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Ireland
  • youonlylivetwice
Sep 2016 – Jul 2017

Ireland

A 302-day adventure by youonlylivetwice Read more
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    I could live here forever!

    February 15, 2017 in France ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Such a beautiful clean and fit city. People are really friendly as well. I headed for the market this morning but it want on do I decided to cross the Pont de Pierre and check out the other side. The area was called Stalingrad and was much quieter. Took some photos from that side and another stellar day for weather. Saw the Grand Theatre, place de la Bouse, port de Bourgoyne, Grosse Cliche, Hotel de Ville, Palais Rohan, Jardin Public and walked Ste. Catherine shopping row. Lots of cheese, pate, bread and wine consumption here. I decided to do like the locals and by myself some duck pate which was superb. Going to go to the small wine museum just 20 metres down the road from me. Cellar tour and wine tasting if two wines for €5. It was a great day to walk 12km today.Read more

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    Le Cite de Vin

    February 16, 2017 in France ⋅ 🌙 10 °C

    Cool this morning so I headed to the wine museum. It was huge and took me 4.5 hours to get through it. Lots of information and lots of hands on stuff. I finished off with my tasting on the 8th floor overlooking the city. They actually were actually pouring a 2014 Note Bene from Black hills winery and last week a 2013 Syrah from Painted Rock. I told the ladies I was from that region and they were full of questions and I was happy to talk about the okanagan wines. They even had a flyover of the okanagan featured in their film. It's a huge facility. They had absolutely no ice wines from Canada. Heading off to La Rochelle tomorrow. Booked myself into a hotel with my hotels bonus points and am using my one free night. After I check out tomorrow I will have another free night that u will use later. Yippee! Huge luxury bed!Read more

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    La Rochelle

    February 17, 2017 in France ⋅ 🌫 7 °C

    So sad to leave Bordeaux this morning. Super foggy walk to the bus station but very refreshing. The bus was an hour late and I made it to La Rochelle only a half hour late. Checked into my beautiful room with memory foam bed and pillows and only 12 minutes from the Gare. Quickly went out to scope the city out! Wow, another amazing place. Reminds me a bit of Granville island and Lago di Garda Italy. Spotless, art studios everywhere and gorgeous scenery. I'm hoping to meet Corinne's aunt and uncle tomorrow so I can send her a recent photo. The air is so good here, just like Bordeaux. Found the Marche and they were selling fresh oysters for what I thought was a pretty good price. Can't wait to explore tomorrow. And.....this is now Cognac country not wine as I found many Cognac boutiques and Cognac is only 25km away from here.Read more

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    La Rochelle-day 2

    February 18, 2017 in France ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    Another stellar day in La Rochelle! Corinne gave me the address to her aunt and uncles place to go and say hello. I walked the beautiful park where they had a small zoo and then the beach. I arrived at the Villa Marcotte where Corinne's family lives and rang the bell. With my best French I introduced myself to Michel and told him I came by to say hello and take a couple of photos for Corinne. He said Brigitte was not home and so I shook his hand and left. Went to the beach and enjoyed the sunshine and found a fossilized rock. Found a couple of nice shells to take with me. Walked through town in search of new shoes and found a place with great sales. Bought myself a new pair of fancy running shoes with memory foam for €23.60 (60% discount). Bought myself some duck pate and beautiful baguette made from corn a beer and had my lunch back at the room. Heading to Limoges tomorrow and the bus and train schedules were crazy long and more than I wanted to pay. I booked myself into a blablacar ride, which here in Europe is great because it is private car rides for cheap and then you get to see the countryside. I have a direct trip of 3 hours booked for €17 euros. Christy and I used this from Italy to Budapest for €15 each and it was a 5.5 hour drive. Great optional way to get around!Read more

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    Limoges

    February 19, 2017 in France ⋅ 🌙 7 °C

    Caught a blablacar ride this morning with Stephanie and two other girls to Limoges. The ride went quick and I got to see the beautiful country side. It's a nice way to travel. Stephanie spoke French so fast I could only get every fourth word but managed to parlez with her and the other girls. I really had to pay attention and by the time my trip was done my brains were a bit scrambled. I looked around the city for 4 hours and think I've seen everything. It has a really weird vibe here. It is again Sunday and everything is closed including the food stores. Always have to make sure I get groceries for Saturday shopping. Saw the lovely gardens and the city has at least 7 bridges I passed today along the river walk. The Pont de Etienne us where the local women used to wash the linens if the bourgeoisie women until the mid 19th century. Limoges is also world renowned for their porcelain and design. I saw some beautiful pieces in the shop windows today.Read more

