Tomorrow is our last day here in Moussoulens before we start heading towards Iceland. We have still found things to do and places to see , and of course time for some more lunches!

We discovered there was a small village not far from us which is one of the “Most Beautiful Villages in France” , so we had to go and check it out.

Camon was very pretty indeed and made for a nice stop for Greg to take a few photos!

We took a picnic lunch with us and found a lovely spot to enjoy our lunch , and take in the “vista”.

On our way home we decided to re visit Limoux for a “drink” and happened to go inside the Wine Shop!

The area is famous for “blanquette” which is, as legend has it, the fore runner of champagne! The gentleman in the shop offered us a tasting, of course we couldn’t say no, but we much prefer the real stuff

We enjoyed another lunch in Carcassonne. It was a slightly drizzly day, and because we hadn’t booked we had to sit outside! At one stage Greg was eating with one hand and holding the brolly with the other. It didn’t stop him drinking though!

We started with a magret (duck) salad , then pork with pepper sauce, beans and carrot puree (YUM) and dessert was a very interesting watermelon soup. As it became quite humid by that time, it was actually quite refreshing! Of course, it was all washed down with the usual couple of glasses of local rose, which we are quite enjoying.

We spent one day doing a fantastic road trip into Andorra in the Pyrenees. Andorra is a tiny independent country situated between France and Spain high in the Pyrenees Mountains.

Of course we had our mandatory first coffee stop, and what a pretty place we chose! It was the town of Tarascon-sur-Ariege.

We traveled up the magnificent Port d’Envalira mountain pass , the highest paved road in the Pyrenees at 2408 metres.

The climb has been featured several times on the Tour de France. The views were stunning and of course Greg was in heaven trying to capture the moment! However the photos do not capture the true beauty. We stopped at the summit, not only for Greg to take photos but for a coffee as well.

We drove down the other side (what goes up must come down) to the capital, Andorra la Vella for lunch. It was fairly busy, full of French people who go to Andorra to shop as it is “tax free”.

It was a fantastic, albeit long day, but both Greg and Louis did a fantastic job keeping us safe on the very winding mountain roads!

Today we thought we would have our final farewell lunch in Carcassonne, again it was sensational! Starters was a Salad Nicoise, (no photo…..too hungry!) main was a “rather” rare beef which is the way the French prefer it with fettuccine and a herb cream sauce , followed by a raspberry panna cotta , but not what we were expecting. However it was delicious , and again washed down with some local rose!

The weather has now changed and the heat wave is over. The change came with a HUGE thunderstorm, resulting in the ground floor of our house taking in some water! It is nice though to have some cooler weather!

Greg has found a cosy and comfortable spot in the house to enjoy his morning coffee, and “chat” with the neighbours! The extent is “bonjour” and “oui” and “ca va” with a lot of actions interspersed! Rhonda tries to converse but they talk so darn fast , she gets lost quite early in the conversation! But in saying that they are very pleasant!

We head northwards on Sunday, after a night with our French family, to really cold weather in Iceland  apparently around 13 degrees! We are not sure what internet access will be like in Iceland, so you may be inundated with photos next week , or you may have to wait until we post the next blog on our return to France!

So its goodbye, au revoir from France for now, but we will return after Iceland and Switzerland!

So its that time again!!!! Yep aperitifs AGAIN!

lots of love

Greg and Rhonda