos of our village so you can see where we live and work. Life's not so bad!!
As you can see Bella loves her walks and is developing a taste for grapes!

La Rentrée

2010-09-04T09:56:00.006+02:00

Here in France early September is known as La Rentrée, and after a two month break, which is the holiday season, France en masse rushes back to work and school. The weather is still good but not quite so hot and if you need a job done you can at last find someone to do it!

It's hard to believe we have now been here five months! The time has flown by and we have been very happy. So have our guests judging by the favourable comments on Tripadvisor.

We managed a few days off over the weekend as we had no guests for a couple of days and took an excellent wine tour with Vin en Vacances to the Corbiere. Wendy Gedney really knows her stuff, and puts it across in an interesting and relaxed way. A great day out with some excellent wines.

Wine cellars at St Jean de la Gineste and Chateau Ollieux Romanis

September is also looking busy with most rooms booked until the end of the month with no breaks. October is still quiet but who knows? A time perhaps to get the website launched and continue the work to complete my garden design?

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner....

2010-08-17T17:09:00.014+02:00

We have been flat out for the last month and although I have been trying not to burn the candle at both ends, have found myself up late most nights. The problem is we have been getting such nice guests! When we started this adventure it was always a worry - what if we don't like someone, worse still what if they don't like us!!

I can honestly say up to now it's been a real pleasure getting to know everyone and we have been having a great time. Perhaps it's the relaxed atmosphere in the house or maybe the wine but it's been like having friends to stay.

Talking of friends to stay, we have some with us at the moment. "Have you had any culinary disasters yet?" I was asked last night. "No" I replied confidently and probably a little too cockily and then promptly burnt the dessert under the grill.

For the present rather than start outside catering as we alluded to in an earlier blog, we have decided to open up to non-residents for lunch or dinner from time to time and today we had a lunch booking for five ladies from the village. Hopefully we were back on track as it all seemed to go well. They ate on the terrace under the pergola and I was really glad we have just added a bamboo canopy to protect them from today's blistering sun.
They had one of Rachel's scrumptious quiches with a selection of salads, followed by poached pears, homemade vanilla ice cream and a lime caramel sauce. All very simple but extremely tasty. We have promised to email some sample dinner menus so let's hope they want to come again.

We have a night off tonight so I think it will be early to bed and try and catch up on some sleep....

Business is good!!!

2010-07-31T17:07:00.012+02:00

After our late start and all the traumas, we are at last seeing guests instead of builders. Although our website still hasn't gone live we have been able to take photos of the house and start advertising. The bookings are coming in thick and fast and we are now completely full until 11 August with only a few rooms available throughout August - wow we couldn't have hoped for it to be going any better!

The air conditioning is at last working properly and all our guests up to now seem to be loving the house and what we can offer. The days are long and start with preparing breakfast at about 7am and finish around midnight if we are offering dinner.

But it's not all work - yesterday I was sailing all afternoon on Lac Montbel, a wonderful scenic lake, with a small yacht club, beach, bar and brasserie.

Today we did lunch for six including our first French guests, but this afternoon I still managed a spot of wine tasting, with guests, at Sieur d'Arques where they produce an excellent Blanquette de Limoux sparkling wine. We followed this with a visit to Caves du Razes to sample a lightly oaked Chardonnay to accompany tomorrow night's dinner.

Life can be so hard sometimes??

Swim anyone!

2010-07-17T13:00:00.003+02:00

How could I forget to mention it!! We now have a pool!! Hopefully by next year when the plants have filled out the gardens will also look splendid as well.

Open for business....

2010-07-17T09:13:00.006+02:00

Our first guests arrived last Sunday and despite a few teething problems with the air conditioning and the fact the garden still isn't quite finished, they have had a good time. Well I think they have! Certainly the comments have been very flattering both about the house and particularly our food.

From Facebook - "......LS has spent the best part of this last week
stuffing her face with the most FABULOUS food whilst staying in the most
LUSH Bed & Breakfast in the whole of France .............
needless to say, am now back home partaking of fish finger
sandwiches whilst watching 'Come Dine with Me'..... !!"

It has been hard work of a different kind this week with long days and late nights but we have really enjoyed it as well. This is why we came to live here and at last we are "living the dream".

Guests for Dinner please....

2010-06-19T19:34:00.006+02:00

At last we are starting to feel ready to accept guests and who better to start with than our builder Olivier and his charming wife Sophie. Olivier's English is improving rapidly and he thinks our French is getting better. So, armed with the Learner's French dictionary, we invited them to dinner last night and I would suggest from the late departure and my slightly thick head this morning, things went well. A very enjoyable evening and free French lessons for Rachel and me!!

no words necessary???.....

2010-06-12T18:51:00.005+02:00

Digger driving, garden design and other useful skills....

2010-06-02T08:48:00.012+02:00

After the glorious weather in April the weather in May has been a shock. Raining, cold and a familiar reminder of home in England. So much for living in the South of France! This has delayed the work on the pool but it will be finished by mid June in plenty of time for our first guests in July.
The house is now starting to look great and whilst we still have plenty to do with the return of our three re-upholstered corbiere beds this Friday we should be able to get all the bedrooms completely finished. I can't wait to see the beds as we have splashed out on some really great fabrics and they should look wonderful.

We start work on the garden next week. The plan has been adapted from our first ideas, to take into account the blistering hot summers and we have reduced the amount of lawn area dramatically. Apparently without a sprinkler system and wasting gallons of water it would burn, so we have introduced more planted areas with lavender, rosemary, santolina and of course olive trees, cypress trees and umbrella pine. Colour will be added with oleanders and roses which grow really well here. All this will be linked with gravel and paths. Very "South of France" and a lot more eco-friendly as we won't need as much water to keep it looking good.

The picture below is unfortunately NOT our garden but IS the kind of look we are after. This is a garden nearby designed by Rachel Murphy.

So it was off to the garden centre yesterday and a few thousand euros later we had ordered the structural plants for our garden to be delivered next Friday and my mini digger lessons begin on Wednesday!

