Today was a clothes washing day and Tim decided to check out how the washing machine works. He worked it out alright. He set it going on a non reversible cycle with nothing inside ; just a test run. We left the machine to clean itself for an hour, and wandered out to the Tours Weekly Outdoor Food Market. It was a hot sunny day, perfect for getting your washing dry, if you had any to dry, but equally good for just soaking up some rays and buying fresh veges, a cooked chicken, and some melon for dessert; how decadent. A friendly café near the market had three cappuccinos with our names on them, so we found a corner table overlooking the street and placed an order, a little wary of how a cappuccino is interpreted ... read more

Last night after posting the blog, I returned to the Cathedral with Tim to check out the annual - lucky timing for us - light show, this year featuring the Museum of Chartres, and the front and side of the Cathedral. It was about 11pm, freezing cold, but I would not have missed it for anything. It’s difficult to tell from still photos, but it changed themes and scenes about 4 times. Our favourite was a depiction of workmen abseiling from the top of the spires and walls, and building the cathedral from the ground up, finishing with a splash of colour. I’ve never seen anything like it. Today is easy. We have to be out of our apartment by 11am, we’ll have croissants and a few coffees for breakfast - that’s me anyway - and ... read more

I was up early today to run through my survival routine; shower, heat pack , Ibuprofen, and a shot on the TENS machine. I have new respect for women who rise early to go through their daily routine of cosmetic applications. I didn’t even look any better after my effort. We packed the car, bought a takeaway coffee at Babbo, and headed south east across the overcast Battlefields of World War One. It’s hard to picture the muddy destruction as we drove passed, but signs and landmarks point to areas of significance in the Verdun region. Much of the forest area we pass through are designated spoiled areas, where it is forbidden to engage in any building or development activity because of the contamination by artillery and armaments. It would be nice to think it is ... read more

After a stack of Vegemite on rye bread for dinner last night, preceded throughout the day with sweet pastries and a Club sandwich for lunch - I suspect the Club was Collingwood, judging from the taste - I was pleased to have covered the five main food groups ; coffee, sugar, salt, butter, and carbohydrates. I feel Olympic. Is that even a thing. Don’t even ask why dinner was Vegemite on toast but it wasn’t the cook’s fault. Let’s just say, never buy smoked tempeh, and if you do, bury it deeper than nuclear waste, and under no circumstances attempt to open the packet. Tim tried to remove the tempeh from his serve, and then he ate it. I thought we brought him up better than that. It was inedible. Luxembourg has a very ridged rubbish ... read more

Standing in the smoke filled Portuguese Chicken Shop last night, inhaling the deep dark flavours of oil basted pork, and chickens, split and splayed flat between wire frames, I was at the mercy of my senses when deciding what was for dinner; some of everything it turns out. Shiny glistening meat, exploding tiny sprays of oil, ok, fat, blackened as the grills were manually turned, sending my nose and mouth into a drooling mess. “ Chicken, pork ribs, and rice thanks. Yeah, with olive oil and chilli sauce. Thanks.” The talk was Tim. I don’t speak the lingo in these parts. We then stepped aside to allow the next customer in. There were four sweating, shiny skinned workers; two women preparing, one man standing guard over the charcoal grills, and an older woman, though not as ... read more