18. Gassed in the Somme

The Somme 2017

The day dawned for the family earlier than usual due to the being a lovely heated, covered, pool on site that was available from ten.  A great inducement to get up and dressed.

It did not disappoint, and we were in for a couple of hours, the only swimmers.  There were also great loungers and the sun came out so it was delish as the glasshouse structure kept the wind at bay.

Basically a lay day today with the only duties being getting gas and laundry.  While Jacqueline tackled the outdoor laundromat I set forth. Getting gas is not as easy as it sounds as, in France, you can't refill a bottle you can only swap.  We set off with our U.K. thirteen kilogram bottle.

The first couple of places were useless (people wise) but at the supermarket there was an little attached station, a helpful woman with little English and the desire to help.  There were two challenges:

1. French bottles have a small reverse male thread
2. Butane is the common fuel and our caravan is jetted for propane (fridge, heating, stove and oven)

I determined that what I needed was:

1. French propane bottle
2. Appropriate regulator
3. Adapters to fit the 8mm existing gas line

Problems like this bring out the best of language barriers.  The first store I got the sardonic French shrug and it can't be done comment.  In the fourth store I found the appropriate hardware (having established with the helpful woman that she could supply a propane 13 kg bottle) but only for butane.  Eventually it was communicated to me that it can't be done with propane.  Anyway, to cut a long story long, I bought a premade hose kit and appropriate regulator, cut the hose in half, used a standard hose clamp (noticed that he was about to charge me forty five € for it) and voila, one afternoon later, the job was done.

Meanwhile Jacqueline had been following the instructions for foie gras, force feeding the drier € both in coins and card only to return with wet washing.  Luckily the Giantavan spewed a rotary clothes line and we were able to get it all hung.