St Emilion is graced by Susie-Belle

We made it down to south west France on Tuesday and have been out and about this morning with the girls showing them one of our favourite local haunts, the medieval town, St Emilion. Famous for its wines, St Emilion is a beautiful, fortified town, which has retained much charm and character and Susie-Belle and Renae trotted round the narrow cobbled streets this morning enjoying the unique aromas it holds….there was a lot of stopping to sniff and savour every cobbled doorstep, every stone doorway. Whilst nose level interested the girls, we enjoyed the breath taking views over some of the Bordeaux regions most expansive vineyards growing right up to the edges of St Emilion town. This time of year is one of the best to visit as there aren’t many tourists around and the vines are just coming to life and the blossoms are on the trees, it was really a lovely sight.

Yesterday’s walk was a completely different affair, we stayed local on the footpaths and lanes around our house and during the two hour walk in spring sunshine we heard woodpeckers, cuckoos, distant roosters and braying donkeys. One of the great treats for us when we’re here is that there is so little traffic in the area and yesterday no traffic noise at all intruded into our morning tranquility. This is a treat for Susie-Belle in particular as she can be a little edgy at home with traffic. So we’re going to do a mixture of walks with her whilst here, a few strolls through the quieter villages and towns so we can keep up her training with desensitising her to the stresses of traffic noise and people around her on pavements and then the rambling, quiet, wandering walks in the countryside where stimulation sources are natural and enjoyment is plainer.

Finally, Rosie Cat travelled well, singing her heart out for the first 200 miles or so, letting us know what she thought of the journey, but she has settled in brilliantly and is as peaceful here as she is at home. We like to think Renae and Susie-Belle feel complete now they have her here with them, Renae at least seems most interested to see her every time Rosie moves around the house! I haven’t worked out how to post photos whilst I’m here, if I can work it out I’ll pop some up from this morning’s stroll in picturesque St Emilion, if not, it’ll have to wait till we’re back home in busy Blighty.