Whilst three weeks drifting around in the Bongo was really enjoyable and we did see some amazing places, Mrs Muz fancied a more relaxed affair this year, and there were places in southern France like Carcassonne where she wanted to have a more detailed look, maybe over several days rather than several hours. So she booked a house near Narbonne for three weeks as a base for us to explore. The only bad part of the plan was that she also invited her mother & brother for the final two weeks
Anyway, the direct route from Manchester to Narbonne? – erm, I don’t think so
Delft Seaways, Dunkerque
Surprisingly awake given we were on the road at 11pm
Oh, scrub that
Belgium, land of Smurfs
British Legion, Ypres Branch
Menin Gate, Ypres, with the old Cloth Hall in the distance
Menin Gate
Quite sobering looking through the endless names...
...and there were countless unknown ones too
First of many
Artisan chocolates in Belgium
Chocolate – some of these guys...
...have far too much time on their hands
Rechtbank van Koophandel, Ypres...
...with amazing dormers in the roof
Well you can’t come to Belgium and not have waffles...
...can you?
Only in Belgium – Smurf ice cream
Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Memorial to the Missing, West Flanders...
...another sobering site...
...with lots of unknown graves
Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Memorial to the Missing
Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Memorial to the Missing
Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Memorial to the Missing
Cathédrale Saint-Aubain, Namur, Belgium
It’s a hotly debated subject but the general belief is that this is where chips were invented. Well it would be rude not to, wouldn’t it!
Moules au Naturel
El Mina restaurant, Namur – and Trappistes Rochefort beer!
We discovered this beer in France a couple of years ago and vowed to find out more. It’s brewed at...
...the Abbey of Notre-Dame de Saint-Rémy, conveniently just down the road
They don’t allow visits unfortunately...
...but they can’t stop you poking a camera through the gates
Luxembourg
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Luxembourg, originally a Jesuit church built in the then Spanish Netherlands
Back into France...
...and onto a barge...
...for the Saint-Louis-Arzviller inclined plane, part of the Marne-Rhine Canal in the Moselle region.
It enables the canal to cross the Vosges mountains, originally this was done with a ladder of 17 locks but that required 17 lock-keepers and wasted a lot of water.
The inclined plane lifts boats 146 feet vertically and is like a watered-down version of the Anderton boat-lift near Northwich, but almost 100 years later than the British effort
Aha, so this is what Muz Jr does in his spare time
Into Germany to make use of their autobahns...
...to get us to Switzerland!
Wankdorf
The remains of the castle of Pont (or Pont-en-Ogoz) on the Ile d'Ogoz in the Lac de la Gruyère
Gruyères – I do like a bit of cheese, Gromit
La Maison du Gruyère...
...Hmm, all the cheese you can imagine...
...and the gear to make it too
I suppose we should have some dinner in their rather nice restaurant...
...and have something typically Swiss...
...a fondue...
...remember these in the 70s on the Generation Game etc
Gruyères, Switzerland
Gruyères, Switzerland
Onward to Montreux, Switzerland...
...a true story here inspired one of the greatest rock anthems of all time...
...but Freddie Mercury also lived here...
...so all the Smoke on the Water sculptures have been removed
Steady Freddie
We all came out to Montreux - On the Lake Geneva shoreline
Lake Geneva
Lining up the nature shots...
...Swan, Lake Geneva
Lake Geneva
Grebe, Lake Geneva
Montreux, Switzerland
Montreux, Switzerland
Back into France
The 11th century Château de Joux in La Cluse-et-Mijoux in the Franche-Comté region
Salins-les-Bains - Fort Saint-André (centre-left) and Fort Belin (far left).
This was a major trade route through the Jura mountains from Burgundy to Switzerland & Italy, the forts protected that and its own natural resource – salt or “white gold”.
Most of you already know I’m a fitness freak, this is where my bike’s from - Lapierre Cycles, Rue Edmond Voisenet, Dijon
Église Notre-Dame, Dijon, a masterpiece of 13th century Gothic architecture...
...there are 51 gargoyles on the western façade...
...and one of the oldest and best-known jacquemarts, the adults strike the hours and the kids the quarters
La Chouette (the owl) on the north façade - Popular legend has it that this is a good-luck charm - visitors to the church touch the owl with their left hand to make a wish.
Place François Rude, Dijon...
...and the Bareuzai, a geezer with pink stockings after having trampled the grapes
Mulot & Petitjean, Dijon, the oldest trader in Burgundy specialising in gingerbread
Église Saint-Philibert, Dijon, the only Romanesque church remaining...
....once a salt store but now a public lounge
Moutarde Maille, Dijon
Edmond Fallot, Dijon...
...with Dijon mustard tasting
But just how many types of mustard...
...do you really need?
Gingerbread emporium, Dijon...
...how many types...
Château Cabrières – last year we stopped here for the night and bought the best red I’ve ever tasted, their 2010 Châteauneuf du Pape. I later tried to have them send some to the UK for me but in a typical Gallic shrug they said if we wanted more we knew where they were. No problem
Far Far Away, Marcorignan, Languedoc-Roussillon – our base for the next three weeks
I think Muzette could get used to this!
With pomegranates...
...figs...
...persimmons...
...and walnuts
Cooling off after taking four days to get here
Local market at Saint-Pierre-la-Mer...
...with a few tempting things
Muzette’s wildlife photography
Bonito from the market...
...with lemon & potatoes...
...¡Delicioso!
