We are Laurence and Stan, a French couple with three young boys, and almost by coincidence we were fortunate enough to find this absolutely charming house in Ardèche in 2006. Although a lot of renovation work was to be done, we knew it was our chance to create a very charming second home in an amazing landscape and were prepared to start the very ambitious project to restore it entirely…in our spare time.
The entire renovation of the house was an 8-year long journey, starting in April 2006. Lots of joy, hope, sometimes pain and distress but always in a good mood. Like any project the final steps of the “S” curve took longer than expected to complete, probably because we had regular additions to the family (nappy changing vs. plastering!) and because the house became more and more comfy, calling for laziness. The work was highly disrupted by cocktails, long meals, BBQ, friends and family visiting, and lots of DYI shopping sometimes to Valence, Avignon or even Montpellier.
We lived in the UK and now in the Netherlands and as French expatriates this house offers the best of everything we want during vacations: relaxation, physical activities, culture, breath-taking sceneries (and hills) and more simply “French Art de Vivre”.
Each stay in “La Baraque” is an unique opportunity to fully disconnect from our very active family and professional life in a big city and re-focus on the basics: barbecues, cocktails, outdoor activities, cutting trees, making jams, collecting chestnuts and cooking the wild boar offered by the hunters.