Busy, busy, busy!

Well it has been all go since we last wrote. We have spent time together and time apart on various pet and house sitting assignments. We kicked off October with one of us in London and one of us in Kent. Our charges were delightful cats so time to explore a little.

We were reunited in London where we were able to do a bit of sightseeing. We headed for the Portobello Market which was great. We were lucky that the sun shone and it was warm enough to sit outside and have a beer whilst enjoying the street performers and watching the world go by.

We left London and the busy bustling city for the peace and tranquility of the Welsh countryside.

This is what we love about our work. The chance to experience so many different places, and for a time, live like a local there, wherever "there" might be. We enjoyed our stint in London but we are not really city folk and the fresh air and calm countryside was good for our souls. Again, we were blessed with decent and dry weather for the time of year so we were able to get out and about and do a few local walks.

The tail end of October found us on the West Sussex coast where the arrival of Storm Jude(!) heralded the start of Autumn/Winter proper. Temperatures plummeted and it was very windy for the most part of our stay. Della was in Suffolk for a few days helping out a client when the storm hit. She was without power for 5 days! Luckily, on the West coast I got away lightly with no damage and just a ton of leaves to clear up!!

Can you spot my little helper??!

Despite the change in the weather, we were lucky that on Bonfire Night it stayed dry and we were able to go to the local firework display. Afterwards we went to a super Chinese restaurant where we had a really good meal.

As usual, we did a lot of eating! We tried out a couple of new places including the Blue Bird Cafe on Ferring beachfront which does a fab vegetarian breakfast and Highdown Tea Rooms where we enjoyed huge slices of homemade cake!!(www.highdowntearooms.co.uk).

Our stint in Goring came to an end on the 10th November but before we left I got my ear pierced! I have my ear lobes pierced already but fancied another higher up the ear. I am very pleased with it although some three weeks later it is still a tad sore ;)

And so to the present, I am writing this from the kitchen table in a home not far from the medieval city of Carcassonne. I have been here two weeks. In those two weeks I have not had one glimpse of the Pyrenees which are normally visible from the first floor of this house. The weather has been grim. Very chilly, windy, grey and most days wet! Still, today is looking a little brighter so I am hoping for a wander along the Canal du Midi and into town.

Della and I arrived together and spent the first week here together but she flew back last week for an assignment in Dartmoor. She returns on the 5th December when we hope to meet up with friends in Toulouse and visiting from Perth, Australia!

We leave for Nice on the French Riviera on the 6th and December is shaping up to be another busy month. We will be more than ready for our trip in the New Year!!!