A week ago today, we were in France staying with our daughter and family to celebrate our granddaughter’s 13th Birthday and support her in the regional basketball semi-finals for age groupsthirteen and under.
Microsoft 365
A few days before our trip, I discovered the laptop I use when travelling decided to have a hissy fit. The touch screen refused to work, and ‘Microsoft Word’ told me my license had expired. Who knew the special deal and free word package I bought with the computer only lasted a year! Well, obviously, that was a lost-in-translation moment. I suppose the clue was Microsft 365. Naturally, I returned to Worten’s and was politely informed by, I must say, a VERY helpful guy on their ‘Resolve’ section that it was only a subscription for 365 days, and it had expired. My options are to pay $99 a year or use Open Office.
French Countryside
The countryside in France is so different to the Algarve in Portugal. Everything is SO green!
French Tarts and Food
I LOVE French pastries, so I will attempt to make both the French tarts listed below. In fact, I LOVE French food. They talk about food and wine with the same passion as they enjoy sex. If I had moved to France instead of Portugal I would be the size of a mansion by now.
Basketball Semi-Finals
I’ve never watched on TV or attended a live basketball match before, so the cacophony of shouting, claxons, trumpet wails, and drum banging came as a total shock to my ears. Our granddaughter’s basketball team made it to the regional semi-finals, and I am delighted to say they won against a team a division above them. I’ve never seen a team play with so much passion and commitment, and they actually played as a team, unlike many footballers whose egos seem to come first. I think primadonna footballer teams should to go back to basics and attend some grassroots matches of another sport. Chelsea, go watch these kids play, and you might just learn something.
A Special Birthday
It doesn’t seem possible that thirteen years have passed since we dashed across Portugal, Spain, and half of France to hold our first grandchild. She has grown into a wonderful young lady. To celebrate her first teenage year, she had a ‘family’ party with twenty-one people! All French apart from us. Thank goodness for Google Translate!
A Day Out in Annecy
Annecy is like Venice but in miniature. We love it. The night before our trip, our son-in-law said the weather in Annecy was reported to be 20C, so silly me–who usually takes a wardrobe of clothes with her to cover any eventuality–only wore summery clothes with a thin cardigan and coat. No hat or scarf. When we arrived, it was only 6C! Naturally, we found a cafe and then searched for a hat and scarf. My body will be persuaded the same way if my head is warm.
And a boat trip around the lake.
Finally, it’s time to say goodbye to France and return to Portugal. I gave Sami a ball as a parting gift; he was the dog with two tails.
Au revoir!
And we return to Portugal.
Piglet in Portugal 
How lovely! It looks like a wonderful trip. Happy birthday to your granddaughter :)
LikeLike
My French teacher at school (yes, all those years ago!) spoke of Annecy in glowing terms and it’s somewhere I’ve always wanted to go. I think it’s an expensive place these days, but how much can you spend in a day? Glad your girl is doing so well, and that’s a great cake.
LikeLike
What a lovely trip and celebration! French patisserie absolutely HAS to be done, we make clafoutis on a regular basis at home (very healthy with those cherries, I say) and although I don’t really have a sweet tooth, I take no persuading to indulge in macarons, trio de chocolat, Paris-Brest and all the other delights on offer.😋 I’m adding Annecy to our One Day list of places to visit, in the hope that ‘one day’ we will find the time to get out and explore some other parts of this beautiful country. I enjoyed this vicarious little trip in the meantime, so thank you for sharing! 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person