A property owner again?

Things have been hectic of late, which is why I am not posting as frequently on this blog as I did at the beginning (no, it's not lack of enthusiasm!). Apart from work being busy, I'm also preparing a new version of my story, which I hope to enter for the Chicken House competition (http://www.doublecluck.com/submissions). I'll also shop this version around other agents and publishers over the coming months, after which it's time to put the project aside for good if it doesn't get anywhere. Istill have to rewrite the synopsys and plot plan but I wanted at least to get the edits finished this week because tomorrow we're going on holidays to Sanlucar de Barrameda, Spain, thanks to my brother, Seamus, and his partner, Evelyn. And, since I haven't done any painting for a while, I want to do some while I am there.

In the middle of all this, I am acquiring an apartment in France, in the lovely village of Mieussy. We started this property lark by considering buying somewhere in Gex, which is much nearer to where I live in Nyon, as well as the WWF office in Gland. The idea was that the place would be a weekend retreat. However, prices in Gex are higher (although still much lower than Switzerland), while the number of available properties is much less. Then, having answered an advert in a local free newspaper, we looked at a schoolhouse in a village called Messy (no, I am not joking!) about 45 minutes on the other side of Geneva (so about 90 minutes from me). We were aware that it would not be a feasible location for commuting but it would be feasible as a weekend retreat and, since it is in the mountains near the ski slopes, is amenable to holiday rental as well.

We loved the schoolhouse, which was quaint and had lots of space but it was outside our budget. Moreover, while the garden and the upstairs rooms were nice, we would have been paying for a large classroom on the ground floor which was really wasted space from a residential point of view. On top of that, we would have had to install a new kitchen.

So, after looking at several other farmhouses and apartments, we've settled on a 3-bedroom, first floor apartment in the nearby, larger village of Mieussy. It doesn't need anything done to it and we can even buy the furnishings. It also come with a grage. True, we won't have our own garden but we will have a big balcony, complete with gas barbecue. And the view of the Alps is superb.

So watch this space as I will take pictures on my next visit, after I come back from holdays!