The newcomers

Hilary and David bought the house and Hope Cottage in March 2008. They have been holidaying in gites in France for several years, so they believe that they know what people want from a holiday cottage. Some bad experiences in gites have ensured that their guests will not be made to feel like second class citizens. The accommodation that you have during a holiday should provide you with the comforts that you would expect in your own home - or better, perhaps!

Feedback from guests can only help to ensure that Hope Cottage is providing what visitors want, so it is invited.

Anyone is welcome to telephone us on our UK number. This number, 01962 60 00 02, is a VoIP number which can be answered wherever we happen to be connected to a broadband router. It makes it easier for our guests to call us. If we cannot take the call a Voice Mail facility will allow you to leave a message. We will be happy to call you back if you leave us your number. We will have your number automatically recorded if you do not block it from Caller ID.

June 2010 - Hope Cottage gets faster Broadband Internet!!

Following the installation of a repeater cabinet in Kergrist, boosting the signal from the exchange at Neulliac, we now have a download speed of 5.6 Mbps and an upload speed of about 800 Kbps. This is much better!

June 2008 - Tour Météo

In June 2008, the groundworks began for the foundations of a meteorological tower just up the lane from the cottage. The tower itself was erected in October. The purpose of the tower is to provide information to Iberdrola on the wind conditions in the area. Mounted on the tower are two anemometers measuring horizontal windspeed and one measuring vertical windspeed. There are three wind direction indicators at different heights alongside the anemometers. A lightning rod is mounted at the top (which many mistakenly think is a radio antenna), together with a small red LED warning light (which, when lit, looks like a small red star in the sky!). Power for the instruments is provided by a solar panel. The mast, 75 metres tall, is unstayed, being a multifaceted tapering steel tube, bolted to a massive concrete base (invisible as it is buried beneath the ground). We think it is rather attractive - reminiscent of the mast of a large sailing yacht! It is certainly a very good landmark for our location, being visible as a discreet 'needle' from miles around.

Download a pdf of photos of the construction.

March 2008 - Hope Cottage gets Broadband Internet

At last Broadband is connected. David has installed his wireless router, together with a LAN Cat5 connection in Hope Cottage. So if visitors want to bring their laptop (desktop if they really must!) they will be able to keep in touch with whatever they need to. Downloading of very large files will be politely discouraged because, due to the distance from the telephone exchange, the broadband speed is not what we are used to in England. 605 kbps download and 156 kbps upload is the most we can get. This is not as bad as it seems because (sorry to be getting technical) there is very low contention on the line. But emails will pose no problems, and normal internet browsing is very good. Even VoIP works very well, including Skype (though not as good as real VoIP!) WiFi tends to to badly affected by thick stone walls so a network socket has been installed in the lounge of the cottage, near to the dining table, allowing you to plug your laptop directly in to it and connect to the internet. This is easier and more reliable than WiFi. It would be a real shame, whilst on holiday, to spend much time in front of a computer screen though!

Les Éoliennes (Wind Turbines)

With environmental concerns now being considered more important than hitherto, our commune is doing its bit to become a leading eco light in the region. Land has just been marked out in the village for the building of a number of "eco homes". These will incorporate up-to-date ideas to reduce power consumption.

The eleven wind turbines operated by Iberdrola (a Spanish power company) situated around the village of Kergrist provide a lot of electricity all year round. Owing to their height and the advanced design of the turbine blades (manufactured on the Ilse of Wight) it is rare that there is insufficient wind to turn the blades. The ultra-modern design is very attractive, and, because the units are well spaced out around the village, they are not obtrusive. Two turbines are visible from the Cottage looking East and the top of another to the South West can be seen above the brow of the slope.

From various vantage points nearby, other small groups of turbines can be spotted atop distant hills. The French take a more reasonable view of the impact of modern technology on their environment. For decades British people have accepted the existence of electricity transmission pylons marching across the countryside. So much so that the brain seems to filter them out from landscape views. Wind Turbines are a new phenomenon, but, when one becomes accustomed to their existence, they do not intrude on the scene. To many people they have a beauty and interest of their own, and attract many visitors. Perhaps the British people will become more accepting of them.