Shortly after the long drive from Calais to Sainte Marie Du Mont, we have our next dose of bad news. As Ivy House is listed on TripAdvisor, the internet review site, we receive an email stating we have a new review. The review is not what you could call great; however, it is worse for us as we are implicated. Despite not even owning the business, we discover that we are terrible hosts and that my wife is very child unfriendly. Despite being pregnant with our forth child, apparently it appears from the review that she hates kids!
We are due to exchange contracts with the current owners on Friday 4th September. Steve and Sarah Lee started this gite business approximately 6 years ago and from all accounts, have done a great job. They have received 17 excellent reviews on TripAdvisor up until this point so the review was a big shock for them too! According to Steve and Sarah, this is not a genuine review. They believe it to be a competitor who has written it. We will never know if this is a genuine review; however, we can assure you that it is absolutely nothing to do with us! We very much appreciate feedback, both positive and negative, but to be implicated like this, despite not even being there, is something we feel we do not deserve.
As we are taking over in September and as Ivy House was fully booked up until that date, Steve kindly agreed for us to launch our new website in place of theirs. All we can think, and hope, is that if the review is genuine, the guest has looked at our new site for the owners name and mistakenly used ours instead of Steve and Sarah’s.
All we can hope is that you will read our blog, look at the information on our site and make your own decision. We are a genuine family and are very happy to welcome you to our new house. We are not perfect and we will no doubt make mistakes along the way; however, please be assured that we try our very best to make your stay in Normandy as pleasurable as possible.
Sunday 29 August 2010
Saturday 28 August 2010
We go!
With the time rapidly approaching 01:30 and still missing things from my list, the pressure starts mounting. In just 5 and half hours time, I will be boarding the Euro Tunnel to start the crazy adventure in Normandy.
The items that I have been asked to bring range from an Iron to a jigsaw. You may think that the jigsaw is for the kids; however, you would be wrong. As my wife is a teacher, she considered the jigsaw to be of the up-most importance for her new class.
At 01:45, just like Eisenhower in 1944, I made the decision to go. It is now or never; unless of course I forget the passport!
Some 4 and a half hours later and after a brief snooze in a service station somewhere in Luton, I arrive at the terminal bleary eyed and craving some more sleep. The train I booked looks especially busy and I look at the other people and wonder why they are going to France. As we are going to be running a gite business, I hope they are going to the La Manche in Normandy to stay at Ivy House. I will never know why or where they are going but it is certainly good for the insecurities that visit me from time to time.
The items that I have been asked to bring range from an Iron to a jigsaw. You may think that the jigsaw is for the kids; however, you would be wrong. As my wife is a teacher, she considered the jigsaw to be of the up-most importance for her new class.
At 01:45, just like Eisenhower in 1944, I made the decision to go. It is now or never; unless of course I forget the passport!
Some 4 and a half hours later and after a brief snooze in a service station somewhere in Luton, I arrive at the terminal bleary eyed and craving some more sleep. The train I booked looks especially busy and I look at the other people and wonder why they are going to France. As we are going to be running a gite business, I hope they are going to the La Manche in Normandy to stay at Ivy House. I will never know why or where they are going but it is certainly good for the insecurities that visit me from time to time.
Thursday 19 August 2010
Ear to Ear
I mentioned in a previous entry that I would have a smile from ear to ear when we receive our first online reservation. Well, today is that day!
A couple from Doncaster are the first people to use our gite online booking system and have reserved a week at the start of October 2010. The thought that someone has found our site, liked the product we are offering, placed their trust in us and then parted with their hard earn cash, is something we are very grateful of. We will certainly try our very best to repay their trust and offer them a pleasurable stay in our accommodation. I dare say that there may well be a little bottle of something to say a big thank you to our first online guest.
We are hoping that the online reservation system will be popular with our potential new guests. Even if you choose to call us and reserve the old fashioned way, at least our real time availability system will help you decide the best week to come.
A couple from Doncaster are the first people to use our gite online booking system and have reserved a week at the start of October 2010. The thought that someone has found our site, liked the product we are offering, placed their trust in us and then parted with their hard earn cash, is something we are very grateful of. We will certainly try our very best to repay their trust and offer them a pleasurable stay in our accommodation. I dare say that there may well be a little bottle of something to say a big thank you to our first online guest.
