A week of wanderings...

I mentioned in a previous post that I was going to be looking after Ada and Gabriela's two little dogs while they travelled to Melilla, North Africa, where Gabriela will be at University over the coming year.

When some people hear the term "six pack," they think of beer; others think of strong abdominal muscles. I think of this pack of six canines that I walked all over town, across the countryside, through the forest and up the mountain for a whole week. Those little dogs were well exercised and when Ada got home she said they looked as if they'd built up some muscles. They'd walked 40 miles (65 km) over the course of the week.

You'd think that managing six dogs (transporting them in my tiny car, walking them on-lead in the town and wandering off-lead in the forest) would be a challenge, but actually it was amazing to see how the spirit of "the pack" set in, making the whole group very sociable, obedient and happily amenable. We must have formed quite a sight, but it turned out to be pretty easy to take six dogs for a walk at the same time.

A different kind of wandering happened when I got word from my friends who lead KKI in Taiwan. Together with their grown up family, they were spending a few days' holiday in the south of Spain and asked if we could meet up somewhere. In the end, we decided to meet in Ronda, a town high in the mountains that is famous for its spectacular bridge spanning a deep gorge. We had a nice Spanish-style lunch together, and then we wandered around the quaint streets of Ronda's old town for a bit.

Just getting to Ronda took me on quite a circular tour of Málaga Province  and it gave such an overview of the vast variety of landscapes here in Andalucía. Driving to Ronda (upper route on the map below) I was passing through olive country, bull farms, endless stretches of dry, ochre-coloured fields on either side of the road. Coming home again (lower route on the map) I was winding my way among craggy mountain peaks, strange rock formations, and mile upon mile of green forests. What a beautiful place I live in!

When I wasn't wandering the countryside with dogs or friends, last week's schedule included some intense but fruitful meetings - mostly KKI related - as we planned for our upcoming European conference, worked to clarify our international training guidelines (curriculum for PCYM), and met to talk about the Switzerland PCYM in particular.

Heavy thunderstorms and torrential rains have hit us here for the weekend (having already caused flooding and burst river banks in other parts of the country) so there won't be much wandering happening over the next two days. It looks as if it will be a time for staying indoors, writing, reading, and perhaps watching a movie or two. (Today I turned my TV on for the first time since April.)