Arles amphitheatre from 90AD
Théâtre Antique d'Arles, ruins of a Gallo-Roman theatre
An old olive tree dated to 908AD at the Pont du Gard
Gardon river
Pont du Gard, an ancient Roman aqueduct bridge that crosses the Gardon River, from which it takes its name.
It is part of the Nîmes aqueduct, a 31 mile structure built by the Romans to carry water from a spring at Uzès to the Roman colony of Nemausus (Nîmes).
Gardon river
Because the terrain between the two points is hilly, the aqueduct – built mostly underground – took a long, winding route that crossed the gorge of the Gardon, requiring the construction of an aqueduct bridge.
Built in the 1st century AD, the Pont du Gard is the highest of all Roman aqueduct bridges and is, with the Aqueduct of Segovia, one of the best preserved.
Ice creams at the Pont du Gard
Château de l'Hers, a 10th century ruin on the banks of the Rhône at Châteauneuf du Pape
Théâtre antique d'Orange ("Ancient Theatre of Orange"), an ancient (1st century) Roman theatre in Orange
Nîmes arena, Languedoc-Roussillon...
...from 70AD, probably the best preserved Roman amphitheatre in the world...
...better even than Rome’s Colosseum
Detail on the matador’s suit of lights
Inside Nîmes arena, they still hold bullfights here
Fonserannes water slope, Canal du Midi – this is an even more unlikely idea than the Saint-Louis-Arzviller inclined plane...
...a boat sails into a concrete channel where a gate is lowered behind it...
...then the gate is pulled up the sloping channel...
...pushing the wedge of water the boat is floating on in front of it to the upper level...
...this water slope is now abandoned in favour of the adjacent locks but there’s a functioning slope on the Canal latéral à la Garonne a bit further up the road
I’ll have a 12” please
Fanny Pizza, Maureilhan, Hérault
Tarte Aux Tomates, French tomato tart to you & me, lovingly crafted by Mrs Muz on our silver wedding anniversary
- and you always knew I was a health-food freak didn’t you? 
The old citadel of Eus, Pyrénées-Orientales with the Church of Saint Vincent at the top
Fort Libéria in the historic walled city of Villefranche-de-Conflent in the Pyrénées-Orientales area of France, at the point where three valleys (the Têt, the Rotja, and the Cady) meet.
Time for the Little Yellow Train (Le Petit Trian Jaune), one of the great railway journeys of the world...
...through the French Catalan Pyrénées –
We had hoped to do this last year but you really need all day to do it
Eglise Saint André, Olette, Pyrénées-Orientales
The spectacular Pont Séjourné between Thuès-Entre-Valls and Fontpédrouse, carrying the railway over the river Têt
The unusual rail suspension bridge, Pont Gisclard, between Sauto and Planès
Bolquère–Eyne station, highest on the SNCF network
Little Yellow Train
Eagles soaring all over the area
French Pyrénées
French Pyrénées
Héliodyssée-Grand Four Solaire d'Odeillo,the world’s largest solar furnace...
...using mirrors to generate 1000kW of power
Meanwhile, back at Team Muz HQ - Is it ready to cook on yet Dad?
Well it is now...
...Toulouse sausages done to a turn
Black swans, Montech, Tarn-et-Garonne
The Montech water slope which replaces five locks. This is on the canal system that connects the Atlantic & Mediterranean thus avoiding sailing around Spain – The navigable Garonne river from Bordeaux, the Canal latéral à la Garonne from Castets-en-Dorthe to Toulouse and the Canal du Midi from Toulouse to Sète
For this one there’s still a moveable gate in the concrete channel...
...which is powered by two adapted diesel-electric locos, 1,000hp each with AWD to the pneumatic tyres...
...this enables it to power the 1,500 tonnes of water 44 feet vertically up a 3% slope
Little egret, Montech
Canal des Deux Mers, the Canal du Midi south of Toulouse is considered one of the greatest construction works of the 17th century
Kestrel
Canal du Midi, Castelnaudary...
...where canalside restaurants all claim to serve the best Cassoulet...
...well it would be rude not to in the place that invented it – Cassoulet Castelnaudary au Confit de Canard – basically duck wings, haricot beans and the ubiquitous Toulouse sausage, all steeped in duck fat
Back to Team Muz HQ to relax
More Toulouse sausage anyone?
Cucugnan on the way up to...
...the Château de Quéribus...
...regarded as the last Cathar stronghold...
...one of five castles strategically placed to defend the French border against the Spanish, until the border was moved in 1659
Some nice views as you climb up to the top...
...even if you have to take a breather halfway up!
...stunning views from the top
Visiting this type of thing...
...really does make you wonder...
...how they did it all those years ago
After a morning trip to the market at Saint-Pierre-la-Mer, a nice refresher at Restaurant La Marinière of a shellfish platter...
...Moules Marinières...
...and Calamari!
The Orb Aqueduct carrying the Canal du Midi...
...over the river Orb in Béziers
Not very French I know but a lot of these Occitan types are closet Catalans. Mixed tapas, Vias Plage, Hérault
Ah, the mother- in-law has arrived. Exit stage left – Ryanair to the rescue and Mrs Muz can navigate the EuroTunnel migrant camps on her own in a couple of weeks
, burger press, etc. The food here is errr...of debatable quality (Shy*e)...so we've bought some sausage and burger ingredients from a known source...no artificial nonsense in the stuff, and the first 5 kilo batch was more than we'd hoped for in quality!!!!!!. We can get good pork, veal, and occasionally beef, so we're batch making....and....getting back to the question, they sell "Toulouse mix"...so I'm wondering what they're like, as Him Indoors is fussy about his bangers!