Sunday, May 13, 2012

Viewings





As you may remember Moulin du Clout is up for sale again. Matthew has reluctantly agreed that he can never spend enough time here to give it the attention needed and it is a drain on his resources. So it is back in the hands of Hanneke and Tony Herbert, agents.
We have had two viewings this weeks with interesting results.


Steve and Kerrie
Meanwhile, we have had our visitors, Steve, Kerrie and little Amelia. The weather has been very mixed for them. Monday was beautiful and we mooched about the domain. Our trip to a vide grenier in Junac on Tuesday was scuppered by the rain. We had planned to introduce Kerrie to the skill of haggling for stuffed animals. It was not to be.

We watched a DVD of Tinker, Tailer . . . the new version. Confusing. The following evening we watched a DVD of Inception - also confusing.

They left on Wednesday morning for sunnier Spain and Jim and I spent the day cleaning and tidying the place ready for our first viewer, Bernd, a German, who is coming on Thursday and also renting the gite for two weeks.

We have a language problem. Bernd speaks a little English and perhaps some French. Jim speaks a little French. Neither of us knows more than a few words of German. 'Zwei kleine Biere, bitte' was not much help, especially as we were supplying the beer. However, we struggled on, with help of a beer each and a dictionary. It seems Bernd likes the place and he asks a lot of questions. I hope he understands the answers. He impressed us with walking into Maurs and back. Bernd is looking for a place to retire to, and be self-sufficient. He seems an ideal owner of the Moulin.
We are doing our best to be sociable and to invest him with some of the delight and affection we have for the place. 

View from the crags taken 13th May 2012
On Saturday we had the second viewing, that time from a Frenchman. Tony showed him round and that seemed to go well too because he asked if he could return in the afternoon with his friends. Jim had planned to walk the domaine with Bernd but I was available to welcome them. It turned out that one of the ladies in the group had a grasp of English and Jim was able to converse with them partly in French. 
It would appear that they are a quartet of purchasers and after they had spent some time exploring the grounds and the house informed us that they are 'firmly interested in a purchase of the Moulin du Clout'. We are now a bundle of mixed emotions. Naturally we want the best outcome for Matthew and his family but are we really prepared to let this little bit of paradise belong to someone else? 

They were unable to get hold of the agent to make any offers of purchase as I think the office was closed so that may have to wait until Monday morning.

We also have a third viewing booked later in the month by some Dutch people wanting to set up a nudist camp! You may well laugh.


Entrance to the 'Sleeping Beauty Garden'
To take my mind off the drama I spent some time with my other plans for drama - my Shakespeare show. I have mentioned this before as I originally planned it last year but it didn't come off. I have selected some well-known passages from Shakespeare to be performed by us when Peter and Jennifer are here and including our friends from Lassal, Dennis and Caro. The show will take place on the 'lawn' using the 'treehouse' as a backdrop/set piece/dressingroom and be preceded by British type refreshments (cucumber sandwiches - does anyone really eat these?, scones and cream, Pimms etc.) I have even rummaged in CADS dressing room and smuggled out some suitable costumes.
I have been at work on the poster for this  event - please feel free to correct the French if you want to.
What do you think? Lots of fun too be had with this.

Sunday
We learned this morning that the French party have made an offer not unadjacent to Matthew's price but Matthew has made an agreement with Bernd, who will pay the full price on selling his own place in Frankfurt. He has until the end of August to achieve this. What a day! 

I have spent some time learning my lines, for I am to play Titantia in a scene with Oberon and Juliet (the balcony scene) - only about 60 years too old! I am not doing it in French.

Meanwhile we are getting on with the projects already started like finishing building the terrace wall (see last year for this), the Japanese Anagama kiln and planting vegetables and the tubs etc. We have not yet found any more suitable Workawayers (see last year for these, too) so I may have to do the woodwork varnishing myself.

Lily of the Valley - it didn't make it for May 1st this year

Don't forget your comments or email me with any feedback or chat.
A bientot




2 comments:

  1. All so sad in one way, though the Shakespeare will be fun. Any potatoes yet in the Sleeping Beauty Garden?

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  2. The Shakespeare sounds like a lot of fun. It all reminds me of childhood and teen summers at my grandparents on Cape Breton Island, and the plays and skits we'd organise for our parents and any unsuspecting guests.
    I can well understand your mixed emotions. It's hard to see such a beautiful place go out of the family.

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