The Start

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Actually it's really difficult to determine when the planning actually starts. Its probably on an evening out with friends with alcohol featuring somewhere along the line! The seed gets sown and it all grows from there. Its never real, at least not to begin with, just fun to think and talk about. Then after you've spoken with lots of friends about it, it seems like there is no turning back, and why would you want to? (actually, I can answer that question now, with only a couple of weeks before it all starts!)

Initially the finances rule, how to fund it and for how long. We're fortunate(?) to own a very run down 'fermette' in the far east of France, in the Vosges, which requires a lot of work. We both love it over there and have never had the time to donate, to turn it into something comfortable and up together. This seemed the perfect time to do this as well, although with the same time constraints as the bike trip on the ever increasing aches and pains of the aging bodies, we had to decide which was going to come first! So having the option of living in France, it gave us the option of renting our house out here in Poole, Dorset to help with the finances for both the States trip as well as time in France.

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