Cycling Along the Canal du Midi

Today we both celebrated our birthdays. As a break from our regular routine of work and more work, we decided to make a trip by bicycle along a part of the Canal du Midi and have a picnic somewhere along the way.

Picnic spot

Where to start from and where to cycle before turning around and heading home again? The weather was another consideration because even though it was a glorious day, the predicted wind strength was something in the region of 100kph.

Along the towpath

We had thought of Castelnaudary because there is a fairly wide path there and access is easy. But we looked further on Google Earth (great programme) to see if there were a couple of villages we had not yet visited (as we have been to Castelnaudary a few times now) and chose Villesequelande as our starting point (43 14' 21".03 N 2 13' 57".37 E). We cycled direction east towards Carcassonne, past Sauzens and up to the sharp bend opposite Pezens.

The Canal du Midi is a World Heritage site

Along the way I kept thinking of Kermit the frog and the Rainbow Connection. Kermit rides his bike in the opening shots of the movie and then the music starts and we see a swamp and hear the first chords of a sole banjo - the camera slowly zooms into the swamp as singing starts and orchestra joins in and there we find Kermit sitting on a log, playing and singing. I think this is one of the most beautiful songs ever (although I do admit my list is a long one!)

Ecluse (lock) between Villesequelande and Sauzens

Old Poplar

Back to the canal - there are some wonderful views from certain points, but you have to remember that as a canal it is not high up for panoramic views. However, you do catch glimpses across to the Black Mountains, across the villages on the northern side of the canal, and on higher points, over towards the peaks of Andorra. Quite stunning landscape indeed. And no worries about the wind as in most places it is very sheltered, having trees on both sides a lot of the time, or the canal is dipped behind stop banks - would be hot in summer but at this time of the year it's quite wonderful.

Wonderful trees along the way

Reeds in flower

Wouter was fascinated by many crows in one field - they seemed to congregate there and when he made some bird noises (he didn't tell me before that he could do bird impressions - the things you find out about a person....) they circled around like something out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, squawking. Armed with camera, he managed to take a few photos which satisfied his curiosity.

Field of crows

The canal is by no means busy at this time of year but there are a few boats still out for a leisurely trip here and there. You usually see boats in small groups - this is because when they go through the locks they come out together and so two or three pass within minutes of each other. Between 12 and 2pm though, it seems like they just tie up somewhere while the lock operators have their lunch break.

Reflections in the Canal

Cycling back another image came to mind - the Famous Five who were always having an adventure - except there were only two of us - Timmy (aka Cassy) was at home on guard duty and Dick and Anne were off hunting for mushrooms on Kirrin Island. We also didn't have lashings of whipped cream with any of our picnic but we did eat well mainly from our garden (tomatoes included).

I hope our pictures give you some idea of the lovely scenery along the canal and you can imagine a pleasant bike ride while enjoying the autumn sun and the calm of the surrounding nature.

Art Exposition

Last weekend were expositions at both Cambieure and Cailhau (neighbouring village) to celebrate Achille Lauge (1861 - 1944), a local artist from Cailhau. The exposition was to show-case today's artists who could somehow relate to Achille Lauge's work, in the form of a cultural community event and Wouter was lucky enough to be able to take part.

gathering interesting items for the display

preparing prints and text for hanging

The opening was at Cailhau with 6 local artists exhibiting oils, watercolours, specialised photographical images, sketches and drawings, and glass sculpture. Cambieure and environs exhibited work from artists of oils, acrylics and gouache, paper art, and of course printing.

setting up the hall

other side of hall

At Cambieure there were also activities for children - Wouter made a special drawing of the water pump down by the river (well, creek), to make a simple 3 block print, using Cambieure mud as one of the colours. The children were very focussed on putting pressure on the baren to make the ink transfer from the block to the paper. Even some adults had a go and found it enjoyable.

Pamela's first attempt at printing

Alice showing correct placement of paper (registration)

Great pressure and concentration for using the Baren

some adults in the Sunday print workshop

The drinks on Saturday evening proved popular with around 90 people attending - the atmosphere was lively and while socialising, people were looking and admiring the artwork - we saw lots of discussion taking place, which is after all, another aspect of art - encouraging discussion on a picture and how the image was achieved. We met lots of new people and also caught up with others we hadn't seen in a while - very enjoyable.

drinks are always popular!

The texts for the prints and the story book to show the preparation process before you get to the printing stage explained that there is a lot of work and effort required for making a print. And it was only while doing this I completely understood what Wouter was talking about when he was telling me about such things as registration marks and working the block. People often don't see or know about the planning, the preparation, the carving, the printing - and how long it all takes to achieve the final result - they only see one image completed on a piece of paper. The experience was also valuable for us to know what participants in future workshops might expect, want to do, and what sort of questions can be asked.

