By now you’re thinking ‘surely it can’t all be blue skies and sunshine?’, but it’s true that so far we really haven’t had any significant problems. Certainly sometimes even the simplest things have taken a bit of working out: Who can sell us a post pack? (not the Post Office) or Where can we get a photocopy done? (at the bar around the corner, of course), or even What is that unusual cut of meat? (ah, it’s horse).

At times it’s been frustrating but we’ve also had lots of very funny moments; like flagging down a police car instead of a taxi, or trying to buy band-aids at the pet shop (it’s a long story), or inadvertently ordering the wild boar for lunch instead of the fish. In the end it’s all a matter of perspective; if no one ends up being arrested, we don’t go home with horse bandages and the wild boar is actually delicious, then we’re doing well.

And in this country where the road workers are artisans and the local pharmacist smokes while conferring with a customer, every interaction is an experience to be embraced and – frequently for us – just another reason to smile.