We are hoping that the online reservation system will be popular with our potential new guests. Even if you choose to call us and reserve the old fashioned way, at least our real time availability system will help you decide the best week to come.
Thursday 12 August 2010
Keep my mouth shut
Following the discussions with the bank manager regarding my weight, I had to have a medical before the bank would release the necessary funds. No problem; I can have a medical in England, right? Wrong! I was advised to come to France to have it.
So here I go again. Take the train to London and the Eurostar to Paris to meet my wife. No time to hang around and take in the sights of Paris as I have an appointment just 1 hour after my arrival. I need to take another train and arrive at the Doctors office with 5 minutes to spare.
As the Doctor had finished with the patient before me, as soon as I walked in the door, it was my turn to be examined. The Doctor asked me how heavy I was and once again I explained that I was approximately 110 kilos. By this time, I was feeling like a freak show as every time I mentioned my weight, people seemed to look at me in disbelief; certainly in France.
The Doctor could not believe that I was 110 kilos but as I keep trying to explain to French people, I am a big build and heavy. I know it sounds like I am in denial but that is the truth.
The Doctor kindly advised me that my blood pressure was a bit high. She said that it was related to my weight; nothing to do with the travel, the stress of the house move and living apart from my wife and kids.
My wife said that I should have kept my mouth shut when I mentioned my weight to the bank manager some weeks previous. She also said it would be a good idea to keep it shut the next time there is some greasy food within a three mile radius of me.
So here I go again. Take the train to London and the Eurostar to Paris to meet my wife. No time to hang around and take in the sights of Paris as I have an appointment just 1 hour after my arrival. I need to take another train and arrive at the Doctors office with 5 minutes to spare.
As the Doctor had finished with the patient before me, as soon as I walked in the door, it was my turn to be examined. The Doctor asked me how heavy I was and once again I explained that I was approximately 110 kilos. By this time, I was feeling like a freak show as every time I mentioned my weight, people seemed to look at me in disbelief; certainly in France.
The Doctor could not believe that I was 110 kilos but as I keep trying to explain to French people, I am a big build and heavy. I know it sounds like I am in denial but that is the truth.
The Doctor kindly advised me that my blood pressure was a bit high. She said that it was related to my weight; nothing to do with the travel, the stress of the house move and living apart from my wife and kids.
My wife said that I should have kept my mouth shut when I mentioned my weight to the bank manager some weeks previous. She also said it would be a good idea to keep it shut the next time there is some greasy food within a three mile radius of me.
Sunday 1 August 2010
Let’s see what happens
After many months of development, our new site finally goes live. As Ivy House is fully booked until September 2010, the current owner, Steve Lee, kindly allows us to replace his site with ours. I really hope that you will like our new site and find it easy to use.
The site has been a labour of love and I have really enjoyed adding the content. As I have a keen interest in the history of World War 2, the site has allowed me to share my knowledge. At the time of writing this entry, we have approximately 60 pages of content; in French and in English. We hope that visitors to our site will appreciate the time and effort we have invested and with any luck, some may actually want to stay at Ivy House.
We have decided to allow guests to book online with credit cards. We gave this idea much thought and came to the conclusion that it will make life a bit easier for us and also for the guests. We appreciate that not everyone will want to interact with us via this method; however, at least our guests now have a choice.
The reservation system took many months to develop and the last few issues have been resolved. All we can do now, apart from market the business, is to sit back and see what happens. As it has been a labour of love for me, I am sure that when we do finally receive our first online booking, I will have a smile from ear to ear.
The site has been a labour of love and I have really enjoyed adding the content. As I have a keen interest in the history of World War 2, the site has allowed me to share my knowledge. At the time of writing this entry, we have approximately 60 pages of content; in French and in English. We hope that visitors to our site will appreciate the time and effort we have invested and with any luck, some may actually want to stay at Ivy House.
We have decided to allow guests to book online with credit cards. We gave this idea much thought and came to the conclusion that it will make life a bit easier for us and also for the guests. We appreciate that not everyone will want to interact with us via this method; however, at least our guests now have a choice.
The reservation system took many months to develop and the last few issues have been resolved. All we can do now, apart from market the business, is to sit back and see what happens. As it has been a labour of love for me, I am sure that when we do finally receive our first online booking, I will have a smile from ear to ear.
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