A week of Meetings

29th September - 3rd October
Association meeting, language exchange, village web site meeting, council meeting, all day meeting in Parpignan etc etc, we were both busy. We ate at the bar on the Tuesday (30th) and luckily Patrick, Jany, Michel and Joëlle came for dinner on Wednesday (1st) otherwise it would have been pot luck!

Sunny Sunday

Nothing much doing apart from coffee in the bar in the morning and a trip up into the mountainsfor lunch at an auberge. Rustic environment, copious menu and a wee stroll afterwards to make us feel slightly sluggish.

Zarzuela

The day was a sunny one and the trip to the market was rounded off with lunch chez Jean and Françoise. Kathy and Jeaneau were over for a visit so zarzuela was on the menu. Much of the talk centered around their forthcoming visit to Argentina where they will indulge their passion for the tango.
Zazuela is a Catalan fish stew, by the way.

17 Years of Wedded Bliss!

A sunny day in Prestwick and the "entente cordiale" was signed. Six of us there for a really great day. 17 years later and the sun is still shining! There wasn't a romatic weekend in Venice nor evn a candlelit dinner for two instead Christian was at a meeting and I went to the garden during the day. In the evenining we were invited to the Mayor's for dinner. At least there was champagne!

"A happy home is one which each spouse grants the possibility that the other may be right, though neither believes it" - Don Fraser

Up and away

Up at the crack of dawn to get Mary to the airport for her flight. With Bernadette still suffering with her knee and having to use a stick we were somewhat curtailed as to what we could do until her flight. We went into St Coloma de Farnes which turned out to be a nice kind of place. Sat for a long time over a hot chocolate and sandwich (ie, breakfast). Bernadette sat on even longer while Christian and I went for a stroll around the town. Found a selection of restaurants which will come in handy when we do future airport runs. Came home for lunch as Jany was cutting my hair in the afternoon and by heck, didn't she cut it!!

Off the pill

Today there is something to celebrate. After 5 years of medication and no reoccurance of cancer , it's official, I can stop taking the medication. Yippee! Mary and Bernadette waited patiently while I saw the consultant. Then it was from one institution to another when we went to do a bit of shopping at Auchan. Lunch at home and atrip to the bar in the evening.

One of those days

You all know how it goes ... things start to go wrong and then everything goes wrong. I've given up on the pilates, it's too hard. There was an Association meeting that was ok but waffly so we were a bit late setting off for our favourite restaurant in St Lorenç. Oh woe is me! When we arrived it was closed for holidays so it was into the village for lunch at the "parrot place" only the parrot wasn't there. The lunch was not in the same league but there again it was cheap. Christian and Bernadette gave a stroll around the village a miss. Back in the car and on to the restaurant by the waterfall where we had a weak tea and rubbish hot(?) chocolate. Things were no better at home, the web site still isn't coming together. Grhhhhhh

Retirada

There was an early start at 8.30am to drive to La Jonquera in the old jeeps for the start of the day to mark the exodus from Spain of all those who opposed Franco in 1930s. We started with a

coffee before a visit to the museum where we were given a guided tour.What a surprise, for a Warwickshire lass to find a quotation from Shakespeare in Catalan.

Less surprising was the link made with the present day forced exile of thousands of people throughout the world. The exhibits included poster propaganda, photos, everyday articles found in the refugee camps in France and a huge representation of the footmarks left in the sand at Argeles where one of the camps was located. I was sorry that Christian wasn't there to see it as well but we'll no doubt visit together later as it's well worth it. Christian had to be present in the other village where there was an exhibition of photo-journalism from the era. From the museum we clambered back in the jeeps and headed further up into the mountains to start our walk along the paths taken by the refugees. It was a lovely sunny day, there were interesting people to talk to and the walk wasn't too difficult. What was our reward on arriving? Yes, of course, an apéritif! After that it was into the restaurant where about 25 of us (including Christian, Bernadette and Mary) sat down to lunch. Rounded off the day with tea at Joelle's.

Wedding Bells

Saturday and it was the obligatory trip to the market though the afternoon brought something a bit different.
Michel and Sandrine married at the mairie and had a blessing at the church. We were invited for the "vin d'honeur" and I took the opportunity to take photos for a wee report for the village web site. Well it's not every day that you see a bloke in knee breeches and tricorn hat! Mary came along as well but Benadette decided to rest up.

B's knees!

As Berndette has friends up in the mountains, not too far from here, we drove her up there to spend the day with them. We had a look at the beautiful Catalan fabrics, the espadrilles that are made there and meandered down to Maçanet where Christian treated himself to a Catalan anti THT cap

and Mary treated us to lunch at "La Quadra". On arriving back at Alan and Jill's, we found Bernadette hobbling around with a stick. She'd slipped on the path and had a painfully swollen knee as a result. We were invited to look around their lovely house and have tea during which Bernadette gritted her teeth and put on a brave face.