Tag Archives: home exchange

Accommodation, French language, Home exchange

Learning a Language with a Home Exchange

May 13, 2016 Rosemary Kneipp 7 Comments

As you know, I am a keen home exchanger. We have just redeemed three home exchanges in Australia (Coff’s Harbour, Adelaide and Drysdale) and enjoyed hospitality in Melbourne with the home exchangers of French friends in Paris. Jean Michel, less of a linguist than I am, had been studying and practicing his English for a month or so before we left.

Irene and Paul, who kindly gave us hospitality in Melbourne

Although the basic aim of the trip was not to improve his English but to meet up with my friends and family and visit new places, I was able to observe his progress according to the different types of home exchange.

In Coff’s Harbour, we were in a resort and had very little contact with the people around us which offered little change of Jean Michel practicing his English. Although we had started speaking to each other in English before departure, we fell back into French in Australia.

In Adelaide, we were in a suburban setting which, once again, left little possibility of speaking English except to my nephew who came to see us in the evening.

Our beautiuful home exchange in Adelaide

Our third exchange in Drysdale, about an hour from Geelong, could have been the same except that we had Australian friends join us while we were there and our hosts were also in the vicinity as it was a non-simultaneous exchange. We invited them for an aperitif one evening and also participated in their wine pressing!

But it was Melbourne where we were generously invited to stay with the home exchangers of the Parisian friends who triggered off our first exchange with Drysdale nearly four years ago that offered a real opportunity for Jean Michel to improve his English. We had never experienced hospitality and I was a little worried about spending 3 days with people whom I had only met once.

We needn’t have worried! Irene and Paul were with us the first and third evenings and away the second. While they were there, they took us for walks and meals in Melbourne and we also met up with our Parisian friends’ son. The rest of the time they continued their own lives while we visited other parts of Melbourne.

I would say that hospitality provides the ideal opportunity to improve one’s language skills. If the hosts are able to offer accommodation where the guests have their own bedroom and bathroom as we did in Melbourne, I think it’s an ideal situation.

If hospitality is not a possibility, I would suggest that you choose a downtown area with lots of opportunities to interact with people. Choose a local café and go there every day so you can establish a relationship with the people who work there. Go to the local market or a small shop every day to buy fresh food and buy from the same vendors. Plan a trip to the hairdresser’s.

If your language skills are already sufficient to hold a proper conversation, check beforehand on the existence of local home exchange meet-ups. Join a Facebook home exchange group and try and find other people in the area. Let your host exchangers know that you would like to practice your languages skills beforehand. They will probably be happy to organize meetings with their friends.

At the market, you can easily talk to the vendors

For example, I sent out a Twitter message when we went to Barcelona on a home exchange to get some insiders’ information on the city. As a result, we met up with Roser who looks after blogs & testimonials on the Home Exchange website and a friend of hers in a local café and we talked about things to do and see in Barcelona. When we were at Irene and Paul’s we talked about some of our previous exchanges and they spoke of a swap with Barcelona. I couldn’t believe it – they exchanged with Roser!!!

Otherwise, choose activities that will allow you to talk to people such as visits to wineries and cheese makers. See if there is a local walking group you can join. Throughout France, for example, there is a meet-up group called “On Va Sortir” which exists in London and New York under the name of Urbeez and is a wonderful way to meet people during your stay. Membership is free of charge. Our local group, whom we came across by accident, meets up informally at the open-air coffee stand at our Saturday market.

Having coffee on a Saturday at the market with members of On Va Sortir

Don’t forget to visit the local library where you can read the local paper and magazines. Remember – you can’t speak a language if you don’t know enough words and you need to spend at least an hour a day widening your vocabulary by reading, watching television or listening to the radio. In France, the France Info radio station is perfect because it repeats the same news and items of interest throughout the day. If you don’t understand the first time, you will the third time round!

If you prepare your home exchange with these various points in mind, I’m sure that you will get the most out of your stay language-wise. My dream is to spend a couple of months in Italy after I retire so that I can have a proper conversation in Italian but even two weeks would make a difference!

Australia, Home exchange, Travelling

Lost in Australia

March 8, 2016 Rosemary Kneipp 10 Comments

I can’t believe that we left Blois nearly a month ago! After our first brief stay in Delhi, we have been in Sydney, Armidale, Coffs Harbour, Adelaide and Melbourne. We are now in Kennet River on the Great Ocean Road on the southern coast of Victoria. We have been constantly on the go, visiting family and old friends and having to say goodbye, and making new friends whom we hope to see again. Although I have not been posting in Aussie in France, I have been posting every day (well, practically!) on my other blog, Loire Daily Photo, in the form of “postcards from Australia”. Sydney and Armidale, where I held a family reunion three years ago, are the only places I have been before.

