The lovely thing about boating is the freedom to change your plans. This came into effect in a small way today. We were all set to head from Argens-Minervois to Paraza for lunch, however as we arrived there, it was clear everything was shut and all the moorings were in the process of being refurbished. … Continue reading Serendipity, gotta love it →

Le Boat don't provide much of a briefing before they let you loose on the canal, locks and other boats. I had read the Breil guide, but even then, there are some unwritten "rules" which I've been made aware of, generally politely, but sometimes in the shrill, overwrought tones of someone who can't bear anything … Continue reading The Code of the Water →

My folks were picked up by taxi at 10am tobe returned to the comfort of the Trois Couronnes hotel before heading home. We ventured on to Homps. While up to now we've done a pretty good job with all the locks, the first one today was a pig's breakfast. We had to wait for it … Continue reading A few minor mishaps, readily handled →

My mother is an avid reader. Among her many accomplishments in terms of completed works is A la recherche de temps perdu, but certainly up there in terms of scale is the complete œuvre of Maigret by Georges Simenon. Only a few volumes remain before my mum can add this notch to her bookmark reading … Continue reading La Bouquiniste de La Redorte →

We stopped for lunch at Marseillette, squeaking through the lock before 12pm and it closes for an hour. A walk through a field to the main road brought us to the auberge Ô Fil de l'Ô, which provided us with perfection. As is often the way with places declaring themselves "auberge", they serve a menu … Continue reading Textbook France →

We got our mojo back in Trèbes, I think. After finding that dining out in the evening isn't a good option for our two kids after a long day on the boat, we'll aim for lunch out, dinner on the boat. Good. We had a quick wander around Trèbes which is visibly still picking itself … Continue reading Trèbes →

We'd arranged yesterday that we'd be arriving into Carcassonne with the Capitainerie, and it felt very civilised to arrive into a pre-planned berth with even our vessel's name posted by the moorings. We sauntered into the town centre and had a cheery drink too (right next to the most patriotic scaffolding I, for one, have … Continue reading Weather Catches Up with Us at Carcassonne →

We awoke, as expected, in Villesèquelande, and after a serviceable breakfast, my parents arrived on schedule from their hotel in Carcassonne. A quick coffee (and a slice of artisanal nougat, a present from our family friend Luce in La Rochelle) later, and off we set for Carcassonne along the canal. There were only a few … Continue reading First Sync-Up Successful →

When looking at options for the portion of transformational leave we'd be together as a family, there wasn't a lot of choice. It had to be a bit of an adventure, i.e. neither just a visit to family (which we do often enough) or a Mark Warner all-inclusive type thing (which is awesome, but not … Continue reading Why the Canal du Midi? →

Last Wednesday, I started feeling pretty ropey. We've had a fair run of illness in the family, nothing serious, mainly 2YO-related nursery type things. But I really felt rubbish, almost to be expected just before a holiday, of course. By Wednesday night, I'd identified that it wasn't a cold, or flu, but was just like … Continue reading What a difference amoxicillin makes →