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    Limoges and off to Lyon tomorrow

    February 20, 2017 in France ⋅ 🌫 8 °C

    Misty morning do a great day to head to the Museum of Resistance. I don't know much about French history except for Normandy so it was a great way to learn their role in WW2. France like Slovakia was inundated with lots of propaganda but France had more of a resistance movement against the government who was siding with the Nazis and a big underground movement. The resistance broke down telecommunications, smuggled and sheltered Jews and bombed nazi establishments. There were a lot of women involved in the movement acting as spies. After liberation the government became communist. The streets names here in France are dedicated to the people of the resistance. I went to visit the gothic seven story St. Etienne church after and it was bitter cold in there. I could actually see my breath. No going to sleep in mass at that church. Booked another blablacar ride for tomorrow with a young student named Louise. She speaks a bit of English so it should be alright. Heading to Lyon and it will be nice to see the countryside.Read more

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    Lyon-last stop in France

    February 21, 2017 in France ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Misty morning and thought I'd go to the art museum before catching my 3pm blablacar ride. Museum closed! Went for a walk and found the porcelain museum and factory and scoped it out. Super expensive pieces. Bought a couple of small items at another store for about one third the cost. Waited for my ride and there was a problem with the car. Luckily Louise switched cars with her sister and so we were only 1 hour behind. Glitch number two-we fuelled up in Aire de Manzat and 15 minutes down the road Louise remembered she didn't pay the gas bill. So we stopped and she had to contact the gas pump and pay her bill. Another 15 minutes late. The ride all in all was great because we cruised at 130km/hr and we went through two national parks and the Loire Valley. She felt so bad that she dropped me off at my hostel door which was great so I didn't have to walk half an hour. Had my free drink on the house, a Caesar salad with chicken and Dijon mustard and another glass of red from the Rhone region. I met a girl at the bar who is from Montreal who was so happy to see a Canadian that she gave me a few free tastings from the region. Will have to get up early tomorrow so I can get some sites in before I take off to Lausanne Switzerland tomorrow.Read more

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    Lausanne, Switzerland

    February 22, 2017 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Wow how good do I feel to breathe some fresh mountain air. Forty minute walk from the bus to the hostel and the first thing I noticed was no cigarette butts on the ground and no dog crap. Sweet Jesus I'm in heaven. Super clean room with a view of the alps. I feel like I'm back at home. Went for an evening walk down to the lake , the Ouchy district and it was breathtaking. There are boats that go to Evian and other villes. Unlike the French the people speak English and are very proud of their surroundings. Lots of green space. Drove through Geneva which was also very lovely. I can't wait to explore tomorrow and enjoy this pristine beauty. I had a very strange thought walking back from the lake.....what would my life had been like if we had stayed in Switzerland in 1968? Would I have travelled just as much or maybe more? It would fascinate me to go back in time and see what kind of life I may have had here. I do love my home in Canada because it has given me so much, especially the clean air, water and environment.Read more

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    Lausanne to Pully

    February 23, 2017 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Beautiful day today and I didn't even wear a coat. Walked the hilly streets of the city for two hours and then walked down to Lac Leman and along the lake to Pully. I think I broke my new shoes in and my feet weren't even sore-14 km today. Pully was gorgeous with lots of birds and the lake so clean. When I got back to town I went up to the Olympic museum which was amazing. There were lots if photos from the 2010 Vancouver games. The Olympic flame is lit here all the time. I didn't see the displays because it was a little pricy for me. The one thing that is nice about the hostels here is that they give you a free transportation card so you can save in buses and trams and see the city. Heading out to Bern tomorrow for a day and it's supposed to be wet and cold tomorrow. It was the former home of the Bern bears and of Swiss clock making.Read more

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    Bern

    February 24, 2017 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 4 °C

    Beautiful train trip from Lausanne to Bern, and only one hour 26 minutes. The country side and mountains were beautiful. Got into Bern and spent 3 hours roaming around. Very homogeneous here with all the buildings the same colour of communist green. Very weird. Only spending one night here and then heading to Lucerne. Saw five guys swimming in the river today, holy wow, because I was cold in my down jacket. I had to take a picture of them. Super expensive in this city and so glad I groceries yesterday. Very clean but very tourist driven. They have these shops and restaurants that are in cellars underground. What happens when it rains? Where does the water go? Also noticed that there is no wheelchair access to many sites or cathedrals. When I was here 30 years ago they had the Bern bears in a hole in the ground. The girl at reception said they are still here in hibernation but their hole is bigger.Read more

