Thursday, November 06, 2008

OUR LAST DAYS OF CRUISING WITH JOHN AND CATALINA (The End of our 2008 Cruising)

On Tuesday, Oct. 28 our friends John and Catalina Escobar arrived in Carcassonne after a much awaited visit. They had been to Holland and Germany, and before coming south they were in Paris, from where they drove to see us. The weather had been beautiful until the day they arrived. That Tuesday was the coldest day we had had all season, but fortunately, in the days to follow, it warmed up and they had some beautiful sunshine for our last two days of cruising. The Canal du Midi was to close to navigation on Nov. 5, but we wanted to be in our wintering port of Castelnaudary on Oct. 31. The last few days before the closing of the canal, navigation had to be "a La demande," which means you had to ask for permission and subject yourself to their schedules for locks, etc. John and Catalina arrived around 7: 00 PM which was the perfect time to have a drink. I had some appetizers and a bottle of Biesbosch's own champagne to celebrate their arrival. After a much animated hour or so, we had a delicious dinner of Boeuf Bourgignonne, which I had prepared the night before, and which proved to be the perfect meal for a cold evening. In the middle of the night the electricity in port had failed and our batteries went flat. We had to make sure they were fully charged, since on our first night of navigation we would not have a place to plug into. The next day we had our daily breakfast with fresh croissants and out-of- the oven bread brought by Bill every morning. They so enjoyed their breakfasts on the boat. We got ready and Catalina and I went to do some shopping at the Pharmacie de La Gare, a fabulous American Style drugstore that has the most wonderful natural products one can possibly imagine. We went up to The Place Carnot, made reservations to eat at the local" Chez Felix" and went back to the boat to get the guys. We very much enjoyed our lunch at this typical French bistro, walked around and went back to the boat for the rest of the afternoon. In the early evening, we drove to Castelnaudary in both our cars so we could leave them there and get back by train. To our dismay, the last train to Carcassonne was delayed by more than an hour, so we left their car at the station and drove back in ours to see the Cite, so John and Catalina could take photos of it all lit up. Every time I see it up on the hill at any time of the day, its beauty takes my breath away. But at night it looks surreal, almost. That evening we had a light meal of quiche and salad, and vast quantities of wine, as one tends to drink when in company of friends.

The next day, after our usual good breakfast, we got ready, I walked to the first lock--the one at the port--where I had John throw the ropes to me. Going back to Castelnaudary you are up locking all the time and because of the height of some of the locks, it is good to have someone help with the ropes. From then on, John was my rope assistant. We would drop him off at the waiting pier before the lock and he would either walk or bike to it which proved to be a very enjoyable thing for him. The first couple of hours of navigation was a bit drizzly, but later on the weather got better, so we spent most of the time out on the bow. That first night we tied up the boat after the port of Bram right after a lock in a most beautiful and quiet spot. We had nothing but the trees and the birds around, my most favorite thing to do. We sat around with our drinks, and I made a nice chicken dinner, which we all enjoyed. After our cheese and after-dinner drinks, John and Catalina did the dishes and we retired for the night. The next day, due to the fact that we were not full up in power we all washed up--no showers--had our breakfast and continued on for our last day of navigation for the season. At lunch time we tied up the boat in a beautiful spot, the lock of La Peyruque where there is a small boutique owned by an English couple. She makes beautiful ceramic things, so John and Cata bought me a lovely little bell and a ceramic plaque just like the one marking the lock house, for us to hang in the boat. Such a thoughtful thing to do!