(These are the pinus pinea, just one for the time being, not all of them, but five cypress and seven olive trees!!)

Well that's my tea break over....back to work.

Making progress....

2010-05-08T08:30:00.014+02:00

How to lose weight without the massive expense of gym membership:-
1. Buy a house in France that needs doing up. (Ours is the big one in the middle of the photo!)
2. Think of a figure to do it up and then forget about it until the money starts to run out because it's costing much much more!
3. Move out to France to oversee the work and speed things up.
4. Set a good example to contractors and buy a drill and some tools!
5. Get up every morning at 7 and work through until 9 at night doing jobs you've never done before!

I can guarantee you massive weight loss in just six weeks or your money back!

Anyway I'm now a stone lighter and we have a kitchen......
and bedrooms and bathrooms......
>

Maybe the gym membership would have been cheaper?

Asparagus and wine....

2010-04-30T07:44:00.002+02:00

Just a quick note to say we are still here! A special thank you also to Kevin Helm who has been out here for two weeks and done miracles with a paint brush and roller!! In two weeks we painted the house top to bottom and now only have bits of top coat to finish off and a few shutters to paint. The kitchen is almost completed and the oak floors are going down in the hallway and dining room.

Can't stop to chat, builders arrive at 8am and I have a seagrass carpet to fit. Expect photos soon......

By the way asparagus and wine are the only things we have discovered up to now that are cheaper than in the UK so we are saving a fortune???????

Bonjour tout le monde......

2010-04-03T13:01:00.012+02:00

Nous sommes arrivés !!

Well we have really done it. The last three weeks have been hectic with all the last minute arrangements and packing for our departure, but on Saturday 27 March we boarded the ferry at Portsmouth to wake up on Sunday morning at St. Malo in France with a long drive south to follow.

"Your house will be clean and habitable" we were told, but as expected the reality was rather different. We were lucky enough to be able to stay with friends for the first few days but after a hectic first week with builders working until nine and ten at night (yes, and they are French!!!) we are at last living in our new home. Or maybe camping would be a better description. The house is truly wonderful and seems to be coming to life day by day as more and more of the works are completed. The phone and the internet have now been connected so we can communicate again and of couse I can now resume my blog.
There is still much to do but I am now confident that with our presence here the contractors will not let us down and we will meet our new completion deadline at the end of June.

Each day since arrival has been busy with the inevitable decision making and final tweaking that goes on as a project reaches the end stages. Today we bought over fifty light fittings, chose the granite sets for around the pool and terrace, altered the design of the kitchen slightly and I even rewired three plugs. Only another twenty or thirty to go, much to the electrician's amusement! We reach another milestone tomorrow when the stone worktop will be fitted in the kitchen. On Friday we will start our decorating marathon with over 140 litres of emulsion for the 16 rooms, a hallway, two landings and a four storey staircase. In case you thought that wasn't enough, there are also 20 windows and over 30 shutters.

I must say the French contractors and all the locals have been very welcoming and we are already starting to feel settled. Our French is still poor but we are trying very hard and everyone seems to appreciate our efforts. The builder is also practising his English and we all manage to communicate fairly well.

Expect some photo updates soon.....

Countdown....

2010-03-14T16:13:00.006+01:00

I can't quite believe it, but two weeks today we will arrive in France to start our new life! The overnight ferry is booked, the dog is vaccinated, chipped and has a passport and we are busy packing up and doing all those other things you need to do when a house move is imminent.
We now own a very sensible left hand drive diesel car and I have just sold my lovely right hand drive Audi TT. Only one more week at work and then the office life will be behind me. I can't say I haven't got any trepidations, but life is about challenges and how you deal with them. Surely that's what makes it exciting and I can honestly say I am definitely excited! So excited in fact, that I had to go out and buy a very expensive Gaggia ice cream maker! Well you've got to have plenty of home made ice cream for your guests when you live in a hot climate haven't you???

more progress...

2010-03-03T12:17:00.004+01:00

There is an enormous amount of work going on at the moment to get things completed by June. Yesterday the trees came down and work building the raised terrace in front of the house also starts this week. The groundwork for the garden is now underway and the pile of earth is from the hole that will soon become the swimming pool. The scaffolding suggests they have also started with the re rendering to the exterior of the house. We are expecting massive changes this month before we move in at the end of March!

Saturday Night Fever....

2010-03-01T13:57:00.008+01:00

On Saturday we went for dinner with friends, just us and two other couples, or so we thought! I nice quiet civilized evening, even our cocker spaniel Bella was invited! How can so many people be so deceitful!!
We really didn't have a clue! Over thirty of our friends had assemble to wish us well with our new adventure. They had been planning it for weeks and not one person had let anything slip or given any indication of what they had planned!
I think I caused a minor panic the day before when I had remarked that "I don't want any surprise parties, they just aren't my thing." but they didn't heed my warning and I must say I'm very glad.
So a big thank you to all concerned for a fantastic night and a truly memorable send off. Bella didn't realise she had so many friends and didn't sit down all night and I'm sure I saw her dancing with the hostess!
Sunday as you might expect was a complete right off, even the dog had to be dragged out of her bed to walk to the shop for a Sunday paper.
It's now starting to hit home, the ferry is booked, removals organised and we are on countdown to our departure. France here we come.....

Ebay....

2010-02-17T11:42:00.008+01:00

Up until last week I was an Ebay virgin, but I think I've caught the bug! We had been looking unsuccessfully for an armoire to store bedding and then someone suggested Ebay. For the last week or so I have been bidding on antique armoires and on Sunday I bagged two!

This one will look great on the landing and will be used for storing bedding...

and this one will go in a bedroom....maybe ours!

The problem now is I can't stop looking....left hand drive cars, furniture, all sorts! I think I will have to limit myself before I get completely addicted!

Life is about compromises...

