10th of May:

It was a perfect day; woke up early for a run on the beach, home-made brekkie of fresh asparagus, tomatoes, egg and lettuce; washed all the clothes; browsing through the Saturday 's market; lunch of mussels and rose; a quick nap; a coffee overlooking the ocean; some meditation;  in- movies night...oranges for dinner and hecti and I .....the small things in life...having the time and the attitude to appreciate them; I am a happy girl :)

"why live anywhere else when you can buy fruit boxes this good around here?" It was an afternoon full of smiles and the boxes look divine as a tv stand in the lounge room.....

Expect the unexpected. A huge truth, even more when you are travelling and experiencing the feeling of being free. As it happened not only we haven't left France yet but we found our new "home" (or motorhome) here....

She is a beauty, named "SalSolcito", in memory of all the holidays we had as children and then as adults with our kids. We always sang "sal solcito, calientame un poquito, por hoy y por mañana, por toda la semana"...We were right in being so picky, as we now have all we need: our big couch, the 4 beds (waiting for friends to come over) a full fridge and even some storage for the deck chairs, table and BBQ!!! Next: 2 bikes and a kayak (I haven't given up  the dream of carrying a kayak somehow!)

The trip from Fontes to Lyon to pick up our home was fantastic, discovering small and old villages through the french countryside

crossing the Rhine at Serrieres

department Du Gard

putting SalSolcito to the test...a very narrow and high bridge

After a few days on the road and needed to pick up all the papers for our car, we come back to Fontes. I will not write about the bureaucracy or the inefficiencies (which there is plenty around here..) that we met in our pursuit----I kept reminding myself that one of the lessons I need to learn is to be tolerant!!

Time to leave "the nest" now. What we loved the most during our time here has been our time together with Ali and Iso.  We are so grateful for all their generosity, kindness, laughs and stories. From working the land, the furniture painting, the markets, all the food, the walks, the supermarket rush, and the handiwork Hecti was able to do in their beautiful Fontes home. We will miss them so much! It is so difficult to say good-bye....I don't like it!

taking Ali and Iso to the airport we stopped looking at a canal for a celebration of life with wine, cheese and salami....Au revoir!!!

Next step: continue the journey along the border between Spain and France until we meet Tito and Clau in Paris