Sydney with its stunning harbour and laid-back style, remains, for me, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We stayed with good friends in Redfern, caught up with my brother, wife and three lovely sons in Parramatta, had an unforgettable dinner with Brainy Pianist whom you may remember from 2012, and discovered Cockatoo Island with one of my many cousins.

My grandmother's wedding bed — My grandmother’s wedding bed

Although I had been to Armidale before, I was able to better appreciate this lovely country town in the New England tableland, where buildings can’t be more than two storeys high. I stayed with my hospitable cousins and caught up with others, slept in my grandmother’s beautiful brass and ceramic bed, saw my elderly aunt who is still living in her own home every day, was invited to dinner, morning and afternoon tea with new and old friends alike and walked several kilometers every morning before breakfast with my fast-paced cousin.

A typical view from the ocean walk between Korora and Coffs Harbour

Coffs Harbour was a little too built up for me, although we enjoyed some lovely walks along the ocean front near our home exchange in Korora, but Sawtell, Nambucca Heads and the country towns of Dorrigo and Bellingen, had a different charm. I caught up with another elderly aunt and her son and was invited to dinner by friends of Armidale friends who have a stunning house overlooking the harbour.

The amazing botanical gardens in Adelaide

Adelaide, where we stayed in a lovely home exchange in the very attractive suburb of Toorak Gardens, has the most beautiful botanical gardens we have ever seen, but we found the city itself somewhat dry and dusty. The mythical Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale vineyards were sadly scorched due to an ongoing drought. but we tasted some fine wines and met up with retired friends from Brisbane who are making their way around the country in a mobile home. We loved the seafront suburb of Glenelg which we visited with my nephew. We met up with three Australian couples who have bought a house in the south of France and Jean Michel was delighted to be able to talk to them in French. I also had a wonderful visit with some old school friends whom I had not seen for 35 years!

The Yarra River in Melbourne looking with Southgate on the left

But whenever we said we were going to Melbourne for the first time, we were told “You’ll love Melbourne!” And they were perfectly right. We loved it from the minute we saw it. We loved the atmosphere, the buildings and the people, but I won’t say anything more here, because our visit deserves to be described in detail. So, keep tuned!

Architecture, Home exchange, Italy

Secret Venice – Carpaccio and Grande Scuola di San Marco

April 29, 2014 Rosemary Kneipp 9 Comments

As this is our second time in Venice and we’re (almost) living like locals, the main attractions are not on our list. Our home exchange is in Castello, which is a working class area of Venice. Our host, Pierleone, is waiting at the vaporetto station, Ospedale, when we arrive from the airport. He takes us in light rain through a maze of streets that I will never remember. I hope Jean Michel will.

Our first floor flat is on the a corner of two narrow streets. It is small but clean and appears to have everything we need. The windows give directly onto the street and we can see people walking past. Pierleone, who speaks French, has set out a handful of brochures on the table and tells us about several places to visit that are off the beaten track.

In our building at least, everyone hangs their umbrellas on the railing

We leave our luggage but don’t unpack, eager to be outside. We set out for nearby Piazza San Marco, taking photos of each little bridge and palazzo on the way, despite the rain. Even if there is no sun, it’s still Venezia la serenissima and our accumulated fatigue seems to melt away.

Strange as it may seem for people who know me well, we’re looking for Louis Vuitton near the Corer Museum on the corner of Piazza San Marco at Pierleone’s suggestion but don’t have the name of the street which turns out to be Salizzada San Moise. As we walk in, we’re given a long transparent plastic bag for our dripping umbrella. We head for the staircase, nodding at the shop assistants who all greet us with a friendly buon giorno. At the top floor, we browse through the books on display then enter a darkened room on the right.

There are two rather stiff-looking paintings by Vittore Carpaccio, a painter of the Venetian school (1465 to 1525), most of whose work remains in Venice, and two projections, one showing two women sitting on the ground on either side of a stone monument suffering some kind of angst, and the other depicting a diver splashing through the water with a sun in the background. We don’t find the artwork particularly interesting but we like the idea of a private exhibition!