2010-02-06T15:55:00.006+01:00

I was feeling quite down after my last visit and worried that things weren't coming together as planned. I have tried to be meticulous with my planning and have logged most conversations and always followed them up with an email confirming what has been agreed. You can imagine my relief when I found confirmation from my architect that the disputed inclusion was in with our price and to be carried out by the builder. Phew, no extra expense! But then the bombshell, he had made a mistake. The plastering concerned had been taken off the tender with the decorating, so wouldn't be covered by the builder! No problem you might think. It's the architects error so let him pay! This did cross my mind but what would that acheive? I might save a few thousand euros but would almost certainly have a very disgruntled project manager and probably a team of builders very wary of their "sharp" customer.

So a compromise has been negotiated between the builder, the architect and me. I dig deeper into my pockets and they give me extra men on the job and a very good price for the additional plastering. The extra men will allow us to complete the renovation on time and we can all be happy with the final result. We really want this to be a building project we can all be proud of and to acheive that we need everyone to pull together and work hard for us. Maybe some would say I was soft but life is about finding solutions that are acceptable to all.

I remember reading or being told once that compromise is a basic negotiation process in which both parties give up something that they want in order to get something else they want more. In compromise situations, neither side gets all of what they really want, but they each make concessions in order to reach an agreement that is acceptable. Lets hope the outcome is acceptable and when we move in at the end of March I don't feel let down.

I could laugh, I could cry...

2010-02-03T12:25:00.005+01:00

I am just back from my flying visit with mixed emotions...
The skiing went brilliantly and the drive up to Andorra was both easy and very pretty. My house visit was not as uplifting however. Progress seems to be painfully slow and I am now getting desperate to see just one job actually finished!! I know these things all come together at once but it is so frustrating. We have also had our first little dispute about what was and was not included in our budget. We will resolve the problem but inevitably it is going to cost me more money as usual!
Perhaps when we move out at the end of March I will be happier as we will then be able to contribute more and make sure everything is being done as we want it.
Now lets see if Ryanair have any bargain seats for the end of February. I can feel a surprise site visit may be needed....

Another quick visit...and some skiing!!

2010-01-26T14:23:00.010+01:00

I fly out tomorrow for a quick meeting with Fred our architect and to check on progress. The builders are starting the groundwork's for the pool on Thursday and will then have to leave the hole until March before they can concrete it. This is to allow for any settlement I assume. Most of the new tiling for the kitchen floor and the bathrooms has now been completed but we have decided not to put down the new oak floors until we finish the decorating at the end of April. We have a detailed schedule of works for the next few months as we are approaching the busiest and most hectic time in our renovation and come ever closer to our permanent departure to France at the end of March.
I will also be seeing the door samples and paint colours for the new kitchen units that are currently under construction.
After that I am taking advantage of the visit and driving up to Andorra to meet with friends for a few days skiing. It's only a couple of hours drive apparently so in the interests of research.....

...Honestly I need to do these things so I can tell our customers?? It's a hard life!!

The benefits of wood burning stoves...

2010-01-20T16:14:00.008+01:00

It can get cold in the Languedoc during the winter months and with this in mind we decided to add wood burning stoves to the dining room and verriere (glass walled sitting room) to supplement the Eco friendly airconditioning/central heating system we are putting in. They also look much nicer than radiators!
I can't believe how difficult and expensive this has been. Is it me over simplifying things again or totally under estimating costs, but six thousand euros to prepare two chimneys PLUS the fires!! "Open up the chimneys again, drop in a flexible steel liner, a bit of fire retardant insulation and attach your brand new fire! Why so much?" I asked. Lots of Oohs and Aar's again, I'm afraid! What planet do they think I have just arrived from? Oh yes it's that one where money grows on trees, how silly of me to forget (again)!
Well needless to say we are not paying that (although I still think its expensive at about half the original quote ) and I have today just ordered two lovely fires. This is the one that's going in the verriere.

Apart from looking great, burning wood is one of the most environmentally friendly ways of heating individual rooms, because timber is a carbon neutral fuel. It absorbs as much carbon during growth as it releases when burnt. An additional environmental benefit is that timber is usually sourced locally, so transport miles and associated emissions are also kept to a minimum.

Goodbye England, bonjour France

2010-01-05T12:29:00.005+01:00

I have just looked back on what I said at the beginning of January last year. - "No New Years resolutions - only plans". So how much have we achieved?

Quite a lot I would say! We got our planning permission in France, sold our house here in the UK and started the renovation work at the end of June. We had planned to open our new venture in Spring and now it's going to be early Summer so not too bad there either. Whilst the exchange rate hasn't been great we can just about live with it and are still pretty much on budget. This has largely been down to buying a lot of our furnishings and building materials in the UK and shipping them out. This has avoided loosing out on poor exchange rates and enabled us to pick up some great deals from UK suppliers keen to do business in the recession.

So 2010, the dreams become reality! We will be moving to the Languedoc at the end of March. By then we plan to have completed the renovations, extensions and alterations and be able to complete the decorations and finally furnish the house. We can then start to market our chambres d'hotes properly as we will be able to finish the website and take loads of enticing photos. Because we are not yet able to advertise properly we anticipate a slow start for bookings but hopefully this will pick up when people see what we have to offer. If you want to take a chance and book now we are offering some great early booking rates!

Merry Christmas!!!

2009-12-23T13:56:00.012+01:00

Seasons greetings from Anthony Rachel and Bella!
We look forward to seeing you in France next year - but not all at once!!!

Christmas shopping.......

2009-12-10T10:34:00.012+01:00

Last week Rachel and I visited one of the furniture warehouses to look at finalising a lot of our furniture orders ready for the move next year. As a "property developer" I have been able to access trade warehouses and its hard not to walk round with your tongue hanging out and an inane smile when you see the prices! But no, act like a serious grown-up and don't drool or shriek! Click, click, click went the bar code reader as we walked round this Santa's grotto! A five figure spend later we were at home and busily cutting and pasting pictures of some of our new purchases to add to the fabric swatches and paint card samples on our mood boards for each room. Very exciting, I don't think I have ever enjoyed Christmas shopping so much!

