Roadside rubbish

There are 2200km of departmental roads in the P-O and 62.5 tonnes of rubbish were removed from them in 2015.

Roadside rubbish

There are 2200km of departmental roads in the P-O and 62.5 tonnes of rubbish were removed from them in 2015.

Zooming round the winding roads along the coast towards Banyuls-sur-mer, we pass the vines, hundreds of them, all looking rather forlorn and bare. « This is the nicest part of the life-cycle of the vine, » said my husband, « the time when you drink the wine . » There’s always something good to say about life in the P.O.!

To find the best quality saffron you do not need to travel far. In the hills above Calmeilles, at the feet of Canigou, Laurent Dieval and his wife Hilde have been growing this intriguing flower since 2011.

You’ll have to be quick but if you find yourself driving down one of those tree-lined avenues where the plane trees are majestically showing off their autumn foliage and Canigou is sitting white and snow-capped against a steel-grey and blue sky – drink it in. When you come back next week the scene may have changed

Buy a calendar to help sick kids

Flodama, a local video production company, has teamed up with Joa Joie, an association to help hospitalised children, to produce a calendar to raise funds for the cause.