Historic Perpignan, the colourful mix of old and new, chic and shabby, trendy boutiques, narrow, cobbled streets and small intimate bistros, was also a pivotal location in supporting the British and Allied war effort.
Visit this wonderful museum which was a beacon of hope for expectant mothers exiled during the Retirada.
The Château de Castelnou was also the base of one of the most successful Allied spies of World War II
Towards the end of August 1944, resistance fighters from all around the region fought Germans and French militia to take back Perpignan.
How about a day out in an iconic Citroën 2CV?
Not a drive for the faint hearted, or the easily travel sick, but for lovers of wild and remote country, it is a joy!
The poor were starving to death on the streets of Paris. In the royal palace, the king’s breakfast consisted of 4 chops, a full chicken, six poached eggs and a slice of ham, washed down with a bottle and a half of champagne.
It is so very important that we never allow this to happen again.
Love and War in the Pyrenees by Rosemary Bailey is available in paperback, the cover glowing with the colourful stripes so familiar to lovers of the Catalan fabric of St Laurent de Cerdans.
Lest we forget, Ellen Turner Halls takes us on a visit of the exhibition at Rivesaltes’ Camp Joffre