And then there's a change

As always happens, as one path is being embarked upon, another opportunity comes calling. This time a chance to escape the UK winter for three weeks, visit a place I used to live and put my early years hat back on. That hat was rusty and sitting in a box marked 'do not open' and I suspect it was quite pleased when I dusted it off, said hi and packed it to go. I thought I may have lost my mojo so was a bit worried. I'm up for taking a risk so with my very last minute ticket off I flew to Abu Dhabi, jumping into a taxi to my old home Al Ain.  Reliving my first trip there in 2009, sitting alongside Tracey, heading towards a new future very late at night. I have been back twice, once in 2013 and once in 2018. Both short visits with friends.

Roll forward almost 17 years. I had hoped I'd be based in Al Ain but was only there for two days of training. I did get to go for a wander to the oasis just on dusk but the gates were mostly shut so I just enjoyed being out in the dusty heat wandering around the walls. The training was great and it was wonderful to meet some new friends as we negotiated a new way of working and the structures built around this by one of my old colleagues from my earlier time in Al Ain. I stayed at an old haunt, my yoga and bar place formally the Hilton.

Thursday late afternoon we were whisked away to a new hotel in Abu Dhabi because our work was there for the next two weeks. And on Friday that begun. What a busy week! I hardly had time to eat or sleep, or wander in the heat to the local restaurants. And there was no beach time as I worked all weekend. No good at all really. Friday night I did get to have dinner with two old friends from my Al Ain days. Sitting outside in the balmy night air eating the best Italian and enjoying a wine or two. A nice catch up after a 12 year gap. 

The next week was easier as I kind of knew what I was doing. Did I mention it was inspection work? With lots of tools and guides and tips to make things easier. Many covered in the training and giving me aha moments as I began to apply them in practice. Hanging the work on the scaffold provided by the training and more experienced folks. It's been a while since I've learnt new stuff so it was a gift for this lifelong learner. 

The balmy days and evenings were enjoyed the second week, a friend and I finding the best Indian vegetarian restaurant where I could eat everything on the menu. Yummy fresh food and beautiful people running it. I enjoyed the fresh juices and people watching as the local folks were out and about. I also found a local supermarket with the best nuts, dates, tea and coffee. I went a bit mad on my last day and bought some of  all of them, over 2 kilograms all up! The tea has been a treat, the nuts so much better than I can buy here and the dates delicious local ones. 

The coffee,  now that was a surprise. I didn't read the fine print and instead of the single origin Brazilian arabica coffee I was expecting, it was cardamom coffee with the arabica mixed in. Luckily I love cardamom coffee so I'll enjoy the large bag I bought for the months to come. The house smelt lovely when I made it, the ghost of  those beautiful Arabic and Indian flavours lingering in the air. 

So things I've learnt. Always say yes, it will usually work out and if not take the lesson. People are lovely. People are helpful. You just have to ask. The team of inspectors I was part of made me very welcome and we had some great chats over breakfast and whenever we managed to get together. Abu Dhabi Emirate has changed. It's a lot more cosmopolitan and finished than it was when I lived there. It's very built up and it was a treat being driven to work past so many familiar places. And finally, waffles with berry coulis, maple syrup (just a little) and fresh fruit salad topped with some local yogurt is the breakfast of champions. And coming home, even to the chilly UK weather, is the best.

An amazing selection of tea, nuts and honey

The one day I got to  lounge in the sun and swim in the sea

Al Ain oasis 

Peaking through the only open gate I could find

The hotel formally know as the Hilton

Doing things in France

Well we were told it would be time consuming and difficult with false starts and issues along the way. That's France, bureaucratic and difficult, requiring patience especially if you're not a French speaker. Oh and the people are unfriendly and rude, especially when you're an English speaker attempting their language. So very not true on any account, well except for the mobile phone sign up. More on that later. 

