There’s hot and then there’s South of France hot!! August
was absolutely glorious – blue skies everyday and temperatures in the high 30’s
and low 40’s. The only downside is that when we were either in the locks or
waiting to enter the locks, the sun was merciless. One day, Phil and I both
thought we were going to pass out – we were dizzy, nauseous and sweating
buckets. We drank water by the gallon to keep hydrated. However, we have
reached the Canal du Midi – our long awaited and much anticipated goal!
The Canal du Midi is as pretty as we had imagined. Sadly
though there were a number of places where the fungus attacking the plane trees
have left them leafless and stripped bare. They’ve cut down the worst affected
and are beginning a replanting of disease resistant trees in their stead. It’s seriously
sad to see that trees planted in the 1600’s when the canal was being built by
Pierre-Paul Riquet are now in peril. Much of the charm of the canal will be
changed and of course the much needed shade that they provided is gone.
Beautiful plane trees
line the banks
Sadly some are blighted and will soon have to come down
What a bored
lockkeeper does in his spare time!
Capestang was very pretty and is famous (to fellow boaters) for
its very low, arched stone bridge. It was a hoot sitting on our aft deck
watching some of the hire boats bounce from side to side as they negotiated
their way under it. The underside of the bridge is scarred with various colours
of paint and rubber left behind by boats that missed the centre path. We, of
course, were brilliant!! No prob.
Our next major port of call was Narbonne – an ancient city
that was founded by the Romans in 118 BC and was the capital city of Gaul.
They’ve excavated part of the Via Domitia - a road that crossed through France from
Beaucaire (which is near Arles) to the Pyrenees. The Canal de la Robine splits
the city into two sides, with a dramatic difference between them. The north
side was very prosperous and well kept while the south side was run down and
quite grubby. Interestingly, the south side has the best restaurants! One day we
tried to have lunch at a lovely little restaurant near the main square. After
waiting forever, the waitress finally took our order. Not complicated – we just
wanted an omelet! We waited and waited and were somewhat dismayed as food was
delivered to tables whose patrons had arrived after us. Phil was making faces
like a person dying of starvation and had a little girl at the next table in
stitches! The waitress finally cottoned on to the fact that we weren’t eating
and were desperately trying to make one glass of wine last a lifetime. She took
our order again and gave us a free glass of wine on the house which on a very,
very empty stomach went straight to our heads! Needless to say we staggered
back to the boat – a habit that is becoming all too familiar.
Narbonne – houses and
shops over the canal
While we were there we had a delightful visit with Robert
and Christa - our Dutch friends who took Phil up in the airplane (Blog 1). They
had friends who have a summer place nearby so they were able to nip into
Narbonne. Poor Phil wasn’t feeling at all well, so we weren’t able to take them
out to dinner to say thank you for hosting us in Holland but we hope we can
reciprocate when they visit us in Canada.
Leaving Calypso in Narbonne, we hopped the train to
Perpignan, a lovely Franco-Spanish city that once was the capital of
French-Catalonia. It is quite a prosperous city with well-to-do visitors
wandering the traffic-free red marble tiled narrow streets filled with
shops and stalls and, of course, the ever present restaurants. It was our first
opportunity to try Catalan-style food. We lucked out again and arrived during a
summer music and dance festival which was fabulous but it also meant that with
thousands of extra visitors, the menus were set and we weren’t able to try
paella at the recommended restaurant. But we did have their featured menu and
it was great - especially the cold gazpacho with its amazing flavours. Our hotel for 2 nights – once a 15th
century mansion - was right in the centre of town and we could walk to all the
major sights.
Perpignan – beautiful
gardens
Then we continued by train the short distance to Collioure –
our very favourite place to date, although Villefranche is a very close second.