All in all the event was a success with locals being able to enjoy some local artistic talent on display, children being able to express their artistic abilities and try something they may not normally be exposed to, and seeing an unexpected horse trek of around 20 horses and riders passing by. As a last treat while we were packing up, a local arrived with a preliminary sketch by Achille Lauge, so we were able to see the real thing. Pity the image was damaged with a long tear in the paper, but hopefully the owner will have it professionally restored to preserve it.

Wouter's woodblock prints can be seen here (please note the image copyright) and his art work here (also copyrighted).

La Chaleur

The weather a couple of weeks ago was like an Auckland summer - gentle breeze, around 26-28 degrees, a few showers earlier on - which have long since dried up. But now we are into "la chaleur" - the heat. I've just checked the forecast for Cambieure and today we can expect temperatures in the mid 30s. Our overnight lows are in the low 20s, which I realise is higher than most of the highs in NZ right now, as well as in most places in the UK, who apparently are having an awful summer. We are due to have some heavy rain next week on Tuesday, but if it is as reliable as the rain we didn't have the other day then it will still be dry as a bone.

images thanks to http://www.lachainemeteo.com/meteo-france/

Today's temperature forecast
note that we are on the SE corner - between the 30 of Perpignan and 37 of Toulouse

Tonight's temperature forecast

Luckily for us there is still around 2 meters of water in the well which means we can keep watering the garden. A lot of things in the garden are coming to an end, but there is still enough action to keep us busy and we are trying to plant some late crops to take us through the autumn weeks.

The vegies - well we've had tomatoes galore, along with - potatoes, courgettes, beans, capsicums, carrots, chillies, onions, garlic, shallots, leeks, figs, figs, figs (thankfully this crop has finished but there will be another lot end of September), pickles/gherkins, pumpkins, beetroot, sweetcorn and melons. As much as possible has been preserved for later in the year - the cellar is full of onions, potatoes, pumpkins and beetroot; the freezer is full of cherry tomatoes, chillies, fig pulp, cherries, capsicums. The tomatoes are just marching on like a line of soldiers and I've given away heaps as we just cannot fit anything else into the freezer.

Also growing are gourds, scorsonere (like salsify) and some flowers, like spicata (purple spikes), Reine margrieten (queen marguerites), zinnias, bella di notte (night beauty or belle de nuit), nasturtiums, artichokes (we let these flower rather than pick them and use them to eat as apparently they are hard work for little reward) and a few other bits and pieces. We can't wait to try the melons and I have developed a taste for pickles - never been interested before but now we have our own supply I thought it was time to try - and I'm pleasantly surprised with the result. I've preserved them in a light vinegar and several small batches have been done with different herbs like rosemary, bay leaf or thyme.

Artichoke flower

Interesting eggs on bean leaf - anyone know what they are?

Figs for preparation

Pumpkins weighing in at between 5-9 kilos each

We have found that some things don't seem to work, at least, don't work when and where we planted them, like peas. I will try a few more for autumn and see if they like the cooler temperatures. Planting by the moon is popular here so let's hope I've chosen the right day to plant out the seeds!

Recent full moon

Sweetcorn was a success, but not with french seeds - we found that most bought french seeds are pretty awful, especially given the price of a packet - the stuff we had from friends in france and new zealand is much better so I have managed to freeze several cobs - by NZ prices, about $70 worth!

Wouter with tjankol

and as a boy in Indonesia tending corn with tjangkol

The fete de Cambieure was a lovely evening with around 300 people turning up with family and friends to enjoy the village feast, music and later dancing entertainment.

Setting up

In full swing

Warming up the audience (it's a challenge in France!)

The problem with our internet seems to be fixed at long last. Apart from lots of my time and patience it only took around 10 phone calls to Orange and visits from 6 technicians to do it, spread over several months. The real cause, well, it's not known, but the technicians who were here last could see the problem happening and they simply changed us over to the other line which links Cambieure to Belves. Before that final step we had lots of dubious wiring replaced within the house and the cable from the house to pole also replaced. Now we have internet all day and it's reasonably fast and this makes it easier for us to manage our emails, correspondence and Skype.

In the last couple of months people have been busy clearing out their attic or garage and there were lots of vides greniers (with entertainment) for us to attend and try and pick up some bargains.

Traditional music on Sheeps body pipes

Sampling wine from local growers

We found a few things, including some outdoor lamps which have come up really well after cleaning glass, repainting the frame and hanging on hooks. A lamp with genuine parchment shade:

"Where did you get that lamp, where did you get that style....."

Lastly for this blog, after some effort to get our webmaster into action, our B&B site is running - to take a look:
http://www.lapradecambieure.fr/Site/Welcome.ashx

Mirepoix

Mirepoix is a bastide (square formation) town just over the Ariege border around 30 minutes from Cambieure. It's known for its Medieval buildings in the main square and for its weekly market, which is attended by many people from far and wide. In summer shuffling around the market is fun, in winter there is more space but also there are less traders.

