So it is definitely high-season at our flat at the moment. Two days after Jutta and Sebastian left Dianne and Rick from Perth turned up for just about two weeks. They arrived on Thursday and the very next day we were off to Paris for the bank holiday weekend. I returned on Monday afternoon to Benny waiting for me in the station. Paris was great fun. We stayed a friend who is currently working there. We squished into his one bedroom flat just a 5 minute walk to the Champs Elysees. We were shown a few places only the locals would know. On Sunday we headed to the castle Versailles. Our friend had kindly pre-booked tickets thinking we would skip the queue. How wrong were we. We lined up in the chilly breeze for over an hour watching all the sneaky tourists trying to cut the line. The tricks they use such as taking group photos continuously along the line, skipping a few spots each time. It was quite entertaining. Once in the castle we were like a tin of sardines. The French really don't know how to manage crowds. As we entered each room we could hardly see anything due to the number of people. The best move we made was leaving the castle and exploring the grounds. While we were exploring we came across Marie Antoinette Summer House and a quaint little village designed in 1700s.
On Di and Rick's return on Wednesday we had a night at home and enjoyed a home cook meal and a game of Settler of Catan. As nice as French food is it is very rich. We made a tasty stir fry and I perfected my bread and butter pudding. I would like to add that I am spending a bit more time in the kitchen. On Saturday we hopped on a train out to Windsor to see Em and Sam plus take a wander around Windsor Castle. Windsor Castle was very impressive in comparison to Versailles. It wasn't over crowded and each room had a friendly person to answer any of our questions. It is such a beautiful castle. Sadly we didn't get a glimpse of her Royal Highness. Em booked the best Indian we have tasted since living here. It is only four doors up from Em and Sam's flat in a very, very old Tudor building. I wouldn't be surprised if the building is older than Australia. On the Sunday, Dianne and I snuck in some lady time and we walked around the shops and had a lovely lunch in my favourite store, Liberty of London. That night we had a picnic in Putney Common with another friend of Rick's from Perth.
On Dianne & Rick's last night we went to one of our favourite little places, Ben's Canteen on St Johns Hill. It was two for one cocktail night. The food was yummy and the cocktails very tasty. Ben's new favourite drink is a Bloody Mary. It was very sad saying goodbye the next morning. It was so nice to have them stay with us. It was also nice of Dianne to top up my gluten free supplies I'm missing from Australia like gluten free version of oyster sauce, vegemite, and corn tortillas.
