Where did May go? We had a weekend and a few days off this week with the house and garden to ourselves which has been great for a change of pace, but we’re about to get very busy until bookings quieten down in September.
I’m feeling a lot more relaxed about the Chambres d’Hôtes now that we have some experience under our belt and with the feedback we’ve had so far. It’s been lovely having people enjoying the house and garden and what Eymet has to offer, so we’re feeling really positive about the coming few months.
Picking up my from my post about getting ready to move over, with a combination of lots of planning and preparation, plenty of good fortune and chance, we had everything lined up to leave the UK on 22/7/21.
Leading up to the big day we packed everything away that we weren’t going to squeeze into the car updating the customs inventory as we did so and over the two days of 19th & 20th July Revells moved everything into storage.
On the 20th July after they had left, while Tom was at work and later enjoying his last day of term party, I cleaned the house, packed the car for the journey, said goodbye to the neighbours, checked into a nearby Premier Inn and waited for the call from Tom to say I should pick him up from the party. I was exhausted!
On the 21st we headed down to Dover and checked to another Premier Inn all ready for Ferry Crossing the next day. I was feeling really anxious about it all, and on the 22nd I confess I was a nervous wreck as we approached customs. In my mind there was so much that could go wrong – COVID restrictions, customs forms, BREXIT implications, no house to go back to, no jobs etc etc. I knew I was over analysing but I do get stressed in new situations…anyway we had all our paperwork to hand (and more than was needed of course), Tom was calm and relaxed and he drove us through customs without a hitch. After a brief wait / coffee we were on the ferry.
It had been such a mad few days / weeks leading up to it, that it was then it really started to feel real. I love the ferry across to France, I always have, but this one was a bit special. It was actually happening…
I’d reserved a cheap and cheerful motel in France on the way down near Le Mans and actually it was perfect. Safe parking for the car with all our stuff in plus the bikes on top, cheap and clean bed / room for night, a lovely bistro a short walk away, just off the A28 and about 6 hours drive from our home for the next 3 months inRazac d’Eymet.
That was just over 10 months ago, and we’ve since bought a house just 5km from there. We’ve been working on our accommodation at the back of house this week, starting to add an ensuite and generally bringing it up to date a bit. Of course, our priority up until now has been the guest accommodation, but now that looks great, we’ve got plenty of background projects for the summer when we have time and it’s not too hot!