Gargoyle Beams

Covered terraces to drink coffee

Hanging baskets on Medieval buildings

Shops also sell their goods and there is plenty of interesting shopping under the covered terraces.

Character abounds

Pan de bois

Pottery market before it was too hot and full of people

I'm in pale yellow with orange backpack

Saucissons, shoes, cheeses, wines, biological products,....

For the pot
One hears English, Dutch, German, Occitan, French, Spanish

You have to experience the bustle of the market

Obviously I had no idea I was in this shot!

"Behind the scenes"

Mirepoix market is held every Monday and in the summertime they have evening markets. There are other markets held periodically, like the pottery market. Just outside the square is a lovely cathedral.

Internet

For the last few months our internet connection has been getting progressively worse. It has been frustrating, not only because we were busy with many other things, we needed to do our online driving practice tests, but also to keep in touch with people, read news and so on. We have a second phone line which works over IP but without internet, that doesn't work. We are also supposed to have a TV decoder for paying channels but without internet that also doesn't work. If the decoder is connected and there is no internet, the tv won't work either, so we have not installed it in view of our current situation.

At the start, the internet would cut out around 8am and sometimes come back around 10 or 11pm. We spoke to other people in the village and they told us this was normal. So we thought, ok, we can live with that, even if we don't think it's normal. The connection slowly became worse, with the outages increasing in length. The tone on the phone was also worse and I could hardly hear anyone calling in.This was no longer normal.

On contacting Orange (French Telecom) and explaining the situation, they asked us to try a few things, and then decided to send a technician. The technician arrived and we explained (again) the problem and he told us - this is normal. He didn't look at anything or do anything.

So 2 weeks later the internet was even worse and we ended up with no internet whatsoever, so it was time for more serious action. The only way we could connect to the Internet was by engaging the phone as if we were going to make a call and then as soon as we finished doing what we were doing, disconnect and the Internet connection would immediately disappear.

Contacted Orange again and they asked us to change the filter, change the phones around and if that didn't work, they would send someone. "They" happened to be two lovely older technicians who looked at all our cabling. They found a few problems - so we're not mad - an old line with bells, apparently from an old phone system, which may interfere with the current system, a birds nest of cables in the loft which looked like a plate of angry spaghetti. The internet worked, but the phone didn't sound much better. But they left, we were happy - for 5 minutes and then the internet connection disappeared. Back to the same old tricks.

Called Orange again and they decided it might be the Livebox (router). So we arranged with our friends up the road to collect it from Limoux (as no driving for us!) and spent a while installing it. Finally we finished at 1am and did some work on the internet. All seemed to be well. But the next morning it was back to its usual self, with the red light flashing like mad and no connection at all. The phone trick was also starting to be unreliable.

So I formulated a condensed series of events for the next call from Orange - they were going to call us this time, after the installation of the new Livebox. I was going to tell them that as Orange was not able to provide all the services we are paying for we feel they were not keeping their side of the contract and they should have checked before selling us this package that it would actually work in our area - basically Orange sold us a lemon. But when the lady called she was so sweet (they saved her for this moment) and she was very understanding and said they would arrange for a specialist technician to come out the next day.

The technician called and said - bonjour, we have found a small problem on your line - I found this quite funny as each time we rang Orange they "checked the line" and found nothing. So I asked him to repeat it and he said yes, there is a problem on the line.

He arrived today - without smile, without greeting, and started taking apart what the other lovely guys did last week. But what happened today? We had a thunderstorm at lunch time and somehow that got rid of a lot of gremlins in the system and the internet worked perfectly for over an hour - blast - they finally send someone specialised and the thing works! But I should have relaxed as it was short lived - as soon as he started moving things around, the connection disappeared. Wouter showed him what we had to do to get internet. He found the whole thing strange too.

The time spent on sorting this out has been significant and I can well understand people getting upset with helpdesk assistants on the phone who try to establish the details of the problem. But for now we have internet and I will be interested to see whether or not it is still working tomorrow morning.

Driving Test

On Friday we sat our theory exam for driving. It's been an interesting experience to go through all of this, but I must say it has helped understand how the French drive, even though I get the feeling noone actually follows the letter of the law - maybe that's why they have so many laws and red tape here - if there is enough of it, one of these days someone is bound to follow the rules. We've also met quite a few new people and some new contacts.

