See what our visitors have to say about the farm below. (Visitors - please use the password given in the information booklet you were sent just prior to your stay and press continue to be able to leave your comments on the form that follows.)

June 2008

Michael and Delphine

(This is information taken from a book that Michael kept whilst in Ardenne and is reproduced with his permission)

Markets - Most French towns seem like the Marie Celeste (nobody there) so markets are good as they bring out all the locals. Some traders go from market to market but a lot are locals with fruit and vegetables, cheese and their own specialities. The main list of markets can be found on p.53 of the 'Visites & Decouvertes' brochure in the gite, but here are a few we have been to. (Nearly all are 6am-12noon)

St Germain l'Herm - Wednesday, but seems to be alternate weeks, or maybe closed the second week because of the road works - still there!

Le Chaise Dieu - Thursday. A small market but vast church and lots of people.

Ambert - Thursday. Large fascinating market which starts at the town centre and radiates out in the smaller streets.

Sauxillanges - Tuesday. Medium sized market with a good choice of fruit and a good bakers shop.

Walks - There are many , mostly very steep and in unspoilt forest. Maps are in the 'Balades en Haut Livradois' and the 'Randonnee et loisirs de Pliene Nature', bith in the gite. For walking you must have good walking boots/shoes and either a high resistance to insects or some kind of protection - there are swarms of them just dying to nibble you! The more experienced walkers can take the ones in the above brochures as the signs are few or missing, even then you might need a compass.

Chateaus Visited (all mentioned in the 'Visites & Decouvertes' brochure)

Chateau de Mons, Arlanc - small but a good conducted tour (in french) with displays of engraving techniques.

Chateau Prentignat - conducted tour (in french) featuring the Lastic family - couldn't help thinking of Lucy!

Chateau Chavaniac Lafayette - very good conducted tour by recorded commentary including videos and clever lighting displays. Beautiful gardens with streams.

Chateau Chassigne - conducted tour with a strong chinese influence.

Other Places Visited

Usson - 600 metres plus up to the statue and panoramic views.

Ambert - Agravip Museum and a railway ride through 85km of forest

Thiers - a must! Terraced buildings built up to sheer cliffs. Go down to the Hospital Garden and walk along the fast moving river back up to the old houses. There are lots of information boards and pictures en route.

Le Chaisse Dieu - small town high up with a vast church and army fortress built in 1700s. Interesting architecture.

24th - 31st May 2008

Tim, Tina and (Tina's mum) Ann

What a delight to be back! The asparagus Tim planted last time had sprouted, although so had the grass which was several inches high, and all the countryside was a luscious green.

The weather was very changeable, ranging from torrential rain and thunder storms to sun so hot you had to get in the shade. It didn't stop us from getting out and about though - we visited Thiers, Issoire, Brioude and Clermont Ferrand.

We were especially glad we went back to Thiers (having been less than impressed with our first visit there) as we discovered the medieval quarter and the famous cutlery museums we had clearly missed previously. We guessed there had to be more than we'd seen as all the media we had read painted a very different picture to the one we had found which was very reminiscent of a certain street in Gt Yarmouth only with knives instead of the tacky souvenirs. The streets down to the river where they made the cutlery were very steep but well worth the climb.

Parking in Clermont Ferrand proved to be more difficult this time but we dicovered more of this very beautiful city so it was worth it. Brioude and Issoire are always a delight, even more so this time as the were basking in sunshine.

Having bought himself a scythe and a ride on mower, Farmer Timmy set about reducing the field to more of a garden, and spent many a happy hour in the rain. Better still, when pulling some weeds from around the door he discovered a ready laid cobble patio, so spent many even happier hours excavating. Turns out it runs the length of the house and all the way down to the side garden but as we didn't have enough time this trip, there's more to be uncovered next time.

Our friends Angie and Bertrand came over for supper one evening so much Kir was consumed and a good time was had by all. The wine had gone up from 0.83 euro to 0.98 euro, but even with that and the dismal current exchange rate, we were still able to get completely p****d for less than £1.

It gets harder to leave each time!

Next trip - mid August.

15th - 28th March 2008

Tim and Tina

We arrived on a warm, sunny day (up to 21 degrees) but in less than a week were under more than a foot of snow - just goes to show how changeable the weather is. The view though was spectacular - like being in Narnia.

This trip was primarily to do some decorating, which we did - sitting room, bathroom and toilet - and to have the bedroom furniture and new sofa delivered. It's a good job it turned up the day before the snow did as otherwise the lorry wouldn't have made it up the hill. We also cut and strengthened the oak table in the sitting room and hung a few pictures to make the place feel more like home.

We had our first venture into Clermont Ferrand and were lucky enough to find a parking space just as we drove into the main shopping area. There is a tram that runs into the city centre which we're going to try next time as we thought it'd be a nice little adventure. It's a very impressive place and well worth a visit.

We also had 3 trips to le Chase Dieu (closed each time) with trip being the operative word as Tina fell and hurt her knee quite badly - note to selves, do not go down snow covered slopes in shoes with little grip! Tim managed one day of skiing over at Besse (about 1 1/4 hours drive) and was impressed with the facilities given that it's only a small resort.

The farmhouse is feeling more like home now and we've had some ideas (wild ones in Tim's case) of what to do with the south facing garden. When the sun shines it's superb and even with snow on the ground it's warm enough to sit outside, so we want to get a patio layed as soon as we can. Tim planted some asparagus at the side of the farm - the first step toward self-sufficiency, although I think that's a long way off and we'll need a few more crops ;-)

Next trip is planned for late May.

Tim and Tina

Well this was the maiden voyage in la maison de Battleday and what a superb start! After weeks of anxious waiting we finally had the keys to the front door and although it was like entering an ice box (the was snow on the ground outside) we quickly had the woodburner going and warmed the place up.

Madame Sauzet (the vendor) had apparently left us some gifts in the house and we were excited to see what they were. Imagine our disappointment when we discovered enough crockery to set up a hotel, all of which was too shabby to even use under a pot plant. She also left us a mattress that didn't fit the bed - you'll be pleased to hear we have dumped/replaced all our gifts.

Despite this we had a great time pulling around through all the junk in the stable, the barn and the garage and did manage to find some real gems. And we were even more pleased when we stripped the nasty plastic covering off the table and found it to be beautiful solid oak underneath.

Christmas Day was a day of rest so after the first of our planned 8 courses we walked into nearby Fayet Ronnaye and it couldn't have been more Christmas card scene if you'd tried. We never had all 8 course - think the champagne filled us up LOL.

The downs on this trip were that the water heater stopped working so we were reduced to a kettle's worth of hot water in the bidet (no smutty thoughts please) and boiling saucepans on the cooker for a very shallow bath, and the electric kept tripping out. Turned out that both were the fault of cooker hood in the kitchen which has now joined the mattress and crockery, so all is now fine.

The highlight had to be sitting up in bed in the morning and looking out over the ridge, listening to the sound of silence and knowing we could come back any time we liked!