holidays end

Et voila, Margaret - eating a delicious lunch at Chez Fred in Carcassonne where she and me and Kat went for our paint-a-way. Kat air bnb'd us into a smashing, large apartment with a terrace overlooked by the castle. The plan was that we could sit in comfort and draw the thing in between meals. Which is what would have happened had it not rained.

The two days were still glorious fun; we did eat well (of course) and had some adventures, one of which was meeting this artist, Catherine Raphenon-Lorente who was showing at the Chapel of the Dominicans. She was happy to talk shop with other artists -

and here is the sun trying to come out as we left, bah.

 Here's the castle in its splendor at night, between showers -

and here is a theological curiosity from the almost-restored church near the station (forgotten its patron), featuring on the plate what looks like a little dog with an almost human face but is probably intended to be the lamb of god.

We went to the church to light a candle for my great-aunt who went into hospital for a care plan and there caught the covid-19 virus. Cecily is 100. I'm confident that she will live for ever but the rest of you be careful out there.

Margaret and John have left for Ireland this morning - who knows when we meet again? Very soon, I hope. All Bobs UK flights have been cancelled and since he is obliged to return in November we are looking for friends who are driving there about then. You have been warned.