So having looked back at my (not too) recent blogs, I can say now that it has not snowed here for four full weeks. Here. In the French Alps. It has snowed in Scotland, in the Pyrenees, in Austria, and probably lots of other places, but no, here in Bozel (900m), Savoie, Rhone Alpes, the thermometer has hit 19 degrees C in the last couple of days. Can't complain though - at least the sun is shining, and I know it certainly is, because today I burned my chin. It's not that it juts out in particular, but I guess when one wears helmet and goggles skiing, there aren't many other exposed bits to burn......
Last time I wrote, I was looking forward to my spa afternoon, and very relaxing it was too. Jacuzzi, hammam, sauna, then lolling around in a bathrobe drinking herbal tea reading mags with a view of sunny Mont Vallon - bliss. Until we got back in the car, switched on the engine, and a new message popped up on the dash 'Crevaison - changer roue'. Our car is rather fond of messages, but this was a new one, and it didn't take long to translate 'crevaison' to 'puncture'. The helpful diagram on the dash even showed me which tyre was punctured. Except it wasn't. Now there's a dilemna. Not really - the tyre was clearly fine - quite unnerving though with the STOP warning light on the entire time you are driving, but with our car I'm quite used to that. Apparently a friend had a similar occurrence and chose to put a smiley face sticker over the STOP warning light as she found it so offputting while driving (I like that!). The lovely Giley had the tyre checked out down in Moutiers and was told there was absolutely no puncture - I was (and rightly so!) a little concerned about doing a return trip to Geneva (4 hr round trip) with a bad tyre. So the tyre pressure sensor was faulty. Why do I need a tyre pressure sensor, can't I just check them out every so often as I did with all my old banger cars? Back to our helpful Renault garage here in Bozel, who had agreed to take a quick look just before I set off for the airport. I left the car for one hour, came back and drank coffee and watched Bob Geldof jump up and down on a trampoline (daytime TV - say no more.....), thinking I was going to return to be told I would need a new sensor and that'll be approximately 200 Euros including VAT and labour. Imagine how happy I was to return to be told 'C'est tout bon!' - Hurrah! but why? Apparently when he plugged the car into computer (really?) or vice versa it all reset itself ET VOILA! and furthermore 'c'est un cadeau'....ie. you don't have to pay me anything for doing that. Well there you have it, my faith in mechanics restored forever - good on you M. Renault, my shoulder knot has once again disappeared.....
I will spare a thought however for my friend who parked her car on an icy drive here in Bozel earlier today, got out of the car only to watch it slide down the road, through a garden and some trees and into the side of someones house.......oh la la!
No comments:
Post a Comment