Where to start?

First of all, a bit of background.

I'm an ex-IT manager, now living in France with my wife and running a B&B from our house. We have a small vineyard, but it produces less and less wine each year, so the B&B is quite important. Although a pool is a necessity for a gite, it's quite rare for a B&B, so we thought it might convince guests to stay longer if we had one.

We did consider just getting a large above-ground pool, but we both think they're quite ugly and obviously won't last as long as the real thing. Then we looked at the cost of having a "shell" (very expensive but some great shapes) or a "liner" (not much cheaper than a concrete pool, and maybe only a ten-year life before replacing the liner) before deciding to build one ourselves.

The pool is 8 metres by 4 metres, probably the smallest you should consider, and it's built on a concrete foundation with concrete blocks for walls. It's finished in blue mosaic tile, and this is the story of how (with much-appreciated help from some friends) built it.....