The distribution (for those interested in design)
When I talk about the house it’s probably confusing, so here’s a not quite to scale sketch of the distribution:
The green salon, grey salon and dining room face the garden. The green salon opens to the grey salon and to the hall. The grey salon is the one with the three french doors.
grey salon
view from green salon to grey salon
The hall is T shaped and has the black and white encaustic floors. Below you see it from both ends.
The upstairs is lovely. The landing is one of the things that impressed us. Very generous space.
The 17th century Bacchus and Ariadne painting isn’t staying in that spot. It’s going over the stairs. And I’ve bought a wrought iron chandelier to replace that hanging lampshade.
There are some interesting and quirky features here. The doorway walls look incredibly thick. That’s because they’re actually concealed closets.
In other news, the last of the materials for the terrace arrived. Getting them into the garden required a crane. The gates are very tall, but only four metres wide- so the average lorry can’t maneuver in and out.
That’s Mike in the hat trying to help the man who’s guiding the crane. Fortunately photographs don’t come with sounds, because this is when I was screaming from the window BE CAREFUL WITH THE TREES! BE CAREFUL WITH THE GATES! Fortunately both survived. Mike tipped the men for doing a good job and putting up with my screaming. They looked terribly surprised. Apparently that’s not done here. We’re used to tipping people as a general rule. It’s a fine line between showing appreciation and appearing patronizing. One we must still learn.
My Mazamet 
Wow ! So very elegant.
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Thanks! Unfortunately I can’t take credit for the architecture 🙂
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Thanks for the floorplan, Pinky. I admit I’ve been very curious. And I think my new favourite thing is that hidden cupboard! And the grand stairway….and the upstairs…. 😀
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The fun part is discovering these things. No one told us about the cupboards. Each bedroom has its own, hidden in their own doorway. There’s also a hidden cupboard for the safe, that one we were informed about 🙂
Unfortunately, no matter how hard I try, it’s incredibly difficult to show scale. Everything is larger than average, doors, windows, width of stairs- so what looks normal in a photo is actually not quite average. Did I ever tell the story about how after we saw the first house 2 hours south of Paris, I was depressed and disappointed and didn’t want to see anything else?
I was sulking in bed, sure I had ruined our lives by suggesting we move to France when Mike called me from this house. He whispered into the phone he’d never seen a house he thought I’d like more and that we had to have it. From the pictures I thought it was okay, so I said, fine, buy it. That day he signed for both of us without me seeing it.
That means that when I arrived in March, I had an extraordinary surprise. For three months he didn’t give me even a hint of the size and proportions. I came expecting an elegant, compact, sort of georgian/regency townhouse sized home. When the gates opened my chin dropped. And I’ve been in awe of it ever since 🙂
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Oh My God….sight unseen???? I can understand that Mike would see the potential of the house – it’s lovely even from the photos – but for you to trust him that much…. -massive hugs-
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At that point I was in a mechanical state; Going through the motions of living.
That’s the thing with a good relationship. When he’s giving up, I keep going, and vice versa. And here we are 😉
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Ahh. A good relationship indeed. All I can say is that you both deserve your happiness.
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That sort of caring on Mike’s part, to know you so well, and trust on your part, to know him so well, must be the perfect bases of love. You two are a match made in heaven. Of course, being an atheist, I think you two make your own heaven here, and your garden of Eden, too.
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We’ve been together for 15 years; Which in our case actually means much more than the average couple because we also work together.
There have been many ups and downs, but the important factor is we’re best friends.
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I wish I could find such a mate… At least, you two give me hope. You represent the fact that it’s possible — okay, maybe for me and maybe not for me, but at least it is possible and real and true for you two.
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Everyone can. I think the most common issue, the one that stops people finding a relationship, is unreasonable expectations.
There’s no such thing as the perfect partner. People go through life with lists of all these characteristics their potential partner has to have- and it’s impossible for anyone to live up to that.
Mike and I were technically not at all what the other was looking for, but we had a nice time together. So often that eventually it had become a relationship.
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That might well be true for most people. Mass media, and the culture of “everyone is a special snowflake”, “everyone is a winner” even when they or their team loses, might underly that attitude, too. It was never the case for me. I look for honesty, integrity, and a few other not-so-shiny trinkets of personality. Charisma can be charming, but reality is worth keeping.
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Then you have a good chance of finding it!
What I hear most often is people want someone who looks like a model, and is highly educated, and makes a lot of money, and has no baggage, and is charming and kind all the time, and of their same age. That’s a tough brief to fulfil.
My primordial criteria was it had to be someone who was highly intelligent. I can work around everything else, but that’s the one that really counts as the years go by. We all lose our looks and have ups and downs in business- but sitting alone with someone at a restaurant and having to listen to stupidity would destroy me.
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I agree with you, there, too. So, intelligence and integrity are key.
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That landing alone would have had me delving into the piggy bank to buy the place.
As for the tip….they wouldn’t be accustomed to tips: the bourgeoisie are notoriously close fisted.
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The gorgeous staircase, with all that ironwork, would have won me over, regardless of the rest of the house.
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Colonel Mustard with a revolver in the Grey Salon …
The suburban American in me is asking, “Why isn’t the Green Salon the dining room?” The servants (you and Mike) would have to trundle everything through the hall! Better than having to carry everything up a flight of stairs, but no wonder Mike likes to eat in the kitchen. How did the first house party work out?
Perhaps the dining room is placed on the far side of the house so the gentry can’t hear the cook screaming at the scullery maid, or the rattle of dishes. In the American South, great houses routinely had the kitchen in a separate building to save the main house from heat, and smells, and risk of fire.
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I’m sure it was a noise/smells issue. That’s probably also why the fine scullery is placed between the green salon and the kitchen. And as the green and grey salon open onto each other, that creates a large double sitting area which is basically isolated while food is being placed on the table 🙂
The distance isn’t too bad. 13 metres (40 feet) from kitchen door to dining room door. The trick will be having starters placed on the table before people sit down. And no more already prepared plates for the main course. If we do the passing food around system that’ll save time and should be fine.
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And where do you see colonel mustard? 😀
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It’s an old American board game, “Clue” – the board is a manor house floor plan, and the players have to figure out “whodunit” and where and with what. Goes much better with booze. Once my cousin said, “Professor Plum in the library with a sex toy.” and we all convulsed into helpless laughter. Never did find the “real” culprit.
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