Planning out the rooms to scale with furniture made us rethink a few things and a hasty email to Fred the architect followed, with a few minor alterations to lights and sockets. The biggest change was our decision to make the small double overlooking the garden into a large single. This means we will now have two singles, a double and two king size suites, all with en suite facilities. We felt that this avoids the need for a twin room and caters better for the largely ignored needs of single travellers and would also suit adults travelling with older children. Time will tell.

Bathrooms....

2009-12-02T15:49:00.009+01:00

More photos...the layout for one of the bathrooms. Imagine travetine tiles and marble. Hopefully classical but with a modern feel. I sound like a dodgy salesman!!

Something like this....

Special guests....

2009-11-27T10:37:00.024+01:00

I can't believe it's a month since I last posted an update!

This trip was a bit of a special occasion as it was Rachel's mum and dad's first visit to where we will be living from next year. The weather forecast before we left was not great....rain, rain and more rain every day!! We had taken up the generous offer of friends and were staying just 100 meters from our house in Pieusse at Olive Tree House. We arrived and yes it was raining. What would they think? Brave, mad, stupid? Would they like the house or at least see it's potential? We all seek reassurance and approval from parents no matter what our age and, as you might expect, we were both very nervous.

We needn't have worried as they both liked what they saw (I think!!) and the following day when we visited, the sun had come out and the house was filled with sunshine...and builders dust!

As you can see still a long way to go! But at the end of our week the bathroom fittings all arrived from England and now the builders can at last start to put things back together again. Although we are now a little behind schedule I am expecting a massive change by my next visit in January.

We were blessed with fine weather for the rest of the week - no rain and 18-22 degrees all week. As a result we were able to show off the area to Audrey and John and they now can't wait for their next visit.

Apples, Cider and a little bit of what you fancy?

2009-10-25T08:35:00.016+01:00

Although our most recent trip involved a site visit, the main purpose was a little break with friends and there were actually ten of us taking advantage of a little late season sunshine and exploring the area a little more.
We coincided our visit with the Mirepoix apple festival...

and as you can see this year's theme was music.
But as you would expect with a group of intrepid travellers we soon found the cider stall!

Dinner that night was suitably themed. We had pork loin with a mustard and herb crust cooked in cider and to follow a fabulous apple crumble slice bought from one of the excellent market stalls.

We also managed a trip to the coast this time and found the sleepy seaside port of Marseillan to be delightful. Judge for yourself...

.
Lovely weather and a selection of excellent fish restaurants. For only 13 euros I had five of the freshest oysters I have ever tasted, red mullet salad and to finish a mouthwatering chocolate mousse. Who says you can't eat cheaply in France???
We continued our food fest and our last meal out was at the truly excellent L'Odalisque a new restaurant in Limoux. It's difficult to find but worth the effort. Thank you Elaine for the recommendation!

We returned home to the UK a few pounds heavier but invigorated from a great short break in a fabulously varied and unspoilt region of France.

More pictures.......

2009-10-23T23:47:00.022+02:00

So we flew out again and as you can see more demolition! Holes have appeared where there were once walls and windows but it feels like progress! We will be shipping out the bathrooms in a few weeks and once they are fitted then the new floors can go down and the tiling can be done. We have also finished planning the new kitchen with Fred the architect and he will complete the design which will then be hand made by our excellent joiner Monsieur Carles. We can at last look forward to seeing the house slowly emerge from the dust and decay and start to come back to life. Exciting times at Maison Laurent !!

Another visit....

2009-10-10T12:42:00.012+02:00

Next Thursday sees us flying to Carcassonne again with Ryanair. Why do so many people make such a fuss about them? Even the BBC's Panorama programme are having a go at them next week!

But they are punctual, cheap and provide exactly what they offer - a no frills means of getting from "A" to "B". Yes they charge lots of extras but even with these added on they are still CHEAP! Do as they ask and keep to the weight allowance you have paid for, check in online when they send an email asking you to and don't turn up expecting someone to be cheerful and helpful when they are being paid minimum wage and your journey is stress free and CHEAP. Ryanair have almost single handed brought down the cost of short haul travel and opened up many areas to tourism.

So for once here's someone giving them a big pat on the back for my CHEAP seats which have enabled me to afford to travel out last month, this month and next month to check on progress with our house.

This week I 'ave mostly been eating.....

2009-10-07T15:05:00.022+02:00

At the moment I can't help thinking of "The Fast Show" every time we have friends for dinner. It's not that they are comical
...although some can be very amusing at times. It's just we are working on my menus for France and rather than constantly trying new dishes I am perfecting some of my tried and tested favourites.

So this weekend our guests will mostly be eating...
- twice baked cheese souffles with a Parmesan cream
- duck breasts with damson and fig sauce served with spiced red cabbage and sauteed potatoes
- and to finish off a splendid raspberry pavlova roulade

No doubt there will also be a selection of French cheeses and the obligatory wine tastings. All in the aid of research of course! I wonder if this is tax deductible???

It's a curious thought that after years of cooking for friends, next summer at the end of the meal I will be turning to our guests and hoping it was good enough for them to part with their hard earned euros. The first night will be quite nerve racking! But this weekend won't be as it's just good friends, good wine and hopefully good food!

Progress as promised...

2009-09-30T00:52:00.021+02:00

Wow....Messr Carles, the joiner promised to renovate or replicate our existing windows and they look fantastic. He is also doing the same with the shutters which will then be painted a pale greeny blue-grey instead of the current garish red. One of those Farrow and Ball colours with an odd name probably!

We are both relieved and happy with the standard of work we have seen and everything seems to be on schedule. All the new walls and electrics are in for the top floor and they will now start on the floor below. The bathrooms will be fitted as soon as they arrive from England next month and we have now chosen all the floor and wall tiles from an excellent supplier in Carcassonne. Messr Mahieu the main builder is cracking on and at last we have finalised the contract for the plumbing/heating and air conditioning. Things seem to be progressing well....but what's happening to the pound? Let's hope it recovers a little before I have to pay my next lot of invoices!!

Escape to France...

