Sunday 6th September 2009
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| Canal du Midi |
We read in one of the brochures that Capestang had a Sunday market in the village, so we followed the stream of people with baskets and found it easily. They sold clothing, books and baskets, but mostly they sold food. We could not help ourselves and bought yet more yummy cheeses. They may smell like old socks but they certainly taste good. We also bought ripe black figs, fresh melon, red cabbage, spring onions, coriander, a dark grain baguette and some lavender honey. Food heaven!
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| Canal du Midi |
Back at the boat we opened up the sliding roof to let in fresh air and snacked on a platter of local cheese, fruit and bread. Ripe Brie, Emmentaler, pepper encrusted goats’ cheese, sweet grapes, nectarines and a glass of rich red wine. Yummy!
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| Lowest bridge in France at Capestang |
Apart from the scenery on the canal, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Capestang has the distinction of having the smallest bridge on all the canals in France. After lunch we packed up, headed under this bridge and veered left to Narbonne. We met a French couple heading in the same direction as us and managed to converse in "Frenglish" through 5 locks together.
We stopped off for the night just outside the lock at Saleles D' Aude. It was nice to be away from the other boats for a change. We lay in our cabin that night listening to the sounds of nature, and what we thought were owls hooting.
Monday 7th September 2009
We left our peaceful sleeping spot and set off for Narbonne. Out boat was a 9.5 m non-fly-bridge, Penichette. The Le Boat style cruisers were massive next to our boat but for two of us the Penichette was plenty big enough, however it would have been tight if there were two couples on this boat. We met up with two Scottish couples on another boat and travelled through 5 locks with them. One sort of makes ‘friends’ with other people heading the same direction as you for the time you are together.
We got to Narbonne by lunchtime and still managed a water top-up en route.The south of France is normally a warm part of the world, but by afternoon it was sweltering hot. I stripped down to my bikini top to keep cool.
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| A typical lunch on our boat. |
Later, we went to explore Narbonne and found the Tourist Info Offices. They allowed two hours free Internet there so we planned to make a turn before we left Narbonne. We compared boats as we wandered along the canal. People actually live on the rivers and canals. It is amazing how some boats have home comforts, flat screen TV’s, wi-fi and washing machines. They are powered by batteries, but also by wind turbines and solar panels. There are even huge floating hotels where guests languish in luxury. We had a long chat to a Canadian who had lived on the canals in boats since 1965.
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| Plane trees along the canal |
We saw the old Roman baths and a canal running under a building. Seriously, the canal runs right
through a building! There was more typical Mediterranean architecture in this region. We noticed eccentric people who appear to roam the bigger towns and cities with packs of dogs. We suspect they are street people.
Places like Narbonne are ideal for a sleepover as they have the requisite shopping, eateries and amenities one needs. But a night in the middle of nowhere with not a soul in sight and the only sounds are water lapping and trees rustling, are what make this such a special holiday.
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| Vineyards opposite the canal |
At about 19.00 as the day started to cool we went for a run along the canal under the shady plane trees. I took a detour along the vineyards which stretched out behind the trees for miles. Back at the boat, after a warm shower, my other half made a chick pea curry with rice and a raita. We had shore to boat power so we sat till late tidying up photos and working on the laptop.
Labels: barging in France, blog, blogsherpa, boat holiday, Canal du Midi, Capestang, France, ideas, information, Lonely Planet, Narbonne, news, tips, travel, what to do
