Scenes from Hong Kong

Signs from NZ

Taupo cycle challenge

Merv completed the 160kms Lake Taupo cycle challenge while in NZ, along with Jane's brother, Mark, and niece's husband, Jon. Plus another 8,000 or so other cyclists! Fortunately there was good weather this year, although not the hoped-for southerly wind on the eastern side returning to Taupo which made it a bit of a slog. A great ride and a good effort by all.

Bush Walks

We did a number of great walks while in NZ too. In Wellington we made the most of the Tinakori Hill walks right at Jane's mum's doorstep. We also went up Mt Kaukau, the highest point overlooking Wellington harbour giving magnificant views over Wellington, the Hutt Valley and the coast. 

While in Napier we went with friends on a great coastal walk from Waipatiki Beach to Aropaoanui Beach. We ended the walk with a sea swim (not that cold - truly) and a picnic. Perfect. 

Further north while waiting for a cracked car windscreen to be replaced in Whakatane, we did two really lovely walks between Ohope Beach and Whakatane. Lots of tui's singing, fantails flittering and the start of the pohutukawa flowering.

NZ Beaches

We're now back from our 5 week trip to NZ and Hong Kong. We had a fantastic time catching up with family and friends. Blessed with very good weather too, so spent a lot of time enjoying the outdoors at some great beaches, sitting at wonderful cafe's (NZ does cafe's particularly well) and generally having a terrific time.

We were on a mission to find New Chums Beach in the Coromandel. It is rated as one of the top 10 beaches in the world, but you have to walk to it as it isn't developed at all (part of the charm). We missed the path to it and ended up wandering all over the place for about an hour before hitting upon this gorgeous beach which we had all to ourselves. Then found the path back which, of course, was really obvious!

Bit of a bike ride

As Merv is in training for next month's Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge in NZ (160kms), he decided to cycle one of Mountains and Maps challenging routes on Tuesday. He left from just outside Carcassonne in a grey, drizzling rain which fortunately quickly became fine and sunny but not too hot. A barely noticeable uphill to Caunes-Minervois, then a long steady 16kms climb to the Col de Salette (913m) then down to Courniou onto St Pons and back home via Vallee d'Orb. Total distance of 115kms.

Jane provided able back-up (in the car!) with water, food, extra clothing for the down hill etc. So had plenty of time to watch the ceps hunters. It is the peak season for mushroom gathering and the forest had many people jealously protecting their special spots for gathering. When we stopped in St Pons there were some magnificent ceps on sale from the more prolific mushroom hunters.

Fantastic time of year to be out on a bike - mild but sunny and very little wind. Plus the autumn colours are really coming into their own now.

Winter must be coming

Swimming in the pool for this year is definitely over. It really has come time to put the winter pool cover on. Although, yesterday was a hot and sunny at 25C so quite conceivable to go for a swim. However, we now have followed the example of our neighbours and put the winter cover on. 

The cats are most confused about their big water bowl now being inaccessible. As it is a salt-based pool - no chlorine - they think the water is lovely and just for them.

Cat nap

Henry has his own particular style of sleeping ...

Painting

Have moved on from painting walls to furniture. Picked up some bedside tables at a brocante, to go in the gite. First they need a bit of a make-over so am making the most of the autumn sunshine to clean, sand and paint outdoors.

Spot the olive

Our new olive tree has produced ONE lovely, lonely olive this year. It does generally take around 4 to 5 years to get a decent olive crop. It's a start!

Jane's recent French lessons have included conversations about oliviers: growth, pruning, pests and diseases, plus how to treat them once picked. Eventually we'll be able to put this knowledge to use.

The Good Life ...

We had much better produce from one of the pear trees this year (having dealt with the 'puces'). However, we ended up with huge pears (Williams) and more than we could possibly eat before they went too soft. 

 So they went into a Pear and Cranberry relish. And here's the result. A friend from London stayed recently - also bringing the cranberries which I couldn't seem to find in the supermarket. But then we went to the market and found lots of them! We taste-tested the relish and can confirm it is delicious. 

 

Conkers

Conkers galore! It seems to be a great year for the chestnut tree fruit. Also quite dangerous when walking near these heavily laden trees ...

Autumn flowering

The weather has cooled now (although still in the 20sC) and the garden has started to grow again. It's a lovely time of year, still sunny and warm, but coolish at night - so able to sleep!

These are among the last of this year's roses. What a treat to have their perfume in the house in October.