The signing of docs for our new digs took place on 8 August and we picked up the keys on 21 October. We did this from home and attended the meeting electronically. The process is said to take 3-6 months, ours was clearly a simple transaction so took much less. We have a great Notaire. He lives in our neighbourhood so is keen to catch up for a wine once we're there. It was helpful to have his expertise about our area as well, insider information and recommendations. 

While we waited Jules finally got to see the place and we met with the builder to get her impressions. One of the best things I've noticed this early in is how people are supportive of each other. There's a great FB page for English speakers in Carcassonne where people new to the area are welcomed, all sorts of information shared and help provided. The agents we dealt with also had recommendations. That's how we connected with Mark who completed an independent survey for us and connected us with the builder and the other trades we need to renovate. 

Fast forward to our trip last week to do the final signing. Greeted like old friends by the Notaire and Laura our lovely agent. Signing was done, keys delivered and it was ours. Staying in the same Airbnb across the road we had free access to wander, measure, plan and dream in our new home. Thursday arrived and we met with Mark, Andrea and Laurent to make firm plans for the renovations. The big jobs are rewiring and insulation. Attic is next with the bathroom revamp, painting and tidying up. Level 1 is more simple, just painting and tiling bedroom floors. The kitchen is serviceable and large, the living fine as is. More decisions to be made about these areas. 

I'm very much looking forward to being the labourer on the job. I'm quite handy and can do things like strip the horrible wallpaper in one room and remove lino. It will be good to be there for decision making and to take the before during and after pics. The spreadsheet I put together is with Mark and Andrea, the wait is on for an estimate and start dates. 

Back to the phones. To get a bank account and insurance, which one much have when buying a house, one needs a French phone number. Actually both of us need a French phone number. Easy, I'll sign up online and activate when we're there the following week. Lets get started. Chatbot, French chat only, finally referred me to a person. Non parles vous Englise. Okay, out comes Google Translate. 

Circular discussion: Madam to activate your French mobile number you need a French number. I don't have a French number. There's a number on your application. That's my UK number. I will send a code to that number (it didn't work because it's my UK number). That's my UK number. You need a French number to activate your phone. I don't have a French phone number. Do you have a friend with a French number? No I don't know anyone here yet. And so on for over an hour until the suggestion we go to the Orange shop to see if someone there can use their number. Google translate is definitely my friend! 

So off we went next day to the Orange shop. The first person couldn't help. Our Frenglish was inadequate. The second person was a gem. Once he understood the issue voila he fixed it and my phone was active. This did take some time. Next job was to activate Jules' phone. Easy. Jump online pretend I'm him, change the UK number for my French one (luckily he has a friend with a French number) and, bonus, a person who speaks English on the chat. A 10 minute job and we're both set up. 

Activating the bank account came next and with the help of the lovely South African agent it was easy. A bit circular and dependent on Google translate, and with a delay, but done. 

So next trip its turn on the Esim to have a French phone and no roaming charges. My new bank card should be in my letterbox too. Bonus. 

Our go to spot for a drink and people watching

Sunset from La Cite

Pano of our neighbourhood at sunset

A new adventure - France

Well the Aude to be more precise. And Carcassonne. That amazing city Kate Mosse brought to life for me all those years ago when I devoured her books. I've kept up with the series reading the last one recently. Carcassonne was on my bucket list in 2004 and I made it there for a quick visit, plus a visit to the hospital when I fell down that marble staircase with such style, sober. The left arm again, x-rays and a sling for a bit. Dented and damaged but not broken phew. 

So I wandered La cite in a sling, exploring this most historic place. Back again after a 21 year wait, I wandered the streets and enjoyed a pizza and local rose while people watching. I've always wanted to live in the South of France. I've explored much of it while following the Tour de France in 2004 and on other trips driving along the coast and up to Mont san Michel. 

Our first house hunting trip in May happened because Eurostar had very cheap tickets and I built the trip from there. Overnight in Paris, train to Orly Airport to pick up a car then the drive south. A long drive! Airbnb came to the party as they always do and we had a lovely little apartment near La Cite and a short wander to la Bastide with all it's restaurants and shops. The mission for this trip was viewing properties A Place in the Sun style. Enter two lovely real estate agents from Leggett and off we went checking out the villages nearby. La Redorte on the Canal du Midi was a favorite, and Azille, Lezignan-Corbieres and Olonzac. 

