Charles, an American student who has made the impeccable choice of taking a gap year, arrived on the scene Friday, the 13th of May.

Perfect timing to welcome someone who has fully embraced superstiton (he doesn’t know the Stevie Wonder song).

Charles is no stranger to southwest France — or any part of the country, for that matter.  In fact, having been all across continental Europe, volunteering in Africa (Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa), and studying at the Oxford Tutorial College, he is quite the world traveller at only nineteen.

Since he arrived during the weekend, Charles has been able to adapt to life at La Giraudière at a leisurely pace.  He attended a brocante, or flea market, with the group; got to experience the market at Chalais Monday morning; and did a few hours of pruning and bonfire construction Monday afternoon.  Tuesday, he lent a hand rendering the walls of Gîte 4’s balcony and celebrated with a delicious pizza from Brossac’s restaurant L’Un Des Sens. Wednesday, he thoroughly enjoyed the group day out exploring ever-larger coastal towns.

(From left) Charles at work in the office and constructing scaffolding

His current projects involve the puzzle that is constructing indoor scaffolding, with the end goal of cementing the wall adjacent to the Old House staircase (more on that later) and continuing Karen’s newsletter work.  Who knows what plethora of new projects the next week will bring for this gap year student?

Thinking about your gap year look to see what La Giraudiere can offer Gap Year in France