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    Bern to Luzern

    February 25, 2017 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 2 °C

    Brrrr....the coldest morning since December 6th for me. But the sun is shining so I'm happy. Things I love about Switzerland, milk (so fresh tasting and not stripped of all the good things), water from the tap(no taste of chlorine, not cloudy and tastes like mountain water) rye bread and the absolutely on time train system. I've yet to splurge on chocolate and wine. I bought a really cheap beer yesterday and it was excellent. The part of Switzerland I'm in now is more German language than French. I learned that Einstein spent six years here and came up with his theirs of relativity. His comment was that the Swiss people are the most humane he has ever met. They made a museum out if his house. Lucern is very hilly and there is a giant festival going on for five days with music everywhere and people dressed in masks and drinking in the streets. Really high energy. Apparently it is tied in with Easter and Ash Wednesday and the fortification of the city. It is a picture postcard city and stunning. The people are in very good spirits, laughing and drinking, singing and playing great music everywhere. Young and old!Read more

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    Luzern

    February 26, 2017 in Switzerland ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Today was a big walking day for a total of 23km. I started this morning taking a stroll around Lake Rotsee and then made my way through the village of Elikon and then back to my room for a foot rest and my sandwich that I packed from breakfast. At breakfast we did have some pretty aromatic but delicious cheese and a great breaky with two cappucinos, I then set of for Mt. Pilatus, said to have been named after Pontius Pilate, who apparently was buried there. I was going to take the chair to the top but a one way fare was 60 Swiss francs which equals about $80 so I scrapped that idea. I was looking to take more photos of carnival goers but I think they were recovering from yesterday. On my way to Zurich tomorrow and the weather is really standing up for me, with a rainy change for Tuesday.Read more

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    Zurich for a very short stay.....

    February 27, 2017 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

    Gorgeous train ride to Zurich this morning and I managed to catch some of the carnival before I left. People were drinking so early. I talked to a Swiss girl at breakfast this morning and she gave me the facts about fasnacht-wear the scariest masks to scare away winter, bring on spring and growth of new things, along with the celebration of lent. I had the top of the train this morning and what a ride. Zurich is huge and very confusing. The train station is bigger than Vancouver airport and by the time I found my way out and my hostel, which is wayyyyyy out of town it took me an hour and a half and I was completely drenched from sweat. It's very hilly and it was hot. A bit of a high class attitude in this city even with the hostel staff. I'm only staying the night and catching the bus to Salzburg in the morning, bright and early. Home if Mozart, The Sound of Music, bratwurst and beer! Yeah! I had a hell of a time finding beer today and finally did in some small store 2km from my hostel. My liver has been gravely cleansed in Switzerland and after today's walk I just wanted to have a couple of frothy Swiss beers. My bus is only 7 hours with a 1.5 transfer in Munchen Germany, which is good because I can stretch my legs and grab a pretzel or strudel. Looking forward to Salzburg, this city has been on my bucket list since 2008.Read more

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    Zurich to Salzburg

    February 28, 2017 in Austria ⋅ 🌧 3 °C

    What was a 15 degree sunny day yesterday turned out this morning to be 2 degrees and raining. Those carnivalers did not ward off winter because leaving Zurich we hit snow right to the Austrian border. They are just going to have to play more music and enjoy more merriment to bring spring in. I did my good deed for the day and helped a frightened old woman whose phone battery died get in touch with her daughter. She was from Slovenia, I told her my phone was not international but managed to ask a Swiss French guy to use his phone and let her make a call. He was a good sole and the woman was so happy to get in touch with her daughter do she could be picked up. I thanked the man fir his help and she hugged me and kissed me with tears in her eyes for the help. There was an African guy who asked me if I was going to Germany and where he could buy a ticket. Told him usually online but he should ask the driver. Had a funny feeling about him. Well we got to the German border and the police pulled the bus over for an ID check. The Irish people were freaking out a bit and I told them it was normal with the migrant issue and with bomb searches. Behold the African did not have his papers and was taken off the bus. I met a fashion designer on the bus who has contracts with Versace, Louis Vutton and Burberry. We started talking wine and he said he had friends who import wine and I told him I had a friend who was an agent. He was very interested in making Canadian contacts because it would be something new for Switzerland. When we got to Munchen he ran after me and gave me his card. Transferred to a different bus and two hours later I was in Salzburg.Read more

