Man At Work

I never fail to be amazed at how hard Bertie works and what DIY talents he has. He is also following closely in the footsteps of his mother and has become a dab hand at recycling all the junk he finds lying around to create something much more useful. Now he is working full time and the sun sets so early, he is not seeing much of his garden (ahh!) but he got plenty done over the past few months, digging and clearing and chopping and weeding and building. Some highlights...

Growing lettuce in October? This is not Guadeloupe you know!It's all about motivation - even reluctant gardeners will help their daddy if the reward is some tasty raspberries next summer!
This used be a greenhouse but who needs two?! So Bertie removed some concrete, laid some pebbles (mostly dug up all around the garden - where do they come from?), put down the random bit of tarpulin found in one of the sheds and then finallylaid 60 kilos of sand! And it barely even covers the bottom! The kids have enjoyed playing in it but it is covered for winter now. When it reopens I think we will have to triple the amount of sand, especially as they have great difficulty keeping it in the pit! (NB Any guesses as to why that wooden pane is there??) This is one of our four compost heaps, mostly left over from the previous tenants, which Bertie has been working on. We think this one may contain a fox or two.

I had my heart set on a bird table so Bertie kindly nailed this together for me. We have had the fun of watching our friendly robin and some bluetits come regularly but our most frequent visitor is of course the darned squirrel. Even JoJo runs to the door and shouts "OI!" in imitation of his frustrated mum when he sees it coming now!

The begins of our leaf mould container, which Bertie hammered together from crates from the local vegetable sellers. It is now totally enclosed and full to the brim after all the blustery weather, and we are looking forward to seeing how it looks in a year's time.

Photo Time!

Cousins Siblings

Siblings amongst the corn Helping Daddy

Looking beautiful in her new dress from Tatie

More Cousins

Fete de St Jean

Our town's patron saint is St Jean so the town's fete is this week, in honour of his day yesterday. The roads have been beautifully painted with a zebra crossing outside our house, a great concession to the poor pedestrians here I must say, as normally we are subjected to trials such as bushes/cars/piles of cement in the pavement obliging us to walk mostly on the road. Not to mention sky high pavements - fair enough, they get rid of the water quickly during the torrential downpours, but are a nightmare with the buggy! Which has broken again, probably terminally this time, but I am impressed at how long it lasted with Mum and Ev's makeshift repair!

But I digress. Various things have been happening, such as boeufs tirants - which bull can pull their cart the quickest? There is a podium in the town place each evening, a film was shown tonight, an agricultural fair held last weekend, and yesterday a bonfire was lit before the mass for St Jean. Most shamefully however, we haven't made it to any of these events for one reason or another! However, all the little areas around our town will be having their fetes over the next few weeks and we have marked down a few events to visit. Having already seen boeufs tirants in previous years, I am hoping to get to see the cabris tirants this time! (Goats - funnily enough no one uses the word chevre here, just like vache is rarely used in favour of boeuf).

We did however have a quick peek at an event being held in honour of the French Journee de la Musique last Saturday, which apparently is huge over in the metropole. We watched through the window a Quadrille which is a very charming dance just like country dancing. Bertie used to do this with his siblings when he was much younger, and it brought all sorts of happy memories back to see it. There was a man singing (or bellowing rather) the instructions and the musicians consisted of maracas, triangle, 2 guitars, tam tam style drums and bamboo scraper. Aside from one man Bertie's age whom he recognised as having learnt with him, the dancers were all of a very certain age and took it very slowly indeed! They mainly danced in twos in groups of eight, and it is made up of six different dances which each last quite a while. We saw one but then headed back home.

This And That

I have missed recording life here for you all so here are some of the recent highlights for you...

We borrowed our friends' seven seater Zafira and what fun we have been having with it! It zooms up mountain roads, LissaLou loves sitting right at the back on her own with her pile of Choubouloute books to read. Plus we get to take others along, notably Stella.

We have been weekly to the beach (got to make the most of it before we head back!) and I have suffered at the hands of the sun, grr.

For those with a map we have visited Anse Babin which despite its murky waters is renowned for its mud. Bertie covered himself in it and was so so smooth! I was too busy looking after ten children in the water to be able to indulge, one of whom was intent on drowning himself....!


We went for a marvellous walk in Port Louis amongst the mangrove. Such an interesting area that I have never visited up close before. There were so many crabs, funny little things with one huge pincer the size of its body or bigger! It was very wet and muddy even in dry season so must be quite a sight in wet season. This was followed up by a visit to a part of the beach much further up than we usually go, and it has shot to number one in my list! Deep clean blue water, coral beach, ahh! Our friend left us his snorkel kit and we had great fun visiting the fish below the surface. It is an amazing experience snorkling, so calm and peaceful and feels like you are so far away from the real world rather than two inches. Bertie can dive and then emerge blowing out the water from his pipe like a whale! I have not reached such skill yet!

