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van.
    They also went in search of electrical shops, as we would have to buy a fridge pretty much straight away when we went to Cuzance. However, despite hours of searching, they couldn’t find any shops that had anything suitable in terms of size or price. As it turned out, there had been one virtually on our doorstep the whole time. We had by now become friendly with Marie-France and Michelle, the delightful, very active owners of the house we were renting. Their own house was just across the lane and, with the true French hospitality that we were to become very familiar with, they invited us in one night for an apéritif . Shortly after that, I confided in Marie-France about our little farmhouse that we had bought in Cuzance. That turned out to be an inspired decision.
    After I told them we had bought a little house nearby, Marie-France swung into action. They lent us a stove and gas bottle, a table, two old outside chairs, an assortment of plates and cutlery, and, most importantly, some old clothes to renovate in — which we had neglected to pack (major oversight). Not only that, but they lent us their van to take everything to Cuzance and offered their van any time we needed it. This was the start of the astonishing kindness and help we encountered on all our trips and in our village. Once again, the myths about the French proved to be utterly untrue.
    We even came very close to buying their ancient Peugeot, which they just happened to be on the verge of selling. We were chatting one day and told them how, by the following year, we would need to buy a car and, voilà , we nearly had a car. However, good sense prevailed over the extreme ease of it all, as it was a 1995 model, which of course meant no power steering, no air conditioning and it guzzled petrol As I still had not overcome my anxiety about driving and I didn’t seem likely to in the near future, this was a very sound decision. I could just imagine the scenario of breaking down in the middle of the rural wilderness and being stranded alone.
    After John’s visit, we went to La Rochelle to stay with Martine for a few days at her holiday house. The invitation seemed like too good an opportunity to turn down seeing another part of France we had not been to before. Or were we still avoiding the inevitable reality of renovating? On the way to drop John off at the station, we stopped quickly at a discount whitegoods shop, as indeed you do when you are heading to the coast to extend your holiday. Within a mere half an hour, we rapidly chose a fridge and washing machine and arranged for them to be delivered when we arrived in Cuzance. True to form, even in a foreign country in a foreign language, Stuart bargained for these two items. This was even more astonishing as it was already Solde season!
    The département Charente-Maritime, where Martine’s house is, was like being in a different country. The countryside was very flat, there weren’t many trees, it was far more dry and sun-baked, and the architecture was very different. There seemed to be more homes that were new and rendered rather than the golden stone we had grown to love. Somehow, the experience of being in a part of France that we did not fall in love with, as we had the Dordogne and Lot regions the previous year, meant that we were well and truly ready to start renovating.
    On the way to Cuzance to finally stay in our petite maison , we went on the first of two French IKEA trips, the first in Bordeaux. This trip was to get lots of household goods like linen, towels, glasses, cutlery and a dinner set. On many other long road trips we had been caught without any food and nowhere to stop on the motorways when we needed to have lunch. Ironically, this time, when we had made baguettes for a picnic lunch, we discovered that IKEA has sensational lunches, complete with plat du jour and wine. After a few exhausting and expensive hours, we ended up eating our baguettes sitting on the