Lunch

With a friend from London staying last week, we went to lunch - in what is rapidly becoming a ritual - at Fleur d'Olargues. Most of our friends visiting over summer have somehow found their way there for the superb food plus stunning location. Sitting outdoors under a cooling canopy of vines; fantastic view towards Olargues, the river and the hills beyond; plus the restaurants' own vegetable and herb garden below, all make it a special place. 

We asked for a vegetarian dish (not an easy thing to find in France) and were presented with this wonderful variety of vegetables from the garden.

 Jane had salmon which was superb. In the background you can see a bit of the 13th century bridge leading to the village. We chatted to a lovely Australian couple next to us, travelling for five weeks in Europe with their three children, aged from about 8 to 14. They cycled to lunch so, quite rightly, felt they could indulge in the best of the menu.

Let there be light inside ...

We've had a light fitting from one of the bedrooms rewired and put into the entrance hallway. For the past two winters we've stumbled in the dark when arriving back home after sundown. We are thrilled to have been able to re-use the fitting (kindly left by the previous owners) and to finally have light in the hallway.

At last, we also have a central light in our lounge, something simple in keeping with the 60s/70s features of the room. It's made such a huge difference we wonder how we've managed all this time without it.

Let there be light outside ...

The renovation of the gite and construction of the pool has gone very smoothly, except for two things. Both of which we didn't actually sight ourselves, but relied on our project managers to source the right thing. We've now learnt from this - always see what is recommended to be used. At least they weren't major things: one is the ceiling fans which are too big (and garish) for the space and the second was the outside lights. We had specifically said we did not want 'municipal lights' but unfortunately there seems to be a variation on what that constitutues. Here's what we ended up with - three of them to be exact:

This was the only thing in the project that reduced Jane to tears, having these ugly carbuncles on the facade of our lovely house. They lit up the garden like a football pitch, so it was inevitable we would eventually change them. We've recycled the lights into the cave/garage where, along with some new strip lighting, we can now clearly see every corner and therefore how much stuff we have ... and it's a lot. And here's the new, more-in-keeping, exterior lighting:

Fire

Towards the end of August and just before the vendange was about to start, we awoke at 2am to find a large fire blazing on the edge of the village. Having earlier seen news items on the devastation caused by fires throughout other parts of France, we were a bit alarmed. We watched through our window as the sapeur pompiers, out in force, managed to contain the flames after a couple of hours. Fortunately the wind blew the fire up the hill to the garrigue (scrubland) therefore taking away any danger to the village. There were a large number of fire engines etc, but no sirens were used, so most people in the village were unaware of there being a fire until the morning.

After weeks of no rain, the sapeur pompiers must have been delighted when the heavens opened at around 4.30am with a huge downpour which helped put out the fire. There is now a huge dark scar on the hillside, but it's rapidly turning green with new growth.

 

Autumn already ...

This summer has flown by and we've had a lot of visitors which has been fantastic. We love introducing people to this great area and the wonderful things to see and do here. The pool has been in much use as it's been a lovely, long, hot and sunny summer.

The vendange is in full force with both human and mechanical grape-pickers out early in the mornings and working through the heat of the day. The village is busy with tractors bringing trailors full of grapes to the caves, so it's not quite so peaceful at the moment. They often start around 4 in the morning! The weather has held with only some small showers of rain. From what we can gather the harvest is of better quality this year, but less quantity. Which seems to me to be a good thing. 

Ghost Town

It has been very, very hot the past week or so, with afternoon temperatures generally over 40C. Neither man nor beast can be seen anywhere in the village from about midday to around 5pm. Unusually we've also got some humidity which makes it almost impossible to do anything in the afternoon - even go swimming! Merv is in the Pyrenees this week with a walking trip and I am indoors accompanied by the cats, who just lie on the cool tiles all afternoon. The evenings are lovely though, so go for a swim around 7pm, water the garden, then another swim at about 10pm. Last year, this sort of heat lasted about 10 days so am hoping we are on the last stretch of it.

Grapevine

We've let one of our grapevine's grow over the new trellis. Mostly, because we didn't have time to plant climbers with a quick enough growth to cover it this year. It has gone crazy in the recent heat and is now beyond the length of the trellis. It's provided great cover, but very little fruit, and should be lovely in autumn too. In the meantime we also have a bougainvillea growing well which next year should provide colourful cover.

A sunny picture of the pool ...

Realised most photos on this blog have been taken in the evening, so here's one of the pool in the bright midday sun. As you can see the wisteria has gone crazy this year. 

The pool is pristine due to:

Pool Boy's cleaning!