It’s next morning and we don’t feel very refreshed. It turns out there is a very bright street light just outside our bedroom window which only has Venetian blinds (of course!) and we’re used to almost total darkness from wooden shutters in Blois and opaque curtains in Paris.

We send an SMS to Pierleone because we don’t seem to have a single sharp knife and one of our lights isn’t working. He obligingly comes by immediately, fixes the light and asks what sort of knife we want. We explain we want to cut up fruit and vegetables (it’s a fast day) so he brings us back two serrated knives. When we express surprise, he explains that it’s almost impossible to get a smooth-edged knife in Venice. Could this be true?

Campo des Santi e with the Scuola — Campo dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo with the Scuola Grande di San Marco

Following another of Pierleone’s suggestions, we go to nearby Campo dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo to visit the Scuola Grande di San Marco, originally a religious charity founded in 1261 and rebuilt in 1487. It is now a public hospital (Ospedale). The ground floor houses a majestic Renaissance hall but Jean Michel is sure there is something else to visit.

There are no signs to direct us and we are about to leave the building when a man in uniform indicates that we should take a flight of steps to the right. Halfway up we stop in amazement. Before our eyes is a magnificent gilt Renaissance caisson ceiling completed in 1519.

Glass cases around the wall contain primitive-looking antique surgical equipment all beautifully presented as part of the Museum of the History of Medicine.

The Sale Capitolare with its magnificent ceiling and cabinets of antique medical instruments

A smaller room contains books and paintings, mostly copies (some the originals are in the Accademia). The one that appeals to me most is by Gentile and Giovanni Bellini depicting Saint Mark preaching in Alexandria, Egypt, the original of which is in Galleria Brera in Milan. I later find further information on Venezia Blog where you can see a lot more (and better) photos.

We then have our first espresso for the day in the Campo to rest our weary feet and watch the gondolas and working boats plying the river. We sigh in contentment.

Opening Hours for Grande Scuola di San Marco

From Tuesday to Saturday, 9.30 am to 1.00 pm, 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm

Bulgaria, Restaurants, Sightseeing

Sofia – Third impressions

September 22, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

The starting point for our third walking tour of Sofia is the Archeology Museum opposite the Presidential Palace and the changing of the guard which I described in my Second Impressions of Sofia. The oldest museum in Bulgaria (formerly the Big Mosque) has been in its present location since 1899. The building itself dates back to the 15th century and has been recently restored and the museum has an excellent reputation. We will no doubt go back another day.

Next on the list is Alexander Battenberg Square, once the site of the mausoleum of Georgi Dimitrov, Bulgaria’s first Communist leader, now completely reduced to rubble. The former Tzar’s Palace, built in 1873, stands on the other side and is now an art gallery and ethnographic museum that we’ll visit another day when my foot is not as painful.

The former tzar's palace, now the National Art Gallery — The former tzar’s palace, now the National Art Gallery

Just next door we see a beautiful building with five gold bulbs, the very ornate Russian Church built from 1912 to 1914 apparently to appease a Russian diplomat who was afraid to worship in Bulgarian churches! But maybe that is just heresay. The bulbs were recently re-guilded with gold leaf donated by the Patriarchate of Moscow.

A beautiful Renaissance-style building on the other side of Rakovski Street turns out to be the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

Parliament on the right and the Military Club on the left — Parliament on the right and the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences on the left with some sort of sit-in in the middle of the square

As it’s starting to spit, we head for the area in which the Routard gives the most addresses. On the way, we go past a statue of a dancer in front of a series of fountains with the Ivan Vasov National Theatre in the background. We’re definitely in a different neighbourhood. The footpaths are still full of holes, but most of the buildings are new and the people are dressed differently.

We see a couple of tables set up for chess and two men are playing behind a large statue with two figures. There is a lot of modern sculpture in Sofia.

Statues in the park with chess players in the background

Our restaurant is the Warsteiner, which is described as having a pork knuckle, stuffed capsicum and sausage ambiance with an eclectic clientele. It has a covered veranda which sounds like a good idea.

At another table, the locals are eating a copious vegetable dish served on a hot grill so I ask for one of those. We choose pork spare ribs, which turn out to be cold and lamb shank, which is luke warm. We have a local red. I have to go closer to the main dining room to get the wifi to work. Overall, not a very good address although cheap at 40 leva (about 20 euro). We later learn that it is part of a chain. We much preferred our meal last night at the local Dom Doman recommended by our hosts even though half the dishes were off the menu.

