Our first day was great. Glenn drove down from Perpignan to pick us up at the Barcelona airport. Things were a little sloppy in that none of us knew the airport and thus we didn’t have a good meeting point. In addition, of course we didn’t know how long it would take to clear immigration and customs and thus what time he should be there to get us.

Turns out that entering Spain is beautifully simple and easy and, most importantly, QUICK! Forget the hour plus it will take you to enter via YVR in vancouver. Think the difference between a 400 meter hurtle race and a 100 meter sprint. Spain is the sprint. We walked off the plane, handed our (small) immigration form to the officer (we were lucky enought to have a very short line-up too - not seen yet in Vancouver) who promptly stamped them and waved us through. It was then simply a matter of picking up our bags from the carrasel and… “Bob’s your uncle”. An aside. Doesn’t anyone know where that saying comes from? I really must look it up.

Mich got us some morning espressos and we waited in the sun for Glenn to come and collect us. That done, we headed up the coast toward the French/Spanish “border”. They often talk of the Canada/USA border as being the longest “undefended” border in the world. It ain’t so. It’s as easy to cross from Spain to France as it is to travel from province to province in Canada. Try that at Canada customs.

The drive was super cool, and on a road, the windiness of which rivals that of the crazy coastal road we drove in Indonesia a few years back with Al and Maggie, though perhaps this one is rather more narrow. Glenn negotiated the corners with ease and we rubbernecked our way through quaint, scenic coastal towns, plunged through tunnels and drooled at the Mediteranian.

Of course we had to stop at some point along the way to hit the beach for a bit and have our first French meal; bagette with tomato and brie. Life is so good.

All that said, I really didn’t fully enjoy the tour as jet lag began to kick in. We really didn’t sleep much on the plane as it was a morning flight for us, 10 hours in the air and then arriving first thing in the morning here, our bodies thinking it was just about bed time. So we began to struggle to stay awake. However, with a nap in the car, coupled with a late afternoon one at the house, we ended up sleeping the night straight through and this morning, I think we are reset and ready too go!

This brings me to the house we are staying at. Glenn really didn’t prepare me for what was in store. We are truly in the French countryside, about 40 minutes from the city (Perpignan). The hills are covered with vegetation, trees, grapes and olive bushes. It is terifically scenic. The maison is super cool; an old mostly stone building that is now subdivided and housing multiple families. That said, our part is huge, much bigger than our own home. It is completely charming, covered in classic, wide plank flooring, vintage doors and windows, and old walls. It is exactly what you might expect a vintage French country house to be! I love it.

This morning, I type this with a hot cup of French pressed coffee beside me (OK, this is pretty standard for me) as I gaze our the open windows upon the hills of the southern French country side (this is not). Mich and Jacqui began their morning with a run through the grape covered hills. I expect them back any time now, so I’ll put the water on to boil for round deux of coffee.

Today we explore!

ps. We just heard about the nasty fires in Kelowna and Westbank. Hope you guys are all okay.