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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another excellent title from Alastair Sawday, 2 Feb 2006
By A Customer
We have successfully used Alastair Sawday's "French Bed and Breakfast" on many occasions in the past to find really special overnight stops on our frequent travels in France, from working farms to Bed and Breakfasts, providing gastronomic dinners with wine.Entry number 50, Mme Warlop, was particularly memorable for a lovely meal with her in her "dazzling house" in the Somme area and for relaxed conversation with her over dinner. We have never been disappointed and often have had memorable stays. So it was with a real sense of anticipation that I opened French Hotels, Chateaux and Other Places on receiving it as a Christmas present. We have enjoyed reading many of the entries and are planning a number of visits to France this year around a number of the entries in the book. It was gratifying to find a few entries which we already knew. Notably, map 1 entry 2, the Auberge d'Inxent in the valley of the river Course in Northern France, is a delightful inn which we have known over many years. The story in the Alastair Sawday entry of how the current owner acquired the auberge with the winnings from a lottery is an extra piece of intriguing information typical of the entries. Equally intriguing is that the Auberge d'Inxent was written about over 45 years ago by Elizabeth David in French Provincial Cooking! So Sawday is continuing a long tradition of British interest in visiting interesting hotels and inns in France. In fact rereading about the Auberge d'Inxent in the book has prompted us to arrange a visit to Inxent for a special family occasion in the Spring. However, perhaps of greater importance to us is that this book is also introducing us to new hotels and inns across France, which we will have fun exploring in our travels in France later in the year. We have already booked a number of overnight stays in the champagne area and in Alsace using the book. I can highly recommend Special Places to Stay, French Hotels, Chateaux and Other Places to anyone who has a love of France, French food and, equally importantly, likes to meet and talk to interesting French people. I am now waiting in eager anticipation for the imminent publication of the next title in the series, Special Places to Stay, Greece, which we will use to explore the mainland of Greece, using bed and breakfasts and small inns. This will give us the opportunity to experience the famous Greek hospitality, neatly summed up in the Greek use of the same word to mean stranger and guest, namely "xenos".
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by Alastair Sawday
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