Day 782 (Wednesday) 31^st July 2019

I was feeling slightly better this morning so Huw kindly gave me a lift to school on Kisbee. By the time we got there I regretted my decision, as I was hurting again but not too bad. I think Melissa was happy to see me as she said that she and Helena struggled a bit yesterday. We divided the classes into three levels and it all went well but I was surprised when Marsha told me that all six Armenians are finishing tomorrow so Friday will be quiet and we’ll only have two levels to deal with and then it’ll all be over – HOORAY! William phoned me and asked if I could work the last week in August with one student studying for the IELTS exam. I dearly wanted to say no but felt that I couldn’t so I reluctantly agreed to doing an hour and a half for four days. I know it’s not much but working the morning in Nice will bugger up all those days. I did tell that I won’t work on the 27^th because it’s my birthday. How come the whole of France gets August off except me? Huw picked me up at the bottom gate and we got a new view of Nice.

As I keep saying it’s not the prettiest part of the city but the mountains in the background look good.

We got to Beaulieu with half an hour to spare before starting with a new student and her daughter so we sat outside a café to get an icy cold Orangina. The décor was shabby chic (or maybe it’s just shabby)

After waiting for over ten minutes to get served we gave up and left. My new student is named Odile and her 14-year-old daughter is called Sarah. The plan is to work with Sarah for an hour and then half an hour with Odile who just wants to sing songs in English. She is entering a singing competition in Nice and wants to get the pronunciation right. When she speaks she has quite a strong French accent but when she sang her pronunciation was great. She does have a lovely voice and I hope the competition goes well. During my hour with Sarah I asked her about studying English in school and as she was talking I realised that I’d heard about her French English teacher and it turned out that she is in the same class as Claree, the young girl I work with in Saint Jean Cap Ferrat – these towns get smaller and smaller every day. There was a lot of equipment for cats in the living room so I asked her where the cat was. It was hiding under the bed and I couldn’t believe the size of it – she’s enormous! She bigger than Junior and Phoebe and they are dogs!

 

She moved her head as I took this but you can get the picture.

It was good to work in Beaulieu again after going to Nice every day, not that I don’t love Nice, I do, but it was a nice change today.

During our sundowners on the balcony these evening Huw got his binoculars out to watch the people on the seafront because he had read that Elton John always spends July and August in his mansion in Mont Boron, in between Nice and Villefranche, wouldn’t it be great if we saw him? There were also two new lots of buskers and they can come as often as they like because they were playing Pink Floyd without trying to sing. I hate it when amateurs try to copy their voices – the music is great but don’t try to sing. The other new lot were playing Queen songs and they did them very well.

Badger has found two new places to spend his time. His most recent sleeping spot is on the door ledge of the sunroom door, which really doesn’t look very comfortable at all.

 and now he sits on the living room window ledge to watch the world go by on Rue du Poilu

Here are two more places to visit in France recommended by The Local where there are few tourists

Tarn-et-Garonne, south western France

It might not be on most travellers’ routes but this small department offers unspoilt nature, a rich cultural heritage and interesting history.

The capital Montauban (pic below) is definitely worth a visit.

 

 Also worth checking out are the villages of Auvillar, Lauzerte and Bruniquel (famed for its saffron production), considered to be some of France’s most beautiful.

Indre, central France

Slap bang in the middle of France lies Indre, another hidden gem that most tourists overlook.

Châteauroux, the capital of the department, is a historical town and two of the department’s villages -Saint-Benoît-du-Sault and Gargilesse-Dampierre (below) – were also voted two of France’s most picturesque.

Also worth visiting is the museum and former home in Nohant of writer George Sand (whose real name was Amantine-Lucile-Aurore Dupin - yes, George Sand was a woman).

Her charming home and breathtaking gardens might make you want to pick up a pen and write a book of your own.