Phil especially wanted to visit Collioure as it has been a magnet for artists
since Matisse settled here in 1905. Phil wanted to wander the streets where Matisse
and his disciples painted the harbour, the colourful fishing boats, the mighty
Chateau Royal built by the Knights Templar and the Église Notre-Dame-des-Anges. Thousands – well not really but it
felt like it – of restaurants. We chose one that was one street back from the
beach – it was out of the very hot sun and just a little less hectic. Phil
ordered the plat de jour, a gambas
and calamari (gross!!!) dish that he loves. I asked the waitress what else was
on the menu and she rattled off something in very rapid French. The only word I
got was porc – great, I’ll have that.
It arrived and was seriously delicious – amazing flavours and textures. After
the meal I asked the waitress to tell me what it was – slowly – so I could
understand. It turns out it was pork cheeks!!! YUCK. Thank goodness I didn’t
know that beforehand or I would never have ordered it and would have missed out
on a fabulous dish.
Collioure – view from
the fort on the hill
After 4 delightful days off the boat, we headed back to
Narbonne to continue our journey back up the Robine to the Midi. Some celestial
formation must have crossed our moon in whatever house, as things started to go
wrong from day one! Heading toward Gailhousty lock, we were cruising nicely
behind another cruiser when a hire boat coming out of the lock and driven by a
Russian suddenly veered at a 90 degree angle right into the other cruiser amidships
and bent the steel railings right over! He then veered towards us! I grabbed
onto the railings for dear life while Phil had the presence of mind to steer
gently into the boat’s stern and push it away before it could damage our little
Calypso. My hero!!!!
Then the next day, while going through a triple lock, the
engine overheated and we had to shut her down – in the lock! – and wait until
she cooled off. This happened several times over the next few days. Add this to
the ongoing saga of the battery charger, the unbearably hot sun and we were
seriously frazzled. And worried of course. Phil tends to go to the worst
possible scenario first and I of course try to think positively even in the
middle of a major disaster. When we arrived in Trebes, the hire base mechanic
came aboard, and bless his little heart, after determining that the impeller itself
was fine, he resealed the casing and – Ta da – Calypso is sailing right through
those locks now. Simple solution but vital as when air gets into the system,
then water can’t cool the engine and things go downhill from there. Luckily it
didn’t overheat to any extreme. We were able to catch it just as the temperature
began to rise so no damage to the engine.
Now – all we need to sort out is the charger! Piece of cake
as it turns out. When we arrived in Carcassonne, we took the train to Moissac,
picked up the battery charge, returned to Carcassonne and hired a local
mechanic to install it. As Phil was telling him our tale of woe, he asked,
“What kind of charger?” Phil told him it was a very good and expensive Waeco – actually,
the third one! “Aha” says Loic, our mechanic. Apparently Waeco chargers are
famous for not liking the engine being started up while plugged into shore
power. And of course for 2 years running, that’s exactly what happened. Each
time we arrived to pick up the boat in the spring, we would plug into shore
power as we live on the boat while the spring maintenance is finished off. Then
of course, the mechanic starts up the engine after the servicing to make sure
all is well and promptly blows up the charger!!!! We always unhook the power before
we take off (it’s embarrassing to sail away while still plugged in as we’ve
discovered to our dismay!) so it is a very easy fix that didn’t involve any
expense other than to hook up the new charger that they provided under
warranty. When we get home, we will send a scathing letter to Waeco asking them
why they don’t at least warn you in their manual – would have saved everyone a
lot of grief. We are learning that boats are renowned for niggling problems that can be easily
fixed.
So, as you can tell we are in Carcassonne. The next blog
will extol its beauty and virtues. We decided that Carcassonne was as good a
place as any to sit for awhile. Cruising in the distressingly hot sun was too
much, so here we sit awaiting Keith and Margaret’s arrival and then we will
continue cruising to Toulouse and beyond. Including a much anticipated stop at
Castelnaudary so we can compare cassoulets
de maison!
À bientôt
Much love to all
Captain Worry and his cool calm Matelot
