OLD FRIENDS & COINCIDENCES

The Great Outdoors Under Cover

On Saturday we were sitting outside in the G.O.U.C. (the Great Outdoors Under Cover), as the gazebo/patio is called, awaiting the arrival of our Spanish guests. The big back gate was open as my husband had just arrived back to Daisy Cottage after a trip to Killybegs.

So we sat there chatting and enjoying the afternoon sunshine when suddenly a lady whizzed in the back gate, ran into the house calling my name, swiftly followed by the arrival of two cars into the adjoining yard.

I said to my husband 'I think that's J...' (a lovely lady who once taught me - or tried to - over 20 years ago!). Puzzled we stepped forward to see what was going on, it being all slightly comedic. The people got out of the cars and they were our Spanish guests. The lady (J) appeared back out of the house where she had been calling my name. It was just lovely to see her and we hugged and said a big hello whilst the Spanish people stood watching. I assumed the Spanish guests were friends/relations of hers. Wrongly, it turned out.

J. had been in the village butchers doing some shopping and one of the Spanish guests had gone in to ask directions to Daisy Cottage, mentioning my name. And J said she'd show them ~ in small villages everyone knows everyone which is what makes them special. It seems she lives just around the corner from Daisy Cottage though I had not realised. And wasn't it a great coincidence that the Spanish guest wandered into the butchers just at the moment someone who knew my name was there.

It was a great ice breaker for our new guests and we all had a giggle about it. J.then waved them goodbye and wished them a happy holiday. Just as the rain started! But they were such a happy crowd I'm sure a drizzle of Irish liquid sunshine wasn't going to ruin their holiday.

And after spending half an hour or so showing them round and how to use the various equipment, my husband and I left them to it. And I got lots of kisses from them. I've said it before, and I hope I will say it many times into the future, but I just love our Daisy Cottage guests!

And speaking of lovely guests, last weeks, as have others, left the house gleeming ~ they even cleaned the oven and washed all the downstairs floors ~ a job I had said I hated while they were admiring the black and white tiles on arrival. How nice was that! They called themselves the 'Daisy Cottage Gang' and they were yet another group brilliant guests to Daisy Cottage.