Only 6 Days To Go

Do you know any old gentlemen who made themselves look foolish by becoming infatuated with a girl young enough to be their daughter? I don't... but I'm told they exist. I'm talking of behaviours where the gentleman starts to take extra care with his grooming... starts doing a bit more exercise in the hope of trimming his body into shape... starts buying hair product so he can comb his remaining hair over bald spots... all his conversations curve around to end up talking about the attractiveness of the girl in question... he keeps watching other girls so that he can compare their features with the object of his infatuation.

I have to confess that my behaviour is showing some of those characteristics... where the object of infatuation is NOT a girl... but a new car. The car I just can't get out of my head is no other than the Peugeot 208. Just writing the name gives me cold shivers down my spine. Every car we pass on the street gives an involuntary response of turning to discover its make and model... behaviour that has caused me to be bump into oncoming pedestrians. I see a white Peugeot 208 and fantasise what a red one would look like. I know a man of my years should not be thinking these thoughts. A man of my years should be drawing up spreadsheets comparing the lifetime cost of a Volvo versus a Toyota... not imagining the quietness of the Peugeot ride... the economy of engine turning off when the car comes to a stop... or the smooth handling on rough mountain roads. This car is too young for me... I feel foolish getting so excited at its imminent purchase.

The purchase arrangement is one where the French government waives sales tax on purchases made to foreign tourists. The car-maker (in my case, Peugeot) offers to repurchase the vehicle at a guaranteed price at the end of an agreed period. For the tourist, he/she gets a new car on terms that are competitive with normal car rental arrangements. Friends have recommended this arrangement, so it is a tried formula... and only 6 days to go... I wonder what GPS system is installed... I wonder if fuel economy is better than 5 ltrs/1,000 klms... I wonder if it has electric handbrakes... I wonder, how I wonder...

We are now in Venice... still trying to figure out what the place has to offer. We'll take a guided tour tomorrow morning to locate the points of interest... then spend the next couple of days examining them in detail.