Jardin St Adrien

Last week we visited a beautiful garden made out of an abandoned stone quarry. During the summer they are open from 5 - 7pm three days a week. It is an extraordinary venture to have undertaken, the owners have been there for 25 years creating this labour of love. There is an incredible sculpture carved out of a stone wall, amazingly lush grass (sown with local non-hybridised wild grasses which don't need a lot of watering), wonderful, bright flowers and interesting plants around every corner. They have also made a stage and terraced seating for concerts, which we are determined to go to next year. Behind the stage is a lake giving the effect of a mirror, which looks fantastic in the evening.

Everything from the quarry has been recycled; walls are made out of the quarried stone, wooden telegraph poles have been made into colourful gardening figures and the iron railings and arbours from reinforced concrete.

It was good for us to see what can be grown in a Mediterranean garden and we were pleased that many of the plants featured are already in our, much smaller, garden.

www.stadrien.paysdepezenas.com

Exemplary cats

Time for the cats annual visit to the vets for vaccinations. Cue a lot of chasing and stress - both for the cats and Jane - getting them into the travel boxes. Wellington managed to escape twice, but third time lucky got him in with much complaining. Ended up having to make three seperate trips to the vet, who did declare they were 'exemplary cats'! His English interpretation may not be exact but he meant they were in good health and good psyche - so they should be, given the charmed life they lead.

 

Summer visitors

Unsurprisingly, living in the south of France we are now a magnet for visitors. It's already been a busy summer with friends and family coming to stay, almost constantly, since May from NZ, Australia, UK and USA. Plus, we've had people staying in the gite from the UK and Sweden. It's been wonderful having the garden finished so that people can relax by the pool, eat outdoors and generally indulge in an al fresco lifestyle made possible by a really good climate!

We're pleased and amazed that in a year we've gone from this:

 to this:

Another brick in the wall

One more garden wall completed with stones recycled from the original garden. Just one more long wall to go and we're done. Have got the consistency needed for the concrete down to a fine art now as well as matching the right sized stones.

Tour de France

Today's TdF route comes near us, finishing in Cap d'Agde. Had thought about catching a train to Sete to watch the race coming through, but it's too hot for crowds so am settling for the cooler, indoors, TV option.  As it's also Bastille Day it will be more crowded than usual. 

We recently went to nearby Agde, a lovely unspoilt town which, 2500 years ago, was a thriving port. Over time the silting up of the Herault river pushed the coastline from its walls and it's now surrounded by canals. Its fishing heritage is much in evidence in the medieval streets and squares. A much nicer place than its 'evil twin', Cap d'Agde, which is a sprawling and characterless modern resort.

Merv is currently in the Alps, providing support for a cycle trip going over some of the cols of this year's Stage 11, including Col de la Madeleine and Col de la Croix de Fer - although the group won't be doing them all in one day like the TdF riders!
 

Miss Havisham's cat

 

Nothing gets in the way of Wellington and his food ...

Bits and pieces

The stairway railings to the gite entrance have now been painted. 

We've made a garden bed below the trellis to grow some climbers, recycling bricks previously used in the garden. We have a lovely bright red bougainvillea, bought by Jane's mum, to put in here.

And the magnolia lives! After our severe pruning earlier in the year we have magnificent new growth and lots of fragrant flowers. Phew.

First crops

Although it's late in the season to plant vegetables, we have put a few staples in. Very pleased with the progress of the beans which were grown from seed only a few weeks ago. The pear tree has a good amount of fruit this year - having found a way to deal with the ant & aphid problem which affected it last year.

Too hot for one and all

During the heat of this week, even the cats have found it too hot to make it to their food bowl without a lie-down on the way. This is not the sort of temperature for running about in. 

Unveiling ... le jardin

Almost there, but here's what the garden looks like now. After 18 months of being a construction site we're loving it. Most especially not having a concrete mixer there anymore! With temperatures in the high 30s (C) at the moment, the pool is much used. We are able to have meals outside in the shade of the magnolia tree; which, btw, is growing back into a beauty again.

The Boss

On Tuesday night Merv and I went to Montpellier to see Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. Fantastic night, albeit quite warm - it was still 22 C when we came out of the arena at midnight. 


A truly brilliant evening, made even better by being randomly picked out of the crowd and escorted to the front pit. Lots of room to dance, right up close and we could see 'the whites of their eyes' - a must at any gig according to a very good friend of ours.

Barcelona

Recently had an overnight trip to Barcelona with a good friend visiting from NZ. First, we drove to Figueras to see the wonderful Salvador Dali museum, then Merv went off to the Eastern Pyrenees to do some walk & snowshoe trail recce's while J and I took the train to Barcelona. Had a fabulous time watching the crowds in Plaça Reial, drooling over the food in La Boqueria and being awed and amazed in the Segrada Familia. An excellent short break.