This stretch of the canal has very many locks, many of them triple, and the last one at Castelnaudary, a quadruple lock, operated mainly by our friend, Mr. Villeneuve, better known as "The pie man". Most of the lock keepers remembered us from the last time we went down so all of them were wonderful, talkative and polite. I had asked Mr. Villeneuve if he could sell me a pie, but he was out of them. We decided I would be picking one up at the lock house the next day. As we left the last of the 4 locks, we came into the large basin of Castelnaudary. John was at the helm and Catalina and I could not believe the beauty of this basin with its Mediterranean feeling and beautiful old mill and bridge. We moored the boat after the bridge at the port in front of La Police Nationale. We had called ahead, so we had a spot and electricity and water available. John and Catalina were supposed to leave for Barcelona soon after arrival, after 6: 00 PM, but we persuaded them to stay and leave the next morning. We had another lovely evening with them. We went to the local supermarket, got a few bottles of wine and came back to the boat where I prepared a pasta meal enjoyed by all. The next day after a good night, we were starting on breakfast, when we heard a knock on the door. It was "The pie man" delivering a piping hot apple pie that he had made for us that morning. He wanted to make sure our friends could taste it. We could not believe it. So our breakfast was grand. After getting ready we all got in their car, went back to Carcassonne to pick up ours, and we led John and Catalina out to the Autoroute to Barcelona. We said our goodbyes, and although, once again it was sad to see them go, we are glad to know we will be seeing them again in Miami this winter when we are there.

After their departure, Bill and I went out to lunch, came back to Biesbosch and did some laundry, since the next day they were predicting rain which finally came. It rained all night and all day, something we had not seen here in The South since our arrival last year. We stayed in Biesbosch reading all day. I finished a book and almost finished a second, watched two good movies and made plans for our trip to the North which starts this coming Thursday. We plan to go to Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Holland and The north of France.




A tea break for Catalina



My rope assistant



A lovely bridge on The Midi



The basin at Castelnaudary



The view from our wintering spot



The Cite de Carcassonne



Biesbosch coming around the bend



A great couple



The colors of Fall



Tying up for lunch in shallow waters



Great mooring spot

A VISIT FROM OUR FRIEND ELENA

On Oct 15, Bill and I drove to Toulouse Airport to pick up our friend Elena who arrived from Madrid Around 8:00 PM. Her flight was a few minutes late, and we were concerned that the little place in Carcassonne where we wanted to eat would be closed by the time we got there, Luckily, we arrived around 9:30, and it was not too late. It is a little Italian family restaurant where we had eaten before. We wanted pizzas, which we ordered with some wine, and Voila. Our pizzas arrived. Elena ordered an anchovies pizza which proved to be too salty to eat. She was too polite to complain, so she ate the crust, a little salad, and some of ours. We got to the boat, showed Elena around, and noticed she was truly impressed. She did not know what to expect, but she loved the feeling and the comfort of the boat. We knew she has a tendency to get sea sick, so we wondered how she would do once we would start moving.

As it is customary, the next morning Bill went out to get the bread and croissants for breakfast, only to find out Elena was not around. She had gone out for a walk before Bill had awakened. We had our breakfast, showered, got ready and went out with Bill as far as the Place Carnot, where they hold the market twice a week. This day they were setting up for the launch of the first wines, so the market had been reduced to less than half its original size. Bill left to do some errands and Elena and I walked to The Cite, the fortified city of Carcassonne. Every time I see it, which is at least once a day, I am in awe of its beauty. This day, it was sunny and beautiful, so Carcassonne was even prettier for Elena. We walked up a steep hill--no path--to reach the outer walls of the city. From there you felt taken back a few centuries. No pavement, electric cables or car noises could be heard. We could only imagine the sound of horse hooves hitting the stone path as they approached its gates. We went into the center of the cite, saw the beautiful cathedral, the Hotel de La Cite, the small squares and all other sites . As we came back into the Bastide--modern Carcassonne -- we went to have lunch at a little place where Bill and I have eaten called Le Cozy. They have great food, delicious salads and desserts, and a very nice atmosphere. We had a great lunch and walked through town, did some shopping and thoroughly enjoyed our day. In the evening, we went to taste some wines at the Place Carnot, many of the chateaux offering some great foods along with the wines. Later on,we cooked a Raclette for Elena, which she really enjoyed.

On Friday Bill had a dental appointment in the town of Fabrezan, so we left sometime mid-morning so we could have the chance to show Elena the countryside. The grape harvest had just been completed, the vines, in their golden and orange splendor made the landscape breath-taking. In Fabrezan, we walked around the town which is very charming and had lunch a a little restaurant across from Dr. Hortal's office. We met Bill and drove to Aigne, the small village shaped like a snail, Caunes Minervois with its beautiful Abbey and pink marble quarry, Minerve and its canyons, and all around the area. We had to get back to get ready for a soiree with our friends, Michele, Claudine and Dany, here on Biesbosch. Elena and I made a tortilla espanola, we had hams, cheeses, olives, and different hors d'oeuvres which we accompanied by some great wines. Dany brought an almond, butter dessert called Financier, out of this world, and Claudine brought an assortment of delicious panna cottas. Although it was not meant to be a meal, it turned out to be so. We so enjoyed having our friends on our boat again, and they were delighted to meet Elena.

