It has been way too long since I posted and WAY too long since I was away in my pod. Winter is finally behind us and after one of the driest but coldest winters on record, I am so happy to have some nice weather at last, and to actually feel warm. I generally don’t have a problem with winter, but this one has really got to me and feels as if it has been going on for ever. It was becoming to feel like the depths of winter in Narnia, especially with more than 30 days when we had frosts every day!

Thankfully that is behind us and I really was craving a change of scenery. Now that we are suffering the huge fuel costs, I wasn’t too keen to do a massive trip, and opted for a visit to the Marais Poitevin, just over an hour up the road. It’s crazy, isn’t it? So close and yet I have never been. A last minute e-mail had me booked, which amazed me because it was the Easter break. I had thought that with good weather and the first ‘season’ since the COVID restrictions had been lifted, that it would be completely booked out.

Camping La Venise Verte couldn’t have been nicer. Good sized pitches, lots of trees and a good mix of sun and shade.

It didn’t take long to get settled in and get a brew going….it IS exhausting enjoying yourself! It was 24c in the shade and couldn’t have been nicer.

It’s always exciting to check out the site and the surrounding area, and I am always on the lookout for suitable walking areas for Maggie. There was a great walking track just out of the gates and another area to stroll along beside one of the canals.

The site is close to a pretty village called Coulon, and it’s sort of the ‘capital’ of the region. I was thrilled to find a small house on the other bank…typical of the area and one that has been in my memory for years. The ‘house with blue shutters’ has been the poster-boy for this area for years and years. I remember seeing an advertising poster from the French Tourist Board back in the 60’s and this house was featured. Little did I know than that one day I’d be standing here looking at it, let alone living in France!

It is utterly charming, and exactly as I remember from that poster all those years ago. It is still a popular tourist picture and it seems that there isn’t a time when people aren’t taking photos of it.

It looks as if I have plenty to see and do and new places to explore. Come back soon to see what i get up to.

A Bientot!