It's The People

This year we were glad to leave our little Echo boat and get back to our roomier Arizona house.  However, now that we've been sitting here in the desert for three days short of a month, our feelings toward canal cruising are softening, especially after receiving a very welcome email from new friends, reminding us of one of the reasons why we cruise.

Dorte & Bjarne, a Danish couple cruising on their boat Bisse, did most of the lock work as we both traveled down the Canal des Vosges. 

Dorte hanging out at the top of a lock wearing those shoes.

Usually ahead of us going into a lock, we watched, amazed, as Dorte would grab the rung of a lock ladder while Bjarne slowly drove past, taking their boat to the front of the chamber.  She scrambled up those ladders wearing flip-flops, not even serious non-slip boat shoes.  At the top of the lock, after securing the lines Bjarne lifted up to her by boat hook, she'd scurry back to our boat to take our lines. This went on lock after lock after lock without a slowdown or mishap.  Although a couple of times our hearts were in our mouths as we watched her actually jumping off their boat onto the ladder.  Scary people.

Dorte and Bjarne were in the cursed lock with us when we had our "incident" and they stuck by us afterward to make sure that neither Echo nor Fran nor Dwight broke down. Considerate people. 

Bisse heading south, hope we keep in touch

And we were pleased to get to know Jan and Jonda (I think I'm spelling that right) flying the South African flag from their boat, Bolero.  We met Jonda as she was hobbling around the Toul marina.  Though she is a yoga teacher, strong and in shape, Jonda managed to break her hip when she and her bike took a tumble in the marina at Strasbourg.  Lying on the ground for a long time unable to get up, she was finally found by a stranger.  She asked her rescuer to go to her boat to get her husband but, unfortunately, he brought back the wrong man.  It took another trip through the marina before Jan was notified of her plight.  

After her surgery, despite needing crutches, Jonda was still able to get on and off her boat, even after the boat was lifted out of the water making a climb down an 8 foot ladder necessary just to use the marina's bathroom.  We know when we see Jonda next spring, she won't be hobbling anymore, she will be running.

I'd like to know what's up with these cruising ladies?  Are they trying to intimidate me or inspire me?
  

Jiggedy-Jig

Home!  

We are happy to be here, Yogi-dog especially as he always misses his friends when he is away and traveling is never easy for him.  He made himself the talk of DeGaulle airport by insisting on carrying his stuffed bear (read security blanket) throughout the terminals and wouldn't let it loose until we put him and the bear into their kennel for the long boring trip across an ocean and a continent.  Then, in Las Vegas, it was the same...a little dog stubbornly toting a stuffed bear almost as big as he is. Well at least he gives bored travelers a chuckle.  

Yogi with bear..or bear with Yogi

Last night, as a large pack of coyotes was yipping its way through our complex,  I was reminded of one reason why I like Europe. There is nothing that wants to eat my dog along the canals; no coyotes, no bobcats, no mountain lions.  Nor are there any rattlesnakes or javalina to threaten him and what a relief it is not to be always on the lookout.  But then with slippery decks and turbulent lock water we could lose him overboard,  Well, geeze....it's always something, isn't it? 

The people of this household are particularly happy to be home with a car and easy shopping.  Corre, France is a town with only 600 inhabitants, one grocery store, one boulangerie, a garden store and two restaurants.  We noticed that the stores in Corre weren't big on restocking their shelves so when the last item was sold......well, it was gone.  The boulangerie was a little better but didn't always have our favorite kind of baguette. 

The quiet center of town

Then there is the bicycle contraption our marina lends to you, free of charge, so you can ride to the grocery store.  Believe us when we tell you that it is easier to walk, although you don't look quite as charming (or silly) when walking.

Echomarche is the name of Corre's grocery store

I owe my avid readers and Dwight an apology.  Before I flew to Liege, Belgium to meet Dwight, he told me that beside building the settee, he had an surprise waiting for me.  It was a doozie.
Dwight put a hot water line into the galley sink.  We now have hot, hot water going into the bathroom shower and the kitchen sink.  Oh, what luxury.

Because we have no new adventures to write about now, I am going to go back through our old log books to see what other stories I might be able to dredge up from the past.  Stay tuned.