A few days of looking had a short list, one quickly discarded when we realised Carcassonne itself might be a better option because there was more there to attract tourists. We drove through vineyards exploring and navigating putting petrol in the car (an amusing if frustrating interlude with a card not working, language barriers and helpful folks), Google maps vagaries, very narrow roads and exciting blind bridges. And lots and lots of lovely villages and the Narbonne Plage where we enjoyed a rainy beach stop. Back to the search.

And back to Carcassonne, a second visit confirmed it was the place to be. It was lovely and hot and I had an Airbnb with an outside terrace in the middle of the Bastide where two of the properties were located. The third property I visited I put an offer on, accepted after some back and forth. So now we wait as we go through the French buying property process then it's some much needed renovations and set up for us and others to enjoy. Very exciting. The agents are so helpful and the process is involved, including a survey with the issues highlighted. Actually everyone we've dealt with has been helpful. I highly recommend Leggetts, a very professional company. 

So next stop is Carcassonne, France. The place of amazing history, lovely people, excellent wine, markets with yummy fresh food, baguettes, pastries and cassoulet. Close to Spain, a place I've never really visited, and the rest of France. The Tour de France has a stage end there this year and passes by most years so I'll get to watch close up rather than highlights on TV. There are details to work out, those are the next jobs on the long list.

La Cite 

Canal du Midi - I enjoyed a short cruise through the locks

La Cite looking across Carcassonne

Le tour is  coming!

The last lock

2025

And it's 2025 already. Well halfway through 2025 to be honest. And here I am again with lots of stories and pics. Let's hope this time I can keep the stories rolling, keep motivated to add here as events happen. Here's a potted look at our Australian and New Zealand journey. 

December was chilly and Christmassy, January was the big trip south and, along with February, a big catch up with friends and family. As well as laying my mums ashes to rest in a place special to her. Jules had his first trip down under and I really didn't know what he'd think of it all. Can say now he's a fan. A fan of the prawns, koura (lobster), fresh food, weather, scenery, and people. 

Landing in pouring rain in Sydney was not the most auspicious start. Enjoying a wander in Kings Cross and surrounds searching for dinner found us in a hotel that used to be my local enjoying a feed of large prawns with cider served by a young bloke from over this way on his big OE in Australia. The next day we wandered around Woolloomooloo, through the botanic gardens into the city. Dodging showers and buying an umbrella. The naval base was of particular interest as Jules' dad visited there on his ship. He would have wandered the same streets and enjoyed the hospitality of sailor shore time. 

On our return visit to Sydney on the homeward leg we visited the Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour and explored the submarine and naval ships there to be explored. I'd never been so it was about time really! It was a treat, a place we got kicked out of at closing time and left reluctantly. From Sydney we headed up to Newcastle for grandbaby time. Only one is still at that squidgy cuddles stage, the other two rather more grown up than I'd last seen them a year ago. We had a lovely time together swimming and exploring. Newcastle is a lovely spot, the ocean baths, seascapes and beaches were just lovely in the warm January weather. Apart from the massive storm that is. We got back to our Airbnb just before the heavens opened up and the lightening and thunder started. 

Next stop was Brisbane and time for the three girls living there. So enjoyed time with them. The eldest expressed a wish for a specific Jellycat for Christmas. Because we were there just after Christmas my bag was full of goodies for the kids so I was happy to oblige. The Jellycat was part of a promotion. Fish'n'chips in Selfridges in London and patisserie goodies in Paris. Just to be clear, these were soft toys. Expensive soft toys, and I had to participate in the 'experience' to get said Jellycat and the goodies that came with it. Experience a lovely young man pretend cooking Lily fish and telling me her story. It was fun, Christmas fun in an amazingly Christmassy Selfridges. 

