24 hours in A & E (Aquitaine and Eymet)

Saturday 21st February

I flew in on Thursday.  The plane flew out of grey English skies and into the sunshine of Aquitaine.  I touched down at a quarter to three, French time.  We drove straight to the shop.  My wife has taken a six month let on a shop in the centre of Eymet.  It looks out on the square.  In her madness she wants to run a little café.  There used to be a perfect café in Eymet, Kismet, but it was sold to new French proprietors’ about six months ago.  They turned a splendid little café, a great place to just stop and let the world go by, into a fish restaurant, which actually seems empty most nights.  There are tables and chairs out during the day, but they are mostly occupied by the French staff who sit there smoking (not the best advert, but there you go).  So, on the surface a cafe seems a good idea, but having extensive experience in a very dodgy business I have told her to expect to lose her rent every month for very little revenue, and anything else will be a bonus.  Anyway, hopefully I am wrong.  Moi, une skeptique vous demande?

First job was assembling four marble topped tables she had bought.  Quite tedious, and the marble tops were very heavy.  I finished in about two hours.   Later we went for a walk in the evening, hoping to catch the Dordogne Chippy – a mobile fish and chip van (they park outside the Café de Paris and you eat your fish and chips inside, drinking their beer or wine).  But it was just closing up, (we missed it by less than cinq minutes), so we came back home and I cooked a meal.  Very tired it was early to bed and early to rise.

Today (Friday) I have been painting two walls with left-over paint while my better half was putting up pictures and make the place look pretty.  (I long to spend my  retirement painting – but not walls!!!) It really is beginning to look nice.  We should be on time to open on Monday, but then I have to fly back on Tuesday.  (I am sure she can cope better without me) I am still working but it is only just over two months to go until I can do the job I have always longed to do, washing up and making coffee….hahaha