Mirepoix

When the weather cooperates (which it hasn't done a lot of in the past week and a half) and I am not out with an agent looking at properties, I have been trying to get out and about to find new areas that might be nice and cheaper to live in.  I've been combining these trips with touristy activities.

Here are some photos of Mirepoix, a lively medieval town that is now home to lots of British expats (due to the proximity of the Carcassonne Airport and its budget flights to the UK).  It has a charming village center with lots of bars and restaurants, but the area was too far from the mountains and way too expensive!  (I have discovered that the prices of property in areas that are full of expats are way higher than elsewhere.) 
It made for a pleasant afternoon out, though.


   

   

   

The Rose Bed Project

One of the projects I have been working on (with help from Helen) is the rose bed project.  The project consisted of weeding, digging a trench around the bed and setting up fencing and then filling in the bed with beautiful black compost.  We get the compost from the town dump where we get rid of the weeds, branches and any other green waste.  The dump brings all of the green waste to another dump where they mash it up and let it compost.  The bigger dump returns gorgeous compost to the local dump.  There are no real posted rules on taking the compost, but we have been going with a 1 for 1 swap - for each barrel of green waste we deliver, we fill up a barrel of compost.  It's fabulous!

Here are the before and after photos:

Before:

   

Introducing the Sheri Memorial Rose Garden

   

   
...but I'm not dead yet.....

The Search Begins in Earnest

Just two days after my arrival in the Ariege, I stopped into a real estate office in the nearby town of Tarason-sur-Ariege. In rapid fire French, two ladies peppered me with questions (even after I made it abundantly clear that I only speak a little bit of French) about what I was looking for. I completely choked on the most basic words and out came some bizarre mix of Spanish, Dutch, French and English. (I need to give this mishmash language a name like Spanederfrish). I was pretty mortified, but they were happy enough to set an appointment for later in the afternoon to see a small place with great views and a bit of land....a combination that is difficult to find for the kind of money we are able to pay.

I walked home from the encounter thinking, "If anyone ever starts feeling a little too good about himself, he should go to a foreign country on his own and try to buy a house. If he's really feeling super-human, he should come to France." It's remarkably humbling and, at times, pretty disillusioning....however; I know it will get easier and I forced myself to jump in as fast as possible.

I survived the house visit and aside from the fact that the agent asked me at least 6 times whether I liked the place, it was almost a pleasant interchange. And also the fact that she had no interest in showing me exactly where a piece of buildable land for sale was located. As we sped past, she vaguely shook her arm to the right and said something like "that piece of land you were interested in? It's somewhere up there." Oh, great. Thanks.

I wasn't blown away by the tiny house and it was pretty expensive for as much work as will be needed, but now that first home visit on my own has occurred, I can move forward. Phew! Hard work....but well rewarded with a (non) Rapture Party complete with mojitos, wine, good nibbles and the fantastic company of more of the expats I met last year.

My New Ariege Family

In order to make our search for the "perfect place" more affordable, I am volunteering my time and labor in exchange for a place to stay, food and the use of a car. Luckily, last year, we made some wonderful friends here in the Ariege who were very happy to let me share their home along with their daughter, dog, cat and lots of guests in their rental apartment (downstairs) and in a separate cottage on their property.  Sam, Helen and Maia treat me like one of the family and it's great to have their insight on living as expats in the Ariege.  They moved here 4 years ago when they purchased this gorgeous place and have turned it into a real gem.

I've been doing a variety of tasks including weeding, pool cleaning, corralling the chickens (very difficult) and garden work and will likely assist with the "turnovers" of the rental properties (cleaning, changing linens, etc.).  Before and after work, there's jogging, eating, stretching, swimming in the pool (VERY necessary with the incredibly hot weather we're having), chatting with the guests (one family was from Eagle River, Alaska and was training in the Pyrenees for the Mt. Marathon run in Seward...small world!) and drinking :)     

Here are some photos of the beautiful place I'm staying, which don't do it justice since I only have the mobile phone camera.  For a better sense of the rental spaces and the pool and grounds, see: Rental listing website - Click here


   

The view from my bedroom

Caught up...for now

Whew...the blog is now up-to-date.  Just in time, as I am about to leave for France for two months of volunteering and house hunting.  The volunteering is a way to get a free place to stay and food while I'm looking at properties.  It doesn't give me all the time I'd like to do my searching, but we simply have to be as frugal as possible so our money can go towards a house.

At the moment, we are limiting the property search to the Ariège, which is the southern-most department of the Midi-Pyrénées and sits on the border with Spain.

Double click on the map for a larger version

 While I'm gone, Michiel will be staying back in the Netherlands to do some more computer studies as continuing education.  It will be difficult being apart for these next couple of months, but this arrangement makes the most sense for us.  Fortunately, the first people I am volunteering with are friends from last summer.