An October Mashup

A rather late review of my October which began in Bournemouth! I had already anticipated a return visit to my home in the UK from SW France, but not via Bournemouth. I won’t bore you with the details, but a combination of inconvenient and expensive flights, plus rail strikes, led me to change my normal travel from Toulouse to Gatwick to a different route.

You might be thinking ‘Why Bournemouth?’ Several reasons; our closest airport, Carcassonne, offers flights to Bournemouth, at very accommodating times and prices. I have a longstanding friend who lives in Bournemouth and who has recently moved and being of a nosey (I mean interested) disposition, I wanted to see his new home.

This decision led to some ‘firsts’, my first time flying from Carcassonne, my first time using Bournemouth Airport and my first flight on Ryanair. I was apprehensive about one of these in particular. You can decide which one…

On reflection, I have to say that there are many positives to using smaller airports, one being that my flight departed and landed exactly when scheduled. My friend was there to meet me and I was delighted to discover that my short stay coincided with Bournemouth Arts by the Sea Festival.

This Festival is an annual ‘celebration of art, culture, people and place‘. There was much to enjoy, including large-scale spectaculars, music, installations, dance, street theatre, and more. Originally, I was only spending one night in Bournemouth, but the rail strikes ‘forced’ (!) me to stay a second night, enabling me to experience more of the impressive arts festival.

I took few useable photos because I was too busy watching what was going on! The one above is one of the exhibits but I loved the Border Collie! Of course, a visit to Bournemouth isn’t complete without a walk along the beautiful beaches.

One of my favourite areas of Bournemouth is Westbourne. It’s like a village and has some eclectic shops, restaurants and the best fish and chips. I couldn’t be in the area without a visit to Chez Fred! I also love Westbourne Arcade which  is a Grade II Listed structure built in 1884-5. It contains some fascinating and quirky shops. We wandered through, after our meal, so the shops were closed but I loved this window:

I have always found France beautiful in the autumn and, on my return to France, we were treated to some stunning sunsets over the Canal.

Another favourite walk, now that the nights are drawing in, is around the Port and Grand Bassin of Castelnaudary.

I’ve read several books in October but one stands out for me: The Humans by Matt Haigh. I’m already a fan of this author’s writing and thoroughly enjoyed this latest book. It’s funny, poignant and thought provoking.

This is from the book blurb:

After an ‘incident’ one wet Friday night where he is found walking naked through the streets of Cambridge, Professor Andrew Martin is not feeling quite himself. Food sickens him. Clothes confound him. Even his loving wife and teenage son are repulsive to him. He feels lost amongst an alien species and hates everyone on the planet. Everyone, that is, except Newton (and he’s a dog). Who is he really? And what could make someone change their mind about the human race?

As far as television goes, I watch very little in France. However, I did watch a French mini-series on Netflix, called ‘Class Act’ (Tapie). This is about a larger-than-life character, Bernard Tapie, a business man, actor, singer and former politician who is described as “an ordinary man with an extraordinary ambition”.

The mini-series is half biopic, half fiction but was not well received by Tapie’s family. The lead actor is Laurent Lafitte who I thought was excellent in the role and I would recommend this if you are looking for something a bit different.

That was my October ‘mash up’ which I hope you enjoyed and now we are half way through November!