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Duck, Goose, Foie Gras, Cassoulet, Madiran, Armagnac and all the other good rich produce of the land feature in Martin Calder’s book A Summer in Gascony: Discovering the Other South of France which offers a good summer read if you are interested in absorbing a bit of “la France profonde”.
This is the story of a student summer working in Gascony a few years ago, based at the isolated Auberge in Peguilhan (31 Haut-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees)in the Comminges area of Gascony. Staying several months on a working farm and auberge gives a different and well-informed and affectionate view of the land, its people and traditions. I suspect many of us head south to try to capture just a glimpse of the essence of a place where people and nature seem to have found a natural harmony, enriched by the bounteous harvest of its farmers and winemakers. In between the story of the summer’s work and play Martin Calder offers you a wealth of snippets of information, whether it be about the wine (and Armagnac), the history (and the links between the Gascons and the British), the fiercely independent Gascon character (decidedly not French!), the Gascon beret and tradtional cooking. It is perhaps the sense of being distant from the pressures of modern city life which pervades the region - the rhythms of the seasons and the weather. I suspect that much has changed at the auberge since his days at Peguilhan (as suggested in his epilogue), but Gascony still has many quiet hidden corners; the people remain as down-to-earth and welcoming, the food, wine and Armagnac as good as ever.
A Summer in Gascony: Discovering the Other South of France

Velomagg in Montepellier (34 Herault, Languedoc-Roussillon) is another of the growing number of city bike hire schemes which have blossomed throughout France - and which potentially offer a different way of visiting many of France’s cities. It has also given employment to those creative people who dream up catchy logos and names for such schemes!

It all started in Paris with the Velib’ Scheme - an amalgam of Velo (cycle) and Liberte (free), which has been a tremendous success.

Vélib’ is a Self Service “bike hire” system available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Multi pick up and drop off location allows you to pick up your bike from one service point and drop off to another.

You need to subscribe, but for visitors there are 1-day and 7-day subscriptions and after the first 30 minutes you pay by the half-hour - e.g. a 90-minute hire will cost just €3 and you can pick up and drop off your bike at any of the hundreds of self-service stations across the city.

The Velib’ scheme has been based on a similar scheme VeloV in Lyon (69 Rhone, Rhone-Alpes) France’s second city. The combination of these eco-friendly and fitness focussed schemes is now spreading throughout France:-
VeloCite in Mulhouse (68 Haut-Rhin, Alsace) and Besancon (25 Doubs, Franche-Comté)
Vhello in Aix-en-Provence (13 Bouches-du-Rhone, Provence)
Le Velo in Marseille (13 Bouches-du-Rhone, Provence)
Velo in Toulouse (34 Haut Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees)
Nantes (44 Loire-Atlantique, Val de Loire)
Rouen (76 Seine Maritime, Normandy)
Bordeaux (33 Gironde, Aquitaine)
Velostan in Nancy (54 Meurthe et Moselle, Lorraine)
Velo+ in Orleans (45 Loiret, Centre)
Velomagg in Montpellier (34 Herault, Languedoc-Roussillon)

This is clearly a popular scheme, mainly aimed at local residents but may also offer a different way of seeing some of France’s major cities from a different perspective. However, I would recommend choosing a city with good cycle lanes and paths - you do get the impression that traffic in many of France’s cities is not very forgiving with errant cyclists - so do not try cycling around the rond-point of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris!!

Inevitably there are some urban myths developing - such as the fact that there are always plenty of bikes at the bottom of the Butte de Montmartre, but none at the top - for obvious reasons. And you can get caught out in busy locations if you cannot find an empty slot in which to return your bike!

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Information on domestic flights in France is not easy to come by, one reason being that Air France has such a dominant position in France and already have flights on most internal routes.
Plus the French market is not as competitive. The French Railway system between major cities is both fast and competitive, especially if starting from Paris.
I have only been able to uncover a couple of airlines which offer domestic flights in France:-
http://www.easyjet.com/ - Toulouse to Lyon, Paris, Nice to Paris; Lyon to Biarritz, Bordeaux; Biarritz to Paris

http://www.twinjet.net/
Toulouse (32 Haute-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees) to Metz/Nancy, Mulhouse, Brest; Marseille to Metz/Nancy, Mulhouse; Paris - Perigueux, Cherbourg

http://www.airlinair.fr/ Brest,(29 Finistere, Brittany) Bordeaux (33 Gironde, Aquitaine), Agen (47 Lot-et-Garonne, Aquitaine), Lyon (69 Rhone, Rhone-Alpes), Poitiers (86 Vienne, Poitou-Charentes), Brive (19 Correze, Limousin) Beziers (34 Herault, Languedoc-Roussillon) etc

http://www.ryanair.com/ now also has links from Marseille (13 Bouches-du-Rhone, Provence) to Lille (59 Nord, Nord-Pas de Calais) and Brest (29 Finistere, Brittany)

You can try sites like http://www.expedia.fr/ but even a price comparison site like http://www.baisse-de-prix.com/voyages.php seems to offer little new – it looks like Air France have cornered the market with little opportunity for discounting.

The Tour de France 2008 (21 stages, 3500 km) Stage 9 is on 13 July 2008 and starts from Toulouse (31 Haut-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees) and runs 224km up in to the Pyrenees to Bagnères-de-Bigorre (65 Hautes-Pyrenees, Midi=Pyrenees)

For more on the Tour de France 2008 see www.letour.fr/
For details of coverage on ITV see www.itv.com

The Tour de France 2008 (21 stages, 3500 km) Stage 8 is on 12 July 2008 and starts from Figeac (46 Lot, Midi-Pyrenees) and runs 170km via Gaillac (81 Tarn, Midi-Pyrenees) to Toulouse (31 Haut-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees).