We have gone down to Basse Terre more often recently - I am getting used to the hills there (always helps to have a more reliable car!). We visited a bain chaud on the side of the road near Dole, which is where they bottle water. We love these kind of pools - like a swimming pool with no chlorine! They are lovely and warm too, warmed by the volcano.

Bertie's brother is building a structure at Pika to keep up dry and safe from falling mangos. It is still needing a roof though. Speaking of maangos, they are all gone! Sniff! Back to maracudjas and some guavas and a lovely new fruit I haven't tasted before called pomme malaka.

This weekend has seen Bertie rejoicing as Bordeaux took the French title and in deep sorrow as Nadal went out of the French Open. As long-term readers may be aware, the other half of our couple was somewhat pleased about this and is behind Federer every step of the way, unless of course he faces Murray!! I think there is discrimination on the side of the french sports people here though as they never mention him. Hmph.

It has either been raining horrendously (unusual for may i am told) or very hot recently, no fun either of them!

Bertie has been able to preach a few times which he enjoys. He is particularly in demand for church on the beach (or message sur la plage as I like to call it!) as he has such a loud voice! He got told off by his dentist for talking too loudly the other day!!

Speaking of Bertie getting told off, we were enjoying a pleasant evening in the park with some friends when he got accosted by a random drunk guy and viciously insulted for quite a while about how he has nothing, is nothing, will come to nothing. Bertie was quite taken aback by the tirade until he was called Galette by the man, and it turned out to be a case of mistaken identity! Now his nieces are taking great joy in shouting Galette at him! But I did point out that in my eyes he is the Galette des Rois!

I hear the Scrabble pieces come out, I think I shall stay hidden a bit longer rather than lose atrociously to the Super Scrabble Sister In Laws!

Poisson d'Avril

We in the UK have April Fool's Day, actually only celebrated until midday. Here in France, they have April Fish, and pranks are allowed the entire day. Fortunately we weren't subjected to any. Bertie did however get an April Fish of his very own when he went fishing at La Pointe des Chateaux and then in Le Moule with a friend of his and his fishing-mad nephew that evening.

His sole catch, barang,* was described by his dad as the oldest fish in the sea! It is certainly reputed to be one of the boniest. In any case, he roasted it for our friends and we all appreciated it greatly!

*the creole name - no idea what it is in french or english

More Scenes Around Our House

Bertie's fully repaired bike (the silver one) which he is enjoying running around town on The girls often creep next door to their cousin Emilye's house - mainly because the tv is always on then, I suspect! They didn't look overly pleased at being found by their mum!

Teacher Bertie at work

I had to tell him to put the magazine down to look a bit more professional!

A Shameless Plug

You have heard of going gwada, well now there is a new blog on the scene and I would heartily recommend that you check it out! It's called growing in gwada and can be found here...

Photos I Would Have Shown You

Well, I am not destined to have photos on this blog! Over a hundred sit on my SIL's camera and the USB port tells me it is malfunctioned so I can't upload them onto Picassa! Sigh...!

So I will have to describe them to you instead!

Sunday was Epiphanie which is very big here. Alberto's Grandmere used to hold a big party for it every year so Mamie did so this year (given that she wasn't here for Christmas and New Year only just). All the family came over and we had a delicious meal of salad and accras, bebele, and coq (fresh from Pika!) which had been cooking on and off since Friday! Delicious aromas kept coming upstairs, Bertie had to warn me not to go down in the night and steal a bit! Their door creaks so I would have been found out anyway... We also had our Galette des Rois - several in fact, including one made by my own dear husband which was most tasty. A lot of work went into making the pate feuillete at midnight the night before whilst he watched Godzilla and I browsed potential holiday homes for a possible family holiday back in the UK...

There were also lots of photos of Baby JoJo playing and standing and on one occasion eating a whole banana he found on the counter - and when I say whole, I mean peel too!

Other highlights were...

The girls making a car out of the sofa cushions...

...LissaLou's Barbie doll with her hair coiffed by the girls...

...CassCass in her bright outfit from Ghana...

....CassCass and Dora and Baby Joy enjoying a teaparty with Mummy this morning, then washing up and washing all the baby clothes (yup, messy play just like you suggested Mum! Though she got me to do most of it!)...

...Another teaparty this afternoon this time with LissaLou and Stella as well...

....Baby JoJo trying to hijack it and pouring all the juice on the floor...

