Around the end of September Barcelona holds an enormous street party, La Mercè Festival.
Situated in the north of the Corbieres, between Narbonne and Carcassone, the medieval village of Lagrasse offers a feast for the eyes and is full of historical and cultural interest.
Girona of today is a great mix of historically interesting old and vibrant lively new, all within easy walking distance.
We pass evocatively named places busy with history; Besalú, St Jaume de Llierca, Castellfollit de la Roca before entering Olot and the Parc Natural de la Zona Volcanica de la Garrotxa abundant with fascinating conical and sometimes symmetrical hills.
Want to give your sun tan a final blast before handing over your hire car and catching your plane in Barcelona? Why not wait on the beach?
We’re driving along the D115 through Ceret (no stopping there today) Amélie and Arles-sur-Tech right up into the Haut Vallespir and over into Spain.
If you are resident in France, the chances are you are part of the excellent French health care system, accessed via the trusty carte vitale. But what if you’re travelling abroad this summer? Or any other time, for that matter!
We are very lucky here in the P-O to be able to pop over into Spain at the drop of a hat. However, it’s never a bad idea to re-read some of the letters and comments sent in from our readers and take a few precautions before heading south..
Empúries, (coming from the Greek “Emporion” meaning market place or shopping centre) lies midway between the Costa Brava town of L’Escala and the tiny village of Sant Martí. Archeology fans will be in ruins heaven!
An extraordinary collection of works produced by the crazy, the unattached and the marginal, the Museum of Art Brut is a true delight in this all-too-rational world.