Loving Life

I know, I know I haven't popped into here in ages, surprising how little time I have these days, did someone make the days shorter when I wasn't looking ?

As some of you may recall we moved to Carcassonne some six months ago from a very sleepy hilltop village.  Do I have any regrets ? only that we didn't make the move much sooner, all the time I was gazing out at the vines and Pyrenees in the distance I could have been  having so much FUN.  Carcassonne is buzzing with life and with such a wide variety of activities to choose from.  Don't bother reading Trip Advisor forums telling you La Cité is overcrowded and touristy.  Of course it is in the height of the season, same as any other popular holiday destination.  At eight o'clock this morning when I drove past on the camp site road, which is a brilliant way in which to approach, it gleamed in the early sunshine, towers and turrets looming against the searing blue sky.

The streets in the Bastide were wet from the daily early morning wash, no smelly dog poo ridden pavements here and after I had received a kiss from the man selling garlic in the market and presented with a free bouquet of herbs I was feeling full of bonhomie.  Last night had been the start of the Carcassonne Festival, two whole months of music gluttony kicking off with a concert in the open air theatre and broadcast on a large screen in the spacious Place Gambetta, a very convenient hop up the road from No.11.

Two young girls were looking rather forlorn and lost so I stopped to see if I could assist.  Turns out they were travelling round France and they and their friends had been let down by a potential employer and had ended up sleeping rough.  I was aghast at their plight and promptly bought them back for tea and toast and sat them down at the computer so they could sort themselves out.  I would hope that if 2b or The Small Cross One ever found themselves in such a predicament that some kindly soul would do the same.

They have just all turned up on the doorstep, weighed down with heavy backpacks and presented me with the most exquisite Orchid as way of a thank you after now having found themselves somewhere to stay and work.

Carcassonne really is restoring my faith in mankind.

PS. The next installment may well contain a picture of our very first restored room !!!!