rare wildflowers, of colours that range through the spectrum. The summer heat has yet to arrive, or has gone, and so spring and autumn are ideal for people who love to freely roam, exploring this rugged mysterious terrain.

The summer season brings heat, but also it brings a vast range of exciting and colourful activities. These are organised for the benefit of all, local people and visitors alike. Each town, village and commune has its share of fetes, firework displays, celebrations, open markets, and for the young at heart, horse-riding, water sports, even pop festivals are organised that cater for the tastes of all age groups.

For visitors the turbulent history of this area is brought to life in medieval tournaments and re-enacted battles between mounted knights in shining armour. For those whose interest is in prehistory there is a museum and exhibition of dinosaurs at nearby Esparaza. A visit to the museum includes the offer to be taken to the site where the dinosaur fossils are excavated. The cave paintings by prehistoric men of the Ariege are only a couple of hour’s drive from Couiza. A one-hour drive will take you to Montsegur. Carcassonne offers a living, thriving, fortified city, complete with portcullis and massive drawbridge only forty minutes away.

In the opposite direction just a couple of hours drive is Perpignan and the Mediterranean Sea or independent Andorra high up amid the awesome Pyrenees Mountains.

Travel is simple and easy, whether by air, road or rail, and the rustiness of your Francais here is never made into a problem. Hotels here are clean and comfortable, with reasonable rates. Also they are friendly and helpful. You must come and see for yourself. When you do come you will discover a new way of living your life, but more important than that, you will discover a new and different YOU.

David and Yvonne Brittain 1999

France 11190

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