Left SE London at a quarter to eight, took just over the hour to get to the channel tunnel and by 10 o'clock French time we were well on our way. A bottle of wine helps the 35 minutes go by quite nicely, as do numerous sandwiches and rolls. We stayed at a friends house just over an hour's drive away. Saturday morning, after a short drive into town for baguettes and croissants, saw the sun shining brightly and us winding our merry way to a place called La Coupole, south east of Saint Omer. This is the site of one the V2 rocket complexes built towards the end of the second world war. Today it houses a impressive exhibition centre of not only the 2nd World War but also how it affected the Nord-Pas-de-Calais area and rocket development in general. Headphones are given on entry (55FF entry) and commentary is in 4 different language with numerous explanatory films. We were there for almost 4 hours and still did not see all of it. Well worth a visit. Junction 3 on the A26 and follow the signs, its built into the side of a hill. Saturday evening saw us in the Hotel d'Amiens in Frevent where we all had a very nice steak dinner. Sunday was an even warmer and sunnier day than Saturday. More battle grounds were called for, this time a few centuries earlier. Azencourt (or Agencourt) was the location. In the pretty little village there is a small museum (10 FF) where you can watch a short video and see details of the famous battle. There is also a 4 km walk through the local country lanes where the battle took place. As the 25th and 26th of October is the anniversary of the battle they were preparing for a special display and, it looked like, a reenactment. Not as much to see as La Coupole, but an interesting visit. This was followed by a couple of hours sitting in the square in Hesdin. drinking a few of beers in the bright sunshine and watching the world go by. A nice town is Hesdin, see picture on left. On the way there we drove past the HÔTEL LE MONASTERE, Rue de la Grenouillére 62770 Auchy les Hesdin Tel. : 03.21.04.83.54 / Fax : 03.21.41.39.17. This a hotel and restaurant with 10 rooms. We ate there a few years ago and had an excellent meal. op price set menu is 290 FF, which includes wine - there is also a menu at 125 FF. We are saving up already!

Sunday evening we ate in SAINT-POL-SUR-TERNOISE, at the Restaurant de la Post, food was OK but the wine (Canon Fronsac 1987 at 92FF) was well worth it).

Cold and very foggy on Monday, stocked up on beer, wine, tins of cassoulate and cous cous and made our slow journey back to Calais for the return trip home. It was a bit choppy on the channel which is where the tunnel comes into its own. Left a restaurant just outside Calais at 2.45 and just after 3 pm, English time, we were on the M20. A good break.