Cathie Dunn writes...

This is our third winter in this beautiful part of France, and our first full winter living in Carcassonne, after two years in the Minervois on the plain. And yes, it’s been cold here too! 😉 In recent weeks, the peaks of the Pyrenees and the Montagne Noire were covered in beautiful snow, but yesterday was a rebel day: the temperatures rose to 16C here in Carcassonne, and up to 25C in the plain of the Languedoc. ' Tout le monde ' (everyone) was outside walking, sitting in cafés and just soaking in the the sun. View towards the medieval Pont Vieux and citadel River Aude We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon walk up to la cité with our dog, to enjoy a small bottle of rosé on the large food square, Place Marcou. And it was heaving there. As the sun set over the buildings, the crowd moved with it. At first, one particular restaurant was full of people, but later, new arrivals picked their seats in the sunshine, and so another place got all the business. Fun to watch... T...

Over the last week, we've had a friend staying with us and showed her our new home town of  Carcassonne . What a brilliant opportunity to explore this fabulous place again... Carcassonne (c) CD Apart from the obligatory visit to 'la cité' (the citadel), much of which was rebuilt in the 19th century after it had become abandoned, we also explored the 'ville basse', the lower town, and drove to the beautiful medieval market town of Mirepoix in the Ariège – on a bustling market day! Carcassonne is the ideal place for a wander, the odd glass of wine or two, and delicious food. We visited a few restaurants that we hadn't been to before, and we enjoyed our time just as if we were on holiday, too. During our walkies, we also visited the 'chateau comtal', the inner sanctum of the citadel, the castle of the old counts of Carcassonne, built on a much older structure dating back to pre-medieval times. You meander through the rebuilt towers and turret...

Belated Happy Easter wishes! 🐣 I hope you enjoyed precious time with your families. We did, with our four-legged 'babies’! Canal du Midi near Carcassonne On Sunday, we were fortunate enough to see the sun all day, so, after putting the washing on so it can dry outside, we took Ellie Dog on a 2-hour walkie along the Canal du Midi, close to our home. The path on one side is wide enough for us to walk and chat, however, the other side – our return from the lock – was narrow, and often overgrown. Still, quite an adventure, especially when we spotted the gorgeous views that reached as far as the snow-capped peaks of the Pyrenees. Ellie relaxing Ellie loved her exploration, but she was completely zonked out afterwards, enjoying the sunshine in the garden. One happy girl. And even hubby and I managed to relax a little in the garden on our return, with a delicious Aperol Spritz. I had a chance to catch up on re-reading Dark Deceit , alongside some r...