Friday. It was an interesting start to the day. In the early hours of the morning, Pierre-Alain and Pauline had become grandparents once again to a little boy, Anthony, brother to Luca. It was all very emotional. Pierre-Alain had to go to work but Pauline had taken the day off to be with us. She was the perfect host.

While she visited her new grandson she had arranged for us to go to the baths at Lavey de Bains- the hottest natural thermal water in Switzerland. It was beautiful and just what we needed. There were lots of different pools for swimming, relaxing and chilling out. There were Turkish, Finnish and regular saunas. There were rooms with aroma therapy, music therapy and visual (chromatic) therapy. Many of the pools had pipes under the water and spilling into the pools where the volume was so incredible they were perfect for massaging the neck, back, thighs, calves… Oh dear… it was heaven. We really felt amazing when we left. Pauline had provided us with two towels and a bath robe each and we really appreciated them as we had to leave the indoor areas to travel between different pools and sauna areas. It was heaven.

Afterwards we visited a type of department store. The lunch was amazing. It was a type of cafeteria however definitely nothing like it at all at home. Everything was fresh and the choice was mind-boggling. I had a plate of freshly cooked vegetables. John had schnitzel, potatoes and salad and Pauline had pasta which she chose as well as a sauce that she concocted and had made there on the spot.

We wandered around the department store where Pauline had to pick up a few things and I got a card and gift bag for the present that I had bought the baby at Cotton Tree markets. It is always a challenge to get something that is actually made in Australia…shame it was a giraffe!!! Never mind, I did suggest the woman make cloth rattles for babies representing Australian animals. Could have fallen on deaf ears though!!!

We visited Villeneuve where we walked along the lake side and then indulged in coffee and cake. Our next port of call was a second-hand shop as Pauline was on the look-out for a sofa for the chalet. It was great. She was a bit worried that we would want to do something else but we were fascinated with everything in the store. I actually picked up an electrical cord for my computer for one Swiss Frank…bargain!!!

Our day wrapped up with a wonderful family dinner of a delicious seafood curry. Our hosts were amazing.