Silke's Big Summer adventure the fifth story
I am cat. I am black with shiny fur. I live with my forever human in Spain. I love him. He is a man. Sometimes I sit and stare at him with my big yellow eyes.
I am happy to travel in the car. In fact I like it. My human makes me feel safe. If we are not going far I stand at the dashboard. Or sit in the middle on the armrest, or get on the back shelf. It depends on my mood. If I want to go in the car, I go straight to the back shelf, because my human finds it harder to get me out if he does not want me to go. I bite him if he puts me out of the car.
If we are on a long journey I travel on top of my travel box so that I can see out. My human puts my cat box on the back seat so that I have a cave to hide in.
We have a more than one car, I have my favourite it is an old Mercedes. But I like the red Mustang Convertible too.
Sometimes my human takes me to the fish shop for fish and chips. I wait outside with him then we come home. I try a little bit of the hot white fish. I like it!! He shares some with me! Hmm…. I now like fish! I want my share when he brings that home!
One day he made kippers. I like that a lot.
The spring has come and we have several different lots of visitors. I like them all.
My human has been taking me to a cafe in my harness. I behave and wait while he has a coffee. One day I need the toilet, the nearest is a pot plant before my human realises what has happened I dig and take a poo. There is dirt around the pot where I have dug it out. But I am happy. My human says sorry to the cafe owner who comes out with a dustpan and clears the dirt back into the pot. She is a nice lady.
My Human goes away for a weekend, but it is OK, a nice lady Lesley and her human kitten Caerlan come to stay. I like Caerlan he is a nice human kitten. Kind and gentle with me.
Vicente has 2 human kittens. Saul is OK. Uriel is not, he is rough with me and throws stones. I do not trust him and yowl at him to leave me alone.
We have a party with many people at the house. Too many people for me. Some I know , many I don’t. So I am a grumpy. Rosa the vet comes to say hello to me, I scratch her and growl. She is sad. I remember she stuck a needle in me the last time I saw her and I did not like that. I don't want her in my home.
Then 3 ladies come to stay. They are loud and funny and lovely. Two have come before. They all love my human. They all stay up late, drinking wine and laughing. It is good to have them around my human is happy. So am I ! I have several different beds to choose at night for night time snuggles!
Then out comes my human’s suitcase. He starts to pack. I sleep on his clothes. He is not going anywhere without me.
He takes me to see Rosa and my little passport book is stamped. I am nice to Rosa I am on her territory in her office.
In the evening we all get in the quiet blue car and go to a restaurant by the sea. We sit at a table on a balcony. The owner will not let me sit on a seat but the floor is OK. I am happy. I watch the sea from a safe distance. I like watching the bubbles and waves in the water. The sea smells.
When it is time to go I am on my lead and harness, people in the restaurant point and stop talking watching me on the lead. I don’t care, this is fun for me to explore. In the car park there are stray cats, they are very interested in me. I am not interested in them at all, I want to go home. They can see I am on a lead. One wants to sniff my bottom, I snap round and bash him with a hiss. He leaves me alone. I am a princess they are street cats! How dare he!
The next day a man comes he is very tired he has had a terrible flight from America. He is married to one of the ladies. It is an early night for everyone.
In the morning, my human packs the Mustang with my things, his things and things from the ladies. Meantime the other man packs the Mercedes. I am excited and inspect. I know I am travelling in the Mustang so is one of the ladies. I know we are going a long way too.
The journey is the one I know, with toll barriers, I miaow when the little box squeaks in the car and the barrier goes up. We have to make stops for coffee too. The big trucks sound louder in the Convertible, but my box is in the back and it is cosy and dark so I feel safe and hidden. It is nice to have the lady in the car, and my human and she talk. I come forward and nuzzle and visit every so often. She is amazed at how happy I am travelling in the car. It is hot outside and the car blows cold air at us. I am happy.
Before Barcelona we take a different exit. We travel on 2 lane roads climbing into the mountains. The scenery is beautiful and I notice the air changing, its so fresh. I like.
We stop for coffee and the cars have their smelly drink. My human lets me have a little walk around the car park, but I am scared when a posse of noisy Motorcycles arrives. I get back in the car and hide in my box. I am about to get out of the car after the bikes have gone, when a huge truck stops with its brakes hissing I scurry back into the car and hide in the box. It is my sanctuary cave. I don't like big trucks.
