New Year

We've been back on the boat for just over a week now and, although it was lovely to see everyone in the UK over Christmas, it was also lovely to get back here. I cycled into St Jean for freshly-baked baguette the morning after we arrived and felt 'at home' again.
Our journey back was pretty smooth - lots of traffic on the A12 and M25, of course, and then clear, unbusy roads as soon as we drove off the train at Calais. That's one of the main things we both like about France - it's a lot less densely populated than the UK.
We've had some fairly mild weather but the meteo says there is a cold spell coming up and it has just started snowing. The central heating and the wood stove keep us nice and cosy.

As we came back in the car, we were able to take advantage of lower UK prices and bring back lots of supplies. The underside of the rail around the outside of the boat is full of rust holes and David has been repairing this by welding on some steel bars. I have been recovering some old aluminium deck chairs, having bought the canvas at the fabulous Cheap Shop in Tiptree.

As most of you probably know by now, my rental house is in need of some fairly heavy-duty repairs and, consequently, I shall be coming back to the UK on 16th Feb to work for 6 weeks. That will bring me back here around Easter, in time for our stay in the dry dock and then cruising.