For more on the Tour de France 2008 see www.letour.fr/
For details of coverage on ITV see www.itv.com

Toulouse is the capital of the département of Haute Garonne (31) and of the Midi-Pyrenees region. The area has a rich food heritage - including the Toulouse Sausage! Duck, Goose and pork are the predominant meats, but the area is also good for fruit and vegetables.
The indoor Victor Hugo market in Toulouse (Place Victor Hugo), was where Rick Stein investigated and raved about the Toulouse Sausage of Jean Marie Castet at the stall of Gilles Vidal - open Tuesday - Sunday mornings - a huge selection of other wonderful foods always available.

The following list of markets is accurate to the best of our knowledge - many may only operate in the summer - always check with the local tourist office.
Arbas - Sunday
Aspet - Saturday
Aurignac - Tuesday
Auterive - Friday
Ayguesvives - Wednesday
Bagnères-de-Luchon - Wednesday
Balma - Saturday
Baziège - Saturday
Beauzelle - Wednesday
Bessières - Monday
Blagnac - Saturday
Boulogne-Sur-Gesse - Wednesday
Bruguières - Sunday
Cadours - Wednesday
Calmont - Tuesday
Caraman - Thursday
Carbonne - Thursday
Castelginest - Saturday
Castelmaurou - Thursday
Cazères - Saturday
Gaud - Tuesday
Cintegabelle - Wednesday
Colomiers - Saturday
Cornebarrieu - Sunday
Cugnaux - Saturday
Eaunes - Tuesday
Escalquens - Sunday
Fenouillet - Saturday
Fonsorbes - Saturday
Fridayonton - Thursday
Gratentour - Wednesday
Grenade - Saturday
Labarth-sur-Lèze - Sunday
Lanta - Wednesday
Launac - Friday
Léguevin - Sunday
L’Isle-en-Dodon - Saturday
L’Union - Sunday
Marignac - Friday
Martres-Tolosane - Tuesday
Mazères-Sur-Salat - Friday
Mirepoix-Sur-Tarn - Tuesday
Mondonville - Friday
Montastruc - Sunday
Montesquieu-Volvestre - Saturday
Montgiscard - Sunday
Montréjeau - Monday
Muret - Saturday
Nailloux - Wednesday
Pechbonnieu - Saturday
Pibrac - Monday
Pinsaguel - Sunday
Plaisance-du-Touch - Saturday
Portet-Sur-Garonne - Friday
Ramonville-St-Agne - Saturday
Revel - Saturday
Rieumes - Thursday
Roques-Sur-Garonne - Friday
Roquettes - Wednesday
Seysses - Friday
St-Béat - Friday
St-Cézert - Friday
St-Félix - Wednesday
St-Gaudens - Saturday
St-Geniès-Bellevue - Thursday
St-Jean - Saturday
St-Lys - Tuesday
St-Orens-de-Gameville - Saturday
St-Sulpice-sur-Lèze - Wednesday
Toulouse - Place du Capitol - Tuesday- Saturday (organic)
Toulouse - Victor Hugo - Tuesday - Saturday
Tournefeuille - Sunday
Vacquiers - Sunday
Venerque - Thursday
VilleFranche-de-Lauragais - Friday
Villemur-Sur-Tarn - Sunday
Villeneuve-Tolosane - Sunday

On the Canal du Midi there is a “peniche” (barge) offering B&B (or Chambres d’Hote). Peniche Soleiado is moored on the Canal at Ramonville-Saint-Agne - shaded by plane trees, breakfast (and supper) on deck and en-suite bedrooms.Situated just south of Toulouse (31 Haute Garonne, Midi-Pyrennes) this could be a novel place to stay - even the address sounds interestiing - Bridge of Eat Apples? (see map)
Peniche Soleiado, Pont-de-Mange Pomme. 31250 Ramonville-Saint-Agne T:06 86 27 83 19

The number of budget airline routes to France from the UK is continuing to grow, as is the number of French destinations - no longer restricted to the major cities. This really does open up some of the less well-known parts of France.
The list below shows the extent of the coverage - and this excludes flights to Paris which are available from most local airports. Some flights are seasonal, so please check with the airline for timetables and availability.

For the South West the A20 autoroute (l’Occitaine) is now complete linking Paris and Toulouse via the A10 to Orleans, then the A71 to Vierzon onto the A20 for Toulouse via Limoges, Brive, Cahors and Montauban. This is a very enjoyable road cutting through some glorious scenery - and such a joy for those who used to struggle on the old N20. This provides much easier access to Limoges, the Upper Dordogne & Sarlat, and the Lot Valley, Montauban and Toulouse. Cahors is now less than 7hrs from Calais - although you will have to pay about €47 (£30) in tolls (2006 figures) for the journey from Calais to Toulouse. However, the stretch from Vierzon (18 Cher, Centre) and the A71 junction south to Brive-la-Gaillarde (19 Corrèze, Limousin) is toll free!

Motorway Service Area (aire) on the A61 Autoroute des 2 Mers between Toulouse and Castelnaudry with Ovalie Museum (Rugby) and Centre for the Canal du Midi.
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