"Wanted" A loving family for Nellie

The Last Tango in Paris!

To visit Paris in your own boat - essentially - your own home, is an amazing experience. It was the pinnacle of our three summers in France on Nellie. 

Cruising along the Seine under bridges, past industrial Paris and homeless Paris, we were quite beside ourselves with anticipation of mooring in the Arsenal - the dedicated Port at the Bastille end of this fabulous city.

 Sounds of a City:

Shrieking sirens, honking horns, purring pigeons. People talking, laughing, arguing. Wind rustling through boats' awnings, rigging. Water lapping and tour boats guide's loud speaker voices gabbling, echoing across the water. Inside the noises: the rattle and clatter of it all. The cafe's, the markets, the tree lined boulevard's, the Metro at rush hour; the homeless men on benches, the buskers good enough for stage and the elegant women and stylish men. The promise of excitement, spectacles, intrigue and surprise!

How thoroughly lucky, how absolutely marvellous, how brilliant in every way it is, that we have been able to visit Paris on our boat Nellie! I have stared at buildings past which Knight's Templars have ridden, walked the same corridors Marie Antoinette may have used, been inches from the canvases of Picasso, Rembrandt, Matisse, Monet, Degas and Van Gogh. I have ridden the Metro like a local and gaped in awe at the magnificent Art Nouveau architecture inside the Galleries Lafayette and then wondered how one would choose a single pair of shoes out of an entire floor of beautiful footwear on display. At the Moulin Rouge, the girls were so perfect, so similar, that playing 'spot the difference' was a tempting distraction from the vibrant and colourful show!

To think that we could afford to spend ten entire days here, is only thanks to us having Nellie as our accommodation. It would never have happened if we had to pay for a hotel. For this opportunity alone, I am so grateful that we made the decision to buy her and spend some early retirement years in Europe. With the fading of this summer, comes the end of our French Adventure. We hope someone will keep Nellie working and moving and enjoy her and love her as we have.

Could it be you?

Springtime. More fun and adventure on Nellie.

We hope that Nellie will be ready to move back on board by the end of this week. I was worried what state she would be in, as we had packed her away after quite a wet few weeks. With the very best attention to detail, you can't help some damp creeping in, especially when you start out that way.

It wasn't so bad after all. A bit fusty on the nose, but by and large, there was no mould and nothing a quick clean up won't fix. We have been staying at a gite a forty minute drive away for the past three weeks, and with only until Saturday to go before we have to vacate, we shall be spending most days moving stuff aboard and airing things out.
The weather forecast is good for the week. I hope it's right.

Meanwhile, exploring this part of Burgundy by car (we bought one to use in England and have driven it over) has been delightful.  We are close to Beaune, the main town of this wine growing region, and discovering it's food markets, historic buildings (the Hospice museum is a must visit) and restaurants has been a bonus we didn't expect.  Having my son (an accomplished chef) along with us for some weeks, means I have a 'foodie' companion to 'ooh' and 'ahh' with. We gaze lovingly at the morrel mushrooms, just in season (then succumb to an extravagant purchase); sneak a taste of the white truffle oil (and again don't resist taking a small sample back with us), we are both in 'food heaven'.

Already we have been spoiled with Eddie's cooking as he dished up salmon risotto one night and traditional Cassoulet another, when my brother Greg and his wife Gill visited us last week.

This week, we have to get organised and move our 'stuff' back on board. Even if the jobs haven't been finished, we have to move out of here.

This is how we 'found' Nellie - someone had broken a window! The company H20 charged us 60 Euros to put this plastic patch on, then quoted around 700 Euros to fix the window. It's all done now - for the princely sum of 80 Euro. We got the glass from Dijon and Mike fixed it  - just like new. How they were going to justify the 700 I don't know.

France once again beckons...but we must wait a while!

In the Spring of 2015 Mike and I will be resuming our French Canal Adventure on 'Nellie'.

'Nellie' FOR SALE!

Sadly, it will be the last time for us. 

This will be our third and final year of adventure and exploration and our goal is to drive her up to Paris and enjoy the Cultural Capital at leisure - in our own home! Of course there will be much to see on the way as well as after, because in this area of the French canal system there is no shortage of direction options - and each (we are told) is as glorious in its way, as another. But along with all the exciting plans for Spring, Summer and Autumn, we must be also make plans for finding 'Nellie' a new home. Sad though we feel about curtailing our French adventure by a year or two, circumstances change and we must adapt.

When we bought 'Nellie' from the Le Boat Company in Narbonne in the Spring of 2012, she typically had zero inventory. Not so much as a teaspoon, cup, life jacket or even a hose was to be found on board! We spent the first few weeks kitting her out (IKEA at Montpelier was a useful place for that) with all the equipment needed for the two of us (and frequent visitors) to feel at right home. 'Nellie's' accommodation had been modified somewhat when we bought her and now she has a large main cabin in the stern - with an en suite toilet and washbasin. Further up the hall and opposite each other are two more cabins with adjoining bathrooms and showers. These spaces are very adequate for single adults, or two smaller siblings to occupy. As well, the main living area has two single bunks. Last summer we managed to accommodate (quite well) six adults. It was lots of fun, especially as one of the group was a young French woman. She was wonderful in helping me with my French pronunciation! The top deck makes all the difference and on 'Nellie' it's big enough to be the 'party Boat'! As well the top boxes hide the generator (should we ever need it), life jackets, spare fuel and other bits and pieces. We use the top steering position all the time as you get a superb view of the surrounding countryside. We had a bimini (canopy) fitted the first year, to help keep the champagne cool!

One of the first things we did was to order new cushions and upholstery for all the beds and settees.  What a difference that made! Everything smelled clean and fresh - and with a new rug and scatter cushions it was certainly beginning to feel like home. This year, we added a cockpit cover to our improvements. What a difference this made on cooler, wet or windy days. It really does give us a lot of extra space and somewhere to put the raincoats! We had a few people enviously checking it out when we arrived at Saint Jean D'Losne for the winter break.

I will be posting here more often once the season begins and we move back on board. Meanwhile if anyone is interested in adopting Nellie for their own adventure, please leave a message here, or on facebook using the link below. We have many more details and photos, some of which I will upload over time.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Our-French-Canal-Adventure-on-Nellie/1508223209428725