I get up and my foot screams out in pain. We head for the tourist office at Sofia University underground station to get some brochures for our travel diary and ask for a pharmacy. We follow instructions but have trouble finding it. I whip out my Bulgarian app for help. I find “Where is a pharmacy” with a recording in Bulgarian. I stop a lady in the street but she shakes her head and looks afraid.

I stop another woman and she says, “Oh, a pharmacy. You speak English?” and directs us to one near the Radisson Hotel. I can’t see any sign of an apoteka so ask reception. She sends us back in the other direction and we find one with Pharmacie on the window in addition to apoteka. I ask the lady behind the counter if she speaks English or French. “Ne”, she says. So I ask if anyone else does. She calls over a colleague who admits to speaking a little bit of English.

Radisson Hotel, one of Sofia's landmarks opposite the Parliament building — Radisson Hotel, one of Sofia’s landmarks opposite the Parliament building

She gives me some Nurofen, but no instructions on how to take it. It turns out that the leaflet is written in Bulgarian. Thank god for the Internet! At the end of the conversation, she asks where we come from. I indicate Jean Michel – French – and say I’m Australian. A large smile lights up her face. “Ah”, she says, “You’re not French. French people don’t speak English. Why don’t French people speak English?” “Bad teachers”, I answer. “Yes”, she agrees. “French people are lovely people. France is a lovely place. But no English!” Which is exactly what we were told in Ljubliana in Slovenia.

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Accommodation, Cycling, Home exchange, Hungary

Budapest – more accommodation problems

June 27, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 10 Comments

We’re driving along the motorway to Budapest pleased to have our Aschach and Bratislava accommodation experiences behind us.

This time, there should be no problems. We have organised a home exchange with an American couple who have a well-located apartment in the centre of Budapest which they let and exchange. They have kindly agreed to our arriving ahead of schedule because of the bad weather in Aschach. We can arrive on Wednesday around noon and L. will be there to give us the key.

We leave Aschach on Tuesday and stay overnight in Bratislava which is a two-hour drive from Budapest. We arrive about fifteen minutes ahead of time, park right in front of the appartment, get some florints out the bankomat, buy a couple of things for lunch and feed the surprisingly expensive parking meter.

L. arrives on cue, very apologetic. There is no electricity. His father has been looking after the apartment for A. but is now in hospital after major brain surgery and the last electricity bill has not been paid. He takes us up to the apartment, which is spacious and has everything we need, in particular a washing machine which is starting to become a major preoccupation.

Jean Michel goes into panic mode, much worse than in Bratislava and is looking furious. Neither L. nor I has A’s phone number unfortunately but L has sent her an email. Apologising profusely, L. goes off to look after the electricity problem saying he’ll be back in an hour or so.

We decide to have lunch in the meantime. Jean Michel is very pessimistic but I try to stay calm and be as nice to L as I can be. It isn’t his fault, after all! He soon returns with bad news. Even if he pays the electricity bill in cash, the electricity company will not put the power back on unless the owner of the apartment is present. L’s father has an official proxy but he doesn’t and A. is in the US. We’re in Hungary, he says.

Jean Michel wants to get out of Budapest as soon as he can. He looks up the Routard and finds an appartment to rent in Esztergon, a small town on the Danube an hour’s drive away, where we will be able to do our washing*. I have a look but am not convinced. I suggest Szentendre which is closer to Budapest and seems more promising but no apartments are listed. Jean Michel is adament, particularly after he discovers he has left his photo-grey sunglasses behind in the appartment.

Basilica in Eztergon — Primatial Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Esztergon

About a half an hour out of town, we enter a forest and the road starts winding up a small mountain. We finally come down the other side and into the very dismal little town of Esztergon. We pull up at the address in the Routard and I have another look at the description. I quote, “We don’t know why anyone would possibly want to stay in Esztergon, but if you do, here are a few addresses.” Jean Michel had not read that bit.

I start laughing and Jean Michel at last joins me. We park the car near Hungary’s biggest building, the Primatial Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Mary, so we can visit it before going to Szentendre. It is certainly huge but not particularly attractive.

We drive along the Danube to Szentendre, stopping off on the way at Visigrad and driving up a hill behind it from which there is a breathtaking view of the Danube.

