Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Golf in Portugal was heaven on earth, but we've never seen a pheasant in the Algarve.
Equally the Costas in Spain had more beaches than branches, so again didn't fit the bill.
The Spanish Basque region was more promising, but the climate can be a bit iffy because
its coast borders that rain-making machine, the Atlantic Ocean.
So, by a relatively simple process of elimination, we decided that France would be the
best choice. We'd enjoyed many holidays in various parts of the country over the years and
often commented on how closely the countryside resembles a 'big England'.
There is also a real passion for shooting in France. Participants hunt and eat most any-
thing that breathes, so we knew we would be amongst like-minded people. We confidently
felt we could get by in the language and thought the south-eastern part of the country, par-
ticularly Provence, would be the best place to look because of its famously great climate.
Our final clincher was that we could buy much more land for our money than we could
in the warmer areas of Britain. So that was that - decision made. It was now my job to pro-
duce a shortlist. Just how hard could that be?
