Melanie (Heidi) & Vincent are in the region for a holiday and we are lucky enough to be invited to their family cabin high in the hills of the Savoie region. Melanies father is cooking lunch for us and this is to be a treat for all, his oun produce grown on the farm including the fillet of beef and cheese made from the milk from his cows. Rod is beside himself with enthusiasm and none of us can believe that he and Marc have in depth conversations, one speaking English and the other French!!!!  
 
Vincent drives us up & up further and further into the hills from the family farm, the views are incredible, Heidi sitting next to me is really happy to show us her hills its a very special time for us all. We park the car and wander to Grange de la Plume - the cabin admiring a couple of other cabins on the way that are only used as holiday places, Marc is the only farmer that brings his girls (cows) to the hills for their summer vacation. They are incredibly calm and just stand or sit around when you go up to them.

Lunch is served and its delicious, I am lucky enough to have the best view from the table straight out the door overlooking the hills and valley below, I could stay here for a few days and just breath in the fresh air and read a book to just be and relax. There is a problem with wolves here and they are protected in France - farmers are not allowed to kill them and the population is getting out of hand and they are killing stock..... After lunch is finished we have visitors hiking and a friend of Marc's that's in the mountains for the day mushrooming, there is intense conversation about mushroom recipes and I gather also about the best spots for getting the mushrooms, I suspect its bit like guys talking about fishing spots at home - its out there but not quite exactly telling where!!! We feel reluctant to leave this beautiful place and head back down to the farm the Melanie's brother runs where he milks his cows in the old fashion way, we get a bottle of the fresh milk straight from the cows to take away with us. This is the REAL France and we are so thankful to Melanie, Vincent and her family for taking time out of there day and spoiling us. It really is the people you meet along the way that make the journey when you are travelling, the hospitality and generosity that we have been shown in France has been hard to accept at times as we have been incredibly spoilt.