 |
| Our boat Bouccanier at Joigny in France |
In 2008 Karen and I spent nearly a month on a boat in France, cruising on the River Yonne and Nivernaise Canal.
This was our first trip to France. We thoroughly enjoyed it, and afterwards, we were hooked – both on boating and France.
A while ago I did a series of posts on ‘How we fell in love with France’. You can read those here:
How we fell in love with France Part 1,
How we fell in love with France Part 2,
How we fell in love with France Part 3,
and How we fell in love with France Part 4
 |
| Joigny on the River Yonne |
Our journey started in Joigny on the River Yonne. We were fortunate enough to have the use of my cousin’s boat. She was moored at the Locaboat Marina in Joigny.
I arrived a few days ahead of Karen, and spent some time finding out how everything on the boat worked, as well as something about the town. Found the local ‘Intermarche’ or supermarket, and did a shop up.
When Karen arrived, all was ready. But we did explore Joigny a bit before we set off. It is a really picturesque old medieval town.
 |
| Old buildings at Joigny |
My love of boats goes back to my early years when I went on holiday with my parents to Knysna in the Cape.
We stayed at a hotel on stilts, and I played in rowing boats and little motor boats on the lagoon.