Today I've mostly bin...

[LAT]

I don't know, it sounds as though you can co-exist quite peacefully.

Yes it would be nice to think it would make the thieves sick.

[Bunnylump]

... Walking up and down lots of hills (amazing views) and this evening, sitting in the garden, listening to the crickets and the owls, and watching an amazing display of stars and some meteors. Beautiful.

[LAT]

Sounds wonderful.
Glad you are thinking of us poor souls stuck back here with pretty dismal weather.

[Bunnylump]

Here!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kx5ipr1ZM7s

It was described a route "facile." Well, that may be the case, but why do I now ache all over??

Half a baked camembert? Fig bread? Tarte au citron?

Naturellement!

[chazzie]

Well this evening.....watching helicopters with water bombs go over the house.......obviously taking water from the sea inland to douse a fire

[Bunnylump]

Oh my goodness! That sounds a bit alarming! While we were at the place mentioned above, there was a small boy who had obviously fallen and injured himself as we were walking back. They had somehow (goodness knows how, since I found it difficult enough walking) got the mountain rescue Landrover to him. As we left, we saw the helicopter arrive and send a person down on a rope into the trees. Scary stuff.

[chazzie]

Well thankfully they seem to have stopped.

[Bunnylump]

Phew! Fingers crossed it's all OK...

[Wulfruna]

....celebrating our special wedding anniversary with the family....... and an extra-special personalised present from a certain jester whose fiendish mind devised an amazing cryptic crossword specially for his crossword-addict parents. Typical Puzzlebrain standard with lots of hidden messages!!
Well it kept us busy whilst we were stuck indoors waiting for the rain to stop

[LAT]

Glad you enjoyed your anniversary.

And Chazzie, that sounds like quite an unsettling evening. Hopefully the fire is fully out and no-one was hurt.

[Bunnylump]

Happy anniversary to Wulfruna and Mr Wulfruna.

Today I've mostly bin...
making my husband drive along death defying roads. We drove through the Gorge de La Bourne, which had spectacular views, sheer drops, some single track tunnels (with no visibility around the bends) and some bits where we had to drive under blasted-out sections of rock with scary tons of rock above.

[LAT]

Sounds fairly scary - glad to hear you both survived!

[Bunnylump]

Feeling slightly unnerved. We're sitting quietly (well, when I say "quietly" I am obviously listening to Spotify) and I can hear something moving around / scratching somewhere behind the false wall between the scullery and the downstairs bathroom. And it sounds MUCH bigger than a mouse...

[LAT]

Well I hope it isn't a burglar!

[Bunnylump]

Well, if it's a burglar, all I can say is it must be a very slight burglar...

[Bunnylump]

..Being presented with an enormous marrow by a French lady, who also sent her dog under the sink to check it out for mice! A bit surreal...

This was at about 6 30pm and we're leaving tomorrow. So, marrow for breakfast anyone?

[chazzie]

Are you sure the marrow is for eating and not clobbering the rat/mouse........... Or to stop the drumming?...

[giraffe]

They never teach you the right phrases at school or in phrase books do they?

"I think there is a giant rat behind the plasterboard and it doesn't eat marrow" would be far more useful than "The monkey is on the table." (Not sure why the writers of the text book we had gave the family Lavisse a pet monkey.)

We struggled in Portugal one year trying to mime " Do you have a pair of pliers please. The knob has just fallen off the cooker and I can't turn the oven off."

[Scurra]

Eddie Izzard's routine about that monkey ("Le singe est sur la branche") is still funny even after I've heard about about a thousand times. It ends with the monkey playing the banjo if I recall correctly.

[SparkOut]

The marrow is to be hollowed out and used as a drum. The monkey will be attracted to the rhythmic beat and jump on the table. The marrow innards are for rat bait. When the rat peeks out from under the sink, the monkey will jump off the table onto the back of the dog and ride it round like a jockey to chase the rat from under the sink. When the rat gets near the oven, open it and the monkey will steer the dog into forcing the rat inside. Bang the door closed and the rat will be crisped up in no time, as the oven is nicely preheated, without a knob to turn it off.

(surreal top of the page post!)