Oh yes, swimming in April :-)

 

Well my patience has finally paid off and the pool as crept up to a perfectly acceptable 17 degrees C

Now this is what mowing should be like at home...

 

... except that I had to watch out for all the Orchids growing in the lawn!

Nooooo!

 

The moment I complete a 1499 piece jigsaw!  Not very annoying seeing as it took the best part of a week!

Relaxing by the pool...

OK, so we're not actually in the pool but we're close ;-)

It is still a little too cold although it looks gorgeous and tempting whenever the sun is out.  I did stand on the top step with my legs in the water yesterday (yes, I was wearing shorts) but the pain from the cold wouldn't go and so I decided it still needs a few more days of sun before any full submerging.  The thermometer says 14 degrees C which I am assured is more than a little chilly. 

The beard is no more...

... but it was fun getting rid of it, here are some of the stages.

The 5 week beard... 

The goatee...

The wing commander moustache...

Unconnected

The strangest thing by far this trip has been being unconnected. For me this means no 'always on' internet access but also no email on my phone. It is the email I find that I miss most and I've realised that this is most likely because aside from face to face contact, email is probably my favorite form of communication. I've never been much of one for the phone, writing letters now feels quite formal, text quite restrictive but email is so versatile. Email can be short, long, formal, informal, contain files, and most importantly high quality photos.

I can also use it to post to my blog but as I don't have email (data) enabled on my phone at the moment (due to the outrageous cost of mobile data in France) I've stopped the more regular 'in the moment' updates I used to do.

Anyway, I've decided to try and re-establish this habit and use the Wifi on my phone to sync email when I'm out and about. The first indication that this is working will be if this post ever makes it to the blog as I am writing it on my phone waiting for a plane at Bergerac airport ;-)

Celeb spotting update...

In Les Gets I bumped into Kevin McCloud a couple of times and yesterday we suddenly realised we were sitting next to Neil Morrisy who was waiting to pick someone up from Bergerac airport just like us :-)

And...

... before anyone asks, yes I have used it, once, and it nearly killed me as there is 1.5 miles of hill on the way back from said patisserie :-(

Who says Mini's aren't practical?

See, you just have to put your mind to it.  If for example you wanted to buy a bike so you could cycle down to the local patisserie every morning you just need to also purchase a bike rack (only €20) and then fit it in the carpark using the tools you've also just bought from the supermarket :-)  If at any time you need a second spanner just go and ask the nice man you just bought the bike from and borrow one of his - you'll need the verb 'to borrow' for this which is emprunter ;-)

Nous sommes en Bergerac :-)

I suppose our home for the next little while will do ;-)

All good things...

... have to come to an end and so here I am sitting on the 'Internet Step' for the last time.  We've had a fantastic time here in Les Gets but it is time to leave and head south for the warmer weather of Bergerac. 

I've been skiing or boarding every day for the last 4 weeks (something I never thought I would get to do) and all I can say is that I would highly recommend it - for the amazing muscle definition you get in your legs alone ;-)

Anyway, must dash as we have an 8 hour drive tomorrow and I will update the old blog again next time we have internet access.