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    Salzburg to Vienna

    March 1, 2017 in Austria ⋅ ⛅ 6 °C

    I managed to see most of Salzburg in three hours. Very beautiful city with lots of music, concerts and opera. My four star hotel that I got for a excellent deal had a bath and I was elated. I found a shop selling bath bombs for 50 cents so I got one for later. The cost of things here is 200% cheaper than Switzerland and do I decided I would eat out tonight. Went to the restaurant in the hotel but they were packed until 9 and I was not waiting until then. I found a great vegetarian place around the corner and had cashew curry pad Thai. I have been craving veggies for a week but with no place to cook or store things I have been without. The food was amazing. I noticed there are a lot of gypsies in Salzburg and they sit on every corner asking for money. The irony is that they are all dripping in gold jewellery and don't have a problem asking for money. Ugh makes me sick.Read more

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    Back in the homeland

    March 2, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ⛅ 3 °C

    I got into Vienna around 2:30 by train and my bus wasn't leaving until 4:30 so I had a few hours to wander. I walked to the Imperial Palace and Karlzplatz and there were so many people everywhere. It was getting late so I caught the underground to the bus terminal where there were some colourful characters and signs everywhere to watch for pickpocketers. Apparently this is a huge problem in Vienna. Caught my €5 bus to the Bratislava airport and the the city bus to my aunts. It was a long day if traveling but it was good to be back in Bratislava. Aunt was pretty happy to see me too. She had made me a chucked dinner with my favourite beer. I haven't eaten chicken in two months. Alas it was laundry time.Read more

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    Taking a break

    March 4, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ 🌬 17 °C

    Day two in Bratislava and am enjoying having my clothes hung up, laundry done and my own room to sleep in. Went to the cottage yesterday and pruned the apricot tree for aunt. It was super windy but warm and I managed very little scrapes and scratches from pruning. Later in the evening we went to the wine museum for dark craft beer and I was thrilled. Nothing compares to Slovak beer, well maybe Guinness. We laughed our heads off as usual. Today it was 19 degrees and so I managed to drag aunt out for a long walk. Milka made homemade sisky, which are Slovak donuts but super light and fluffy. Going to have to watch the caloric intake here so I don't pack on all the weight I lost these last three months walking.Read more

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    80 and going strong

    March 7, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ⛅ 1 °C

    Yesterday was pamper day and I went to the beauty school to chill out. Had a long awaited facial, leg wax, brow and lash tint and the longest haircut ever. I swear the stylist in training was cutting strand by strand. I was there for two hours. All in all it was great to have some pamper time for me and the great thing was that because I was a Guinea pig it was all free. Went by the blue church which was amazing because it was done in a completely unconventional style and was built for the poor. There was a memorial stone erected in front of the church to remember all unborn children. This morning I took the train to Topolcany to celebrate my uncles 80th birthday and his name day. He looks super great for 80 and as usual makes me laugh my ass off. My uncle Milan was also there whom I haven't seen in 30 years (he's 82 now) and he was super funny as well. Not one tooth in his head but he plowed through his lunch like an axe through wood. He only loves red wine and made it known. Some kind of funny family I have. I can see where the humour in my blood came from and can imagine the kind of trouble my father and uncles got into. The restaurant was lovely where we celebrated and food was grand. Took the night train back to Bratislava.Read more

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    Slavin and Devin Castle

    March 14, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    It's already been two weeks since I've arrived and time is ticking away. A few days ago I went up to the Slavin which is a memorial site where over 300 Russian soldiers are buried who freed Czechoslovakia in 1944 and 1945 from the Germans. When I was here in the Communist years there were a lot of red stars and flags here. The door the the memorial shows the story of the freed cities and fallen soldiers. Around the Slavin memorial are where all the foreign diplomats live. Today I dragged my aunt out to the Devin castle. This castle sits on the mouth of the Danube and Morava River and overlooks Austria. It's was built in the 4th century and during the Russian revolution in 1968, 400 people tried to escape to freedom and were gunned down at the mouth of the river. Have not been walking as much in the last two weeks and am getting restless. I started running a week ago to keep myself from going stir crazy and porking out and have a track next door that I can use. Hoping to do a couple of side trips in the next week.Read more

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    Dunajska Streda and Bratislava