2009-09-17T11:41:00.013+02:00

We are flying out to Carcassonne on Saturday for our first visit since work commenced. I can't deny with some trepidation. I understand there has been a flurry of activity this last week and the house is full of builders, electricians, plumbers and joiners and we have been assured that there will be a noticeable difference. Let's hope so!

The weather has now cooled off and temperatures seem to be hovering around a very acceptable 25c/77f although I see there is a chance of showers next week. I sound like a weatherman! We Brits are so obsessed with the weather but I suppose that is inevitable when ours is so unpredictable. I wonder if that will change when we move to France? When was the last time you said to friends "lets have a BBQ two weeks on Sunday" and genuinely thought it might go ahead? We actually haven't had a BBQ this year!

So what's planned for next week? Sunday and Monday with friends and then a site visit and meetings with the architect to go over the plans for all the bathrooms and the kitchen. Visits to tile shops, and a search for two wood burning/multi fuel stoves for the dining room and the new summer room and hopefully a final solution to our saga with the heating and air conditioning plans.

If we have time I would also love to check out some of the nearby coastal towns and villages. Marseillan and Leucate both look of particular interest. Marseillan is the home of Noilly Prat, the original vermouth which I love to use for cooking and is of course great for cocktails. It also boasts a pretty port and some excellent fish restaurants. Leucate looks to have a lovely beach and a pretty village and as it is in the Corbieres wine area should also offer some good red wines to try out and discover.

Expect some photos when we return...

Wine Flu....

2009-08-23T13:34:00.006+02:00

From an email I received this morning....

"Advice for all sufferers.....

I went to a dinner party last night, where I, and other guests, imbibed significant amounts of Chardonnay, Pino Grigio and Port.
I awoke this morning not feeling well, with what could be described as flu-like symptoms; headache, nausea, chills, sore eyes, etc.
From the results of some initial testing, I have unfortunately tested positive for what experts are now calling Wine Flu.
This debilitating condition is very serious- and it appears that mine is not an isolated case. Reports are flooding in from all around the neighbourhood of others diagnosed with Wine Flu.
To anyone who starts to exhibit the aforementioned tell-tale signs, experts are recommending a ‘cup of tea’ and ‘a bit of a lie down’.
However, should your condition worsen, you should immediately ‘hire a DVD’ and take some ‘Ibuprofen’ which seems to be the only drug available that has been proven to help combat this unusual type of flu.
Others are reporting a ‘McDonald's Happy Meal’ can also help in some cases and Doctors have been recommending a ‘proper fry-up’ to help with the symptoms.
Wine Flu does not need to be life threatening and, if treated early, can be eradicated within a 24-48 hour period.
If not, then further application of the original liquid in similar quantities to the original dose has been shown to do the trick!"

Do you recognise the symptoms?....

Aladdin's Cave

2009-08-22T13:44:00.017+02:00

The last few weeks we have spent our days off choosing fabrics and paint colours, amongst other things, for our new house. All very exciting, but so much choice. Where do you start? We have at least fourteen windows that need curtains!!
I have always been very sceptical about interior designers and must admit to being reluctant when a visit to see Dorothy Wightman was suggested. "I know what I want and I am not paying over inflated prices to get it!" was my initial quote. How wrong I was!

Dorothy Wightman has turned an interest in sewing into a successful Fine Furnishings business run from a purpose-built studio and showroom in a converted barn in Cumbria. When you walk into Dorothy's studio near Kirkby Lonsdale it's like walking into Aladdin's Cave. Bejewelled lamps sparkle and luxurious fabrics fill every corner of the rooms. Gorgeous cushions decorate exquisite chairs and no surface is left untouched. Dorothy listened patiently to our requirements and with her expertise and enthusiasm it became clear that a fresh pair of eyes over our plans may just help us create something special. Dorothy is very straight talking, which I like and was quite happy to discuss money so we offered up our budget hoping not to be laughed out of the room. "No problem leave it with me" she said and yesterday we went back to find she had risen to the challenge and come up with some terrific fabrics to chose from and some great ideas for saving money whilst still creating that wow factor. She has also helped with paint colour schemes and we will no doubt be seeing more of her for soft furnishings and other items.

It has reminded me that you can't beat the personal service offered by skilled professionals. She has been able to take a lot of the hard work out of narrowing down the unbelievable choices we all now have available and has definitely come up with a selection that far exceeds what we would have got wading through the reams of fabric in department stores.
So a big thank you to Dorothy for her assistance up to now!!

Wine Tasting

2009-07-29T12:42:00.017+02:00

Food and drink.... Two of my favourite pastimes and not necessarily in that order. In preparation for our departure to France and obviously in the interests of valid research for our guests and friends we have been imbibing rather a lot of wine from the Languedoc lately.

The area is renowned for the sparkling wines of Limoux and it is believed that Blanquette de Limoux was the first sparkling white wine produced in France, created long before the Champagne region became world renowned for the bubbly stuff. Local folklore suggests that Dom Pérignon took the idea to Champagne after visiting the abbey in Saint-Hilaire (the next village to ours) and the rest is history as they say.

Who knows...but it's extremely good and a fraction of the cost of it's better known counterpart. Personally I prefer Cremant de Limoux as this relatively new variation (also known as an AOC - Appellation d’origine contrôlée - which is basically a regional quality control to protect the authenticity of local produce) allows the wine makers to blend more chardonnay and chenin blanc with the traditional mauzac grape. I find the taste smoother and dryer with that biscuity flavour you get with the more expensive champagnes.

On our last visit to France we went to seek out Domaine Begude in Cepie. James Kinglake and his wife Catherine gave up the rat race in London a few years back and followed their dreams to this area and are now producing exceptionally classy chardonnay to rival many of the great white Burgundies, a great fresh, crisp sauvignon blanc and a light and fruity pinot rosé. They have been receiving great reviews in the UK papers and are obviously passionate about producing top quality organic wines. You will definitely be finding more than a few of their bottles in our cellar, but if you can't wait it's on sale at Waitrose for about £8 a bottle.

