It was a shock to us when Hannah asked us what a seagull looked like because she could not remember having seen one. So very early the next day the Marsh Family A Team moved into action on operation “Day out at the Beach”. Everyone knew his or her jobs, Hilary, Eleonore & Hannah started the milking at an hour which nearly gave the cows a heart attack, Andrew & Alex sorting out the rest of the outside jobs and Alycia stayed in to prepare the picnic.
All went well and we arrived for our breakfast by the sea at Fouras at 10 o’clock.  The extensive morning market awoke our taste buds with fresh fish, fruits and vegetables. We spent sometime exploring the town and Chateau. However Hannah was getting more and more impatient so we found a quite picnicsite to eat our lunch and then we moved on to Châtelaillon-Plage.
This pleased all the girls who were eager to feel the sand between their toes and build sandcastles. It was great for us to see all the girls enjoying the beach, even Alex, at nearly eighteen, building sand castles. This is something that they all want to repeat next year. They all felt that it was well worth every minute of getting up at the crack of dawn and having to face the evening work on return home!
Another day out was planned because Eleonore had won a prize of some tickets to the Village of  Bournat in the Dordogne in a reading competition at school. We saw a replica country village set at the beginning of the 20th Century. We saw many country crafts being carried out, milling of walnuts for their oil, rope making, bread making, a working mill grinding flour, a blacksmith plying his trade and some glass blowing just to name a few. The girls found the “Man ges” highly entertaining especially the  “Pousse-pousse” which they rode at least ten times each. Alex & Alycia were defeated by the cage, the aim is to strap yourself into it and swing it back and forth to achieve a 360° turn. A tired but happy family retired to the house after returning home and doing the evening working.

	This year we have fed well at the usual round of commune meals, been entertained by artists locally and  from all around the world and enjoyed the most fantastic firework displays  all within a very short distance of  home.