Tuesday 16 August - heading east, House Inspection, Damazan Night Market

We had an appointment in Damazan that afternoon, so we made an early (for us) start from Le Mas d'Agenais. Along the way, we realised that we had very few photos of Kanumbra while she was cruising. So for one stretch on the lead-up to the lock at St Christophe, Rita walked along the towpath and took pictures as she went.

She also made a little video of coming under the bridge and into the lock at St Christophe.

We cruised on till we moored in Damazan that afternoon, on the free side at the base of the park leading up to the town.

The reason we had returned to Damazan was to have a look at the property that we had found for sale in the previous week. We had tried to get an inspection then, but the agent said they couldn't do it till this week so, since a street party was scheduled for every Tuesday night in Damazan, we decided to come back for the inspection, then stay on for the party. Why, however, were we even looking for a property? Well, we planned to have many friends come and cruise with us over the coming years. But they couldn't all fit on the barge at once, nor would they (or we) want them to stay on the barge for an extended period. We figured that if we had a little house, then guests could share their time between the barge and the house and have a fixed spot from which they could explore. It would also give us a place to store all the steel pans we would need for the "Travelling Panburys" band! Besides the place was going for a very reasonable EUR60,000, so how could you lose on such a bargain?

So we arranged with the agent for an inspection, not really expecting too much considering the price. The house was on the main square in the centre of Damazan, facing the Mairie building. It dated from about 1450. A covered arcade ran along the front, and it opened to a laneway at the back. There was a large living area on the ground floor at the front, with a large country kitchen at the back (both with fireplaces). In between was a bathroom/toilet and a cellar room. Upstairs were three bedrooms, and up top was an attic (in need of renovations). I must admit I was more impressed than I thought I'd be, and was on the verge of making an offer when in walked another woman who said she had signed a contract earlier that morning! Talk about having the rug pulled out from under your feet!

We later learned that the woman had made an offer, but it had not yet been accepted, nor had a contract been signed. We probably could have offered a slightly higher price to sway the seller, but since the woman was a local with a couple of small kids, we decided not to start playing games. But boy was I disappointed inside! After going through the seven stages of grief (shock&denial, pain&guilt, anger&bargaining, depression, the upward turn, reconstruction and acceptance&hope) in about 15 minutes over a beer at the local cafe, we decided that it was just not meant to be and that fate had intervened to prevent us making a horrible mistake.

So we wandered back downhill to the canal (as we walked another agent called offering to show us two other properties in Damazan tomorrow), only to find that Stuart and Christine had arrived from Buzet and tied up behind Kanumbra. They had their kids and grandkids with them, and were also planning to go to the street party that night in Damazan. So we agreed to meet up with them later that evening.

The street party turned out to be the perfect antidote for the disappointment of the inspection that afternoon, although it also convinced us that Damazan would be a good place to have a base. A couple of hundred people turned up and had dinner at tables set up by the Mairie that afternoon. Lots of food vendors set up stalls to feed the multitudes, while the Buzet Coop Winery had a stall to provide us with the same wines we had tested earlier in the week. A small band played lively music, and lots of people were up dancing for most of the night. It was so busy that we never did find Stuart and Christine. By the end of the evening, Rita was really starting to feel like she was on holiday (even if the attendant would not let her ride the merry-go-round!).