I suppose I should describe the joy of walking around the village of Ligny-en-Barrois, the ancient towers and mills, the parks and river and the amazing little arcades that run under the buildings connecting the squares, or perhaps the gardens atop the remains of the towns ramparts.
I should probably mention the inevitable twinge of sadness as we made sure Cliff and Gina were on the bus to the next leg of their own adventure, the pleasure we had from their company and how their visit was all too short.
But I won’t, because those sentiments are best left for cards and letters and besides we arrived back at the boat with the dust from the departing bus still in the air to find we had new neighbours. One of our cruising inspirations had arrived in port, the German couple in the raft whose registered name translates to “With Pleasure III” greeted us on our return with a bowl of plums they’d scavenged from the edge of the canal a few kilometres back.
We have seen them from time to time, and often use them as an example of the expression “where there is a will, there is a way”. The majority of people dream their dreams then spend their waking hours finding excuses to carry them out. This pair do not, although it helps said the skipper, to have a husband who is a little crazy.
The set up reminds me so much of the camping holidays our family had half a century ago, except the trench around the tent is a lot bigger of course. The sides do roll down at night, the stretchers come out from somewhere and the music system is a battered guitar. There are no mooring fees involved as at the end of every summer the raft is dismantled stacked on a trailer and stored in their garden under a tarpaulin.
No detail has been left to chance. Even the captain’s parrot has a home affixed to the mast.
On longer sea voyages, admittedly the space is less comfortable, as indeed is the welcome, but when they left this afternoon, they left us with the feeling that all things are possible.
For further insight into just how far this vessel has been, click this link!
For those waiting for a better time to follow their cruising dream, be inspired, don't wait!
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