In 2020, the Base Sous-Marine reopened after having been transformed from a site used in war into an arts facility with sound and lights throughout. It has 90 video projectors and 80 speakers in multiple areas to showcase an immersive experience with art.

After doing a whirlwind tour of Bordeaux on Saturday, we decided to slow things down a little and enjoy ourselves on Sunday, July 27th. We started the day by going to the Farmers Market on the riverbanks of the Garonne River.

July 26th we took the train from Castillon-la-Bataille to the Gare Saint Jean in Bordeaux.

After arriving in Bordeaux, we took a taxi cab to our hotel

Day 15, Thursday, July 24, 2025 is our last full day at the maison. Looking back we have accomplished quite a bit. I want to chronicle our achievements for posterity.

We have:

Hot water

High speed fiber optic internet and streaming

A television

Day 12 of the French Adventure, Monday, July 21st, 2025 shall now and henceforth be known as “The Day of the Goat.” It started out as a normal day with scheduled visits on our calendar, and it ended with an unexpected visitor: a goat.

I was in the kitchen when I heard Eric calling me with a sense of urgency. I came outside and saw a goat on the field above our swimming pool. Eric thought the goat would be a temporary visitor and that I had to act fast or miss the sighting of this animal.

Heh, heh, heh. Little did he know. The goat likes it at our house.

Day 11 of the French adventure for Sunday, July 20th was a day spent at a local landmark for dancing, music and fun. Last year as we were in the town of Castillon-la-Bataille and were on the banks of the Dordogne River, I scanned my eyes across the river and saw a sign I couldn’t make out and asked Eric about it. He squinted and once he recognized the words on the sign became excited. It was a “Guingette de la Plage”

Castillon-la-Bataille has invested in creating an historical spectacle to commemorate the last battle of the Hundred Years War between England and France that ended on July 17, 1453.

Days 9 and 10, July 18th and 19th - I will use this post to chronicle the day-to-day updates of our French adventure. On a separate post I will cover the historical spectacle we attended last night.

Yesterday, Friday, July 18th I left the maison with Eric and we traveled to the village of Sainte-Foy-la-Grande to visit an antique shop (Brocante). He had gotten a recommendation from a friend of his in Bergerac for this antique dealer and Eric had called ahead of time to learn if they had a large table for our dining room. We went to see it in person and thought it would work. The owner, Michel, showed us another table so that if there was a large gathering more people could be accommodated.

Day 8, July 17th, today marks the 572nd anniversary of the last battle of the Hundred Years War that ended in 1453 near the town of Castillon-la-Bataille. The battlefield was to have been south and east of the Lidoire River, and that is near our maison. Tonight after dinner, Scott and I took a walk down the road to see the sign for the Route de la Lidoire.

Tonight is the opening day of the historic spectacle to re-enact that fateful battle.

Day 6 and 7, of the French Adventure, (July 15 & 16). These two days blurred together, so I am combining them together. After we returned our rental car, it left us with only Eric’s voiture. That also means there is an economy of space issue. If there are only two people in a car you can fit more things that you purchase over having a third person in the car.

Day 5 of the French adventure, was Monday, July 14th Bastille Day. We started our day by going to the weekly farmers’ market in Castillon-le-Bataille. This was our first opportunity to go to a local farmers’ market this trip. The number of vendors may have been less than normal due to the holiday, but there was still a good number of stalls. There were many stalls filled with fresh fruit, vegetables, meats, soaps, clothing, hats, tablecloths, and even live chickens. We left with four bags full of food that was incredibly flavorful, a couple of new tablecloths, and farm fresh eggs from those chickens.

Day 4, Sunday, July 13th we returned our rental car to the airport at Bordeaux before getting on the tram to Centre Ville Bordeaux for lunch at Chez Dupont. It is on Rue Notre Dame and we arrived at noon just as the church bells tolled the hour.

Scott had a fabulous Segovia couchon noir (black pig) and I had their delicious confit de canard.

After that wonderful repast, we enjoyed our afternoon in the city, browsed a few shops, took a stroll along the river before getting on a bus to take us to Gare Saint Jean and then a train back to Castillon where Eric picked us up.

Here are a few photos from the beautiful city of Bordeaux.

Saturday, July 12th, Day 3 of our French adventure. We traveled to Libourne for shopping that wasn’t as readily available as in Castillon-la-Bataille. It is about half an hour’s drive away and that is also where the nearest hospital is. (My Sea Ranch friends who are a 2 hour drive away from hospitals will appreciate that it is closer!) We went to the local Darty store (a nationwide appliance shop) and either purchased or ordered many appliances for the maison. Scott had found online a store in downtown Libourne for cuisine supplies and we discovered the prices there were trés cher.

Day 1, July 10th

This is a short video as we approached the house for the first time since renovations began this winter. As we kind of expected, the renovations were not completed before we came. I stopped recording when my husband started talking with the plumbers. Then I began recording again before the furniture was delivered. I will try to add both videos to this page for your viewing pleasure.