🐰 Buddy’s Journey – Day 4: Bordeaux ➡️ Zaragoza 🏔️

Through the Pyrenees, surrounded by memories of Millie 🌹💜

Day 4 of Buddy’s Journey is complete.

Bordeaux ➡️ Pyrenees ➡️ Zaragoza.

Another huge day on the road.

Another border crossed.

Another incredible collection of memories made.

And another day carrying our beautiful Millie Rose with us. 🐰💜

Today was one of those days that is going to stay with us for a very long time.

We left Bordeaux behind and began making our way towards Zaragoza, taking the longer, more scenic route through the incredible Pyrenees mountains.

And wow…

What a journey.

🏔️ Through the Pyrenees

There really aren't enough words to describe some of the views we saw today.

The mountains were absolutely breathtaking.

Huge peaks rising around us.

Winding roads disappearing around corners.

Little villages tucked away amongst the mountains.

And views that seemed to stretch forever.

There were so many moments when we simply had to stop and take it all in.

It was one of those days where you look around and think:

"Wow… we're actually doing this."

We're really here.

We're driving through the Pyrenees on our way to Spain, with Buddy travelling alongside us and Millie with us every step of the way.

It's quite surreal when you stop and think about it.

🐰 Thinking about Millie

As beautiful as the mountains were, they also brought so many memories of Millie flooding back.

One of the things we kept thinking about today was just how much Millie loved tunnels. 🥹💜

Every time we approached another tunnel, she was immediately on our minds.

I could almost picture her excitement.

I can imagine her asking how long the tunnel was.

I can imagine her getting excited as we drove into the darkness and then waiting for the light at the other end.

It's funny how something so simple can bring back such a strong memory.

A tunnel isn't just a tunnel anymore.

It's a memory of our girl.

And today there were plenty of them.

🎶 Millie's song

At one point during the journey, we put on Millie's song.

Driving through the mountains while listening to it was incredibly emotional.

There were smiles.

There were tears.

There were moments of silence.

And there were so many memories.

Music has a way of doing that.

One minute you're simply listening to a song, and the next you're transported somewhere else entirely.

Back to a moment.

Back to a memory.

Back to a little girl who should still be here.

Hearing Millie's song while travelling through the Pyrenees felt like another little piece of her travelling with us.

And that's something we've felt throughout this entire journey.

Millie is everywhere. 💜

She's in the songs.

She's in the conversations.

She's in the memories.

She's in Buddy.

She's in the photographs.

And she's in every single mile we're travelling.

🐰 Buddy is travelling too

Buddy has become such an important part of this adventure.

She travelled with Millie on so many holidays and adventures during her life, and now she's travelling again.

But this time, she's carrying something incredibly precious.

Millie's mini urn is safely inside Buddy.

So while we're driving through France and Spain, a little piece of our beautiful girl is physically travelling with us too.

That thought brings us so much comfort.

Millie may not be sitting in the passenger seat.

She may not be looking out of the window.

She may not be telling us what she thinks of every mountain, tunnel or village.

But she is still with us.

And knowing that makes every mile feel just a little bit more special.

📱 Bringing you along

Today we also managed to live stream parts of our journey over on TikTok, which meant some of you could come along with us for a little while.

It was lovely seeing people popping in, watching, commenting and sharing the journey with us.

Sometimes we're sitting in the car looking at these incredible views and it feels like we're experiencing them on our own.

Being able to share little pieces of the journey makes it feel like we're bringing a little bit of home with us too.

So, even though we're thousands of miles away, it was lovely knowing that people were watching along as Buddy travelled through the mountains. 🐰🚗💜

Hello, Spain!

And then came another exciting moment…

We reached Spain! 

After days of driving through France, we had finally crossed into Spain.

That moment felt huge.

We had gone from Dover, across the ferry to Dunkirk, through France, past Rouen and Bordeaux, and now through the Pyrenees and into Spain.

One of the biggest parts of our journey was suddenly becoming very real.

Benidorm was getting closer.

And although we still had more driving ahead of us, we could finally say:

We're in Spain! 🇪🇸❤️

🥔 The Spanish snack challenge

Of course, we couldn't arrive in Spain without investigating some of the local snacks! 😂

We picked up some Spanish crisps and other treats to try along the way.

Because obviously, every road trip needs a snack challenge. 😂🥔🍫

Now we just need to work out which ones are actually worth buying again!

Some might become firm favourites.

Others might end up being a very definite "never again." 😂

It's these little silly moments that make a journey memorable too.

Not everything has to be emotional.

Sometimes you just need to sit in the car, eat some strange crisps and laugh.

And I'm sure Millie would have had plenty to say about our choices!

⛽ The expensive fuel mistake!

Then came one of those classic road-trip moments.

The fuel stop. 😳⛽

We needed to fill the car up, so we pulled in and paid a rather painful...

€2.25 PER LITRE! 😱💸

Ouch.

And then we discovered something that made it even worse.

Just across from our hotel was another service station selling fuel for around €1.60 per litre!

🤦‍♀️😂

Typical!

If only we'd waited a little bit longer.

That's one of those things you can only laugh about afterwards.

Lesson learned:

Always check the next petrol station before filling up! 😂⛽

🛣️ Taking the scenic route

Throughout this journey, we've been trying to avoid the toll roads and take the longer, more scenic routes instead.

It does mean that our driving days can take a little longer.

Sometimes quite a bit longer!

But today proved exactly why we've chosen to do it this way.

If we'd taken the quickest possible route, we wouldn't have seen anywhere near as much of the Pyrenees.

We wouldn't have travelled through those little mountain villages.

We wouldn't have experienced those winding roads.

And we wouldn't have had so many moments where we could simply look around and appreciate where we were.

Sometimes the slower road gives you the better memories.

And today, every extra mile was worth it.

💜 This isn't just a road trip

The further we travel, the more I realise that this isn't simply a road trip.

It's Millie's journey too.

Every mountain we see.

Every tunnel we drive through.

Every song we listen to.

Every laugh.

Every tear.

Every photograph.

Every silly snack we try.

Every unexpected moment.

They're all becoming part of this story.

A story about a little girl who should be here experiencing all of this herself.

A little girl whose life was far too short.

A little girl who left behind so much love.

And a little girl whose memory is now travelling thousands of miles with us.

🌹 One more day closer

Eventually, we arrived in Zaragoza.

Another destination reached.

Another long day complete.

We were tired, but there was also that feeling of achievement that comes with looking back at how far we've travelled.

Just a few days ago we were in Dover.

Now we're in Spain.

And we're getting closer and closer to the place that holds so many memories for us.

Benidorm. 💜

Tomorrow brings another day of the journey.

Another road.

Another adventure.

And another opportunity to make memories with Buddy while keeping Millie's memory right at the heart of everything we do.

DAY 4 — COMPLETE! ✅

Bordeaux
⬇️
🏔️ The Pyrenees
⬇️
Zaragoza

One more day closer to Benidorm.

One more day carrying our beautiful girl.

One more day of Buddy's adventure.

And one more chapter in a journey we will never forget.

Millie, you are with us.

In every mountain.

In every tunnel.

In every song.

In every mile.

And always, always in our hearts. 🌹💜🐰