The main pedestrian street in Szentender

Szentendre turns out to be a pretty little town with a pedestrian area in the middle and no fewer than five churches. After calling in at the tourist office for local bike maps just before it closes, we go to Roz Panzio the first of two hotels listed in the Routard under the prix moyens et plus chics category. We are shown two rooms and choose the largest. Then I ask about washing. The lady takes us to the hotel laundry, then phones someone on her cell. “No, I’m sorry”, she says, “not possible”.

We try the second address, Mathias Rex Panzio, which I actually prefer. Yes, there’s a double room for 50 euros including breakfast. Wifi? Yes. Parking? Yes. Washing? No. So I explain about the apartment falling through and our 10 days’ washing. “OK”, she says. “You can use our private washing machine.” I thank her profusely. The room isn’t very big, but it’s clean, it has a comfortable bed and a very interesting bathroom, that appears to be all moulded in one piece. We take it. Dinner? At Movies (actually Muvesz) down the road.

We change, take the bikes off the back of the car and off we go. It’s amazing how quickly the annoyances of the day disappear. From the height of the water in the Danube, we are lucky to be cycling at all. The whole area was obviously badly flooded.

Muvesz turns out to be an excellent address and for the equivalent of 30 euros for the two of us, we have two courses and a glass of red and white wine each. Tomorrow, we’ll visit Budapest.

*We have been unable to find a laundromat in either Germany or Austria despite a lot of time spent following up non-existent addresses.

Mathias Rex Panzio, Kossuth Lajos utca 16, Szentendre 2000, Hungary. www.mathiasrexhotel.hu info@mathiasrexhotel.hu

Home exchange

10 Do’s and Don’t’s of Home Exchange

May 15, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 7 Comments

We’re now up to 8 home exchanges and ready for more but I’ve drawn up a little list of do’s and don’t’s. If I have been remiss in any of these areas in the past, I hope that my exchangers will forgive me. I now know better!

So, in addition to a good bed, a clean house and a decent shower, here are my personal suggestions.

Do wash new towels: it’s great providing a set of new towels for guests, but remember to wash them first or your poor guests won’t be able to dry themselves.

Don’t leave perishables in the fridge or in the kitchen that won’t survive until your return. Not everyone eats the same food as you do. A bottle of wine, a vase of flowers or a frozen meal in the freezer will be appreciated more than fruit and vegetables that might end up in the bin.

Do leave a shelf in your pantry free: your guests may not be dining out every day and may prefer to be able to put their food away rather than leave it on the bench or table during their entire stay.

Don’t provide a washing machine that doesn’t work properly: you may know the trick of how to get your machine to spin properly, but your guests are not going to be happy if it takes 3 days to get their clothes dry.

Do leave hanging space with hangers: perhaps you don’t hang up any clothes yourself, but your guests may wear shirts every day – and don’t forget to provide enough hangers (count one shirt hanger per person per number of days’ exchange up to a week and two or three skirt/trouser hangers per person).

Don’t leave your fridge ¾ full: your guests need to have space to put their own food without having to shop every day. At least two empty shelves, including door shelves, should be left free.

Do provide a blanket as well as a dooner for the bed: you may be freezing at 15°C because you used to live in Africa, but your guests may prefer a light blanket at that temperature. Give them the choice.

Don’t use photos that don’t correspond to your listing, particularly as the cover photo: if you don’t live within walking distance of the sea, a picture of a fishing boat is not appropriate. Neither is a monument two metro stops away.

Do leave adequate instructions about your house: guests need to know when to put the rubbish out, how to work your expresso machine, and what the wifi code is (and why not change the original 26-character code to something easier for your guests?)

Don’t leave dirty sponges in the kitchen: provide a clean sponge for each new set of guests.

Do you have any other suggestions that will make your home exchange a more pleasurable experience?

Home exchange, Spain, Uncategorized

Our Home Exchange in Barcelona

February 21, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

I didn’t realise when I started looking for a home exchange in Barcelona that Paris might not be a peak time from people used to a warmer climate – particularly since our main motivation for going to Spain in February was to get away from the grey skies and cold of Paris! Home exchanges can be either simultaneous or non-simultaneous, depending on various factors. Considering the other home exchanges we were planning this year, a non-simultaneous exchange didn’t seem possible. However, I shall take this factor into account in the future.

I received several refusals but Pep, who lives outside Barcelona and has a one-bedroom flat near Sant Pau Hospital and the Sagrada Familia, fortunately agreed to the swap, although he wasn’t sure until the last minute that he would be able to come to Paris and then, it was only for 2 nights as opposed to our 6 nights. Having a second home definitely makes it easier to juggle with dates.

