Hodge Podge of pictures

I just wanted to post  hodge podge of pictures of places I have been the last several months.

Hanging Out to Dry

Let me first say just how thankful I am for my American size washer and dryer. Though it is in the basement it pales in comparison to the jaunt I have taken here at the resort to do laundry. Talk about getting a feel for the French way, well maybe a small awareness of how they carry out laundry duties here.

There are at least 10 buildings here with about 25 units in each  building. so you can get an idea of the size of this resort.  Across the garden behind the pool there is a small room in one of the buildings that houses the three washers and one dyer. 

Does this give you an indications of just how many people do laundry here?

Many here, as in France just hang their laundry out to dry. All but one of the homes and apartments we looked at only had a washer. There is no question that Jeff will have both a washer and a dryer. I will say that the washers I used did spin the clothes with little moisture left in the clothes more than any washer I have ever owned.  There is an anti-wrinkle cycle after the washer is done.  It tosses the clothes every 30 seconds or so until you remove the load. If I were to hang my clothes out to dry it sure wouldn’t take long. However I am an American girl and I do love my dryer!  

Okay now that I have established the frequency and method of laundry how about the cost.  Here at the resort it is 6 Euro to wash and 3 Euro to dry.  In today’s exchange that would be equivalent to $7.74 to wash and $ 3.90 to dry.  This might explain part of the undersized laundry room.  I have done 4 loads of laundry since I arrived and will do one more before we leave, spending a grand total of $58.00.  We could have went to the laundry mat a couple of miles away and saved a few dollars. The washers are 4 Euro and the dryers are 3 Euros but trying to find parking space is not easy.  

Previously I was talking about the jaunt to the little laundry room. I don’t mind walking but today I went to change the laundry to the dryer and it was in use.  Someone decided not to hang his or her laundry out to dry, because when I did the wash I was the only washing.  I walk back to my apartment and wait 45 minutes, the amount that was left on the dryer then walk back to switch my load. Of course the person still had laundry in the dryer.  I wait for about 5 minutes and decided to jaunt back to the room, after 2 more attempts I am finally able to dry my clothes. I won't even go into another day of being short a few coins and having to run back to the apartment to get more money.  Maybe this is another reason they line dry.

Well I decided to make the most of my adventure of doing laundry and on my many jaunts to the laundry room and enjoy the view of all the greenery and flowers and take in the aromas of lavender and lilacs.  And glad that I was able to multi task, do laundry and a work out all in one. 

Cost of A Cheap Lunch in France.

Jeff and I went to lunch at a little restaurant called Grill Courtepalille in St Nazaire, just across from the Escal' Atlantic.

We got the special which was a house salad that consisted of leaf lettuce and a mustard and mayonnaise dressing, a small chicken breast with wing attached or ham steak and a vegetable along with a "du cafe".  Keep in mind when they ask if you want cafe' it is a small demitasse cup of expresso. All of this for a mere 10€ which is equivalent to $ 12.79 with todays exchange rate. 

 Now the water is a different story. Much of the tap water in France is "drink at your own risk"  so we ordered bottle water. Again much to the tradition all they had was mineral water. In the Picture below you will see my 4.90€ or $6.36 bottle of water, half of the price of the meal !  Maybe not so bad when you take into consideration that it was a 1.5 litter and Jeff and I shared it. Bottom line is I would rater get a bottle of water and  know that is not going to be, as Jeff quotes "smells like sewer gas" He has eaten her before and has had the tap water.  Guess Derby water is not so bad in comparison. 

Bon Appétit !

First meal in France.

As soon as we arrived in Nantes France we picked up our rental car and headed to St. Nazaire, France, about 45 minuets away. We stopped at the factory to check the progression of construction and Jeff gave me a tour.  What a big undertaking, moving to a foreign county, starting a factory from the ground up, hiring all the employees from his office assistant, to HR, finance, managers, and mechanics, learning all the French labor laws, learning the language and lifestyle, and being away from home. I think the biggest assignment will be to find his replacement when things are up and running smoothly. But wow how impressive will that be on a resume ?

There is a big ceremony Friday July 23 when they will hand over the keys to the factory to Jeff. The mayor of the city will be there, and some of Jeff's bosses will be there as well including Jeff Turner. 

After the tour we went and had lunch at Del Arte a regular spot for Jeff.  It is comparable to a De Fazzio's. Maybe better food and  they wait on you. We had 2 individual pizzas, a Pepsi and a “still” or  “no gas” water. It was 20.10 Euros, which is equivalent to  $25.00.  Ouch! Oh yes there is no tipping in France or very rarely depending on the situation.  They find it insulting. The minimum wage for here is about $8.50  and hour with free health care and four years of collage paid for.  

If you order water here there are several kinds, kitchen water which is tap and is "drink at your own risk", there is still water which is like bottled water, with gas is carbonated water, and there is mineral water like Evian or Pierre. 

Arriving in France

 After flying and driving 14 hours we finally made it to our hotel. I love the lush green landscaping, the flowers that line the center of the streets and rotaries, and how the shrubs and stone walls separate the houses from the streets.  


 The Hotel is a resort type hotel with small apartments equipped with a small kitchen and it is  a short three-minute walk to the ocean.  By renting this by the month for 3 months it is cheaper than staying in a hotel. We saved the company money and we have a place to prepare food subsequently we are not eating out 3 meals a day. Trying to communicate and figure out a French menu is too stressful for me. Oh why did I not pay more attention in French class?

As we enter the lobby we take a turn through a door into a dark hall, Jeff reaches over to turn on the hall lights. There are three small wall lights to illuminate the way. Here in France they like to be conservative on their energy and the lights in the halls are on motion sensors. As we enter the elevator Jeff selects floor one. Wait a minute didn’t we just come into the lobby? Again here in France and maybe in other European countries the main floor is 0. Can you guess what the basement is? It is -1.

 I am glad it is summer and the sun rises around 5:30 am and does not set until around 10:15.  The lighting in the room is not to great except over the kitchen table, again that is the French way. (that is a story in it's self I will share some day)