When we drive off I am happy. I come out of the box. We make our way higher into the Pyrenees. We come to the small border town of Puigcerda, we drive through it and we are in France. The scenery is nice. I would like to stop and explore. I stay awake to watch it cruise by. I look over the lady’s shoulder.
Finally after another little town high in the Pyrenees we start to go down, the road twists and turns and sometimes there is a stream rushing along by the road. My human opens the windows enough for me to put my nose out, and I smell the beautiful air with all its interesting smells. I hear the noise of the stream tumbling along beside the road, and the car follows the twisting road, left corner, right corner, left corner, right corner….the road is very twisty we do not go fast. On and on it goes. The lady loves it and is constantly saying Oooh and Aaah which usually in human speak means there is something that they are excited about. I listen. I smell. I love.
We go through a small village then onto a bigger road….it looks familiar to me, then we turn onto the little road that takes us to see the Nice man, the Lady and Athos the dog.
Athos comes out excited to see us arrive, barking and limping, and anxious to stick his nose in the car, I hiss and jump on the roof where he cannot get me. ( what I don’t know is that Athos likes cats, but to me he is big scary noisy and rambunctious). Poor Athos his Arthritis is worse.
The nice man and the nice lady help unload the cars, and there is a smell of cooking in the house. I am in my normal room, I am happy. I can hear the humans laughing and having dinner downstairs. My human comes to bed, and just as we are about to go sleep there is a lot of calling, we rush to the window my human placing me on the widow sill, I can see them. I growl. Wild boar are out in the field next door feeding. I growl. It gets darker and we sleep. It is warm so I do not have to snuggle.
In the morning the humans have breakfast. Then take me for a little walk near the castle ruins. I am happy walking in the woods.
Then we get in the car and drive to a different town. The humans are excited, so I pay attention when we get there. It is an old town called Carcassonne. It is very busy with people.
My human does something he has never done before, he stuffs me, into a rucksack. I miaow and protest. He puts the rucksack on and off we go. I miaow. We are amongst so many people. I go quiet. Eventually we get to a Restaurant and the waitress is amazed to see me and says I am the first cat she has had in the restaurant and I am welcome. I sit in a corner happily. My human keeping watch on me. Some human kittens want to touch me. But they cannot get me as I am in a corner. I don't trust human kittens. So I am happy about that.
After lunch we split up, my human and I going back to the car. I am in the rucksack and complaining. When we get to the car, he lets me out of the rucksack. I have a drink of water. Then we go for a walk. I want to go into the cool bushes and lie down to de stress, and fight my way out of the harness. My human is upset because he cannot follow me. I lie down in the cool of the bushes, my human sits down and waits patiently.
Good. I know I will have to go back to him and the car. He sits patiently waiting. Then starts to give me his special call. I know I will have to go back. He is not far away but far enough to make me want to find him, and we greet each other gently. He puts me back in the harness and we go to the car. The others soon join us.
Then it is back to the nice man and the nice lady and Athos. When we get there I am off the lead and allowed to go for a walk by the little stream. I love it. I am too quick for them all and decide to explore the old mill next door. I smell rats and mice. Interesting. The humans are calling me. I am not coming.
The humans then go round to the front of the old mill near were the cars are parked and call me again. I happen to be going that way. There they are. All calling me. Well this is fun, I flop down in the grass and the evening sun. I look at them. They cant get to me. I will come when I am ready, not before. I am cat. I do what I want. They give up. Then after a while my human comes out ringing my food bowl. Well thats different if it is supper time! I trot happily to him!
The next day we load the cars and say farewells.
A different lady is in the car today with us! We wind along through the mountains. Then onto the big fast roads with the big trucks, and settle down for the very long journey. Only we don't go that far. We come into a pretty, busy town. I can smell we are by the sea. It is called La Rochelle. My human knows where he is going so does the lady in the box on the windscreen. Soon we are at the Hotel car park. We park and go into this nice Hotel. The staff all look at me lovingly. I am happy and miaow.
