Housesitting in Southeastern France (Laffrey Part 1)
Date: September 15, 2018 – September 16, 2018
Location: Laffrey, France
In May, I saw a housesitting ad for two dogs in September. One is an Australian Shepard and the other is a Boarder Collie. We were fortunate to be chosen to take care of the two dogs. I was looking forward to watching the dogs because I had an Australian Shepard in high school.
Atomic – My Childhood Australian Shepard
In June 2001, I went with my father to look at a litter of Australian Shepards. We liked the one with four white paws and a brown ring above each one. We brought her home and I named her Atomic.
Everyone in the family cross-country skied, and the skis I raced on were Atomics, so that is how she got her name. Atomic went on runs in the forest with me.
Guarded my room
and she was always ready to play Frisbee. When I moved out of my parents’ house, she stayed there as she had a huge yard to run around in.
As she got older, she got some grey hair on her face. She also started to move slower.
On November 25, 2017, Atomic was over 16 years old and my father had to make the decision to put her down. She was in so much pain. In the end, he had to help her to get up, and when she walked, he could tell it was painful for her. When she passed away, she did give him a sign by wagging her tail, something she hadn’t done in a few years. Atomic is greatly missed.
After months of waiting, the time for the housesit arrived. We were able to spend six nights with Niki, who is six years old.
And Niki’s son Ouzo, who is two years old.
When we arrived, Karine and Christophe welcomed us into their home. They were not leaving until very late the following day, so we had a whole day to spend with them and the dogs. In the morning, Karine and Christophe drove us down to Vizille and we went to the Museum of the French Revolution.
The museum is located in Château de Vizille.
The museum didn’t open for another 30 minutes, so we walked around the garden to kill some time.
It was nice having few people around. There were many birds and geese on the grass and in the water.
The garden is connected to a nature reserve. We saw a deer with large antlers.
We went into the Museum of the French Revolution and were able to go out on the terrace and look out at the garden.
It is a beautiful area.