....LissaLou reading her Alice au Pays des Merveilles from Tatie Nadia, again and again and again...

....Bertie cooking the fish they caught, with some help from CassCass...

...Baby JoJo so sweetly sleeping...

....Baby JoJo sitting with his tonton Luciano and cousin AnneG, giving each other kisses...

...LissaLou and CassCass with their shop outside Tatie Pierrettes's house, serving their loyal customers (Mummy and Papa)...

...Papa's horror at a bottle of Vita Malt costing €4 (LissaLou is getting into the Gwada way of pricing!)

....Bertie admiring his first green lettuce from Pika, yummy!

Plus two quotes:
LissaLou (serving me a cup of water and biscuits): is the tea yummy mummy?
Mummy (drinking): Umm, yes it is
LissaLou: Well it shouldn't be yummy, it's got soap in it!

Mummy (watching LissaLou eat her fish and salad): You know, that piece of fish used to be swimming in the sea
LissaLou (holding up a small white thing): you mean this piece?
Mummy: Yes
LissaLou: But it's a cucumber!

May I also share that I have started my pilates exercises using the Lindsey Jackson Pilates for Mums Dvd. And my body is aching. Aching I tell you!

We've Gone Fishin'

Yesterday we had a lovely day out, having been invited fishing with Bertie's brother Richard and his family. Fishing is definitely in their blood, as Papy was a keen fisherman with his own boat and would often go out for the night (after a day at work!) and bring home plenty of fish for Mamie to sell in a wheelbarrow to the neighbours. Apparently this paid for a couple of cars, the huge freezer downstairs (which has sadly just broken after many years' service) and the upstairs part of the house where we are living.

Bertie's brother Luciano inherited the boat and took us fishing on the sea during my first visit in 2000. It was a wonderful day out, I remember snorkelling on a tranquil island, catching one tiny fish, and getting burnt to smithereens by the hot sun! The boat has been in repair ever since, so no repeat of that trip...(nothing to do with us, I hasten to add!). The fishing gene has also passed on to Richard's son William, and so when Richard is back from his regular work trips to St Martin, they spend many Sundays with their rod in hand.

As the family were intending to fish around Port Louis, we decided to kill two birds with one stone (or make two shots with one throw, as they say in french!) and visit the baptist church in Port Louis. We have been before and remember it to be a very lively affair, as they have the reputation of having the most happening worship band on the island! We were not disappointed, as it included steel drums (the only time I have ever heard them here, and so lovely to listen to) and bongos. If you want to hear one of the songs we sang, have a look at youtube here. It lasted about as long too! The other nice thing about the church was that they were less bothered about kids running in and out and talking, something that is sadly lacking in our local one.

After the service we picked up some bokits from a stall on the beach at Port Louis. It was very funny to see Bertie queuing with all the beach tourists in their swimming trunks whilst he had on his full Sunday gear of black trousers, shiny black shoes (we are in the Caribbean after all!) and long-sleeved shirt! He got laughed at by his brother and SIL when we found them too! In fact, they had headed up to Anse-Bertrand and his nephew had already caught a fish. You can see the place here (it wouldn't let me put it on the blog) and the waves were just as big! They fished off these rocks whilst the girls had a fantastic time with their cousin Raisa clambering over them. I enjoyed chatting to my SIL and looking after Baby JoJo.

We then moved along the coast to where the sea came in to a sort of lagoon, which had been beautifully arranged with a grassy space and huts and benches. As ever, nobody was there but ourselves; it often seems that the outside is wasted on locals! Richard caught a few fish, including an eel, and Bertie finally caught one to his delight, but it was too small to keep. He let LissaLou have a go on the rod but no beginner's luck for her. That, and being allowed to come home with her cousin in their car was probably the highlight of the day for her!

I'm Having A Break From Teaching...

These were famous last words from Bertie before we left the UK - he decided not to look into any teaching posts and just to have a year doing something entirely different. However, it would appear that he cannot escape from his destiny....

Firstly he was offered some hours teaching in the English School here. Then his friend asked if he could give her private english lessons. Then she put him in contact with several other friends and acquaintances all wanting private lessons for themselves or their children. Now the word of mouth is working well, and we are drawing up little adverts and trying to fit people in here there and everywhere. Learning english is extremely popular, which contrasts strongly with the attitude to language learning in the UK! Regarding his hours, it is the kind of job where everyone is free in the evenings so I shall have to face the dreaded tea and bathtime alone!

Deciding what to charge was quite tricky as we had simply no idea, but Bertie asked around and it seems that €15 an hour is a reasonable price. Seems very cheap to a Londoner (and probably won't get you far here - in fact, it won't even buy you a pack of nappies!!). Now we have to look into how self employment and tax etc work over here.