What a treat it was giving this gift to Eve, she was delighted especially when Jules shared the video of my experience with her. The other girls liked their gifts too, carefully chosen. The biggest treat was taking the girls to Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo for the day. A very hot day where we enjoyed wandering around the extensive, well kept grounds patting kangaroos, shivering at the size of the crocs and seeing a green grass snake on the side of the track. In the wild probably enjoying the captive animals' food. The girls are so grown up now, enjoying their schools, sports and friends. 

Then it was off to New Zealand. Christchurch to see Tim, Sarah and Noah, and Jane. A road trip was in order so we headed up to Nelson via Kaikoura where Nin's  Bins got our lunch time custom. A large koura with fresh fish'n'chips. Real ones this time. Sue and Neil are old friends who retired to Nelson so it was lovely to spend time with them. I love this part of New Zealand. Close to the sea, lovely growing climate and the best food and wine. 

We drove down the centre and along the coast via Punakaiki where we wandered amongst the pancake rocks formed 30 million years ago. The limestone rocks are now eroded to look like stacks of pancakes and I was disappointed to see one of the most reliable blowholes had collapsed. This was a favorite stop for my kids on journeys north, as I remember it being one of mine when I was a kid. A wilder stop in those days with few barriers and more wave action to see. 

We overnighted in Hokitika then out to my brothers place on our family land. A home off grid with solar power and a fire to heat the house and water. We really enjoyed our few days up in the bush with the sky so clear, star gazing with shooting stars and other unidentified celestial happenings. The family gathered to lay mum to rest with dad. Tim and Noah had made a lovely memorial stone to mark the spot, a perfect marker made from local river stone. Terri my niece brought some huge lobster tails to add to the food already planned so we enjoyed food, family, friends, stories and old photos. A lovely moment in time to remember. 

Back to Christchurch then off on another flight to Sydney for further exploration before heading back home. Home to winter. It was lovely  to sleep in my own bed, and luckily we had some nice days to catch up on washing and get settled. If one every really gets too settled when family is on the other side of the world. 

Amazing view of the mountains of Iran

Australia Zoo friends

No visit to Aus is complete without this guy

Watson's Bay and The Gap

The Gold Coast holds a special place in my heart

Had a lovely time in Katoomba visiting the Three Sisters

Some pics needing stories

It's when you look through photos to add here that you realise how much is missing! The trip to St Albans; the one to Marseille to catch up with Jacqui; the wander around Black Park and it's movie and TV history; the Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower; having Jo and family to visit. Best I get on with catching up. After a coffee and small break. In the meantime here's a few pics. 

Black Park lake

On the water with Jacqui - Lovely day out wandering on Ile Pomegues

Palais Longchamp, Marseille - Where there's a lovely cafe with wine across the road.

Cassis harbour, France

My happy place - Plage la Grande Mer

The night tower - Stories of old told by a yeoman at the Ceremony of the Keys

Boats at rest - Marseille harbour 

Marseille from the top of the hill
 

Fun times with Jo and family, love it when friends visit

A bit chilly here

I'm that person who wakes up to snow and goes a little crazy, just a little more kid like than usual really. It snowed last week, it didn't last long on the ground but it was lovely while it did. Photos from every window of course, and a short video. I can love snow because I'm inside in the warm looking out. It's been chilly here lately, colder than the last winter I had here. I checked out the latitude, distance from the equator, compared to New Zealand and guess what, I'm living at the southern equivalent of just south of the south of the south island. South is cold in New Zealand, south of the south is more like artic. I shouldn't have checked really, it made me feel colder. 

This hot house flower and her beau are heading south, not the cold south south more a tropical north south, in early January. I can't wait to get grandbaby cuddles, although there's only one left at that squishy cuddly stage. The others will just have to endure. It's essential to be able to chat to them and Facetime is great. I had an Aria chat today, a 'what I want for Christmas' chat with a bit of Lily thrown in. I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone and getting some beach time. In NZ my family are laying my mum's ashes to rest in a place special her. She passed away in June after a long illness, hard to watch from a distance. 

