We were hit with a trojan virus in the computer that we use for our work while travelling (as opposed to the netbook that we use for checking the news etc.) earlier this week, which was cause for major concern. The language was a bit blue as we realised what had happened. Thank goodness for the AngloInfo web site: within a few minutes on the netbook we’d managed to send emails to a few people and before the hour was out we’d made plans to take the machine down to an IT man some 40 minutes south of us. Dave works from home and lives just off a “white” road deep in the countryside. Look at the maps of France if you want to know what I mean.
Well, we used Google maps to make sure that we knew where we were going, but it made no difference …. without adequate road signs we were stuffed. We knew where we were supposed to go, but just couldn’t get there. While frustrating it wasn’t a problem, as we didn’t have a fixed appointment and we did get to see some very pretty countryside. Suffice it to say that after just one wrong turning (and about 8 missed ones) we made it.
Dave figured that he’d need a couple of hours to get everything disinfected and operating so we left one brick with him (after all, what is a dead computer other than a very expensive brick) and we set off to a village where Dave and his wife recommended the local restaurant to have lunch and kill some time. The cafe, set roadside, offered a good range of formules: €11 for soup, entree, main, coffee and ¼l of wine was the basic and they went on up from there. We shared one, which means that I did the eating and Graham had the coffee and only the wine was shared!
After lunch we agreed to do some impromptu exploring. The map showed a lookout point not far away, so we first went there. On the way to Monteton we turned onto a road and we both said ‘I know where we are!” 3 years ago we had looked at a watermill on the Dropt, and we drive right past it.
After I’d had a trundle around the village and taken the obligatory photos we headed off to Allemans-du-Dropt, where I understood there to be a very pretty pigeonnier. We parked beside the Marche des Prunes and I set off for a quick explore. I didn’t find the pigeonnier, but I did find a beautiful picnic spot beside the weir. Stupidly, I didn’t photograph the picnic spot, but the view from it!
I also found a sadly decayed, but still attractive, ancient half-timbered house and the remains of a 16th century chateau.
Hating to admit defeat, but not wanting to leave Graham languishing in the car for too long (it was a very hot day), I headed back to the car and jumped in. I pointed the way out of the town to get us back to Dave’s and just as we reached the outskirts of the town I saw the pigeonnier out of the corner of my eye.
Good things (sometimes) happen when you’re lost in France!
PS: Dave fixed the computer, although it took a little longer than planned. Also, he told us that in the “tempete” of 2009 the watermill that we’d looked at was flooded up to it’s first floor (that’s the bedrooms for Americans) windows. Good thing we didn’t buy it!