I am not happy at what happens next. We get in a lift. My human has to pick me up to get in this place that looks like a cupboard but it has lights and a noisy door. The door shuts the lift jerks. The doors open I jump out, but cannot go far as I am on my harness, and I leap again. My human has to put other things down that he is carrying, and catch me. I calm down and he picks the things up and we go to the room. It is a lovely room. I am happy and can relax.
My human goes out with the others for dinner. He comes back later and we sleep.
In the morning the other humans are off to enjoy La Rochelle for the day. So are we.
With my harness on we go in the lift. I don't like it any better than yesterday, when the doors open I leap and leap on my harness. People are astonished. My human calms me down and we make for the front door which opens automatically, I don't like that either but it is the way out, I rush out, as a big bus comes round the corner I like that even less, it sounds and looks like a big truck. I want to run away. My human scoops me up and holds me tight. He makes a turn onto a quieter street and puts me down. I scurry along on my belly, pulling on the harness. We go up the street and then the noise starts. To me it is a screaming sound, truly ugly, terrible and horrible. (its a circular saw in a boatyard) I run the other way. I don't like this place. We go round a corner and there is a park, with peaceful canals. We walk along a peaceful shady path by the canals. Thats better. I relax. I enjoy. But I don't like the joggers running. My human picks me up and holds me. People running always frighten me. But they are soon gone and all is well.
Next we meet a dog, my human has picked me up and the dog is uninterested. We relax and walk on again. I know he will protect me from dogs, which is why he picks me up and holds me tight. It is a nice walk. We come to a bridge. It is busy with traffic, so my human picks me up and holds me tight while we cross. We walk happily along the other side of the canal. Then we come to another bridge, we turn away from the canal. Then I see them. Horses! These are huge ones! My human grabs me and crosses the road, as soon as he puts me down the other side of the road I leap against the harness and pull us down the bank to the canal.I flatten my self below a slight ridge, even flattening my ears so the horses cannot see me and chase me. The horses are walking along pulling some carriages. They are quiet and gentle. I am not happy. As soon as they are gone I pull and take us away so I can hide in some long grass. My human is standing there, my lead disappearing into the grass, when along comes a small dog, my human greets the dog, then the lady who is with it. Then she looks where the lead is going and is quietly amazed that there I am, a cat. She tells my human that her dog does not like cats. The dog has already moved on so with many smiles and waves she departs.
Both of us are tired with the tension now. So we make out away back. The other side of the canal is shady. My human spots dogs before I do and picks me up out of the way. I know he is protecting me. We go round a bend and he hears the dog first and grabs me, but this dog is different, it jumps to get me, huge jaws open, my human turns away to shield me as I swipe at it, It leaps again and he turns another way while putting me up into a tree I have scratched him badly and he is bleeding. The dog tries to leap at me in the tree and I yowl and growl. A little old lady comes running round the corner, she is cross with her dog, surprised at me in a tree on a harness and sees my human bleeding. She is very sorry. She scolds the dog and puts it on a lead, taking it away from us. We wait a while with my human holding tissue to his hand. Then we go to a quiet bench to sit and rest.
This is too much excitement for one day.
We go back to the hotel, and sit in the quiet sunny courtyard in a shady corner. I have bowl of water, my human some lunch and a large beer. We chill out happily for an hour or so.
Then we go up to the room using the stairs, which I prefer and rest. Later my human goes out to dinner with the other humans. We sleep when he gets home. I am happy.
In the morning after breakfast we get in the cars and drive.
I am calm.
We arrive on a beautiful day at Les Etangs de Guibert. We take a walk by the lake. The lake has ducks and geese. The geese are huge and stare at me. There are fish catching flies in the lake, you can see when they do as the surface has little circular rings of waves. I sit and watch the lake. I like it. It is beautiful. The grass is long and lush and I happily trot along with my humans. We all sit down by the lake for a lunch. I am well behaved and like watching the lake. It is beautiful. The humans have a meal they are very happy with. After lunch we all get in the cars and drive to another Hotel. The ladies do not like this one so we drive to another. The rooms are nice and we go for a walk in the garden round a small pond. I am happy just wandering around on my harness, then a large bus arrives, I am scared. My human picks me up holds me tightly and takes me into the Hotel. We go to our room and he feeds me. I am happy here, it is peaceful.
He goes off for dinner. Later we sleep.
