FRENCH LEAVE: SPRING IN EUROPE, AND MOROCCO

SPRING IN EUROPE, AND MOROCCO - MARCH 2019.

Unlike last August, we arrive in Paris on the last day of winter and are met with cool grey weather. That night, we again enjoy a wonderful evening with Jean-Charles and Anette at their beautiful Montmartre apartment, and are introduced to their close friend, Veronique, who works with Anette at the Musée d'Orsay and the Musée de l'Orangerie. During dinner, Jean-Charles & Anette state they are going to spend a few day at Veronique's holiday apartment in Lisbon while we're in Europe. It is quickly agreed that will will try to meet them there if at all possible. As dinner ends, we wander back to our nearby hotel to prepare for our drive south to Gourdon the next morning.

We arrive in Gourdon the next afternoon to a fresh clear spring day. Nathalie has graciously cleaned and prepared our house and it feels like coming home. Over the next few days, we settle in and again visit Ikea in Toulouse to buy another bed and some more essentials. The shopping spree again begins with lunch and a carafe of red wine. We've discovered that any event that involves walking around slowly for a few hours is better enjoyed after a light lunch and glass of two of wine. Most of the major art galleries we have visited over the years were experienced in a light glow following a leisurely lunch.

Diner with Jean-Charles & Anette, and meeting Veronique, who owns a gorgeous small apartment in Lisbon.

Our first afternoon in Gourdon after the long drive. Walking around the nearby lanes to stretch our legs.

Ikea meatballs, salad and a carafe of plonk. A ritual which began in about 2009, on a trip to Europe with the kids, and has been serving us well for many years now.

In Spain in 2009, preparing for whatever adventure followed.

But this is where it actually became a ritual. The Uffizi in Florence. We had parked miles away and got lost numerous times trying to find it. When we finally arrived, we were tired, grumpy and hungry. We had entered the gallery and began to wander around before deciding to stop and have a rest. This gallery was too special to rush. So we went to the top floor cafe and ordered some food and wine and relaxed for a while. That afternoon was a blissfully calm one in which our appreciation of the amazing gallery was much greater than had we rushed through. This ritual has been repeated many times since, and is expected to remain one for years to come.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NORTH MOROCCO ADVENTURE

We were very much looking forward to this Europe trip because our Gourdon internet connection had finally been installed and set up (thanks to Phil while we were in Australia). We now had the luxury of being able to research the next adventure, without having to sit outside the Gourdon tourist office to link to their slow internet connection. We had been looking at the below 9-day Morocco tour for a few months but had not booked it yet. By the end of the second day in Gourdon, we had booked the trip, and flights out of Toulouse for the next day. Early the next morning, we drove the 90 minutes to Toulouse and were in Casablanca that afternoon.

North Morocco Adventure - https://www.intrepidtravel.com/au/morocco/north-morocco-adventure-124071

Thank goodness for the internet, what did we do before?

Our Intrepid group, from Australia, UK, USA, South Africa & NZ. Sitting on the steps of the Roman ruins in Volubilis.

Sunset over Meknes, during the evening prayers

With the beast of burden, that carried our bags up to our riad in Meknes.

Being guided through the Fez Medina.

Wandering the back lanes of Chefchaouen, feeling anything but blue.

A slow afternoon in the Medina in Tangier, while waiting for our overnight train to Marrakech ...

... at the Salon Bleu, overlooking the Straight of Gibraltar.

A Tangier sunset.

Imagining the history that would have travelled past here.

At the bus stop in Marrakech with our tour leader (Dris) about to go for a final group dinner in the Grand Medina.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

A FEW DAYS IN NAPLES

On our return from Morocco, we washed our clothes at the outdoor laundromat at the local supermarket, filled ourselves with gorgeous local food and wine, and planned the next adventure. Toulouse is a major international airport that flies to cities all over Europe and beyond. We spent the next days researching flights and accommodation and settled on a 3-day trip to Naples.