Three times a week we went into Limoux to the driving school to do practice tests like they would be in the exam, and be frustrated beyond belief at the logic behind some of the answers. However, after a few times we feel we have come to understand how the French drive and think when driving. One interesting thing we found out is that smoking and eating while driving is 'interdit' - forbidden - because it means you must take your hands off the steering wheel to do it. Also, using the cellphone is interdit - every second car here you see someone talking on a cell phone or smoking a cigarette.... It doesn't help if you do the online tests and then find out that some of the answers are wrong, like this one (we chose the correct answers by the way):
Here are some sample questions - the question is read to you and then you have around 12 seconds to enter your answer, there may be more than one correct response to a question, and there is always at least one incorrect option amongst the options:

On 13th month, after the sign, I may:
make a stop - yes.... A no....B
park - yes....A no....B

I may:
- park before the sign......A
- park after the sign............B
- stop before of the sign.....C
- stop after the sign............D

On a new vehicle, the tyres installed on the front axle and also those installed on the rear axle must be:
- of an indentical structure
yes......A no........B
- of an indentical type
yes.....C no........D
I am well positioned for:
- turning right...................A
- continuing straight ahead....B
- turning left.....................C
- making a u-turn................D

Answers:
Q24 = A D Q3 = B C D Q19 = A C Q23 = C D

The test itself was another story. We did a practice exam at the school and then went down to Rue Blanquerie where we used to live. There is a huge building there, and we always wondered what was inside. Now we know - a lovely courtyard with lovely flowers and exotic plants and a big hall like the old NZ school halls with a stage and big windows. All the different driving schools turned up with their pupils who were all nervous (including us) and hoping to pass (ditto). Then you had to queue up for your turn, as they put the papers in a certain order so you have to go in by the order of the papers - sounds something like trouping the colour... Anyway, we were outside and Wouter thought this is a good thing because even though it was hot and sticky, sitting inside a hall with no air con for half an hour is awful before an exam. We felt better - slightly. Butterflies continued finding their way around my stomach and we wished each other luck. Handsets were given out and then the instructor said a lot of things which we neither heard nor understood due to lack of volume and speed of speech. But we managed to put in our security codes correctly before the exam started. The first few questions were all a blur as I realised this is it - we're really doing the test - all those weeks of reading, trying to do our internet tests (this is another story), going to classes, it's now or never. The end of the exam - phew, sigh, relief. Each person went up to the desk of the softly spoken man in exactly the same order as entering the room. The man tells you once you have given in your handset whether or not youv'e passed - in front of everyone. So there was another advantage to enter the hall almost last....... Poor people who didn't pass - no privacy to say BUGGER! Wouter's turn - PASS, a few more people, my turn - PASS. Excitement and happiness follow and we are both really pleased we passed. Of course now we are not allowed to drive until we have had our practical exam and (hopefully) passed that too.

We still think there is something wrong with a system which will allow the exchange of driving licences from countries such as Nigeria and Liberia, Vanuatu and other little dots of islands that not many people have heard of. But rules are rules, and NZ licences do not qualify to exchange for a French one. We could have gotten around it several ways - had we known in time what was required. One way was to go to Britain and become resident for 3 months, and then 3 months before the expiry of our international licence, apply for a British one, come back here and exchange it for a French (EU) one. Another way was to visit Vanuatu before leaving NZ and get a licence there. A straight swap would have been done in that case. Another way was to contact some guys over the 'net and "buy" an EU licence, but both of us didn't like the look of them - they reminded us of used car salesmen and we wondered how far our money would go if we attempted to buy another licence in cyberspace.

Pedro

A couple of weeks ago there was a dog advertised in one of the local papers - it was an "elderly" couple who rescued a dog and were not able to care for it where they were. So we replied and heard nothing more until the other day when I had a call from the lady owner who said she would give me the dog.

We arranged to go there on Sunday and have a look around and see the dog and then decide if we would take him or not. So "Enzo" was there, black, part labrador (and definitely part something else), somewhere around 4 months old. We decided he looked ok, and he had been vaccinated and micro-chipped. The young girls at the house were a little sad he was going, but it seems the family did not have the time to look after the dog and he had no company so it was better for the dog to have another home - they told us this is what they explained to the children.

When we got him home we introduced the dog to Cassy at the neighbouring property to prevent any territorial disagreements. But everything seemed to go well, and after a couple of hours both dogs were playing happily together on the lawn. He is not at all used to the leash, but after a couple of walks down to the reserve he seems to be improving. He likes to mouth everything, which is typical for a puppy. But I don't like nippy or licky dogs so we'll work on that one.
Apart from a few small habits he seems to behave reasonably well, and we hope that within a week we'll have him obeying commands in English. He seems to adore Cassy. But Cassy, at 8 years old, needs his grandpa naps and a break now and then from an energetic puppy. However, there are advantages on having another dog around - there is an extra bone once his is finished and puppy is not yet top dog so he can just whip it off him.

We didn't think the name Enzo fitted the puppy and spent a bit of time looking for a more appropriate name - a lot of names for black dogs seem to have sinister connotations, but in the end we chose Pedro, which we think suits him well.