We got up to start Wednesday with a walk before it became too hot. The predicted high for today is 28 degrees. A walk down to towards the Devil's Bridge and alongside the river was an enjoyable variant on our recent walks.
Our good friends Daniele and Serge, whom we'd lunched with at their house last week, wanted to spend a last afternoon with us. They arrived at midday, and we enjoyed a small apero at our apartment before descending the stairs to one of the restaurants in the square below us. Le Pied dans le Plat (meaning 'to put your foot in it') is a little restaurant serving simple French/Catalan food. We usually go there once or twice a year, and just about every time have their moules frites (mussels and fries). We know the waiter quite well and enjoyed a very leisurely lunch there. We all chose moules frites.
After happily chatting away for two hours Serge was keen to have coffee on a 'terrasse' (outdoor cafe) somewhere so we opted for Le Pablo. Apart from the odd occasion, haven't been to this bar for coffee for years. After it new owners took it over and changed it from an old-style cafe which showcased Picasso (prints not the real paintings) and his fellow painters and turned it into a modern glossy restaurant, we changed our allegiance to Le Comptoir. However, La Pablo's outdoor seating is nice and we chose an empty table. Two hours later the afternoon was marching on and it was decided that it really was time to say our final goodbyes this time. Serge and Daniele have decided it is definitely on the cards that they will come and visit us in NZ at some stage, and they are extremely keen for us to visit them at St Martin. In any instance, we will keep in touch and see how things pan out over the next year or two.
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| Moules and frites at Le Pied dans le Plat restaurant |
It's been quite a day!!!
Our last day, Thursday, dawned warm and sunny, with the prospect of 31 degrees later in the day. We set off on our 1.5 hour walk through the fields and beside the irrigation canals on the outskirts of Ceret. Being confronted with two extremely aggressive dogs, thankfully constrained behind property fencing, near the end of the walk was not a nice way to finish the trek. When we got home we took yet another large bag of rubbish to the bin and our last bag of clothes/shoes for recycling.
John bought our second-to-last croquise bread from our favoured baker. We'll buy one tomorrow morning and I'll make up some rolls to take to the airport. We will miss our lovely bread, cheese and red pepper lunches but clearly we've had a very good run.
We're glad we kept today free of social engagements. It's been a fairly intense week, in a good way, but we just wanted a quiet final day, with no pressures. In the afternoon we finished off the cleaning and final packing. It's now just a question of eating the last few things in the fridge for dinner, and we're good to go.
The day has been lovely, though the temperature topped out at 28 degrees. We're happy to be leaving before the seriously hot weather arrives. The forecast for Ceret is for intense thunderstorms then rain for the next 4-5 days. The mairie must be happy with the 6 weeks of rain we've had, as the street channels finally have their water back running. The forecast when we arrive in Nelson on Sunday looks like about 14 degrees and solid rain. I don't care - it will be lovely to be home.
