In my 180 articles written for the current Frenchay magazine and the preceding one, I’ve often written about France but never about a chȃteau. Why now? I’ve just been watching “Escape to the Chȃteau”. If you have never seen it , it is about an English couple who buy a derelict French chȃteau and how they are renovating it. It brings back such memories for me!
Whilst living in Clifton we read in the Sunday paper that there was a farmhouse for sale near Cognac. Some French friends had been staying with us and they were packed up ready to go home. Hastily filling our own suitcase we drove them to Bristol Airport and drove to Dover. We caught the first available ferry to France and spent the night in a hotel. Next day we drove to Cognac. I still do crazy things!
The farmhouse was a disappointment and we didn’t even go inside. Driving back to the estate agent’s office I jokingly said to him , when we passed a beautiful chȃteau, “I wish that was for sale.” He replied “It is!” He turned the car round and took us back to it.
What a chȃteau! It was not too huge, wider than it was deep and only three stories high. We envisaged making nine glamorous studios, three on each floor. There were two round towers at each end, one could be our home and the other ready to welcome our family and friends. It had been a Royal Chȃteau and their crowns (a copy of course!) were displayed on the roof.
Did we buy it? That’s another story, no more space, so I’ll finish it next month…
A favourite quote of mine is “If you don’t look for magic you will never find it!”
I wish you all a magical April,
Esmé
Whilst living in Clifton we read in the Sunday paper that there was a farmhouse for sale near Cognac. Some French friends had been staying with us and they were packed up ready to go home. Hastily filling our own suitcase we drove them to Bristol Airport and drove to Dover. We caught the first available ferry to France and spent the night in a hotel. Next day we drove to Cognac. I still do crazy things!
The farmhouse was a disappointment and we didn’t even go inside. Driving back to the estate agent’s office I jokingly said to him , when we passed a beautiful chȃteau, “I wish that was for sale.” He replied “It is!” He turned the car round and took us back to it.
What a chȃteau! It was not too huge, wider than it was deep and only three stories high. We envisaged making nine glamorous studios, three on each floor. There were two round towers at each end, one could be our home and the other ready to welcome our family and friends. It had been a Royal Chȃteau and their crowns (a copy of course!) were displayed on the roof.
Did we buy it? That’s another story, no more space, so I’ll finish it next month…
A favourite quote of mine is “If you don’t look for magic you will never find it!”
I wish you all a magical April,
Esmé
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