Day 44, Brossac

We woke up at 8.30, after a hot and generally uncomfortable night in our basic single beds.  We soon located extra padding to make them passable for the next fortnight.

After breakfast Paul took us back to Chalais to the markets, which were full of clothes, food and bric a brac. After a good look around Neil and I revisited Le Fore, for coffee this time.  We were beginning to feel like locals after two days.

When we arrived back at la Giraudiere Paul did the obligatory inauguration for the newbies, namely Neil and I and Natalie.  (The volunteers already there were Roy D'Silva, Richa Khandewal and Reuben and Pauline Lachmansingh - all of Indian heritage, but living in different countries.  Roy lives in Glasgow, Richa in India and Reuben and Pauline in Canada). Neil was put on handyman duties and I chose gardening.  Natalie restored some old iron plaques as she is a talented artist, Reuben, being a published author, wrote the blog, and Pauline and Richa did domestic duties. We only had to work for three days a week, and because of the heat could knock off at 1pm, which left lots of time for exploring. 

Paul, originally a Londoner, has been running the project for over a decade, and is indeed an important part of the Brossac community.  He is involved in the soccer club and attends other activities such as petanque and poker nights. He brings volunteers into the community which helps the economy, and opens up La Giraudiere to locals for things such as Xmas dinner and other social events. As mentioned earlier, there was never a dull moment over that fornight, with things happening every afternoon and evening.

This first afternoon Neil and I walked to the local lake, Lac Etang, which has a man-made sandy beach and a clubhouse, frequented by many British expats. The weather was still hot and dry, with flies reminding us of home!

That evening Neil set off on a bike ride with another volunteer, David, from England.  They watched a game of petanque and consumed some alcohol before arriving back in the dark.