Neither of us slept that night and by the morning we both reached the conclusion that since we didn’t have an agreement, it would be best to go on the Boat Show and at least have a chance of selling. My husband sent an e-mail to all the directors and the sales agent indicating our wishes. To which we never got a response.
What we didn’t know – is the buyer had already paid the full amount for our boat over to H2O. They had not insisted on these repairs, nor expected us to pay for all of them. They were completely bewildered that we were no longer interested in selling to them and came to speak to us in person the next morning.
Once my husband and the buyers got chatting we realised what we were hearing from H2O and what the buyers were saying – was not the same thing. Since both my husband and the buyers were keen to finalise the sale, they agreed between them, what repairs were necessary and who was responsible.
A figure of around €500 seemed about right. All H2O had to do, was get quotes and details as to how they would effect these repairs. At the next meeting to close the deal, the H2O quote for all the repairs was between €4000 – €5000.
A simple solution to the gas outlet would have been little 8cm x 8cm metal plate cover. Yet H2O were suggesting cutting into the steel and welding it closed costing around €800. They also wanted to withhold the entire value of their quotes for the repairs – from payment to us.
H2O actually admitted using the highest possible amount. And – the most expensive manner in which to quote for the repairs. And that’s not all – H2O wanted to withold even more money from the sale of the boat – for repairs they had done. My better half had been asking them for a latest statement countless times to no avail. And now the prospect of him not paying was yet another excuse to withhold even more money.
Shangri La the last time we saw her
He has never once not paid a bill. He does always check them. He has found duplications on his bill from H2O. They were removed when he queried them – but it has happened.
My husband accused H2O of trying to maximise the sale for profit at every point. Whereupon the person from H2O handling the sale said we were welcome to find someone else to do the repairs.
So let’s unpack this. There is another boatyard/agent called Blanchard in St-Jean-de-Losne who are perpetually full and don’t even reply to e-mails or calls. They look after their customer base and do not take on any outsider work.
The guy we were dealing with knew full well that our boat was up on stilts in an H2O boatyard. The likelihood of any other non-H2O engineer working on our boat was unlikely. H2O have a monopoly on boat sales and repairs at a very busy waterways juncture in a tiny little town. There was no-one else we could turn to.
Our options were – going back into the water – and somewhere else. At great expense. It was the end of the boating season. Most boatyards were already full. And many waterways had closed due to low water levels. Let’s be honest – we had our backs right up against a wall. And the person we were dealing with at H2O knew it. Not a nice feeling.
Both my better half and the seller knew what they wanted and had to push for it. My husband said he would accept €1000 off the price and no more. A whole new agreement had to be drawn up. And the conclusion of the sale dragged on yet another day. The following morning the deal was signed and the new owners came to have another look at the boat. I admit I got tearfull all over again.
Wish we had paid attention to these signs
Selling a boat is as difficult as selling a home. It’s traumatic. We were climbing up a ladder to get to the boat which was up on the hard. We had no toilet. Our Happy Place was a mass of boxes to take, things to be tossed and cleaning stuff. If only we had been treated better it might have been less stressful.
Stepping back from this experience I made a decision to put what happened to us out in the public domain. H2O have a brilliant webpage with glowing reviews. When we were looking for a place to winter coming down from the Netherlands in 2015, it seemed a no-brainer.
What we saw en route to H2O
Alarm bells started ringing for us when we spoke to other people on the waterways. There are people who have good things to say about them. But an overwhleming number of people did not view H2O in a good light. Someone had been writing derogatory comments in the locks near Piepape when we first made our way to Burgundy. H2O = voleurs. We didn’t even know what that meant.
We have since put this experience behind us. And choose to remember the happy days on our beloved boat. The new owners sent us pics of Shangri la with new awanings and she is loved.
Shangri La headed across the canal and through one last lock on the Burgundy Canal toward H2O to undergo her winterizing. As we approached the lock a car came hurtling around the corner and crashed into the railings on the bridge just before the lock bashing a section of the railing into the very space of water we were about to pass. A minute or two earlier and we might have been bumped on the head. He was lucky most of the railing held in place or he would have ended up in the water. The lock-keeper looked like an 80’s rock star – long hair, lean and a few piercings.
The very last lock.
The bollards had been painted to look like toadstools. He indicated to take the ropes and wanted to place us right at the back of the lock. But with davits poking backwards we preferred to sit in the middle of the lock. He did as we asked and gave the Gallic shrug. Then opened the manual locks. The water came through with such unexpected ferocity we had to hang on for dear life and fend to prevent our poor boat getting flung against the side of the lock. The lock-keeper said he knew better but did as we asked. Lesson learned.