    March 18, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    Day trip to Dunajska Streda where the majority of the population is Hungarian. Nice clean little town with a thermal pool about a ten minute walk from the train station and 40 minutes from Bratislava. My aunt didn't tell me about this tidbit of information. Excellent shopping and wonderful bakeries. Bought myself a new bracelet. The architecture of the buildings was very interesting with some Swiss/Germanic and Turkish influence. The area was occupied heavily by the Russians in 1968 and was the base camp for their artillery storage. Spent the next day alone in Bratislava as I needed some quiet time. The day was stellar, sunny and warm. Walked the Danube River walkway, had lunch and people watched. The original old bridge has been closed off and made into a pedestrian walkway which is beautiful and enters Jan Kral park. Along the shores of the Danube are botels with restaurants and micro breweries. Visited with my god mother and learned some new things about our family history and growing up in the CSSR during the war. It's so good to hear this type of history from family.Read more

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    Hainburg on Donau

    March 20, 2017 in Austria ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Took a day trip to Hainburg on the city bus with aunt and neighbour. Wanted to tour the little town a bit on a day that was sunny and warm. There is a national park and castle on the ridge of the town that you could walk to a a beautiful viewpoint of the Danube, town and Slovakia from a different direction. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to do either of the things because my two guests were not in the mood for walking. I'll have to do this on a day by myself. It's only 9km from Bratislava and there is a great flat bike path. Too bad I don't have a bike. Hainburg is lovely and tidy, has an old archway at the entrance and beautifully restored buildings. It is also the birthplace of Joseph Hayden, famous composer. Same composer I listened to at the symphony I attended in December. I found his birthplace when I took a side street on my own.Read more

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    Trencin

    March 24, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Day trip today on the speedy train to Trencin which is in the north west part of Slovakia. It only took an hour and a half to get there but we had to catch the early train so it was rise and shine at 6am. The little city is beautiful and a huge castle overlooks the whole city. Walking to the castle was only a 15 minute walk from the train and the weather was lovely. We took a guided tour because that was the only way we could see the whole castle and had a tour guide who talked so fast, non stop the whole time that I thought I was going to lose my mind. The city had a Roman sign engraved by Marcus Aurelius from the Roman Empire when they occupied Trencin with 885 Roman soldiers. The castle was also inhabited by the Hungarians, German s, Poles, Celts and the Slavs. The celts unified the territory of today's Slovakia and brought currency into use instead of trade. The castle burned down in the early 1700's and has been beautifully restored. There was a 79.2 m well dug but never functioned properly and only provided water when the Vah River was really high. The Vah River had palaeolithic finds of a mammoth 's lower and upper jaw. I climbed up to the bell tower and had a great view of the small city. Had my first hazelnut gelato in the whole time I've been away and it was fabulous. There were some interesting sculptures in the city park and incredible architecture. The region is known for copper works and wine.Read more

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    Sleeping beauty ballet

    March 25, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Culture once again! First row upper balcony seats in the new Slovak theatre (€8 each). At home I'd be paying over $100 per ticket. The orchestra was unbelievable and the whole ballet was performed to Tchaikovsky. The tutus and dress for the ballet was colourful and outfit magnificent. I wondered hue many dressmakers they had in the back to make all those tutu's and costumes. There was one ballet (male) dancer who was so tall and flat footed that he looked like dancing spaghetti and looked really out of place. We had a glass of prosecco at intermission. What a great experience. Next show I'd like to see is the Carmen opera.Read more

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    Afternoon with Natalia and family

    March 26, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    Today I spent the day with my second cousin Natalia, her brother Juraj, his wife Majka, their kids and met her husband Peter. Her mama Marta was there too. Natalia has a beautiful house in Dunajska Luzna a small village 10 minutes from where I'm staying. She picked me up at two and we talked so long that I didn't get home until midnight. Her house is super modern and we joint out in the sunshine in the backyard for a few hours drinking wine. She has four beautiful cats who are her kids. Two of them are Cornish Rex's and so beautiful that I want one when I get home. We had a light dinner with fresh home baking and drank Fernet into the night. I've never had this drink before but it's made out of herbs and drank along side with soda. No headache in the morning with it! We had a great time together.Read more

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    Day away.....

    March 27, 2017 in Slovakia ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C

    Had to get away from my aunt for the day because she was driving me crazy with all her aches and pains and negativity. The bracelet I bought is not helping veer off the negativity but it's so strong so no doubt. I took the bus into town and then decided to take a chance to go see my other aunt in Rusovce and surprise her. Yippee she was home and so we had a light lunch and sat in their little garden and vineyard talking until 4pm. It was 20 degrees and so warm. Had a lovely day with her.Read more

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