From Normandy to a housesit in Brittany - Days 8 to 10

An emotional visit to the British War Cemetery at Bayeux

The clifftop Aire was fabulous, opened the blinds in the morning to watch the sun rise over the sea (and the van beside us). It doesn’t rise till just after 08.00 which is making waking up very tricky! We’d had a pleasant evening, Brits on both sides, though one couple was trying to confuse us, a Welsh tag on a French registered van! Beyond them was a small Dutch van with a couple who regularly walked their cat, on a harness!

Arriving by bikes at Mont St Michel

Time to move on, to Mont St Michel, where again we thought we’d stay at the nearby Aire, for €9.60, stay there we did, but sadly for €15.50, a little more than planned, but a lovely spot. Bikes out again to cycle along the riverside, to the mount and the sea. It’s a strange place, we didn’t go into the monastery, but amused ourselves going up and down steps, through passageways, no idea where we were.... a slower cycle back as again it was into the wind, but fortunately we got back just before the rain for our last evening in the van for a while.

Walking through the narrow streets of The Mont

Some of them were really quite narrow!

Thursday we got up and went on a short walk up to a working windmill before heading off to our Housesit near Plouguenast. Gill was there to meet us and we started learning about our charges. The two dogs, cockerpoo Lexy and papillon Pasha are both very sweet, Lexy full of energy and wanting fuss all the time, Pasha wanting attention, padding her little paws and wagging her tail, till you stroke her, when she doesn’t quite know how to react. 

The Moulin a vent  (Windmill) de Moidrey

She had a hard life before she was rescued from a puppy farm so has never really known a normal existence, at least she is now safe and cared for to live out the rest of her life. The star of the show for Brian is obviously Alfie the African Grey Parrot, he is a laugh, loves men, attention and mischief... as I type I can hear Brian in the other room trying to keep him off the laptop, where he can remove all the keys in no time, away from the charging cable, and originally stopping him shredding the magazine I picked up from Lidl. It is now too late for the magazine which has been sacrificed over the laptop!

Had to stop on the way to give these cuties a tickle

Chariot racing at the nearby Moidrey Racecourse

We were just getting started on the information download, when some friends of Gills turned up. They are a lovely couple, Ken and Debbie, but we could perhaps have used the time better to make notes, and to not drink wine! It did give me chance to get acquainted with Belle, little old grey cat who spent the whole two hours on my knee....

Lizzie the pot bellied pig, goats, chickens, geese, duck and doves

Okay, go and meet the outside animals while it’s still light, Gilbert (or Guilbert) and Sullivan and Petal the goats, Lizzie the pot bellied pig, and the 4 geese, 1 duck, 6 doves and 6 assorted chickens. Until last week the feathered contingent had been much larger but something has been in and had a go, so numbers have dwindled. Keeping everything crossed they don’t dwindle further in the next two weeks. Pop into the nearest big town to get parrot food, be shown the gites, there are guests arriving tomorrow for an overnight stay due to a family christening, and make some notes, all the while talking 19 to the dozen. Met Murphy cat another oldie who was being licked and cared for by Lexy as he has slightly runny eyes. 

Lizzie getting a bit of fuss...

Dinner isn’t in yet, but thanks to our training with Tony and Nicky eating at 22.00 is not a completely alien concept, though we were more worried for Gill who had to be up at 03.30 to drive to Ouistreham to get her ferry back to the UK. Just the TV to be shown then, sadly this doesn’t seem to be working, so I may have to go and steal the Sky box from the big gite before tomorrow so we can watch Strictly come Dancing... bed at midnight, late for us, very late for Gill, though she is a night owl so was just getting into her stride.

Alfie the parrot

Awoke this morning and had to wait for daylight as B couldn’t find the light switch to go downstairs to make coffee. Lexy came and joined us on the bed, and all is well with the world.

Better do the outside animals before breakfast, it’s great fun, they all came out to say hello as we feed and water, again training at Tony and Nicky’s coming to the fore.

All I can hear from the other room is “Ahh, ah, aah, it was no last time, it was no the time before and it’s no this time,” I dread to think what Alfie is doing, or trying to do, but it’s very funny.

Who is very mischievous

Load of washing in, pop to the shops, lunch, and little walk for Lexy. Shorter than she would probably have liked as it is incredibly windy and the big dark clouds were heading towards the washing at an alarming rate.... so blog written, going to do a techno raid then it must be coming up wine o clock.... we are going to love it here.

In many ways!

But also very affectionate!

Anything and everything is interesting to him

Magazines don't stand much chance if left unattended

But he's very cute, just on the go at all times

Here's Lexy dog looking cute...

And chilled out!

And here's Pasha dog

This is Belle cat

And Murphy cat, being nudged out of the way by jealous Lexy dog

Big Ted parked on the drive of Gill and Martin's lovely house. The lower building on the left is the games room, left of BT is the large Gîte, in front of BT is the main house, the 'end on' building is the smaller Gîte and the building to the right is Gill's pottery and art workshop

And their swimming pool, now closed for the coming winter