Wokingham and Portsmouth

Tuesday May 8, 2018

Ray was up early and off to the chiropractor for some treatment on his neck. He has been in agony over the past couple of days with a really sore neck and despite hot and cold treatments, some gentle stretching, and trying not to aggregate the sore parts, he was making little progress. When he came back he was much more mobile and we soon set off in our little rental car for Portsmouth. Thanks to Toby I had downloaded an app called “Waze” and we used that to find our way. Directions in Canada are so straightforward compared to directions in England. Here the roads are windy, lots of roundabouts, cross roads, and therefore lots of directions to follow. Waze was fantastic! Gave us good warning of the turns, told us about upcoming potholes and other obstructions, and we never once went off route! Thanks Toby!!

We found our way easily to Camille and Stephen’s place in Hilsea and it was lovely to see them again as we hadn’t seen them since 2009 either! Camille was one of my friends from my days in Montreal, and it never ceases to amaze me how we can not see each other for a number of years and then when we get together it is as if we had never been apart, we haven’t missed a beat!

At the moment they are staying in a rental house. They have moved up from Cornwall and bought a new house about 10 minutes away, so over we went to take a look. They are having a bunch of renovations done and just can’t wait to move all their stuff into their new home. Ray and I have a very good understanding of how they are feeling!! The new house will be stunning when the renovations are done, and the gardens are a perfect example of a designed garden exhibiting an array of colourful flowers all year round. I think there is just about every plant I know in the garden, plus an awful lot more I don’t know!!

Camille and Stephen have a beautiful little Sheltie called Gemma who we also saw in 2009. Gemma is now 15. She is very delicate, but still moves well, enjoys her food, and loves cuddles!

We spent the evening chattering and catching up and fixing a few of the problems in the world before rolling into bed and sleep.