When Pep saw our listing, he immediately said that his flat was “modesto”. It’s true that we usually try to find equivalent accommodation, but the most important thing is that it is comfortable and clean and has an internet connection. That was certainly the case and we felt very welcome. We weren’t intending to do any cooking so not having a dish washer was not a problem, for example. When we stayed with my brother, sister-in-law, 3 kids and my son in a home exchange on the Gold Coast in Australia, it was a necessity!

When we arrived, Pep was waiting for us with a French-speaking friend in case we had difficulties communicating. But Pep’s French is more than adequate. He told us his favourite places to wander around and where to have pintxos. He also said that the neighbourhood eating places weren’t very interesting although we had a very “local” experience one evening in the bar opposite when we didn’t feel like going into the centre. It’s true that the food wasn’t anything special, but it was certainly authentic and the staff were extremely friendly and helpful. The ambiance more than made up for the quality.

The only drawback was the distance from the centre but, as I mentioned in previous post, Jean Michel worked out the buses and we probably got to see more of the city than we would have otherwise. Since we had 6 nights, it was not really a problem but for a shorter period it would have been less convenient.

Pep reached our appartment in Paris without mishap and was able to take the key from our code box next to the front door. These boxes are common pratice in Australia, but little known in Europe, although you can buy them in France without difficulty. It’s absolutely impossible to open the box without the code. Even if you managed to pull the box off the wall you still wouldn’t be able to get into the box. We find it’s a perfect solution.

When we were preparing for our holiday, I tweeted about off-the-beaten track places to visit in Barcelona and received an answer from Roser who lives in Barcelona and works for www.intercambiocasas.com, the Spanish version of the www.homeexchange.com website I use, inviting us to meet up for a coffee. I was delighted!

The very dynamic Roser came along with her blogger friend Isabel (http://www.diariodeabordoblog.com), about to embark of her first home exchange. We were able to ask all the questions that had been building up about Catalan and Barcelona over the previous few days and since Roser speaks excellent English and French, Jean Michel was able to launch a very interesting discussion about Catalan independence. Roser also has a blog (http://www.sempreviaggiando.com).

Roser and Isabel gave us lots of suggestions for places to eat but we ran out of days before we could use them all! Roser is also very interested in improving the website and service of homeexchange.com so would love to have feedback. In particular, she would like to know what is the most important thing when looking for a home exchange – location, size of the home, nearby attractions, etc.

Gaudi's lamppost in Plaça Reial — Gaudi’s lamppost in Plaça Reial

The day before we left Barcelona, we were sitting outside at a terrace café in Plaça Reial admiring Gaudi’s lampposts when I received a message from Pep who had just got back from Paris, suggesting we have a coffee. We were soon able to exchange our impressions of Barcelona and Paris and talk about what we’d be doing in our respective cities. Pep had enjoyed being right in the centre of Paris even though he found it a little cold!

Now we’re busy organising our next set of home exchanges – one in France in May then a series in Germany, Austria and Hungary for June/July as we’re going to cycle along the Danube. It’s proving a little difficult to find people outside large cities who are interested in coming to Paris, where we can only provide accommodation for two people. So if anyone has a two-person swap in Ulm and Linz, let me know!

Dieting, Restaurants, Spain, Travelling, Wine

Off to Barcelona and one kilo down!

January 16, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 13 Comments

We’re going to Barcelona for six days on a home exchange in February. I can’t wait. Apart from our trip to Australia in September, we haven’t been out of the country for a whole year. We haven’t even gone anywhere except Paris and Blois during that time which means that I’m travel-starved.

Blois from the cycle path on the banks of the Loire

During the same twelve month period in 2011, we went to Seville, to the south-west of France, to Normandy, to Angers and Loche in the Loire Valley, then on a four-week trip to Croatia in the summer that included 9 countries. After that, we went to “Wet” Champagne, then back to the Loire where we found Closerie Falaiseau. And we spent Christmas in Normandy.

So you can see why I’m so excited. One of the reasons I love living in Paris is its proximity to so many other countries. Over the years, we’ve been to Italy several times and have now started visting Spain. Ah yes, I forgot to mention Madrid in my list. We went there last March on our first home exchange. But it feels so long ago.

