What's with the French and dogs...

Tuesday, September 19. Cool, warming, windy, warmer again.

A good sleep by most reports, we have settled down to life aboard methinks.

First off was walk around the upper ramparts of this walled city. I may have stated that the walls went up around 1240. It is 1.8 kilometres around in rectangular shape. I thought that it was a wonderful example of mason art that has stood the test of time. Some areas are obviously repaired but who knows how many hundred years ago.

Lunch for us was a pizza and a drink in some crowded sidewalk cafe where we watched dogs and people parade by. By the way, in an effort to be fair, today we had jovial French waiters. Great morning.

Next was walk back to our floating palace where we changed and went for a bike ride down to some unpronounceable town where we gazed upon the Mediterranean. Fro there we could see out hotel where we spent to first two nights in France some few days ago. It goes to show how small a distance we are travelling on the boat in 14 days.

Back home, some of us were recovering from tender bums from the ride but all in all it was great to get out into the countryside. I figured maybe we rode 14 or 15 Ks at the most today.

Regarding dogs. Remember this is not a rant, it is an observation and a conclusion, or at least my thoughts on the matter.

We have had three or four dogs in our ( Fellette and my married life). One was an indoor dog, the rest outdoor. We also had three children and we had dogs and kids at the same time. All the dogs died but the kids grew up and moved away and have their own lives.

We do not need to have another child around us to fulfill our life, nor a dog (or cat).
I love kids and I enjoy dogs, in their place and their place to me is not in a motor home, nor boat, nor when going shopping or out for a coffee or a meal.

I try to figure what makes people need, or want, to incorporate a dog into their mature adult life. Both boats either side of us last night had dogs aboard. Two nights ago the boat in front of us had an adult couple, a mastif-like hound the size of a goat, a cat and a young child. What am I missing?

Today while walking the ramparts there was ample evidence that some person thinks that it is just fine to let their cute little shitszu dog do it's business on a three foot wide walkway and stroll off! Vive La France!

Some shots taken today...