In the morning we get in the cars and drive, it is not far to the tunnel. We go to the vet that is not a vet and I am scanned, my passport is checked and off we go towards the checkpoints. The traffic is bad there are many cars. I miaow a lot and prowl around the car, I don't like traffic. Some people point at the cat in the Mustang. They smile. I miaow. I don’t like traffic jams. When we come through another side, a lady separates us from the other cars, leads us to the front of the queue, makes another car reverse, and lets us go in front. Some people are angry with us for jumping the queue. (Actually we have priority tickets called flexi plus and cannot get through the traffic to the flexi plus lane that is why we got priority).
We drive into the train The other humans are loving this, getting in and out of the car. This is new and unusual for them. I am happy in the car, which is not driving but the train is moving. When we get off the other end we cruise happily along the big road. We get off and onto some smaller bumpy roads, English roads are not smooth. We get to a small hotel by a stream. But this is much busier than the one in France. I go up to my room which has a window. I eat and look out of the window. I smell I am in England in the summer and I like it. Everything is so lush and green.
After dinner we sleep. After breakfast in the morning we go down to the cars. We load and go. We go the place with the wooden cabins. We go the same one! I am so happy. I am running and jumping as the car is unloaded, I know this place. I am frisking. My bed and scratching post are unloaded, my dirt box is in the bathroom and my food bowls just where they should be. My human leaves a window open for me to get in and out then the humans go out for a while. My human comes back alone. We sleep.
In the morning there is a window open for me and a plank of wood so I can go in and out. My human goes out.
He comes back in the evening and feeds me.
In the morning he takes me for a walk. The woods are now in full summer lushness there are jungles of bracken. I am jungle cat. It is hot though so I have to find shady spots to lie down and pant.
This place is fun to explore. I am so happy my human does this with me. I feel so safe he will protect me from dogs, and knows where to go. We are never lost and always find the car.
Every day we go to the woods as early in the morning as we can. I am so happy. I love the peace. The birdsong the animal smells. I love the smell of the trees, the soft English grass, which I like to roll on. I love the slightly damp coolness. I smell rabbits and see their droppings. I smell other creatures too.
The only horses we see one day are standing quietly by their horse box. So I am not worried by them.
I meet a black cat who lives next door. His name is Roger. He holds his head on one side and is very shy. I like him. (someone kicked Roger in the head and he nearly died, his owners never found out who did it). We like each other. I don't understand why he holds his head on one side. We don’t fight. We rub noses. I don’t like the white cat who came to see who was on his territory, we had a yowl out at each other, the next time it will be a fight.
We stay at the wooden house. We have visitors from time to time but no human kittens. One day a car comes home with my human. It is old, noisy and peculiar. The back seat is of course comfortable, but when it moves it makes such noise. I do not like it. I wont go in it. The humans seem to love it.
Anther day our Mercedes comes back. I will go in that.
We often walk down to the office and say hello to the people there. They like me. There is a wide open grass space near the office. I don't like crossing that. I don't like open spaces where there is no cover for me to hide under, or trees to climb in an Emergency.
Another day a man comes and fits a cat door for me I am so happy! The plank to the window in the kitchen disappears. I use the cat door straight away I love it. In and out!
Everyone is friendly to me and very soon everyone knows my name. If they know my name, they are a friendly human I discover. I rub and bump them and they stroke me.
When my human comes home at night, I bound out of the bushes and get in the car as he parks the car.
My human drives the very old car away one day.
Then it is time to pack the red Mustang. People come to say good bye. We drive off for the long journey home. I am in the front on my travel basket.
We go through the checkpoints, everyone smiles and talks about me, then we sit in the queue for the train. I miaow, and am restless in the car I don’t like traffic jams! Finally we go to the train but are stopped by a lady. We cannot go on it. We are next to it. I miaow and prowl around the car. I know we should not be stopped here. Then they wave us forward to a different part of the train. This is where small trucks with high roofs come. I didn’t like it. I go in my cat travel box cave and stay there. I am not coming out.
Only when we come out of the train, do I come out.
We drive to Les Etangs de Guibert. We go for a walk by the lake. I come down for supper at the restaurant with my human. I am well behaved. People stare at us. We don’t care. Some smile at us.
In the morning we drive to the beechwood forest. It is peaceful, just the sound of song birds. The leaves are dry and rustle on the ground but are not frozen. We walk for some distance with me trotting along enjoying being free, for I am cat.
