Bonjour à tous. I know that the last post said that Frog Blog would be closed while we go off cat-hunting, but as it turns out, our campsite has a cabin with free wi-fi in it – so I am killing time and keeping warm by availing myself of it. To finish off the account of Jan’s visit, our Saturday BBQ was a great success. We spent the day preparing for our guests, then had the customary Margaritas to get us in the mood. The Frenchies had a friend staying with them so were five instead of four, and an English friend of Sharon’s, David, also joined us – along with his three young kids, so we were quite a crowd. Fortunately, it was well staggered, with David and kids arriving in the afternoon and the Frenchies showing up later in the evening. It was a gloriously hot day, so the pool was in big demand, especially with the little ones.
It was a totally ‘francophone’ experience for all of us: David’s kids have a French mother and do not speak a word of English – and the arrival later that evening of Christophe & co kept us in French mode all evening, which was really great. We stayed outdoors chatting until we parted ways, around midnight. Although this was a sensible time, we still managed to do some impressive drinking, so I was a little the worse for wear the next morning.
Another day of clear skies and heat meant Sunday was a chill-out-and-enjoy-garden/pool day – ideal for nursing tender heads. That evening, we managed to scrape together enough bits ‘n bobs for BBQ part 2 and all enjoyed that out by the pool. Finally, the next morning we were up and about early to get Jan back to Angoulême station. Before returning to the States, she was off to spend a couple days in the capital, where a relative lives, so although she was sad to be leaving the countryside, at least her holiday wasn’t quite over yet. Once back home, we began our preparations for our big Italy/Cat Collection trip, interspersed with yet more lounging by the pool.
Tuesday saw us AGAIN up at 7am (2 days running: this is unheard of!) to ensure an early start. We set off a little before 9, the disgraced Natalie managing to atone for her failure in Biarritz by not making any mistakes this time. The journey was uneventful – motorway pretty much all the way but little traffic, so progress was good. We Passed through the ‘Massif Central’ (tranalates as ‘Huge Middle’, basically: as I have said before, I really think the French could be more inventive with their names) which was stunning, and from there on, the Alps just kept growing and growing around us until we finally made it to Chamonix, at around 4.30pm.
Our campsite is in a valley in the Alps and is dwarfed by Mont Blanc (again, lame effort with the naming!) – it is really breath taking. I am in picture-taking overload and as soon as I have been able to go through them all and upload some, you will see what I mean. As to the blog title, I am never exactly thrilled about the idea of voluntarily depriving myself of basic home comforts, unlike some… I am putting up with it all because I know what is at the end of the trip!
I woke up at some point in the night when it was still totally dark and since then, was totally unable to get back to sleep. I also have a bit of a sore back, which was probably mainly from the 7 hour drive, but I am going to blame it on the airbed. Eventually, I couldn’t stand lying there awake any more, so I got up and checked the time, expecting it to be a little before 8. I was most displeased to learn that it was actually 6! Bugger. It was too cold to sit and read outside, so I grabbed my laptop and made my way to the wi-fi cabin. I think I will give Matt till 8:30 before ejecting him from the tent. Not sure what the internet situation will be at our next stops – so there may or may not be updates. A bientôt.