Ivan and I and our French canal boat Laura have been in Roanne since the canals closed for winter. Despite having a boat that can’t go anywhere, life is never boring. We went skiing in Bansko in Bulgaria plus we visited the beautiful French towns of Beaune, Paray le Monial and le Puy en Velay.
Off to Bansko in Bulgaria
We chose Bulgaria (and in particular Bansko) because it has great ski slopes and it’s not expensive. We loved it. The people are very friendly, the scenery is beautiful and the food is delicious and cheap. And where else would a busker want you to play his violin?
Skiing in Bansko
Ivan and I don’t get to ski very often but when we do, we enjoy it. Ivan is very athletic and even though we haven’t skied in about 8 years he picked it up again straight away. Here’s Ivan on day one.
As for me. Hmmm. I’m not so good. I’m too scared of hurting myself, so I’m a bit timid. But I do love it. Here’s me on our last day.
Bansko Village
Bankso is a very cute ski resort village. It revolves around skiing in the winter and mountain biking and hiking in the summer. There’s a gondola in the heart of Bansko which takes you up to the ski runs and chair lifts. And once you’re finished for the day you can ski from the top of the mountains all the way into town.
There’s only one gondola to take everyone up to the ski fields but if there’s a long queue that’s no problem as you can also catch a bus or taxi (for a cost of €5 each). We did that twice when the queue looked a bit daunting.
We stayed in a lovely hotel in Bansko called Ikonomov and fell in love with the owners Dimitar and his wife Naily. They were really friendly and made us feel at home. One night Dimitar invited Ivan and I to have some of his homemade rakia his father made 30 years ago. It was rocket fuel but also quite delicious. I can see why rakia is the national drink of Bulgaria as it definitely warms you up on a cold winter’s night!
Beaune and Paray le Monial
After a week in Bansko we headed back to Roanne and our boat Laura for some adventures in France. The first one was with our friend Henri who we met a few months ago at a concert in a chateau. We stayed in touch with Henri and one day he decided to take us on an excursion in his car. We visited Paray le Monial for lunch and then over to a gorgeous town called Beaune.
Beaune has a hospice which was built in 1443 to provide care for the poor. It is now a spectacular museum and well worth a visit if you are in the Burgundy region.
Le Puy en Velay
Henri used to be a professor at the University of Grenoble and knows lots of people. He offered to introduce us to potentially the next President of France, so we thought “why not?”. His name is Laurent Wauquiez and he lives in an absolutely stunning town called le Puy en Velay. We decided to catch the train there (because Henri is a very scary driver) and stay a few days. Here’s some photos of the monuments in le Puy built on volcanic rock. The last photo is the chapel of St-Michel d’Aiguilhe which was built in the year 969.
Le Puy en Velay is DEFINITELY worth a visit. For those interested in the El Camino pilgrimage, the cathedral in le Puy is one of four places in France to commence the hike. It’s 1500km from le Puy to the final destination in Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Walking the El Camino is on my bucket list, but not for this trip.
We spent three days in le Puy and loved it. The heart of the town is protected from development and has ancient cobblestoned streets. There’s plenty of restaurants and things to see. We spent a lot of time just walking around and admiring the architecture. We met up with our friend Henri in one of the restaurants and had lunch.
So did we get to meet Laurent, potentially the next President of France? Yes, along with about 500 other people. Laurent was speaking at a town hall meeting, so we went along with Henri. The people around us were fascinated as to why two Australians on holiday in France would want to come to a town hall meeting in le Puy en Velay. We asked ourselves the very same question. Still, it was good fun.
Social life in Roanne
Whilst we love travelling and all the wonderful experiences that go along with it, we also love getting back to Laura the boat. She feels like home. We are never bored in the Port of Roanne as it’s very social and we love having people over. We can comfortably fit nine people in the main cabin for drinks.
We also love playing darts in one of the French pubs with our friends from other boats. I never thought I’d enjoy darts, but there you go. What other sport do you get to drink beer at the same time? One night, Ivan managed to capture me scoring the winning dart which was a first! I think you can tell from the video below what a surprise it was for everyone.
The Port of Roanne
The port is quite beautiful with lots of animals and wildlife. This little creature below is called a ragondin or nutria (its South American name). They are very cute but they are not a native of France and they cause a lot of destruction to plants and the banks of the canals and rivers. Still, they are pretty adorable.
There’s also ducks with their beautiful green heads and plenty of cormorants catching fish.
And of course there are many friendly locals who walk around the port who are happy for us to give their dogs a pat. We met these two lovely sisters (below) called Corine and Evelyne while they were walking their chihuahua called Sipie. We invited them to afternoon tea on the boat and had a lovely time. Evelyne made me a beautiful bag as a present.
So we’re very happy with our break from work. It’s a wonderful life living on a canal boat in France and we are so grateful that we have this opportunity. We know how fortunate we are to live here and be able to travel to countries such as Bulgaria which is only two hours away.
For our next adventure we will be taking our bikes on the train to the south of France for some cycling along the Canal du Midi. In the meantime we’re trying to shake off our winter torpor and get fit enough to ride 40-60km every day. It’s only a week away, so I’m hoping for a miracle.
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