Curious Incidents of a Flailing Mermaid

The Vineyards Of Montpellier

I've just arrived in Montpellier, which means I've actually caught up with my travelling buddies - I don't know how! Determination and speed, I guess.
As I write this, I'm sat in the reception of the hostel   everyone else is staying in. For some reason, the guy on the desk didn't believe I'm due to be staying here. Tricky. Thankfully, though, I've just spotted Lyn's a Witchy Woman (my friend who organised this whole trip) coming down the stairs. As soon as she saw me, she just rolled her eyes and shook her head. She's been waiting for me, I imagine. Good ol' Lyn sorted the reception staff out straight away. I've never been happy to secure a bed!

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The rest of the group was getting ready to head out for the morning when I arrived. But after fitting in four days of trips into just two days, I needed a few hours rest. As I went upstairs to dump my stuff I was greeted by cheers and hugs. Although, many of the guys said they were worried about me. I glared at Andy~hating university : I had sent him a text to tell him I was on the way. He clearly forgot to pass that message on! He merely smiled and shrugged.

Just before the others left for the morning, someone dropped a large journal in my lap. Since we're all writers, they had all been documenting the trip as they went; with everyone contributing something each day. I was told to read and catch up on their antics.

I have spent the morning lying by the hostel's pool reading through stories of the group's last few days. It was a fun read. Someone had even gone to the effort of bringing shed loads of stickers and coloured pens with them to decorate the journal. I can only imagine that this was Spookifish - Happy Halloween! !

Everyone was back in time for a spot of lunch before we headed off to a 3.5-hour wine châteaux tour from Montpellier. It was lovely to catch up with everyone. However, I must say, I spent most of the meal contemplating how much mischief I could cause and who I could cause it with

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Our wine tasting tour included: Visiting the vineyards of two magnificent châteaux wineries and sampling a variety of beautiful red, white and rosé wines with expert-led tastings. I think it is fair to say that I did more of the latter than the former.

I took some photos of the vineyards and surrounding areas (see below), but then managed to talk Andy~hating university , Fivesixer's Bloody Stumps , Sally and Spookifish - Happy Halloween! into staying in the bar. We tested a LOT of wine. I don't know what I can say about this. Ordinarily, I don't even like wine. But oh the hilarity! We decided to stop drinking when Sally very nearly fell off her stool. Time to be sensible!
I will say, however, it was quite nice to take a trip back in time and (try to) discover the heritage of the Languedoc region through various tastings.

On the bus back to the hostel, Elycia Lee ☮ was looking through her photos on her camera and I kept hearing her sigh very loudly. I suddenly realised it was because, every time she'd tried to take a picture, I'd managed to get my face or hand in the shot, without her noticing. I giggled about it, but I do feel slightly bad.

For dinner, we went to the empanadas club, which was emblematic of Argentina. The empanadas were delicious – as were the Argentinian cocktails (virgin, of course). The meal was excellent: full of chatter and laughter. I felt right at home.

Some of the others were talking about going to a nightclub, but I reminded them that the Olympic Opening Ceremony was on tonight. So, we headed back to the hostel and took over the Communal area to watch Rio kick off their games. Indeed, I'm writing this as we watch the athletes enter the stadium