On our first visit to the house in Chalabre, we were struck by the height and elegance of the rooms, although the decoration was less than desirable. There was a huge rosary covering half the wall of the sitting room which was being used as Madame’s bedroom and in the front room, someone had concreted over the beautiful wooden floors. In each room we discovered another interesting and quirky surprise.

In the dining room was a huge radiator, with two decorative panels on the top section. We took some photos and Madame (who had followed us everywhere and explained everything) opened up the doors. Inside were some shelves and Madame told us this where she warmed her plates. We arranged a second visit to take some measurements and see what renovations were needed.

On that second visit, we walked around with a clip board, noting the sizes of the various rooms and taking lots of photos (this time without Madame’s assistance). We went down to the garden level to measure up and opened the doors onto the balcony to get a better view. To the right of this balcony was a door. We opened it up and there was a fully functioning loo – on the balcony.

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We then went up to the third floor to look at the bedrooms. In one bedroom there was a large window looking onto the garden and on the other wall the curtains were drawn. We pulled them back and found what seemed to be a large cupboard. When we opened the doors, there – set three steps up – was another loo. We looked out of the tiny window and realised that this too, had been built on a balcony, albeit a smaller one, above the garden loo. There were five loos in total, one for each floor!

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When we bought the house, we wanted to remove the hanging loo and turn it into a balcony again. We had several “artisans” in for quotes, which ran from the sublime to the ridiculous. One guy said he could knock it down from a ladder. Another said he would drop weights on it from the roof. The real Artisan wanted a fortune, so in the end, we removed the loo and turned it into a wardrobe. Abi and her pals had great fun hiding in it and scaring anyone sleeping in that room!

Friends of ours were looking at a house in another village and the elderly owner was extolling its virtues. When they asked if there was a loo downstairs, the lady took them down to the ground floor and proudly pointed up to the ceiling. There, suspended on a beam were several chamber pots. This is the downstairs loo, she proudly exclaimed!

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Needless to say, they installed their own loo downstairs and used the chamber pots for plant holders 😂😉🇫🇷

Vive La toilette!