St Jean-de-Losne
We had a lady mechanic at H2O who spoke great English. Slight trouble with words for engine and motor parts but a few gesticulations and noises helped clarify what was meant. She had a look at our engine and agreed there was a bit of smoke. An early oil change would be wise and the auxiliary engine functions like fuel injectors could possibly do with an overhaul. We had no idea when that was last done. If ever. Winterizing is done to prevent pipes freezing and bursting. All water is drained from the main tank. She used a food grade anti-freeze for the shower, basins and loo. An engine anti-freeze went into the engine parts that use water. Only thing was, we still had two nights left of the boat and no water.
We always deliberate whether to check into a B and B or stay on the boat. There’s last minute cleaning, taking down of awnings, putting up of winter covers, packing away fenders and deck furniture, getting the dehumidifier tubs going and a good few other jobs that need to be done. It’s easier to be on the boat. But not having water to wash hand or clean dishes and not being able to use the toilet is a huge inconvenience.
H2O marina St Jean-des-Losne
That evening we watched rugby Rugby World Cup Brasserie de Port that night. France was playing and South Africa was out so we supported our host country. Early the next morning we heard the H2O blokes knocking on our boat. They had already started dragging her toward the slipway. I was still fast asleep but woke up and got dressed super-fast. I grabbed a hoodie and a bowl of breakfast and watched from the quay as Shangri La was towed out the water by a tractor. They guys hosed her down and took her to a spot in amongst all the other boats either being wintered or repaired. It’s such a weird feeling not really on the boat – but not yet off her. It’s always so hard to say farewell to our holiday home.
Shangri La coming out the water.
My other half had gotten us a train time-table from the Tourism Office so we could travel from St-Jean-de-Losne to Dijon. And from there to Paris. We planned our morning doing last minute things with our train time in mind. Then we set forth with our wheelie suitcases along the little road toward the local Garre (station). You know how sometimes you think you have your day planned – and it turns out NOTHING like you expected? This was one of those days if ever.
My other half doing the oil change.
At the station it emerged that the train time-table – is actually subject to a whole lot of conditions. Not sure who the guy was who helped me as he wasn’t in uniform, but he pointed out that the train times indicated had a digit at the top of each column, which unbeknown to us indicated the limited dates the service actually occurred. As it turns out there were NO trains until significantly later.
The next thing to do was race back the 1 kilometre plus along the tiny road toward the Tourism Office and explore our options. The woman there apparently spoke English. But actually didn’t. She mentioned one bus in three hours time but seemed to think we had to go all the way back to the train station to catch the bus. All she could tell us about the train service was what we now knew. The one and only taxi service wasn’t open. Luckily for us our lady mechanic drove past us and stopped to chat. We explained our predicament and she kindly offered to help.
St Jean-des-Losne
She phoned a guy who travels from Dijon to St-Jean-de-Losne daily to find out how he does it. He confirmed there are very few trains. Then offered to ask someone to drive us to Dijon. Or – if we could hold out – she would take us when she went on lunch. I cannot begin to explain our immense gratitude to this woman. We were more than happy to wait at the local café for her. The minutes felt like hours and when she arrived in her van I could have kissed her feet. But first, this is France, she invited us for lunch. Lunch was a surprise. We had to tell her that we don’t eat meat and an uncomfortable look flashed through her eyes. As we arrived at her vintage Dutch barge she explained it to her partner. Who had made a meat stew. Awkward moment if ever! But these two so rose to the challenge. They rustled up an amazing meal. Home-made humous. French bread. Pickled peppers. Shredded beetroot salad. We picked out the meat and ate the veggies from the stew. I wouldn’t normally do that but in situations like this I do. And we had a lovely glass of Burgundy wine. Of course.
Then we dashed off for Dijon. Oh my Word! It’s a HUGE place. We got a bit lost but my husband produced MapsMe on his Smartphone and yet again we were saved. Some modern inventions I can do without. Fast food is one of them. But life without MapsMe is unthinkable. I don’t get paid to say that.
The Captain.
The next train to Paris was a few hours away so we had a little wander about Dijon before we finally got to Paris and checked into our hotel. Not sure how we are going to get to St Jean-des-Losne next year? But that was the end of almost three months of the waterways. I’ve said this before, I would never have imagined traveling on a boat, let alone on the waterways of Europe. This holiday had some stressful times but we have had the most amazing experiences on our beloved Shangri La. I have to thank my other half for this.
Shangri La is getting some much needed upgrades and Summer 2016 we will be boating in and around the Burgundy region. We want an easy year and have less time. You can read all about those trips on my blog.
