Lines of Communication Severed

We are currently renting a gite near the village of Sainte Marie Du Mont. As the date for the exchange of contracts was put back due to the efficiency of the French bureaucracy, we had no choice other than to wait events.

To try and stay connected with the outside world, we decided to buy a wireless 3G internet key. Due to the rural location of our temporary accommodation, it is not possible to obtain a signal. Our connection to the outside world which drains 40 euros per month is not much of a lifeline. It works, but you need to find a sweet spot. The sweet spot normally means that we have to drive to certain locations to pick up a signal. A bargain for only 40 euros per month and 2 litres of diesel each time you connect.

Despite what was written in the TripAdvisor review, our au pair does exist and as this is the first time she has left home, she has started to feel a little home sick. To make her feel better, I suggested using the Internet to make contact with her friends and family. As soon as the words left my mouth, I realised what this would mean. I could see that this suggestion made her happy so who am I to ruin this enjoyment.

After a short drive to the village of Sainte Marie Du Mont, we managed to achieve a 40% 3G connection. I dare say that it must have been a strange sight for the residents of the village to see an English car pull up outside at ten O’clock at night. Never mind the sight of an older man and a young girl in the car. I agree that it looked a little perverse when the windows start steaming up; however, the windows were not steaming up for the perverse reason! It was out of frustration at the speed in which she could update her status on Facebook. I suggested that she update her status to depressed; however, before we could even get that far, the connection dropped out.

My wife tells me that I am a nice man and to keep this charade going, I made the decision to drive to Utah Beach. The day before, I had managed a half decent signal so I thought it might do the trick. Voila, ca marche! We managed a huge 60% connection and Alice managed to get her message to her friends. I could not help look at what she was writing and when I read her thoughts, I could have cried. Roughly translated, it read: Internet connection is not great, will write more another time.

Merde alors!