Another great white we have discovered is Domaine Maurel Chenin-Colombard. Domaine M is run by Alain Maurel. His unusual southern France duo of chenin blanc and colombard vines grown at nearby Cabardès in the Aude has produced a pungent, delicious white for under £6. If you like a vibrant, honeysuckle, rhubarb and gooseberry-layered white, give it a try.
We have been buying it from Booths supermarket for £5.99 and are hoping that we will be able to visit for a tasting when we next go out in September. Another one for the cellars no doubt!

Now for the reds. More tasting to do at this stage but as soon as we have made our choices we will let you know...hic!

Bathrooms and Floors

2009-07-09T15:37:00.012+02:00

After much deliberation it appears we are going to get all the bathroom fittings in the UK and ship them to France! Yes that's expensive but not as expensive as buying them over there. The recession may be biting hard here (up to 60% off this rather nice bath for one of the suites) but it seems to be having no effect on prices in France. "Le Discount???" - "Non, ce n'est pas possible!!" Maybe rip-off Britain is not as bad as we think. It also means we have a lot more control over what we are purchasing and can get "the look" just as we want it, rather than having to accept what we are given.

The same thing has happened with the oak flooring. We are having European oak floors delivered to the UK only to be shipped back out to France and all still for less than the price of inferior laminated flooring available locally!

I feel a little like one of those people on Grand Designs at the moment as everytime we analyse a quote we end up sourcing something better via the internet. Currently I am looking into travertine floors from Turkey! I am sure Fred the Architect dreads sending me an email as currently I am questioning everything, but having renovated a house before remember the way we blindly accepted everything we were told. Not this time! There may be many bad things to say about the internet but it does allow us access to so much information and so quickly we can easily bull***t , sorry, talk knowlegably about a subject within moments.

Progress at Maison Laurent....

2009-07-01T10:46:00.011+02:00

A work in progress as the builders board the floor ready for seagrass carpets and create the new attic. This space will be two large suites with large ensuite bathrooms and walk in wardrobes and the new attic will be above the centre of both rooms and will be accessed from a hidden staircase in the centre between the rooms. Its interesting to note all the steelwork for the partitions. Whenever I have seen this before it has always been timber.

It is such a relief to see something happening at last and the good news is we are now about right with our projected budget. Lets hope there are no surprises!

Nomads!!

2009-06-21T23:48:00.015+02:00

Another major step towards our dream happened on Thursday. We moved house! Trauma, doubt, tears and a gambit of emotions. The house we had built and made our own now belongs to someone else. It's difficult to describe the feelings we are going through moving away from the home we have lived in for more than half our married lives. It may be only a building but it shares many of our happiest and saddest times and will always be a part of us. I wish the new residents well and am sure they will be very happy there.

We haven't done too badly however with our rented accommodation - a great view, a lovely village and a very comfortable, pretty house. Hopefully only six to eight months and we will be in France. Let's see if all goes to plan? Builders, plumbers, electricians and carpenters not to mention architects surely won't let us down, will they? Well they started work last week and are now knocking the house to bits before rebuilding it.
All we want is people to do what they say they can and everything will be fine, but somehow I seem to have nagging doubts!! Maybe I'm just feeling a bit down because we've just left the house of our dreams. But as always your dreams change, and ours are now fixed firmly on a new life in France, and it's now a certainty rather than a possibility. Sometimes you have to be brave and take risks and that is definitely what I feel we are doing now, so I really hope I have got this one right!

A Sharp Intake of Breath

2009-06-06T14:49:00.014+02:00

Saturday afternoon at work and I'm daydreaming of fresh croissants, sunny days and leisurely meals. I am finding it increasingly difficult to motivate myself now I know France is a step closer. Our exchange has gone through and sadly we will be leaving our lovely house on the 19th June! If we could only just go to France on the 20th it would be great, but unfortunately as the builders will take at least eight months to complete the renovation, there is little point in moving to France yet unless I win the lottery tonight? I need to keep earning at least until the end of the year.

It's amazing just how much you accumulate over the years and despite not being hoarders, the removal man who came to quote for moving us down the road to our rental home and then to France, kept on shaking his head and doing that sharp intake of breath thing that people do to warn you it's going to be expensive. We are trying desperately to be ruthless with our belongings but it's hard. I found all my vinyl records in a cupboard and despite no longer even owning a turntable to play them on I can't bring myself to throw them away. "Atlantic Crossing" by Rod Stewart - what a classic! Maybe I need a new turntable! Rachel has a similar dilemma with a bag full of dolls!

We have also been ironing out some of the price issues with the architect and builders recently and have explained we do not own a money tree and it is imperative we keep to the agreed budget. I think we are getting the message over but we have to be very strict to avoid "extras" and contract variations and more sharp intakes of breath! "Have a plan and stick to it" is our current motto, then they can't surprise us. Well, we will see.

We have booked flights to visit again in September but suspect we may have to go over between now and then to see how the builders are progressing. If I could afford it I would love to visit more often and be able to see the house slowly come back to life but we will have to make do with photos from the architect.

Ahh well, back to my daydreaming.....Oh, and perhaps I'd better do some work!

SAD - Holiday Blues

2009-05-26T21:57:00.031+02:00

I'm sad!! We have just returned from a fortnight in France. I had forgotten how much I love the countryside when the sun's out. This is the view we had for the first week and whilst I love where we live now, note the colour of the sky - BLUE - a colour we see far too little of in the UK.
"Seasonal affective disorder" (SAD), also known as winter depression or winter blues, is a mood disorder in which people who have normal mental health throughout most of the year experience depressive symptoms in the winter or, less frequently, in the summer, repeatedly, year after year. They may sleep too much, have little energy, and crave sweets and starchy foods. They may also feel depressed." (extract from WIKIPEDIA) Enough said!!

To be fair, we didn't have good weather all the time but still found plenty to do. We had numerous meetings with Fred our patient architect and met some of the artisans who will be working on our renovation. Why is it however much you have it's never quite enough? Yes, you've guessed it, we are over budget already!

One of the other great things you can do in France when the weather is dull is visit the many brocantes in search of bargains and period pieces of furniture. This is one of the four beds we managed to purchase.