Harrap's Spanish method by Michel Thomas — Harrap’s Spanish method by Michel Thomas

Now that we’ve booked the airfares (we’re travelling with Easy Jet for the first time), Relationnel has started reading the guide book. He decides on how we fill our days, acts the tour guide and writes up the travel dairy while I organise accommodation, do the talking, find places to eat, take the photos, write blog posts and occasionally contribute to the diary. So I’d better start listening to my Spanish tapes again. I use Harraps’ Michel Thomas method. It’s a very effective, entirely audio method which exists for other languages as well. You can download ten free lessons to test it.

Our Spanish travel diary waiting for Barcelona!

I’ve checked the temperatures which should be 10 or 12°C during the day and it should be sunny which is fine by me. It’s 3°C and overcast in Paris at the moment. I’m not sure our home exchanger is getting the best deal, though she will have an unhindered view of the Palais Royal gardens. So any advice on places to see (particularly off the beaten track), things to do, tips for avoiding queues and things, and, especially, places to eat, are very welcome.

Le Comptoir de la Gastronomie Paris 1er arrondissement

And while we’re on the subject of eating, how’s the diet going? I’ve managed to lose a kilo this week, despite the galette des rois, an apéritif at Le Meurice (where I stuck to the olives and nuts and ignored the cheesy things), dinner at Le Mesturet (without dessert or café gourmand) and lunch at Le Comptoir de la Gastronomie (duck and café gourmand, I have to confess).

The main things that have changed this week are my greater intake of fresh fish from the market and no afternoon tea. I’ve also had fresh citrus fruit for breakfast as opposed to orange juice. I’ve been having a small portion of carbs at lunchtime and just protein and vegetables at night. Maybe a bit less wine as well. We also finished off our Christmas chocolates in Blois. We weren’t eating a lot, but two with coffee at lunch and dinner every day is definitely too much! The foie gras is finished too. There’s still the Christmas cake, but it’ll last a while yet.

Le Comptoir de la Gourmandise, restaurant and gourmet food store, 34 rue Montmartre, 75001 Paris, 01 42 33 31 32 http://www.comptoirdelagastronomie.com contact@comptoirdelagastronomie.com

Australia, France, Home exchange

The Wonderful World of Home Exchange

October 22, 2012 Rosemary Kneipp 20 Comments

If you’ve been following my blog recently, you will have noticed that most of the places we stayed in Australia were home exchanges. Our first swap was last February in Madrid. Since then, all our exchanges have been with Australia – two simultaneous and four non-simultaneous. Two have included a vehicle, which is an enormous boon when you consider the price of renting a car.

view_window_launceston — View from the front window in Launceston

Apart from the question of cost, one of the great advantages of house swaps is that you get to be a local. When you’re lucky enough to meet the owners (not always possible in the case of simultaneous exchanges), they can explain the ropes and give you tips on things to do and places to visit. Otherwise they can leave useful information.

Relationnel was particularly appreciative of having a glimpse of Australia from the inside. In the past, we’ve either stayed with friends or motels or rented holiday accommodation which is not quite the same as living in someone’s home during their absence. The general spaciousness, the kitchen equipment, the video installations and the laundry facilities impressed him the most. I had problems with the heating (or rather the lack of heating!)

coles_bay — View from the living room in Coles Bay

We are no doubt not very representative of French people in general, but our television in Paris is concealed behind a large armchair as we very rarely watch it. It’s quite big but nothing like the size of the ones in most of the homes we stayed in. Our exchangers must have been a little disappointed to see our somewhat basic video installations. In Blois, we don’t even have a TV because we are too far from the centre of the town to have international channels. However, we expect optic fibre to be installed within the next two years.

hobart_fireplace — Welcome fireplace in Hobart

We noticed that everyone in Australia has kitchen tongs so we bought a set for Blois for our Australian visitors. We have some in Paris but I never remember to use them! Fridges are much bigger in Australia, for one thing, and no one seems to use lettuce driers which are standard equipment in most French households. All the barbecues were gas or electric.

armidale_house — Armidale house from the front

A laundry room is very rare in France and there are pratically no washing machines here that use cold water, which is why the cycles are so long (the machine heats the water). We had problems using some of the machines in Australia because theywere often programmed for cold water only and it took me a while to realise where the problem lay. Here, you can choose between 30°, 40°, 60° and 90°. Some of the machines are enormous in Australia – 9.5 kg – which is wonderful for washing sheets and towels. Also, you only have to put them out on the line for a few hours to dry. It’s far more complicated and time-consuming here!

