Almost Home

11 August, 2014 (Sally)

We left Champagne three weeks ago, slowly and reluctantly. It certainly is a part of France that we have become familiar with and one that we have no trouble coming back to. After a couple of weeks of unsettled weather when the family was with us the sun came out and we stopped and enjoyed an extra day or so at the little village of Damery. Vineyards on either side and a selection of champagne houses in the village that would take a week or two to visit. We managed two on a Sunday stroll, with only a back pack and on foot we are no match for the serious buyers and sure enough at our second tasting we met the same Belgian family that were here last time, very smart cars with copious boots to fill, we left them settling in for the extended tasting and buying session. We added our couple of bottles to the backpack.

At Dolmans we visited again the French Memorial to the Great War, this is one of three national memorials in France and as always a sobering remembrance of the cost in young lives wasted and the huge material cost to the country. Next stop Chateau Thierry, always a pleasant stop and our last chance for a champagne tasting. Tony was having a hair cut and the lady hairdresser insisted he must visit her brother who had a vineyard in the nearby village and was one of only forty fully-organic producers of champagne. Well why not, so off we went for a lovely ride through hills and amused her brother when we arrived on our two little motors. What is interesting is the size or lack thereof of some of the properties. This particular one was only 4.5 ha yet he managed a very comfortable living from that; and one in Dormans was even smaller at 3ha, a far cry from the large Moets and Bollingers that seem to own or buy up huge areas of grapes.

At Charly we had a funny experience with some fishermen. Negotiating past their long rods and lines is one of the hazards of the waterways and sure enough when we arrived at this little mooring a group of lads had taken over most of the quay with tents, campfires etc. Next morning we saw a huge commercial barge approaching and next minute it had swept all their rods in front of him. Shouts and quite a few words we haven't heard before issued forth but next thing the commercial had stopped, backed up and lines were rescued. All seemed sweet as the barge then rafted off us, using the bollards on Sable to secure himself. I went off for bread and Tony explained to the bargee that we would be leaving in 30 mins so he could move into our space. At which he said he was here to stay and didn't care what we wanted to do, then the boys got involved and more heated words were exchanged but everyone calmed down and it was all resolved by the time I returned. Our language skills and vocabulary do get a workout at times like these.

Our last stop on the Marne was at the delightful village of Lagny. This is our third time there and every time the water and electricity is not working so the mooring is free. One wonders if it has ever worked. All too soon we left the peaceful stretches of the Marne into the more commercial area and were soon on the outskirts of Paris. Through the junction of the Marne and Seine and under the first bridges on our way into the city. The river is the main transport route of gravel, sand and all building materials into Paris so you find yourself competing with enormous barges carrying huge amounts of material. However as long as you give them right of way, and who wouldn't, it all works fine. We moored in the port of Arsenal, under the Bastille monument and set off to enjoy a few days in Paris. First stop the Cluny Musée where the one thing I wanted to see, "The Lady and the Unicorn" tapestries is now exhibited in its new rooms. They lived up to and surpassed all expectations, six wonderful tapestries is such detail and colours so fresh and clear. From there it was a short walk to a cafe on the left bank and time for a refreshing drink. We settled down opposite one of the fresh seafood stands with its wonderful display of oysters, prawns and crabs, all on beds of ice. I watched several people stop to take photos and after half an hour decided an entree of oysters and champagne on the deck of Sable would be nice start to our evening in Paris. The order was taken, then the decision over which oysters, I chose Normandy. Ouvert? Of course. A large polystyrene hub cap, filled with ice, 6 oysters nestled amomg same, 4 large quartered lemons the whole wrapped in a huge plastic bag and tied with two contrasting monogrammed ribbons. I now had a parcel weighing a couple of kilos to manhandle home on the Metro! Hilarious, expensive, but enjoyable and where else but Paris would your fishmonger have monogrammed ribbon.

It was the first day of French holiday madness so Paris was full of school groups, family outings and very hot and bothered looking tourists. We avoided all the usual sights and took the metro to the Bois de Boulogne, hired Paris bikes and cycled through acres of unspoilt woodland. In the process we got ourselves totally lost and came out the opposite side where we were only one stop from the end of the metro line. We did see a couple of people walking and some with their dogs but it was almost impossible to believe we were in the middle of such a busy city. We then took the metro back to the left bank, hired bikes again and cycled right through the busiest parts to get back home. Such a contrast. The next day we walked again and chose another less popular one. From the port one follows the old railway viaduct where a selection of very eclectric artisan shops have taken space inside the brick arches. We peered through the windows at high fashion, lovely glass work, iron work and some fascinating timber furniture. It seemed that no one wanted walk-in customers. I would think their work was for very high end interior decorators but wonderful to see. The walk back was on top of the 600m viaduct which is now a lovely garden with lots of seats to sit and enjoy the flowers and the views. So many special places in Paris to be discovered.

From Paris we turned up the Seine and once again shared the water with the commercial barges. So many and so huge. As we went into one lock we were told to move forward as 4 more barges were coming in and sure enough we suddenly were dwarfed by this enourmous amount of shipping. Its such a bonus for Paris to have all that heavy material coming into the city by barge. It would be impossible to do it by truck. Three days on the Seine and we turned into the much more peaceful Canal de Loing which rises up from the Seine valley and down into the Loire. This is a delightful piece of canal, we are moving quite quickly but have already decided we will come back this way next year so have made several notes of things to do then. At Montargis, we stopped to collect our last vistors of the year. Lorraine and her friend Shirley-Ann were with us in Holland for a few days a couple of years ago and joined us again after travelling around for 3 months. This was their time to relax and unwind before the long trip home but as they had a car and we were so close to the Loire Valley we did take a day trip to one of the most famous chateaux, Chambord, the hunting lodge of Francois 1. I had last seen it in 1991 when it was being restored and you could only visit the outside, what a difference today. You can visit the inside, watch an equestrian display, eat at a dozen restaurants, hire a bike, boat or pedicab to get around the grounds and buy souvenirs from the gift shop or a number of other retail outlets. What a change to see such commercial enterprise and they were doing very well with it. From there we went to the pretty little town of Blois where the heavens opened. It was lunch time so we found a restaurant and changed our plans to venture further afield.

The two must-see sights on this canal are the historic seven ecluses, built in 1490's, that are now preserved beside the more modern ones; and of course the Briare aquaduct that spans the river Loire. We managed to take them to both of those before putting them on a train back to Montargis where they left their car. Now we are on the last leg back to home base. It will take us two weeks to do that then its clean-up time before the packing and winterising and that long flight home.