I'm between contracts at the moment and having time on my hands is a bit of a gift. I was given a folder with my dad's mum's family history and have been exploring what's there and what more I can find out. In the process I've discovered more about my dad's dad, my favourite person the world until he died in 1979. He went to war as men did back then and served in Egypt and other places. My great great grandad Thomas Galloway Aitkin also went to war, the first one, and I found out a bit about him as  well. He was gassed and wasn't well when he returned. He was allocated farmland as a returned soldier, a story similar to the one written by Maurice Shadbolt in Strangers and Journeys. Looking at a photo of Thomas I can see who my eldest son looks like, an uncanny likeness. 

 There's more to explore including the places over here where they emigrated from. My people came from Scotland, on both sides of the family, lowland and highland Scots. My dad's family came to New Zealand early and ran whaling stations in the south, plying the waters for the riches whales and seals brought. A brutal cold existence in a harsh climate. They built the wharf at Lyttleton where the 'first' settlers landed; they fed them and laid out where they were going to live. Ironically, land already settled by local Māori who must have been puzzled by the surveyors pegs.  

My mum's family, the highland Scots, landed in the south and brought their Scottish culture to Southland and Otago. Farming land and laying down cities and towns on Māori lands. Such is New Zealand's story. The trip north to Scotland will have to wait until summer and by then I'll have a trail of discovery mapped out. I can't wait, love a good road trip and my last one exploring there was in 2013. The one where I stood listening to the guide at Stirling Castle telling a story and realised it was the story of my family. It was emotional when the penny dropped. 

This past week has been an indoors one mostly with one trip to London to explore the Natural History Museum. I love geology and the museum had some amazing displays of our earth and it's riches. I could see some pieces I have in the collections, some of the shells and stones I've collected over the years. It was cold, nothing my new long wool coat couldn't cope with. 

The coat I bought recently for Remembrance Sunday at the cenotaph. I had a privileged position after being escorted through horse guards to Whitehall next to Downing Street. So good to see members of the royal family and other special folks laying wreaths; listening to the bands and watching them march past; and enjoy the parade of old soldiers, young servicemen and women; and the Blue Light contingent. We had lunch after at Westminster Hall. A day of commemoration done as only the Brits can do it. 

That's about all for now. Here's a few pics of recent weeks. 

So different here now the leaves have fallen

My birthstones

Natural History Museum 

Chelsea Pensioners

The Cenotaph

Further to the last story

One of my great joys is chatting to my family on FaceTime, mostly a weekend thing. Sometimes we have quick chats, others lovely long sit and have a coffee together chats. Like this morning with my NZ crew. Such a gift. Noah was lovely and chatty, and I caught up on his news. I can't wait to see him and his mum and dad in February, and maybe humiliate myself with a round of golf with the young master! I was surprised when Noah knew who Rowan Atkinson was and details about his amazing car collection. I may need to google that myself! 

Talking about bagpipes, I remembered one of the reasons they so resonate with me. When I was about 7 or 8 years old my dad was fishing for whitebait in our local river. A fierce river with strong flow and currents. He over reached to pull in his full net and fell in. I was on the river bank playing and watched him disappear under the water. It was terrifying and I still remember those feelings whenever I stand too close to fast water rivers. 

Next moment a man nearby jumped into action to rescue him. Dad was in full fishers gear including thigh waders and Lucas shed his waders as he reached out and grabbed dad as he went by. I remember quite a battle getting dad out, heavy with the water in his boots and panic, and others helping. Thankfully my Dad lived to fish another day and I had a new hero, Lucas. 

Lucas lived just down the road from us in our very small New Zealand town, and he was Scottish. Best of all my hero played the bagpipes. I used to lie awake in bed and listen to him practice on warm summer evenings when kids were supposed to be asleep, my windows open to get the best sound. I wonder where he is now, my hero. 

Here's a clip of Highland Cathedral showcasing the beauty of Scotland.