Homeward Bound

5th October, 2009 (Sally)

It was with a certain sadness that we turned south and started our final leg of this years travels, and just to make things harder for us the Saône looked spectacular with the first faint shades of autumn starting to appear in the trees that line the banks. Fishing must be one of the most popular pastimes in France and it is rare that we do not see some one sitting on the sides of the canals with oversized rods, fold-out tackle boxes which become comfortable chairs, keep-nets in the water and most amusingly, rubber aprons to protect their clothes. Saturday was fine and warm so the banks were lined with men, it is very seriously a man's sport, and many had set up little camps with tents and tables, it was going to be an all day affair.

After a night at Seurre, always a favourite spot as it was here that we first saw, fell in love with and purchased Sable two years ago, and another at Verdun sur le Doubs we finally turned off the Saône and are now moored at Fragnes for three nights. It is not a rushed trip by any means unless this wonderful Indian summer decides to desert us.

While I was in Rome Tony did take his motorbike through the vineyards and to his surprise found the vendange was completely over. Such a change from last year when on practically the same date we did the tour the day before it started. A very early harvest this year, as a result of the very hot summer and all picked within ten days. Amazing. He also managed to finish all the painting while I was away. What a hero, so Sable with her new coat of blue, freshly painted decks and new name plates is looking very smart.

Rome was a wonderful week for me. The overnight train trip was less than memorable. French trains are noteworthy for their cleanliness and punctuality. I am afraid the same can not be said for the Italian ones. I was meeting Myra and her sister-in-law Wendy at 3.00pm so after finding the hotel I did a quick walk through the local neighbourhood and found the Forum and Colosseum only five blocks away. I walked to the top of Capital Hill, admired Michelangelo's statues, gazed in wonder over the Forum and photographed the Colosseum before making my way back to the station to meet them off their train from Salerno. Back to the hotel and they were ready to go, where, of course, you've guessed it, back to the Forum, Colosseum, Capital Hill etc. So that was day one, a very thorough look at the main sights. Day two, Myra had booked a tour of the Vatican Museum so after braving the morning rush on the Metro we were able to bypass the 500 metre queue at the museum gates and be taken by our very informative and friendly guide to some wonderful exhibits. With 2,000 rooms of treasures it would be crazy to see too much but after three hours we felt we had done very well. She gave us a very good ovesight of the Sistine Chapel before we went in and that was excellent as it would have to be one of the most popular, and the most crowded places I have ever been in. The ceiling was cleaned between 1980 and 1993, [that is four times longer than it took to paint] at a cost of 100million euros, and is now protected by a very efficent air conditioning unit. Kept at a constant temperature with the removal of 900 litres of water a day. Seems an unbelievable figure until one sees the crowds that go through. They have left a small portion in one corner uncleaned, one can hardly see the figures in this part through the grime and soot stains from the millions of candles that were burned there over the 500 years. It was Japanese money that paid for the restoration and in return they have the copyright on all Sistine Chapel merchandise. As a result there are no photo's allowed inside the chapel, with a host of guides to enforce the ruling and to keep the crowds moving. The constant hollers of "No Photos" completely destroys any reverent feeling one may have.

From there it was into St Peters and then the climb to the top of the dome for the memorable view over the square and the vatican gardens. If that sounds like a lot to do in one day, you are right, but day three, four and five were no easier. We walked everywhere, through streets that were designed for chariots, dodging businessmen on motorbikes and discovering hidden corners, plazas with fountains and statues and everywhere a constant stream of tourists. What is Rome like in the height of the tourist season or is there no such thing? Highlights? The Colosseum, no photo can ever do justice to its size, the expanse of the Forum, Michelangelo's statue of Moses that he designed for the tomb of Pope Julius, the Pantheon, built in 27BC, consecrated as a Christian Church in 600AD and still in use today, the Sistine Chapel and the art works in the Vatican Museum but the wonderful Bellini sculptures in the Villa Borghese stand out. It was a wonderful chance to see it all and to have some family time too, but as always nice to be back to the more gentle life style on Sable where the sightseeing is limited to a patisserie or chocolaterie and a walk to the boulangarie is the main excercise of the day.

We stopped again at St Jean de Losne after leaving Dijon and as well as having the motor and heating system serviced, met up with quite a few fellow travellers. The New Zealanders are well represented on the canals and we entertained two couples from Auckland on board for a Happy Hour. They left, we ate and were just settling down for the night when an enoumous hotel barge, at least 80 metres in length, arrived and moored almost on top of us. We stepped outside to view and as it approached closer and closer thought this is getting a little tight. With that one of the crew yelled out to us to move our boat. We asked where to, considering it was after 9.00pm, pitch dark and there were no spaces left on the quay. We don't care they said, just move. Bearing in mind we were legally moored, we demurred. By this time we had collected an audience of interested boaties and the conversation was getting a little heated, with one of the crew threatening to call the police. We passified them by rafting off the Kiwi boat in front of us, and in the morning recieved an apologetic visit from the captain. Ruffled feathers were smoothed, but even he admitted that there was no sign declaring "no mooring" for private vessels, or to say they had priority. Just another reason to get back into our friendly canals with room for all. Our next stop will be at Santenay, shady trees and a cute village surrounded by fine Burgundy vineyards. Should be a good reason to take the motorbikes for our last ride of the season.