Yves and I went to France about 5 times in 2000. The majority of our stays were in Paris, though we also went to Brittany, the Pyrenees and Toulouse.

My favourite part of Paris is the little ethnic village near the Notre Dame Cathedral. The winding little pedestrian streets paved with uneven bricks are as old as Paris itself and there are lots of little kebab shops and restaurants packed into them.

The best kebabs I have ever eaten in my life, were in Paris. Big juicy chunks of beef, freshly carved and stuffed into pitta bread, topped with salad and hot, crispy golden fries, then wrapped up in a triangular shape, they are so big you need two hands to hold it all.

In August 2000, we took a brief summer holiday in France. We flew to Paris first and stayed a couple of days in the city with Yves' cousin, Manu. Then we went and spent some time with Yves' uni friends in the countryside.

While in the country, we took a day trip to a theme park called 'Futuroscope' which was great fun and had a fantastic laser water fountain show at the end of the night.

Just before we left the countryside, we went to a special bird show at a ruined castle where eagles, hawks and vultures flew so close to our heads they sometimes knocked us over!!