We’ve ordered a marine toilet from Italy and solar panels from Germany. We’ve got a Dutch bank account and a Dutch built boat. All instructions, on the boat, are in French.
We’re ordering fuses from Holland, ‘they don’t exist anymore,’ insists the French chandlery.
My Dutch phone keeps texting me in Dutch. I can’t get my French phone to work – I have to back up the Sim first, in order to back up the Sim I have to activate the Sim, in order to activate the Sim I have to back up the Sim.
The French dongle (sounds like a poodle) is working just fine – phew!
Thank goodness for lovely places like Ranchot to calm my befuddled brain. And my lovely family from the UK (mum, dad & Kieran (my nephew)) – to help keep me sane!
The town of Dole is remarkable for several reasons. The three most pertinent reasons for me are because:
1) The scientist Louis Pasteur was born here (he was the guy who came up with the food preparing process known as pasteurization, and he also developed a vaccination for anthrax and rabies).
Louis Pasteur
2) It is a stunningly beautiful place, and
Dole Cathedral
3) It is our first stop on our first voyage on our first barge!
My nephew Kieran is great crew
After leaving our health Spar on the hard at St Jean de Losne dry dock, where the fumes supplied a healthy nose bore, emptying out all that crap that’s been sitting there; and where daily skin and teeth exfoliation were complimentary from the neighbouring sandblasting – we finally cast off and moved!
Before departure I confused (and scared) a few people as I decided to inflict a name change on Dole, I told everyone we were going to Dove!
Hidden delights in Dole
Family arrived, mum, dad and nephew Kieran, and they instantly felt at home. They easily fell into the boating way of life and before long we were on another voyage to Ranchot; which was interesting as we did not plan to stop there – until the floods. More on that soon – with some beautiful pictures of a splendid evening on our unplanned visit.