… a cat flap. Such is the highlight of my life.
Chaupette likes to arrive at the house at about 23:00 after everyone has gone to bed, and then likes to leave at about 05:00 before everyone has awoken, and that’s clearly something that can’t continue, as far as I am concerned.
The one pet shop on the island has a cat flap for sale at … gulp… €29:99 but a quick look on Amazon produced a catflap at just €10:99 plus a couple of Euros postage
And that turned up this morning, so I launched an attack on the back door. That is one of those hollow plastic doors and so I had to cut out the shape of the hole in both leaves and then stiffen it between the outer and the inner skin with some wood offcuts.
Anyway, it’s done and up to the present, Chaupette isn’t sure exactly what to make of it
Later on this afternoon we went for a walk – a nice, pleasant little stroll in the countryside in the lovely early evening.
Plenty of things to see around here, such as the nice little cottages. Once you leave the built-up area of Port Joinville, most of the houses in the villages scattered across the island look like this.
Typical single-story bungalows that were generally homes for local fishermen back in former times
Nothing like that now, unfortunately. Even if there are any fishermen still on the island, they wouldn’t be able to afford anything here
Most of the cottages now are holiday homes – second homes owned by people from Paris and the like who just come here in the summer and leave the place looking empty and derelict out of season.
In the street where Cecile’s mum lives, I think that there are only two other houses that are permanently occupied.
So what started out as a pleasant little stroll in the country ended up with us at Port de la Meule, about 6kms away from Cécile’s mother’s.
The bar there was just closing up at the end of the day but they kindly served us refreshments which, believe me, were sorely needed.
And while everyone else recovered from their exertions, I wandered off for some photographs of the bay where the boats tie up.
On the way back, Cécile’s mother ran out of steam (which is hardly surprising seeing as how she is 82, after all) and so while I stood guard, Cécile ran home and fetched the car. We didn’t make it back here until about 21:00.
Still, a good time was had by all and it managed not to rain at all throughout the entire day, which must be something of a new record.
Tomorrow, the island’s Charity Shop is open and I’m told that they sell books there. Looks like an early start for me.
