Rubbing shoulders with a No 8!

This was taken inside the Hotel Scribe before we left for the game; Olivier Roumat, a very tall man and an ex-internation French No.8 player having captained France and is actually due to take over as Manager of a team in the French Pro2 Division next season.

A weekend to remember

What a weekend!!!!!! We both enjoyed ourselves and have memories to last a lifetime.

The journey Friday evening took a little longer than anticipated with our flight leaving slightly later than planned and then when we arrived at Charles de Gaulle airport we ended up assisting two young gentlemen heading into the city and who didn't have a clue how to get there. We helped them sort out train tickets and left them on the train to reach their destination when we disembarked at Gare du Nord station. By the time we had arrived (23.15hrs) we chose to get a taxi to the hotel rather than mess around with the metro; our taxi driver however was having a bit of a nightmare with one-way road systems and we finally arrived at 23.45. Room key, shoes off, cup of tea and bed.

Saturday dawned warm and sunny and we headed out for a slow wander around the city centre ending up in Boulevard St Germain at a cafe eating brunch and watching the world go by; we walked back via the Pompidou Centre, stopped for a beer and a full circle tour back to our hotel in time for a shower, cup of tea and then a quick ride on the metro to Hotel Scribe to meet up with the rest of the group going to the game. 16.30 we got onto the waiting coaches along with our hosts for the evening, Victor Ubogo, Mark Regan and Olivier Roumat (you can read up about them on the 'net'); We headed off to Zack restaurant which is located within a 10 minute walk of Stade de France. An excellent meal in a beautifully decorated restaurant, lots of beer and wine flowing and pre-match talks given by our hosts along with live television coverage of the Ireland v Scotland game and then a short walk to the ground.

The atmosphere was electric; the game very enjoyable to watch especially with so many supporters for both nations singing and despite a spirited attempt by England the end result most definately deserved by the French after steaming their way through the previous four rounds. Although it rained heavily during the game, we didn't get wet and on the walk back to the restaurant with waterproofs on, we enjoyed the banter and cameraderie shown by all supporters. More beers and post match reviews and then back on the coach to return to the city and eventually arriving back at our hotel at 1am.

Woz didn't get a very good nights sleep due to the noise from a night club across the road from our hotel which lasted until after 6am! I mercifully slept through it (possibly the beer?). Sunday morning and although a little cloudy and cool, we set off on the metro across the city to visit the Bastille, a fantastic sunday market, the Pere Lachaise cemetary and ate lunch at a local cafe. Then onto Sacre Couer, Pigale and Moulin Rouge and finally back on the metro and up to the Arc de Triomphe and a wander down the Champs Elysees stopping for a little beer refreshment en-route. The sun was by now shining, not a cloud in the sky and so we headed across to the Seine and walked by the river. We ended our evening back in the Grande Boulevards at a restuarant where we sat and watched the world go by whilst eating our dinner. We headed back to the hotel and as we had an early start decided that an early night was in order, particularly as Woz had not really slept the night before.

3.15am!!!!! we were woken by a delivery truck outside the hotel making so much noise that we were both awake until he finished 45 minutes later. 5.30am our alarm went off and by 6am we were dressed, packed and ready to leave. Having checked out of the hotel, we walked along the near deserted streets with dawn breaking clear over the city; took the metro to Gare du Nord and then the train to the airport arriving in plenty of time for a quick breakfast and a wander through the air-side shops; Our flight however was earlier than expected and we boarded 30 minutes early so it was just as well we had been 'on the ball' in getting to the airport. A good flight and then we were back.

A thoroughly enjoyable trip for us both; Woz has a better impression of Paris than before (despite the result, the lack of sleep and having to drinking lager!) and I managed to get to the shops for a new Chabal shirt for my collection! joking apart - it was a memorable weekend and one that we shall no doubt be talking about for many years to come.

Nine more sleeps!

First thing this morning Woz breezes into our living room with a big grin and a 'Nine More Sleeps' announcement; off to Stade de France on 19th March to see France v England in the final game of the Six-Nations and we can't wait.



Here at home we are today having the final window installed in the house, this one is the dining room window - a much larger one than all the others and will probably present a bit of a challenge. The stone windowsills are gradually being painted in the same colour as the front door and it is all beginning to look very smart indeed.



Spent a few hours in the garden last weekend tackling all the shrubs and dead growth from last season ready to plan new planting for the flower borders. Hopefully this weekend we will manage to get our raised vegetable beds cleared, dug over and prepared for sowing the veggies that we plan to grow this year.



The trip to Normandy is booked with a gite located in Isigny-sur-mer to the west of Bayeux; six of us will be travelling on our Harley's for a week of sight seeing, visiting the D-Day landing beaches, medieval towns and probably sampling quite a lot of the local produce especially the seafood.



Also planning a short break over Easter and hoping for kind weather as we plan to road test our new tent for the first time - possible destinations are being whittled down from North Wales, New Forest and Yorkshire. It will very much depend on the weather forecast for the week we wish to travel. Ruby and Ruairi will also be coming with us so no rain would be a bonus - wet dogs in tents is not a pleasant experience!



I have finished making the new cushion cover for the garden bench that we have yet to buy; we gave Woz's Dad his one back, so we shall be looking to purchase a new one for the garden in the springtime.



Next major project is this weekend when the plasterboard gets fitted to the livingroom ceiling ready for the plasterer. Once completed and dry, we can decorate the room, so we need to start choosing paint, fabrics and gettign the rest of the doors that were stripped of old paint, re-painted.