http://www.medievalcastle.fr/photo-gallery/?album=1&gallery=4&show=gallery

With Romas leaving today and three new helpers arriving today and tomorrow I will have to move my computer, I’m also hoping to get the new video plug in working so I can do video updates.

I have already uploaded two galleries so expect many more.

I thought the video facility was updated but it doesn’t seem to be working properly, I’m hoping to have this working soon so I can start a regular video blog update. To be honest I hate the sound of my own voice but hey, its quicker so I thought we would change this to a video blog.

As its not working yet then I’m back to typing.

We have got off to a great start this year, Jon, the carpenter who came last year for a month and ended up staying for 6 Months is back. He really is a talented guy, sometimes even he doesn’t realise how talented he is currently making a mammoth window frame in oak to replace the old out of character window in the office.

Chris from the US as now left heading for Belgium, we have Katie from Australia who is proving to be a real great help, she cleared the base of the tower that as been overgrown for a couple of years now, she is going to make a duck house next week so we can get some ducks on the moat.

We have Jess and Eric, Jess as been very busy in the veggie garden getting all the seeds in, we also have the greenhouse up at last so we are able to get things started quicker, one of the first video updates I do will be on the progress of the veggie garden, its much bigger this year and growing week by week, our 2 pigs Bacon and Sausage have churned up there pen area, so we have moved them to a new patch and are digging and rotavating their old patch ready to plant.

When I bought the castle in 2004 a friend of mine did some clearing, we had stones everywhere so we piled them all up in front of the castle, now we want that area clearing as we have the pool out front, so Eric volunteered to move them and move them he did, unbelievable, 3 days and all gone, we can now see the well again, Ill update with some photos tomorrow.

Romas from Lithuania arrived Monday, he too as been busy in the veggie garden, digging and preparing for the rotivator.  We now have plenty of potatoes, onions, lettuce (finally found some seeds for iceberg lettuce) spring onions, Broccoli, carrots, sweet corn, beetroot, radish, aubergine, tomatoes, Brussel sprouts and strawberry’s, next week we have cabbage, more lettuce, courgettes, cucumber, parsley, hot peppers, Mellon’s and many more due out of the greenhouse, all in all a much better start to the year than last year.

So, I’m going to sign off now before this becomes a novel, for those who have been following this blog i would like to thank you for your patience, from here on in there will be several updates a week, especially when the video plug in is done.

Anyone wishing to follow the blog please sign up to our news feeds

More photos tomorrow.

Chris

Our new cockerel Rambo

Rambo our new cockerel arrived at the same time, we popped him in with the girls and they hoped out and left him to it, we finally got them settled down last night, they seem fine now and Rambo as finally come out of the hen house and had a mooch around, he is chilling in the shade ATM

Lee got everyone interested in poker and gave them lessons, the resulting poker nights where real funny, with most of Lee’s pupils beating him on a regular basis

Jon our resident chippy (and my best man to be when we get married next year) showed there are no limits to his talents and suprised himself at times, producing a beautiful oak window frame from old beams, a stunning front door from two oak doors recovered from a Bank renovation, Thanks Jon, you are a super star.

Katherine and Clair’s garden clearing was a site to behold, they shot through the place like a tornado leaving massive mound of twigs and weeds in their wake.

Crazy Mick the Australian sparky who treated us all to a Aussy Barby, Mmm, i can still taste those burgers.

Jamie the Irish stone mason who was a real character, built the fireplace in the medieval dinning room.

Justine who’s hidden talents with dry stone walling adapted well to building with mortar, he left leaving a stunning perimeter wall, then returned later in the year to build the chimney breast on the fireplace.

Kat from Canada who made light work of removing a set of stone stairs in the study, then after a little tuition did a great job of bricklaying to bring the chimney breast in the study up to hight.

Zack a plasterer from the US who arrived early in the year just in time to take care of most of the plastering as we fitted the plasterboards.

Samuel a qty surveyor from Tennerife who was a great help calculating arches, levels for pipework etc, not to mention all the jobs he applied himself to despite having no previous experience of the practical side of building.

Karol and Noelle, medical students from Ireland who got stuck in to the garden and veggie patch ensuring a great start to the year with fresh organic veg.

Bram and Sussie who cycled from Holland, Sussie fired through her list of tasks quicker than i could write them she was like a one man army.

Katka from Slovakia made light work of everything she did, a real trouper who wasn’t frightened of taking on any job

Katch from Brazil who seemed at one with the plants

Mat and Hilary from the US where happy to turn their hand to anything we could throw at them.

Zack two from the US who used to start the day practicing his guitar and trumpet made for a alarm call with a difference

plus many more, I could go on all day but I’m not sure if I can post this much in one go

Thanks to everyone that helped, you are all welcome here anytime and good luck on your travels.

we are hoping to be able to start preparing the vegy patch soon, we have now come up with a great plan to irrigate it from the moat, we have been getting all our seeds, potatoes, unions etc, I must find some time to put the greenhouse up : )

We also got a load more cable, including TV coax and communication cable, turns out we have to have a networking socket and TV aerial in every room to comply with the regs (obviously dreamed up before they invented wifi)

So tomorrow is unloading day, we are going to unload the van in the morning then take the rest of the day off, first day off for months, then next week its full steam ahead.

So with a hectic social calender for the festive season we have decided to leave work on the château until the new year and enjoy a well earned break.
We don’t have anymore holiday workers due until the new year, so its Christmas at Colin and Janice’s 24/25 and if the weather is fine we may spend the 26/27 finishing their roof, then we have a party to go to on the 28th, then Kevin and Patricia’s for the new year.

So on that note I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and wish you all the best for the new year.

Chris