During the time She was on Biesbosch, Elena, who does not sleep very well, slept like a baby. I was so glad to know she was relaxed and really appreciating this kind of life. She never got sea sick, not even when we were uplocking and the boat would move from the violence of the water coming into the lock. The next day, under clear and sunny skies, we took Biesbosch in the direction of Trebes. The first lock just after Carcassonne is a triple lock, quite an experience for Elena. She was delighted with the whole thing. We tied the boat up and had a lovely little lunch. After lunch we went exploring around the sleepy town, where despite the signs for the different specialty shops, it did not look like they had ever been open or that there were any people in the town. This is very typical of rural France, though. Our stop for the evening was Trebes where there is a rental boat base with a real port. I asked the captain for a spot, and although they were full, he moved a boat to the other side to give us a spot where we could have electricity for the night. As usual, Elena and I went into town to see the sights, and although the church was supposed to be open, it was not. I guess they knew I was coming! In the evening we had another nice meal on Biesbosch and another good night's sleep.

The next day we had a very e and easy day of navigation. We tied the boat up in Puicheric and had lunch at the picnic area complete with stray dogs--lovely ones--and lovely weather. In the afternoon it got a bit cloudy, but never cold. We arrived in Homps at 6:00 PM ready for a nice drink. Elena announced that since the next day was our anniversary, she wanted to invite us for dinner. We ate at Les Tonneliers where we had a very good dinner and good bottle of Minervois wine. It was a very good evening. We would be getting up early to go back towards Carcassonne, the same way we came. We were invited to Dany's on the day of our anniversary along with Claudine and Michel. Bill had picked up the car and brought it to Trebes, so we could drive to Dany's in the evening. We all got dressed and arrived at Dany's beautiful house, now converted into Le Jardin de La Cite, a gorgeous B&B with a beautiful view of La Cite from her living room and pool area. She had made so many fabulous things to eat and it all looked so beautiful. The punch she made was the best I have ever had. It had champagne, cinnamon, juices and other spices. We had a very good time with our friends, and Elena got to see Dany's house in full. We came back, Elena got some of her things ready for packing because the next day we would be driving her back to Toulouse to take her flight to Madrid.

We got up early to take advantage of the day so we could see Toulouse with Elena. Her plane would be leaving at 8:00 PM so we had time to go to the market at Victor Hugo, where we ate at one of the upstairs restaurants. Elena wanted to try the Cassoulet, I had a very good piece of meat and Bill had some steak, as well. After lunch, we went to see St. Sernin, the impressive and gorgeous Romanesque church of Toulouse, where earlier in the year I had been given my Pilgrim's Credential. We visited Les Jacobins and its Cloister. Here under the altar they have the urn with St. Thomas of Aquinas' remains. We also walked to the beautiful Toulousian church of Notre Dame de Taur, The Capitole, The Parc Wilson and all of the main downtown area with its many little boutiques and numerous cafes full of people at all times of the day. Elena wanted to be at the airport early, so when we arrived, she wanted to get in to the tax free shops to buy a bottle of wine for her daughter, only to be told that on Easy Jet, passengers going to Spain have no right to buy from those shops. She was able, however to buy her a lovely pair of earrings from a beautiful gallery at the airport.

Although we will be seeing Elena in Madrid before we go back to USA, it was very sad to say good bye again, and we only hope to have Elena with us another time on Biesbosch. Who knows? She might join us in Bruges when we are there, perhaps next year.




Elena in Fabrezan



In the snail-shaped village of Aigne



Minerve, Cathar City



Fresques Lock



Charming low bride on The Midi Canal



A reflection in Homps



A quiet stretch of the canal



The painting-like quality of the Fall landscape



Turbulence in lock



A very fit First Mate



And co-captain as well