With a bit of time, tender care and re-upholstering it should look like this.

After much thought, our plans are now crystallising. We are going to have four double rooms, a twin and a single. All rooms will have ensuite facilities and as I can't stand cheap bedding and postage stamp towels, we will have lovely linen, big fluffy towels and great toiletries which no doubt guests will pinch! There will be Ipod docking stations in all the rooms and WIFI connectivity for those who can't live without their laptop.

A typical French house in a typical South of France village, great weather, large garden with a pool and boules court? What more could you want from a holiday? Oh yes, good food and drink. Just in case you thought I intended to go into semi-retirement...we will be offering table d'hote to our guests and intend to cater for other gites in the area. We are going to be busy!

Make a note of the address... Maison Laurent, 31 Ave Jean Brousse 11300 PIEUSSE.

Half a Century

2009-05-01T16:23:00.012+02:00

Firstly an apology for the lack of blogging over the last few weeks....but I'll let you into a secret. We think we have sold our house! I have deliberately put off "going to press" in case I jumped the gun but I can't contain myself any longer. Things seem to be proceeding and whilst we have not yet completed, everything looks fine and seems to be going through with the solicitors. This of course means we can let the builders start in France.

The more observant amongst you may have noticed my profile has also changed. "Fast approaching fifty" has been replaced by "recently turned fifty". Alas, on Wednesday, to the horror of my mother, I hit the half century. The bus pass and memory jokes have been flying my way, but as it said on one of my birthday cards - you're only young once but you can be immature forever. Hence the rather fetching headwear being modelled at my birthday luncheon at Rogan & Company in Cartmel. Well worth a visit as it's owned by the same people that run L'Enclume, but is much less formal.

I don't feel much different but the mirror doesn't lie and I have definitely noticed a few more laughter lines around the eyes. What I need is some sunshine and a change of life style. Ooh yes that's what I'm going to do isn't it! Smug? Who me?....

Nothing to report!!

2009-03-17T11:50:00.006+01:00

I haven't posted anything for the last few weeks as there has been very little to write about. No house sale, no updates on the sale of the business although we have two interested parties and who knows maybe an offer in the pipeline? Things have also been slow in France as we are still waiting for tenders to come in from the builders.
I could of course rant on about the state of the nation and in particular my pension but do I want to risk high blood pressure and making myself angry!
Well yes I do actually! I recently reviewed my pension again as I am considering taking the early retirement option at fifty against continuing to pay in until I am sixty or sixty-five. What happened to all the promises they made when I took it out at the age of twenty-one. I have religiously increased the contributions every year since by ten percent in line with their instructions to ensure a retirement free from financial worries. So there should be a big cheque coming my way! Well it has been a complete rip off, I should have ploughed the money into property or wine or antiques or just about anything else. It's not worth much more than I have paid in and even if I keep it going the big payouts promised have now completely vanished. I have no doubt been subsidising the final salary pensions and bonus payoffs of the fat cat directors. You may have guessed I am not in line for a similar payout to Sir Fred Goodwin or any of the directors of the many other financial institutions that couldn't run a bath.
How can they get away with such rewards for completely inept management and bringing their companies to their knees? If I make a loss I don't get paid, possibly loose my business, savings and house and have to get a job packing shelves or digging ditches to pay the bills! They get fantastic payouts and never have to work again, being paid for life from the contributions and taxes of hard working ordinary people who have been forced to bailout the struggling financial sector to the tune of a reported £25K per person. Well I don't want to any more! Give me my money back!
Obviously they won't but I'm going to take what I have left and run...all the way to the Languedoc!

French Lessons

2009-02-18T21:12:00.015+01:00

"Parlez vous Francais?" "Mais oui! un petit peu" I reply confidently.... and then I'm stuck! The sad reality is O level french thirty five years ago is now a distant memory. Yes I can order a couple of drinks or manage a menu but what about dealing with the electricity company or the builders merchants? I can actually order two beers in French, Spanish, German, Chinese and even Swahili, but that doesn't make me multi lingual! It's too easy for us Brits because everyone else speaks English....except the French. Yes they are still far better than us at the language thing but there are still large sections of the population who only speak French! How dare they! Well if we are going to truly integrate into the community we will need to be able to converse.

But help is at hand, in the form of Charlotte our private tutor. For the last four months we have been "back to school" every Tuesday night for French lessons. I thought it would be easy! Ooh I was so wrong! I am not a good student, I don't seem to find time to do my homework and despite the knowledge that it is something I want to do and not simply something that is being thrust upon me I am still struggling. Why am I not studying now instead of writing my blog? Possibly because I have had thirty years of working for myself and am used to being the one doing the instructing? No that's just an excuse, in truth I am used to things being easy and this isn't. Also I fear our capacity to learn diminishishes as we get older.
So a late New Year's resolution..I will learn my verbs and practice my vocabulary because it's important. It's going to be hard enough when we eventually get to France so it's imperitive that we equip ourselves with all the skills needed to make it work,and number one priority is the ability to communicate.

Things moved a step closer in the last few weeks with planning permission being approved. So its now full steam ahead to get everything ready to receive tenders from builders. We have had some interest this week in our house and we are in discussions regarding the possible sale of the business, so who knows, 2009 is looking good up to now!!

Inclement Weather

2009-01-26T22:16:00.013+01:00

Did you have a good weekend? We did!! A great night out on Saturday for Rachel's birthday. Being a gentleman prevents me from revealing which birthday this was but who's counting? Apparently age is a state of mind anyway.
We braved the weather and ventured out to 1725 a new tapas bar in Lancaster which was surprisingly good. But then again that could have been the company! Ten of us who are all old enough to know better partying like tomorrow would never come! Well it did and age definitely caught up. Where was that incredible recovery power we had when we were young? Drowned in the bottom of a wine glass I suspect!

