it seemed like a good plan to set up the Gite business but it did mean my house was abandoned! I have now lived here for nearly six years and my house is still not done.
We have a lovely Gite now nearly finishing the second season. Last year we had 14 weeks booked, this year 26!
At the end of last year my eldest daughter and her husband decided they wanted to share our lives here. It has taken a while to sell their property but tomorrow they arrive with all their worldly goods. They stay one night then go back to return the van and finish up bits in the UK. Next week they will move here for good. They will help with the self sufficiency bit and the Gite business. We have a smallish cow barn attached to one end of our house. We have just about converted this into a house for said daughter. Once it is done we then have to finish the other two Gites ready for next spring. Once all this is done then my house will be done!
We have learned so much since moving here. Not least a new language! In the early days we went to the DIY stores and spent ages trying to work out what we needed. Both plumbing and electrics had more than one system. Once started you have to continue with the same system. We made a few expensive errors but slowly worked it out. Fortunetly we are can do people!
When we first arrived we did not even know our way around shops. I found it very difficult in supermarkets trying to buy my usual stuff. I kept ordering things from the UK at great expense. Gradually I worked it out and now buy very little from the UK. It has made me cook from scratch and be more adventurous. Today I buy very little even from French supermarkets and many things I produce from home! I have not bought a jar of jam since coming here and have a pantry growing with jars of jam and jelly. My first batch took me ages and was a big project. Today I was given some black grapes from a friends garden. In the freezer I had some blackberries. So I made jelly from it all! It is no longer a big deal!
A good friend said to me yesterday that when she first met me she did not think I would stick it out. She never thought I would manage to become self sufficient. She has now changed her mind I am pleased to say! I was a complete townie! She did say though that I am the only person she knows who can look clean and tidy whilst cleaning out the duck pond! I take that as a compliment!
I know I will always be a foreigner here but I finally feel comfortable.
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