Didn't See That Coming

Our travel to Paris via Atlanta on April 14/15 went seamlessly. Any previous concerns about possible delays at the U.S. airports due to TSA issues was wasted worry, as we were through security within 20 minutes of arriving at the Tampa airport--and that included the time to get a bag checked. Both flights departed on time, and we managed to snag the overhead bin space we needed. The only minor issue was that the woman in the seat next to me on the Atlanta-Paris flight had an unfortunate tendency to "manspread" from time-to-time. And though the new European digital Entry/Exit system created some delays in the customs/immigration process, we still managed to get through Immigration quickly enough to catch an earlier train than planned to Toul.

Jet lag or not, we enjoyed our first Happy Hour back on C.A.R.I.B. III

After such a good travel day, it would have been nice had all the boat systems come back online seamlessly. Unfortunately, that was not the case. The heating system wouldn't fire up, so we had to resort to our portable electric heaters to counteract the early morning chill until we could get a plumber (who also deals with heating systems) out to deal with the problem. The heater is working well enough at the moment, but we're waiting on an estimate from the plumber for some additional tweaks to the system. The boat's electrical system is also being a bit "wonky", and we've got someone coming on Wednesday to try to diagnose that issue. We're fine as long as we remain plugged into shore power, but we don't quite trust the system to keep us powered overnight were we to go cruising and have to moor at a site without shore power (as is most often the case for us). 

Our biggest concern right now, however, is something that we didn't see coming. On April 13, the day before our departure to France, we got an email from our boat insurance broker informing us that our boat insurance would be cancelled effective May 4. Underwriting guidelines for the insurance company that took over our policy about a year ago now include a prohibition on insuring boats for owners residing in the U.S. The policy was originally taken out with another company that allowed us to use our port in France as a residential address, but the current insurer does not permit this. I guess we shouldn't have been surprised by the cancellation, as there has been a great deal of discussion in the canal boating community in the past few years about the challenging environment for non-EU boat owners trying to acquire boat insurance and boat registrations. Lon has been busy making inquiries with various insurance brokers, but so far "no" is the only answer we've received. It's a complicated issue and the rules keep changing. Until we can line up a new insurance policy, we will not be able to cruise, regardless of when our mechanical issues are fixed. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, we try to remain optimistic, continue to prepare the boat for an eventual departure from Toul, and enjoy what has been a beautiful stretch of weather here in NE France.

The French waterway folks at the VNF have a new "toy" for dealing with weeds in the
canal. This was our entertainment from CARIB one day last week.

Lions and monkeys and pigs, oh my! The cloister at the Cathedral of Toul has quite a
variety of drain spouts of both mundane and fantastic creatures.

A bike ride to the south and east of Toul on Sunday afternoon, April 26,
took us through parkland and forests near the Moselle River. At top, the
Cathedral of Toul makes its presence known.

The Chalet Beaurivage had a wonderful location overlooking
the Moselle River. Although we stopped for liquid refreshment,
we really must return for what looked to be absolutely fabulous
ice cream sundaes.

A short distance from Chalet Beaurivage, and across the Moselle from the village of
Pierre-la-Treiche, were several entrances to what is known as the Sainte-Reine cave. It's part of
a large network of caves in the area and has been classified as a historical monument since 1910.
 The name is said to derive from a female chieftain (Celtic? Gallo-Roman? Frankish?) whose
 body was hidden there to protect it from her enemies. Although several entrances were
 accessible, any deep explorations of the caverns would require significant time spent
 on hands and knees.

Finally, apropos of nothing but my mind finding connections where none exist, was the following sign.

Is Sexey a "sister city" to the Burgundian town (see below)
 that we encountered in 2023 . . . ?