Then we get in the car and drive for the day to the nice man and nice lady in the Pyrenees with Athos the dog.
There are other guests tonight. They have come on horses. They are travelling the Cathar trail. I watch them with their horses from the window. At dusk, a pine Marten visits. I growl my most serious growl. It is as big as a large cat and jumps through the long grass. I do not know what it is but I don't like it. Then the wild boar come to eat. Big ones and small ones, but Boar kittens. I growl with menace at them too.
In the morning, we say farewell and drive to the ruins of the old castle. We go for a walk there I love it.
We get back in the car and do not go through the villages to the big road, but back up the mountain road over the top of the Pyrenees. Twisting, turning and climbing. Left corner, right corner, left corner, right corner…..At the top, where the mountain meadows are, we stop again and walk in the pine woods. I love the smells, the fresh air, the joy, the peace.
Then it is back into the car and the long drive home. But we don't go home. We go to a cat prison. Its is a cat cage. I know I have to stay here. I love my human and my heart breaks when he goes How long do I have to stay here? Lesley is here which comforts me a little. But I am sad. What have I done wrong? Why is he leaving me? I look at him as he says good-bye with my head on my paws my big yellow eyes looking up at him, my heart breaking. I don't see him cry as he goes round the corner out of sight. But he does cry.
I spend the night here, and the next day, and the next night, Then he comes to get me. I am grumpy with him, but not for long. My travel box is not in the car. I stand at the dashboard, but don't think we are going home. We are not. We go up and up a very small, twisty mountain road. then to a small mountain house, very high in the mountains.
We go inside and all my things are there. My food. My bed my scratching post. I like this place.
It has a cool cellar too. I like it. There is a window for me to go in and out of.
Strange birds make strange clucking noises outside. They are birds that do not fly much and are quite big. They are guinea fowl.
There is a vineyard next door and we walk in it in the evening. One evening there is a rustle in the grass and just as I am about to pounce on it, a rabbit races off. I land where the rabbit was. I look to see its white tail disappear in the bushes. My human is chuckling. I twitch my tail in anger. I missed. Unlike the one in England in the garden, this one does not want to play. I go to the bushes, and it does not want to come out. My human calls me and I leave it , for now.
A cat comes to try to steal my food one night. I see it off with a lot of yowling , my human comes to see what the fuss is about and comfort me. I take to sleeping above the fridge. I can watch without being seen up here.
An injured big white dog comes to try and steal my food. It is has huge jaws, It has a broken leg. It is starving hungry.
One night my human is out, I am outside when the big white dog surprises me. I cannot get back into the house I race up a pine tree into the branches. It tries to jump and get me, but it cant reach. I will not be its supper tonight. When my human comes home he cannot find me. He calls and calls then comes looking with a light. I miaow and finally he sees me up the tree. I cannot get down. It is too high to jump, the dog went ages ago. I have not learned that cats have to come down trees backwards as that way our claws work. Coming down head first the claws do nothing. I am stuck and frightened. I am so glad he is here to rescue me. He gets a ladder, reaches up and clutches me I don't struggle. I know I am safe. He gets me down. I run happily into the house to eat my food and lick sticky pine resin off my fur.
The summer days go by, we live happily in the mountains. The air is fresh and beautiful.
The Mercedes has come back! I am happy.
Yet I am not happy because I had a fight with the cat that tried to steal my food and I have an abscess. We drive to Rosa in the Mercedes, I have a temperature and must have an antibiotic injection. Ouch. She opens the abscess to to let the fluid out. It is where the cat bit me in the fight. I yowl in protest. I sleep all day very heavily and through the night. In the morning I feel better.
One night the wind is rushing around in the mountains, the skies go dark there is thunder and lightning, it is loud, we are so close to the clouds, and then down comes the rain. We are dry and cosy in the little house. In the morning the smell is amazing, it is so fresh and the rosemary bushes so scented.
Then one day we pack the car and come down the mountain, we come home! I am so happy, I run and frisk, and check out my territory making sure to pee to let the street cats know I am back.
I love my human.
I love my summer adventure.
I am well travelled adventure cat.
I am home.
I drink from the swimming pool.
I sleep.
I dream.
I am cat.