Les Averries :: Our Country House in France

So it seems i'm going to walk through my travelogue willy-nilly as today's post is from
the Loire Valley, and the last was from Amsterdam, and I haven't even covered our time
in Paris ( yet! ).

But you don't mind, do you?

In fact, this was my most favourite part of the trip - oh for sure, Paris was *divine* -
we had a little apartment and each day we'd explore the city.

But now, we were in the country, and the boys were very excited as we had our own
private pool.  As soon as we arrived, we sat down for RULES, as the pool was unfenced
and there had to be no covert swimmage, and a parent had to be supervising at ALL TIMES.

Here's Dad laying down the law in the lounge:





And the reaction, which looks very mischievous to me...





At last everybody got to use the pool.








The afternoons were so lovely we ended up planning every day to be home by 5pm,
so instead of dinners out, we'd take long lunches instead, and i'd cook us something
simple in the evenings. 

Cooking is not a chore when you are in the French Countryside :)








Unfortunately, on the first day, AB managed to slice his foot right open, deeply.

To be honest, we were having such a great time getting by with our pidgin French,
the prospect of calling for a Doctor filled us with trepidation.  It seriously needed stitches,
and my dreamy plans of walking the country lanes at dusk fell by the wayside. 

He was hobbled.  I may have been a bit pissed off to tell the truth, but AB's a trooper
and we managed to get out and do things regardless.





However, my walks were alone, and I didn't go far. 

Knee-deep in grasses on one evening, I wondered about snakes. 
Then how no-one could hear me scream. 
So I pretty much kept to the road outside our house and the field across the street after that. 

Easy spooked.










We stayed in a township by the name of Bougueil, and it was beautiful and perfect.

The Café de la Promenade was just down the road, and there were markets to explore,
Troglodite caves, castles, wineries and beautiful countryside to drive through. 

It was heaven.





But i'll cover all the sightseeing in an other post.

For even if we did nothing but swim in the pool all day and eat cheese and breads,
we would have been happy.  Take for example: our garden:

























Being inside was just as divine.  I was a bit sad the weather was so awesome and I couldn't
light that amazing fireplace .. maybe i'll have to come back for a winter visit too ...








I would totally recommend visiting Bourgueil if you are visiting France. 
Our host, Michel ( who Andrew kept calling Michael and denying that he did and I
was dying of cultural cringe ) has an office on site ( in the converted barn ) but is very
respectful of privacy.  He was actually away in Paris on business for most of our visit,
but was only a phone call away if needed.

Inside, there is a bureau of maps and pamphlets of things to do and a handwritten
note from Michel regarding when the markets are on, and which restaurants are good,
and how to get to the Hyper-U ( a huge shopping centre ) or the pharmacie.

The rental boasts everything you could possibly need ( details here ) and comfortably sleeps 6.
It was simply, gorgeous.














The most perfect holiday ever.
Now you can probably understand why Amsterdam was so underwhelming for me?


You can find our more about renting Les Averries here: LES AVERRIES














It was hard to leave .. in fact, while the boys swam, AB and I sat under the willows and
breathed in the air ( and the wine ) and planned how we could possibly stay forever.






Alas, it was not to be..

Related articles

• A Week in the Country: Loire Valley, France
• Holidays .. In No Particular Order ( This is Paris 2012 )
• La Tour Eiffel ( or: Our last Day in Paris )
• The Café de la Promenade