What a Summer!

 Well, this has been a strange, and in some ways, a trying Summer unlike any we've had here in France before.  Spring had promised well with the garden responding to moisture in the ground, giving us a glorious show of colour.  But this promise failed to be fulfilled.  The heat began in June and we had no further rain.  We laboured to water as much as we could but this form of watering doesn't compare to rainwater.  So now the garden looks very sad.  The head gardener has decreed that we are now starting to chop down and clear ready for Autumn changes (which are still in her head).  However, she is surprised at how many plants are showing signs of life!

Our social life this Summer has been limited by the need to stay indoors in the afternoons (we don't cope very well with 40+C day after day) although we have kept up with friends.  However we have just been to England for an 80th birthday celebration and took the opportunity to visit other friends and then pick up Sue's cousin to bring her back here for a holiday.  The difference between home and England is huge.  Our English experience was of motorways with miles of roadworks and subsequent long delays.  We don't know how people put up with this every day.

Having Linda here with us made us do 'sightseeing' things and we went back to places we haven't visited for a long time.  We noticed how the tourism industry is changing some of the more popular places; St Cirq la Popie and Cabrerets have more public car parks charging the visitors.  C'est la vie!

So now we must concentrate on reviving the garden and repairing the damage to the grass areas made by rabbits and boar.  Our camera has picked up videos of night time visits from 2 boar and a pair of young foxes.  Whilst we don't like the damage, we do like to see the resident wildlife!

We finally had a storm and a decent amount of rain last night and woke to a misty morning.  Autumn on its way!