Day 43: 25/07/2017 Meaux to..... somewhere on the Marne!

We were supposed to go to La Ferté sous Jarre to another free "Halte Nautique", just before this there was also a Halte at a campsite which charged about 12 Euros but we prefer free unless we need water, fuel, or there is something particular we want to see. We generate enough electricity motoring along for this not to be a concern for an overnight stay, and much longer if the sun is shining so that our solar panels perform. We can carry enough water for 4-5 days and still have occasional showers, and motor for 80 to 100 hours without filling up with diesel. Some people are more self sufficient for us but we felt that we usually want civilisation after about 4 to 5 days anyway so fitting more solar didn't seem necessary.

Anyway, on passing the campsite we had a look, there was plenty of space but no cleats on the pontoons, in fact we saw one crew trying to pass a line all the way under and round the pontoon to tie up their boat. No way were we going to pay for the privilege of that palaver.  On to the free halt which was ram packed with several very large barges, which left us motoring on to the next lock hoping for a free waiting pontoon which we found. No facilities here but that's not a problem for us tonight, and a lovely peaceful halt where the kids could go and explore the riverbank (2-way radio in hand) whilst Patrick and I planned our next few stops.

School this morning went well with both kids chomping through their English and Maths. I added some iPad apps in to the mix today so that I could concentrate on one child while the other consolidated learning on the iPad. Esmé has trouble forming some of her letters so she is using a cursive writing app, and AJ is using school maths 7-11 to practice arithmetic. In addition both kids are using Dragonbox Big Numbers to practice column addition and subtraction. I love all the Dragonbox apps as they make learning maths so much fun. There are so many computer based learning programmes for Maths in particular, however I like to stick to ones that do not need an internet connection if possible as our internet access is limited on the boat.

During our break halfway through school Esmé asked for Mummy's sweet shop. Kids have to earn pocket money by helping out round the boat (not particularly successful at the moment) and then can spend on what they want including Mummy's sweet shop which sells bulk bought treats at reasonable prices. Guess it's all part of learning maths!

We decided to stop for lunch today just before a lock. It was quite nice to all be able to sit down to lunch together rather than taking it in turns to helm, though perhaps we might have got a spot at the free halt if we'd travelled a bit quicker without the stop. At the lock immediately after this the lady lock keeper came to chat and give us the remote control we need for the next few locks. I THINK I understand what we have to do but handily she also gave us a phone number to call if we get stuck!

Trying to speak French remains a fun challenge, for the first time ever I am enjoying and starting to feel slightly more confident speaking a foreign language, however it can all come to a halt occasionally, like today when I tried to call the place we want to stay in Epernay. Despite mine and the French guy's best efforts I still have no idea if the water is deep enough for us there but I appear to have booked us in for Friday! Anyway, an early night tonight I hope before braving our first automatic lock sometime after it opens at 8am tomorrow.