Happy Anniversary!

This time last year we celebrated 6 years of marriage in the beautiful Scotland, this time we are enjoying a glass of champagne and a bit of zouk in the delightful department of Seine et Marne...
7 wonderful years, thank you Toto!
And of course, happy anniversary to our fellow celebrators - have a wonderful day! To see the two happy couples, have a look at the final photos here.

Visiting Malvern Manor

We sent Bertie off for his belated Father's Day present of a day of golf with his friend LL Cool J and Pastor Julio. A round of 87 I believe, plus he is showing promise as a golfing tutor - could be useful if the teaching posts ever dry up!

We had the pleasure of visiting my parents at Malvern Manor. We had hoped to spend the afternoon on the bouncy castle in the garden, but the weather said otherwise, so we turned to inside pursuits. Mum helped us make a groovy book from the photos of our visit to the zoo last week and she and LissaLou made a delicious cake. We also had fish n chips! Grandpa knows the way to a grandaughter's heart is through her stomach!

I foolishly forgot my camera, but Mum and I captured a few shots on hers of the day. Have a look at them here.

Visitors

Always nice to have friends willing to venture up into north London, not least because it motivates me to clean the flat (and boy do I need that motivation at the moment!) but it is also great to see the difference in the girls when they are interacting with people on their own turf - they go craaaazy!


Trying to avoid the camera!

What a cutie! He beat LissaLou to the big wide world by 10 days (though she still tries to insist she is the eldest!)
Green-fingered trio Group hug
In honour of a long-anticipated visit from some church friends, Bertie provided us with a marvellous Sunday lunch - many thanks! It was his favourite Guadeloupean meal of accras and colombo, but this time he used a whole chicken for the colombo, which was delicious!

Finally holding Baby JoJo after three months of admiring him from afar!
I was worried that our house would prove uninteresting to this 8 yr old boy, but not only did he win Bertie's heart by eating two servings, he patiently played with the girls for hours......even when under attack!

Father's Day Fun

To honour this special person on this special day, we popped into see Dad on the way home from our church picnic. We got to enjoy the marvellous garden - the girls particularly loved the swing, ball pit and log cabin that the upstairs neighbour has installed for her daughter.

Dad bonded with his youngest grandchild
The beautiful Giulietta arrived at the end to show off her new John Rocha (no less!) dress...We had been intending to carry on our Mother's/Father's Day tradition of some patisseries at our preferred cafe on the way to church but Bertie gallantly spent his Father's Day morning preparing quiche and rolls for our church picnic so we delayed it till this morning. Armed with our vouchers for a free breakfast at Cafe Rouge (you can get them on Bonne Maman jam jars! Thanks to Eline for sending hers over to us!) we headed up to Highgate this morning...only to be told no availability. Hmph! However, no need to worry, we just picked up some patisseries and cherries in the local shop and had a lovely picnic in our local park instead!

Papa and his children (Papa et timoun-ay - I am practising my creole for our trip!)
We took LissaLou out of school for the day to enjoy her company - but by the end of the day and a LOT of non-stop chatter (now who does that remind me of?), I could see the advantage of her being at school...Oh, and she wanted me to write how beautiful she looks here!
CassCass in cousin Valerie's old dress (merci France-lise!)
Baby JoJo is now much more alert when we go out and will lie happily in our Phil and Ted buggy looking at the sky and his octopus - here is the view I have of him when I push the buggy!

He Drives Me Crazy!

Bertie is a man who really enjoys the simple pleasures in life - his excitement at getting his new (first ever) driver was something to behold! Somehow he got a free upgrade to this rather fine model which will no doubt add yards to his tee off shot and knock shots off his handicap. Here is the man in action on the balcony...

Birthday Boy!

I don't know if there are any golf lovers amongst the readership, but here is Trent Park, beloved of Bertie, and where he spent his birthday whilst we visited friends. A beautiful north London park, we had our wedding reception near by too. Lighting the candles...
Singing Happy Birthday/Joyeux Anniversaire!
Blowing out the candles together (oh their delight when the candles relit themselves!)
Thanks to mum for the delicious cake!

Joyeux Anniversaire!

Cher Toto, tu es un homme fidele a son Sauveur et un epoux devoue a sa femme; tu es un Papa adore par ses filles (et maintenant son fils!) et un prof respecte par ses etudiants; tu es un super golfeur et bien sur un "bon coureur"!
Je te souhaite un tres joyeux anniversaire et une annee de bonheur, dans ton pays natal. Et oui, j'espere que tu auras un 76 sur le parcours aujourd'hui!