As we made our way home in the torrential rain I briefly wondered how things might be in France? Well the answer came today - not good. The southwest of France has been battered by one of the worst storms ever seen in the area, with winds reaching up to 184km(114miles) per hour, torrential rain, flying debris, and falling trees. Sadly there have been a few deaths from collapsing stone walls, and numerous injuries. Our architect Fred has already been down to assess the damage to our house. Part of the roof was ripped off and tiles smashed up a number of cars parked nearby, but thankfully no one was hurt. Our local contacts have been unbelievable! Marilyn from the estate agents has spoken to the Marie (town mayor) and Paul our legal translator has been in touch with the insurance company on our behalf to start the claim process. Meanwhile Fred has arranged for a roofer to patch up the damage and make things safe. Talk about first rate service! Are we just lucky to have stumbled across such good people or is this a reflection of the different attitude to community and cooperation that we will become a part of when we eventually make our move?
Lets hope the insurance company also show the spirit of cooperation and pay up for the damage without any problems. But of course they will....???
Ever the optimist....!!!

Another New Years Resolution?

2009-01-04T21:15:00.016+01:00

No "New Year Resolutions" this year. Only plans.... no dreaming, just firm ideas that won't fade away like the memories of New Years eve. So what are our plans? Well subject to approval from the planning department and all the powers that be we will move ahead and obtain tenders to convert our new house from this....

to something along the lines of this......

It will hopefully take no more than 8 months to complete the building work and then we can move in and do all the exciting fancy bits like furnishings and bathrooms. We aim to open in Spring 2010 for paying guests. We will have five bedrooms with bathrooms, a luxury fitted kitchen a conservatory extention, a new pool with pool house and an outdoor kitchen and bbq area... ohh and a new terrace, boule court and landscaped gardens. Sounds simple enough doesn't it? What could possibly go wrong? Well thats the plan so lets see how the year progresses and whether plans are better than resolutions?

Goodbye to 2008

2009-01-01T17:25:00.005+01:00

Well we really sent 2008 away in style. What a great party, food, dancing and great friends. But today I seem to be paying for my over indulgences. Sluggish would best describe the way I've been feeling. Despite a two mile walk to collect the car with the ever energetic Bella I am still a little under the weather.
Talk last night centred on what 2009 will bring? Is your glass half empty or half full? Mine is usually at least half full and I try to be positive about the future. The pound will recover against the euro, the housing market will pick up in the spring and we will be inviting our friends out for Christmas in France? Lets hope so.
Anyway talking about glasses I'm off to have a little one now...kill or cure as they say! Cheers, Happy New Year!!!

No turning back!

2008-12-05T00:29:00.008+01:00

Well, despite the housing crisis in the UK and the plummeting pound, we have ignored all rational thoughts and gone ahead anyway and completed the purchase of our house! We flew out to Carcassonne last week and spent a few hours in the Notaire's office finalising the contract and handing over a large sum of money. I hope we have made the right decision and I am not just suffering from a ludicrous mid life crisis. Rachel actually thinks she is dreaming and, as frequently happened in Dallas, she will wake up and realise none of what's happened was actually real! But it is... I pinched her to prove it and then we went back to the offices of Maisons a la Carte, our extremely helpful agents, and celebrated with a bottle of excellent Blanquette de Limoux. Things always seem better after a glass of bubbly and we all toasted the future and our first major steps towards our new life in France!
It would be great if we could move now but of course we still have our current lives in the UK to sort out. Well hopefully building work can commence in the spring and we will be in France by October/November next year.

Ups and Downs

2008-10-23T10:39:00.020+02:00

What a roller coater this month has been! We fly to France to complete our purchase at the end of November, our French mortgage is now agreed and our architect in France has been very busy preparing our plans for the alterations we wish to do. We have been receiving plans and images by email from our excellent architect Frederic Paut (Fred). He has been able to interpret our ideas brilliantly and hopefully the finished project will be spectacular. It will be great to see this lovely but tired and neglected house come back to life again.

We really need to sell our house soon or we wont be able to start the renovations in France. Last Friday we agreed a sale on our house only for the buyers to withdraw on Monday!! It sounds like they they have lost heavily on the stock market and have decided not to move. I wish they had decided that before they made their offer as we spent the weekend dreaming that we were now a step nearer to our moving to France.
What a state this country appears to be in at the moment! Banks failing, millions wiped off the price of shares and all the doom and gloom surrounding the housing market, and I'm not even going to mention the weather!!

House for sale in Yealand Conyers...

2008-09-30T00:35:00.010+02:00

It's been a stressful month as we have tried to pull together our deal to buy our new house in France. The early part of September saw mortgages to arrange in France, contracts to sign, architects to talk to about planning and a background of financial doom and gloom in the UK.

Don't you just wish the papers and the news would stop harping on about "the credit crunch". The whole of our system is built on confidence and money circulating round and round. You buy something from me and I'm happy so I buy something from someone else and so on - the same £20 can keep plenty of us happy as long as we keep passing it on!! Someone needs to say - "well actually its not all that bad at the moment and try to get some confidence back in the market?".

I actually need someone to say here's half a million for your house not twenty quid but the theory's the same and I promise I'll spend some of it as soon as someone buys my house. Although we have only been on the market for about five weeks now there's been plenty of interest but no offers as yet. Everyone seems to be caught up in the current wave of fear and uncertainty. Yes we'd love to buy your house...when we can sell ours. So come on all you cash buyers - make me an offer!!

For anyone interested in a beautifully restored coach house in a fabulous setting near the Lake District. Holmere Lodge, Dykes Lane, Yealand Conyers, Carnforth, Lancashire LA5 9SN - £545,000 http://www.hackney-leigh.co.uk/ .

Buying a house in France

2008-09-03T10:09:00.000+02:00

So the adventure begins. We are selling our house and business in the UK and are about to start afresh. Phrases like "quality of life", "lifestyle change", "a new project before we're too old!" have all been mentioned over the past few months but it all seemed like a game. You know - the sort of thing you talk about on a Saturday night when you've had a glass or two of red.

But today we signed a Compromis de Vente which is a preliminary agreement to buy our new house!! So, we are going to renovate this lovely old maison de maitre in the South West of France, and hope to open next year as a chambre d'hote.