København

The Tivoli is a hive of activity, but doesn't open again until April. Still, it seems to keep Hans Christian Anderson's attention.

Set out early this morning with a view to strolling on the Strøget, and did so just before 10am when the shops opened and went on to Nyhavn - such a pretty place.

Then back to Roskilde for lunch at Bryggergården.

The Roskilde Jars looked good in the bright sun when I got back from København about midday.

Roskilde

Warmer today with a top of 8 degrees.

Got some more photos from the Domkirke. There are many wood carvings depicting the stages of the life of Christ, and the alter consists of more elaborate carvings.

Many tour groups come to the Domkirke, interesting to see groups of kindergarten children (swishing along in their winter jump-suits) being shown their country's history.

Fredriksborg and Malmø

Spent the day sight-seeing. First we took a local bus to Hillerød, the home of Frederiksborg Castle, which was started in 1560 by Frederik II.

From there a train to Copenhagen and then another train to Malmø, crossing via Øresundsbron, the bridge which Sweden's ruling Social Democrats gave the nod to in April 1990, upon which contruction began 5 years later, and it was completed in 1999.

You have to do a double take when entering one of the cafes at the station in Copenhagen - there's a man sitting at one of the table looking straight ahead all the time! Go there any time and he'll always be there. Very difficult to have a conversation with him though.

Tuesday in Roskilde

A beautiful day - cold, though mostly sunny. Spring has certainly made a brave effort to take hold, though there are still some wintery blasts.

Spent a lot of the day looking at the detail in the Domkirken - centuries of history are on display there.

The night was clear, and Venus was blazing at twilight with a fine crescent moon to the right.

Roskilde

A snow flurry at around midday today - it was short-lived, but there may be more. I've been looking at the lovely botiques this morning after visting the Domkirke for a while.

Copenhagen

Arrived in Copenhagen a few hours later than expected - in Paris SAS told me the flight I was on was over-booked and would I mind if they re-routed me via Munich on Lufthansa - they'd also give me a travel voucher to make it worth my while. So I've been to sunny Munich today.

Now I'm in Roskilde at the Prinsden Hotel - just by this computer in the lobby, there's a sign that tells me Anderson was here - Hans Christian that is.

Snow was forecast for today and tomorrow - it may now only be wind and rain. It would ne bnice to see snow, and certainly feels cold enough for it when the wind blows.

Bayonne to Paris

The main reason for going back to La Bastide Clairence is that it is the headquarters of the perfume maker Christian Louis of Parfums et Senteurs. He has recently opened a store in Paris, but when I first encountered his fabulous creations, you could get them only in the Basque country.

We left La Bastide Clairence on a very foggy morning, driving through some more delightful villages surrounded by farms of long-haired sheep and chestnut horses.

We left the car at Bayonne/Biarritz airport, and flew Air France to Paris. Once there, we installed ourselves in the Hotel du Levant in the Latin Quater, and set out to soak up some more of the atmosphere.

The highlight of the day was dining at Les Fous de l'Ile - we are treated like family, and the food is superb!

I enjoyed this sign seen on the streets of Paris - the reference to the fab four is clever.

Andorra to La Bastide-Clairence

Today we have to head out through the wonderfully scenic Pyrenees and down towards the Atlantic coast and La Bastide-Clairence.

Andorra

We made such good progress using many peage roads, and got in to the capital, Andorra la Vella, at about 7pm just as it getting dark. The access to the place is via a high mountain pass where there was still lots of snow and it was about 3 degrees, but down in the valley it is about 10 degrees and there's no snow. After dinner it was nice to relax in the Crowne Plaza's spa and sauna.

The local language is Catalan. Lots of Spanish-speaking people are dressed in ski gear in the hotel, and all over Andorra are ski resorts, some with lovely shops attached.

Today is the national holiday of Andorra, so all shops were closed – a window shopper’s paradise! Of course, we’ll have to go back when the stores are open tomorrow to purchase a few choice goddies.

We wandered around the extensive network of shopping streets in the morning, and I was interested to see this local radio station was using Dalet!

In the afternoon, we went driving up to the snow line and above, where it seemed most visitors to Andorra were spending the day.

There’s still plenty of snow for skiing, and we had lunch at one of the resorts. It was nice to feel the crispness of the air, and though we didn’t bother making a snow person to clad elegantly in tax-free attire to compliment the wealth and sheer beauty of this principality, we did have fun in the snow, and enjoyed the spectacle of the snow-capped Pyrénèes all around.

Ross enjoying the sun.

The day ended with a huge fireworks display, and I've never heard such loud explosions - the mountians all around created an amphitheatre and it seemed that every explosion was given more punch as it echoed around the valley.

L'Occitane

The factory visit at L'Occitane near Manosque in Provence was a triumph! The shop offers a 10% dicount, and in addition, there's a 15% tax refund upon leaving the European Union.

At L’Occitane the tour began in a small lecture room where our hostess relayed some of the company’s 30 year history. It seems the discovery of shea butter in a nut from Africa was the driving force in the development of some of the skin care products, and the rich abundance of lavander, olive oil, oranges and almonds in Provence give the L’Occitane people a fabulous palate of fine natural sources for ingredients. As we toured through the factory, the aromas varied – all very agreeable.

Quality control is applied to every aspect of the product: only the finest ingredients are used and even the packaging is subjected to multiple tests for colour, thickness and clarity.

We were allowed to sample several of the products at the end of the tour, and were each given a cake of soap stamped with a logo to mark our visit to the factory.

Driving through Nîmes, we wondered what the city was famous for. It seems that it is the home of the serge fabric used to make jeans. The fabric was developed in Nîmes by local Protestants, who, because of their religion, were denied access to any activity of the Catholic ruling classes. Instead, they turned their hand to industry, and one thing they created was a hard-wearing fabric that would make comfortable working clothes.

The resulting fabric (serge de Nîmes) was taken to America by the Jewish-Bavarian immigrant Levi Strauss who found its strength and utility ideal for making jeans. The entomology of the word becomes easy to follow: I guess you could say that serge de Nîmes became known in its ‘dressed-down’ form - denim!

We left L'Occitane about midday then set out for Andorra, the plan being to get near there, then drive up the next morning.

The villages of Provence

Visited several of the main villages of Provence today. Streets are a very tight fit even for a small car, and they are steep to do on foot - but we did both, and enjoyed it all. Chatting with the locals at a market was a highlight. More about the character of each village to come, but for now, here are some pictures from today.

We visted Lacoste, a village associated infamously with the Marquis de Sade. In more recent history, Pierre Cardin has established a festival there.

Aix-en-Provence

Sunday consisted of a TGV journey from Paris to Aix-en-Provence, a visit to an exhibition of the painting of Marc Chagall, strolling along a street full of markets selling antiques and exploring the old city of Aix.

In Paris again

Some photographs of Paris at the end of winter. 3 degrees C when I arrived here at 6.30am. It has been sunny and picture perfect all day.

It was great to arrive in Paris again this morning after flight of nearly 7 hours from Sydney, the 2 hours of refreshment in Singapore, then a 9 hour flight aboard the one of the lavishly appointed 777 fleet Singapore airlines is running.

Ross arrived from Newark a couple of hours after me so I met him at Terminal 2A, then we set out for some of our favourite Paris haunts!

Les Fous was a must for lunch, and Lionel asked whether I lived here now or was on vacation. He made the usual welcoming fuss, and we felt right at home. His wife is a chanteuse, so I asked him if he knew where I could buy classical music, and he suggested some markets - lots of music there, but none of it the printed variety. Plenty of reggae, rap, and practically anything 'alternative' on vinyl.