Syd and Jim’s Diary
Day 4 (cause Sunday we didn’t do one!)
Jim – I woke with a start wondering what un balance in the ethos had jostled me from my slumber and saw directly above my head a swallow diving about in my bedroom! Drugs again is it? I thought and then realised id been clean for two and a half years! I went to get up to get the bird out but it flew out the minute I was fully conscious!
Syd – I can do better than that, not only did I see the bird that Jim saw but I saw a second one fly in straight after. It was rather odd it was like a scene from the Matrix only a bird version with agile arial dog fighting.
Jim – I was loving the fact that at no time today did l actually have to get up! There is no work for Syd to get up and go to. There was no work for me to get up and go to (not that I mind mine as its fun) and I made the most of it and laid in the warm double bed reading and dozing until the offer of going to lunch was put in front of me! I love the lazy life.
Syd – I have nothing to say about this at all! Jim spends far too much time in bed for my liking there are things to do and see!
Jim – I finally got out of bed and was looking out the window when I saw my second worst fear heading towards my dad’s dog! It was a snake and it looked like a viper that was seen two days earlier jumping into trees! I did what any cool thinking man would do and panicked! I called out to Fouky the dog and said to get away! I ran down the stairs and luckily the dog had listened and come inside!
Syd – On the way to the farm from the airport Mary had told this brilliant story about this snake she had seen jump from a water butt into a tree. She didn’t know if it had gone from the area or not so today I was up in the bedroom and Jim was hanging out the window, all of a sudden he screams out “FOUKY!” then shouted “oh my god it’s the snake!” and legs it down stairs to rescue the dog who had taken and interest in the slithery nightmare and was trying to sniff it, stupid dog! I followed Jim down the stairs grabbing my camera on the way and was blocked in my last seconds at the door from getting out there and taking photos by a concerned Jim who thought id be eaten alive by a Viper, destroying my possibilities of ever becoming the next David Attenborough!
Jim – Wouldn’t you stop her???????
Jim – My dad told us we were being taken out for lunch so I jumped in the car and drove Syd and him to a place that really was in the middle of nowhere but had a truck stop in it! Now a truck stop in England is a greasy spoon with even greasier people in it eating greasy food who happen to be lorry drivers! This place was a lovely bar/restaurant which sold Leffe blond and Stella and served a four course meal for a great price!
When we got there and were seated we were told that the Plate du jour was Ostrich! Now i can take a joke but really! Yes it really was Ostrich. As it turns out these people knew how to cook it as it came as a stew with a rich dark sauce and added potatoes it was lovely so the three of us stopped talking for a few and got it down our necks. The only bad thing was the lorry driver who was playing spot the tattooed Englishman! He wouldn’t look away until I stared right back and said loudly in English “do you want a picture it’ll last longer!” at this point it was pointed out that maybe this was not the place for a fight! It’s a long time since my dad decided if I fought or not! lol
Syd – So we rocked up to this truck stop, not exactly as I expected no greasy mushrooms here or half cooked sausages. The only thing you can get here is the dinner of the day and if you don’t like it then you have no choice. As it happens you had to like Ostrich today as this is what was served. It turns out Ostrich is quite nice it tastes like a slightly sweater beef, and I would have it again. I then moved on to the cheese course which turned out to be very funny as there was one cheese board for the whole restaurant, though I would say it was rather large. As I was tucking into the goats cheese, id just cut the end off, the board was whipped out from beneath me and passed on to another table it transpires the cheese you are offered does not stay around long enough for it to be actually consumed. Lunch was super!
Jim – My father decided to culture us up a bit with a flying visit to Jonzac castle! This being the millionth castle I had been taken to by my dear papa my brain shut down and I went a wandering! I wonder how Syd got on with the History?
Syd – I enjoyed our trip to the Castle and Richard is very knowledgeable about French history after writing a number of books including The Unseen Terror about the French Revolution in the provinces (available on Amazon)! What ever Jim thinks about the enforced learning he can kiss my ass I as really enjoy it all. You can never know too much! We had a look round the castle and the town and took some pictures which will be in the slideshow at the bottom of the post. Also something I noticed quickly is that I have been here three days now and have not seen a small shop open how odd! How do they make their money?
Jim – Even though the small town shops never seem to open as Syd said, the large ones do! L.Eclerc is a large player in the ‘buy all here’ game in France and we went in there with a will to buy food! Not just some food but all of the food we could! I bought mini barrels of beer all the meat I could find as well as four HUGE Salmon fillets for lunch tomorrow! Everything here is bigger better faster stronger in the food world but by no means cheaper as the bill came to 150 Euros oooops don’t tell Syd!
Syd – While Jim was excelling himself with buying over the top beer barrels I had a more cunning plan of sliding in ice creams and chocolates as well as French patisserie cakes without him noticing until he had to hand the money over for the bill! OOOps look what I bought! Looks like we are equal after all!
Perhaps not that equal after all as I got distracted by a stall of shiny things on the way out and purchased a silver and Amber broach in the shape of an art pallet I couldn’t help it, it was shiny!
Jim – There comes a time in every holiday where walking must be taken on to see the surrounding country side that cannot be taken in from a car window! Well that is what I’m told anyway! Me and Syd left the safety of our farm house and went a walking down the road to see some local animals some planned some not!
Syd – During this walk we came across a donkey sanctuary which is cool as I like horses and donkeys so we fed them carrots and carried on walking. We came across the biggest Hornet on the planet it just had to be. It must have measured three inches long and had a vivid red head. Once again Jim scuppered my plans to take photographic evidence of this odd beasty!
Jim – Since the fearful snake episode we still went to sit in the garden and read before dinner but we had one eye always on the bushes waiting for the snake to come get us! Living in fear I tell you, fear! Or we could just go inside?
Syd – Because of the snake episode just one question for you all! Is Ghost mouse still alive?……………
Syd and Jim we were both told today that we may not get home due to volcano ash in the air! Oh what a shame!
Sydonias illustration spot 