Bill decided we would go back to Calais avoiding the tolls to make the most of the scenery. The scenery was amazing - sunflower fields, corn bales, blue sky and chateaux. The city of Blois was a lovely surprise. It was so beautiful with so much to see, our 30minute stop off didn't really do it justice. Good job we didn't give in and stay for longer though as we only made it to Calais with about 10mins to spare! There was a heart stopping moment when we we...

Another of France's deservedly 'most beautiful villages.' We had fun pushing the buggy down (and not up!) the steep narrow streets. Seems the vast majority of this village is for sale - count me in! We had our tastiest and most reasonable patisserie so far, sitting staring down at the stone houses and glistening river below. 

There are loads of festivals going on in the Limousin during the summer. We were thrilled to see that we would be there in time for the Crozant Medieval festival. It made for a super day - lots of people dressed up, great medieval grub, 1 euro medieval wine, Medieval acting, singing, dancing and a horse and costume filled Medieval parade. Crozant was the perfect backdrop. Tired from the festivities, we spent the evening having a BBQ in the amazing garden wonderla...

A world class zoo with pandas, lemurs, manatees and orangutans all in the same place! How could I possibly resist?!! My kind husband and easily convinced small child were very obliging and a 2 and a half hr journey later (apparently it was close!) past happy fields of sunflowers we arrived. The zoo was crowded but absolutely excellent! I'd never seen such a good selection of animals. Their enclosures were superb, lots of space and a generally lovely feel abou...

The nearby Sedelle valley was once an inspiration for the Impressionists. Fred gave us some super suggestions for walking in the valley. We followed the Artists path through the Sedelle Valley towards Crozant and back. The shaded forest and bubbling river were very welcome in the blistering heat. We were given a quick lesson in crayfish catching when we spotted some pond dippers. Definitely a must for when Isaac's a bit older! Boil them up and dip them in som...