We set off from our home in Sarlat on a cool, grey Wednesday morning. Thankfully, the rain had finally stopped after a very wet spring.

Walking the 2 kilometres to the train station with full packs wasn’t ideal, but we had unknowingly chosen to leave on the same day the Olympic torch relay was passing through Sarlat. The entire town was in chaos — every road, lane, and footpath blocked off with crowds, flags, and what felt like every gendarme in southwest France on duty.

One officer even stopped AP and muttered about searching his bag. We managed to talk our way out of it and finally reached the station with just 10 minutes to spare. We boarded our train and headed to Bordeaux.

The journey is always beautiful, no matter how many times we do it. The train winds past medieval châteaux, quaint villages, and the famous vineyards of Saint-Émilion. After such a wet spring, the countryside was lush and vibrant green.

Once in Bordeaux, we took the airport bus to our hotel. We always stay near the airport the night before a flight — years of experience have taught us that French trains are extremely unreliable. In fact, for the last three years every single train we’ve booked in France has been cancelled or heavily delayed.

The Sheraton airport hotel was… typical of an airport hotel. We enjoyed a couple of gin and tonics in the bar (though AP said they weren’t as good as those made by our neighbour SS), followed by a rather ordinary and expensive dinner at the hotel restaurant L’Eden.