The week I spent in France was definitely a trip of two halves. The first few days were spent in a place called Villefavard, somewhere between Paris and Bordeaux. The weather was mostly dull, rainy and not particularly warm. Also, a reliable source told me that it looked just like Norfolk in England, which is very pleasant, but you wouldn't have thought you were in the middle of France if you'd only seen photos of it. You can see the lovely view from my bedroom in one of the photos below. Because of the weather, I spent most of the time inside relaxing, except for one morning when I had a nice stroll past a small lake and along a quiet path through a wood.

The second half of the week was spent about 120 miles west in Saintes, not too far from the famous tourist destination, La Rochelle. This was much more like it. It was a typical French town with a beautiful blue-green river, a huge food market full of fresh cheeses, wines, fruit and things, and lots of narrow streets densely populated with all sorts of shops. In contrast to Villefavard, the weather was permanently sunny and warm. I got to hear a couple of great outdoor concerts that my friend was performing in, and spent some time with him and some of the other musicians afterwards.

It was my first time in France and I'd seen two very different places. Saintes, particularly, was a wonderful place to be. The scenery was great and the relaxed culture of these European towns made the week really chilled and relaxed. It's always a shame to leave such glorious surroundings, but home is always a welcome place to return to.

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