While couriers S and G wend their way south through France, Spain and Portugal, couriers J and M head off in more or less the opposite direction. First stop: Switzerland.
Pablo and Lola
We delivered delightful tiny greyhounds Pablo and Lola to Dominique and family in the heart of Lugano, in Switzerland. The family is spending the summer here before returning to London.
The children were thrilled to have Pablo and Lola back in their arms
Amazingly convincing trompe l’oeil spotted in Lugano
Bruce
After climbing what felt like endless hairpin bends, we reached the top of a mountain near Modena in Italy to collect champion Pembroke Corgi Bruce from Vittoria. Handsome Bruce is on his way to Australia via the UK.
Bruce enjoys the view from our hotel window
What a cute look!
In Germany we handed Bruce over to courier Rickie, who’s taking him to the UK to catch his flight to Oz
A night in Parma
Traffic jams, twisty mountain roads, diversions and the Gotthard Tunnel — after a challenging day on the roads, we turned to Booking.com to find a hotel room in Parma. And we were in luck! The Locanda Abbazia had one suite left at an irresistibly low price. And it turned out to be a stunning place to stay.
The hotel is on the top floor of this rather magnificent building. In the centre is a contemporary art gallery featuring sculptures, drawings, posters and paintings; exhibits are also displayed in the gardens.
A small, lively restaurant serves home-made, locally sourced food. On sitting down at our table, we enjoyed a glass of rather superior Lambrusco, the local wine, along with Parmesan cheese nibbles. We asked for balsamic vinegar and oil to dip our bread, but were refused! On the grounds you should never mix the two, and should certainly never use Modena balsamic for that purpose. Well, you learn something every day!
The impressive Locanda Abbazia
The sculpture garden
We were surrounded by fields of plum tomatoes
Gia and Olli
From Italy we crossed the border into France to collect gorgeous Ridgebacks Gia and Olli from their summer residence in the Nice area. This mum and daughter travelled with us last month from Sweden, and are now on their way back to Stockholm.
Very relaxed passengers Gia and Olli
Coffee and cows in Gruyere
The amazing view from our motorway coffee stop. It’s a far cry from Clackett Lane Services on the M25!
The local cows were all done up in their Sunday finery
Lining up to be milked? No, admired!
Happy News
Great to see them reunited.
I like them colorful cows. Bruce is so cute!
Not quite what we’re used to at a service station! Bruce is seriously cute 😀
Oh what beautiful photos yet again………!! The cows are wonderful – – – and so is Bruce!
Hugs, Sammy
I love corgi’s, safe travels.
We’re rather in love with Bruce
I love the views of the countries you travel through. Bruce is so sweet!