armidale_garden — Just one part of the garden in Armidale

In France, I have always had central heating. In Paris, our apartment is grossly overheated because we are on the 4th floor and even if we turn off all the radiators, the hot water coming through the pipes easily takes the temperature up to 23° or 24° instead of the regulatory 19°C. But the most important thing is that central heating means that all the rooms are evenly heated.

armidale_house_rear — Armidale house from the back

In Tasmania, where it was still very cold, particularly at night, there were usually no radiators in the hallways, bathrooms and toilets although there were heated overhead lights in the bathroom. Since the rooms were often quite big with open-plan living spaces, it meant that the rooms were often chilly. In Hobart, though, we had a fireplace, which was wonderful. I do admit it’s far healthier to have less heating – I’m just not used to it!

terranora_view — View in Terranora from the back deck

In three of the houses, we had the most splendid views and I was only sorry that our simultaneous exchangers were deprived of the wonderful view of the Palais Royal gardens from our balcony because of renovations. One of the houses had an absolutely stunning garden and the rooms were furnished with antiques. My nephews, aged 5 to 10, who were staying with us, thought it was a castle!

terranora_view_side — Kitchen view at Terranora

I’d like to say thank you to all our exchangers who gave us the opportunity to stay in their lovely homes. This post is not a criticism in any way – I’m just pointing out interesting differences between French and Australian homes that we observed.

Australia, Australian customs, Travelling, Wine

Wine Tasting in Tassie

September 18, 2012 Rosemary Kneipp 2 Comments

Our four days in Sydney were spent catching up with family and friends, some of whom we hadn’t seen for 3 years, which was wonderful but exhausting particularly since we arrived a day later than I had expected which meant quite a bit of rescheduling. We left for Tasmania on Monday morning.

flying_sydney_melbourne — Flying out of the Sydney

The plane left about an hour late but we made up for some of the lost time between Melbourne and Launceston. It was rainy and cold when we arrived at our home exchange in Riverside. It has a wonderful view of the River Tamar which it was difficult to fully appreciate because of the weather.

church_launceston — Holy Trinity Anglican Church built in 1902

We drove into the city centre in our smart home exchange car with its built-in GPS. However, as I mentioned yesterday, we were amazed to discover that the shops are all closed by 5.30 pm. So much for food shopping. So we ate at Fish n’ Chips on Seaport Boulevard but thought it was very expensive and nothing out of the ordinary. The other restaurant was more upmarket. So a rather gloomy day in all.

view_house — View from just below our home exchange house in Riverside

When we woke up this morning the world had taken on a new light. It was sunny! We could appreciate the stunning view the start with. We went into town to have breakfast at Elaia Café where we sat outside and ate our bacon and eggs with great gusto (you can’t buy regular bacon in France). We parked in a side street with the prettiest little houses.

elaia_cafe — Elaia Café in Charles Street

houses_launceston — Houses in a little street off Charles Street

Our next stop was a wine tasting at Vélo on West Tamar Highway. I had read about the vineyard in a magazine cutting sent by our friends in Canberra whom we went with on a wine tour to Young and Orange last time we were in Australia. Michael, the vineyard owner, is one of Australia’s leading cyclists, having participated in the Moscow Olympic Games in 1980 and competed in Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.

velo_counter — Wine tasting at Velo cellar door

During that time, he and his wife Mary lived in France and Italy where they fell in love with wine. About 10 years ago, they bought one of Tasmania’s oldest vineyards, planted in 1966 by Graham Wiltshire. They named their vineyard Vélo, which means bike in French. It was Mary who looked after us at their cellar door with its wonderful view of the Tamar Valley.

She was busy with other customers when we arrived so had the time to hear us speaking French. Relationnel was delighted when she said “bonjour”. Although a little hesitant at first, she was able to present the different whites we wanted to try and I just supplied the missing vocab from time to time. We began with a sauvignon blanc, followed by a riesling (as we’d mentioned oysters), a pinot gris and an unwooded chardonnay with a surprising lychee nose.

view_velo — View from Velo’s cellar door, soon to add a café

We chose the well-structured riesling and the pinot gris, with its elegant mineral nose and long finish, both 2010. They were not cheap by our standards at 25 dollars a piece, but then nothing is cheap for us at the moment now that the euro and dollar are practically on a par. They were our first experience of Tasmanian wines and we found them to be of excellent quality and very well-finished.

An excellent start to our first real day of holidays!

from the Tropics to the City of Light