Montpellier

That's us back in Montpellier again for a night stop, prior to catching the TGV back to Lille, and the Eurostar back to London.  It's hot and sunny again in Montpellier - temperature 29 degrees.

We started fairly early this morning in Camprodon - a last minute sortie into the village for some souvenirs before setting off about 1030hrs.  Our route took us over the Col d'Ares (4960ft) which was shrouded in fog and low cloud. The border is passed unceramoniously and we descend into the Tech Valley in France.

The cloud quickly lifts as we descend further into the valley.  There are some pretty French towns en route, such as Prats-de-Mollo la Preste and Arles-sur-Tech.  There is perhaps not much to offer, apart from their scenic value, but if we had the chance, we'd gladly stop and explore.  Time is against us however, as we need to return the rental car by 1600hrs in Montpellier. 

The temperature rises as we get to the bottom of the valley, and it's time to turn on the air conditioning!  Just after Céret, we get caught in a traffic jam. This is effectively the queue to join the A9, both north and southbound, or the bypass into Perpignan. It's a classic case of bad road design, and after an hour in slow moving traffic, we eventually join the autoroute.

Once on the A9, progress is swift. The French speed limit (in dry conditions) is 130km/h which means that the 105 miles to Montepellier is achieved in about 90 minutes. The traffic was fortunately less dense than the journey southbound, ten days ago. 

We arrived in Montpellier at 1530hrs, after stopping for a comfort break at the beautiful Catalan Village services, outside Perpignan (a bit like a mini-Gretna, just across the border).  The rental car was returned at the station without fuss, and we headed for our hotel to check-in.  We took a brief walk up into the old town before returning to the hotel for a few welcome cold beers in the outdoor bar.

The TGV tomorrow is at 0827hrs, so it won't be a late one!

The C38 towards Col d'Ares

The foggy border at Col d'Ares - welcome to France!

Prats-de-Mollo la Preste

Stuck in traffic outside Céret - a last look at the Pyrenees before joining the A9

Our hotel in Montpellier - the Holiday Inn

Montpellier

Today started off early with an 8am check-in for the Eurostar. There are similarities with an airport check-in but the whole process is a lot slicker from beginning to end. Although everyone needs to pass their baggage and themselves through x-ray machines, there's none of the 'liquids and gels' silliness that is found in all of the UK's airports. It's my first visit to St Pancras since it became the new Eurostar terminal. By cleverly and discretely building the terminal within the station undercroft, passengers emerge onto the platforms by escalators from below. None of the grandeur of the original 1840 trainshed has been lost in the process.

It takes just twenty minutes for everyone to board, and then the train leaves. After leaving the station, the train enters a fairly lengthy new tunnel under the east of London emerging close to the QE2 Crossing. A quick stop at Ebbsfleet to uplift, and we're on our way again, entering the Channel Tunnel just 35 minutes after leaving the capital. The tunnel passage is pretty uneventful and 20 minutes later, the train emerges into the French countryside close to Calais.

We leave the Eurostar at Lille and after a short break, board a southbound TGV destined ultimately for Perpignan. Many passengers come and go during the five hour journey as the train calls at busy hubs such as Charles de Gaulle airport, Disneyland Paris, Lyon and Nimes. The landscape also changes over the course of the journey - the flat green arable countryside of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais gives way to vineyards and olive trees as the train reaches the south of France. France is a huge country and we are grateful for the TGV - covering the same distance by car would take over 12 hours, and that's without stops.

Montpellier is glorious, and all things typically Mediterranean. Its a relatively modest town - plenty to offer but without the overpowering pretentiousness of the Riviera towns further east. It's about 30 degrees and sunny, and not likely to be much different tomorrow. Our hotel is the Holiday Inn, which is a short-walk from the station. The building dates from the beginning of the last century and retains a lot of its original features, including the open cage elevator in the stairway atrium. Somewhat disappointingly, the restaurant is not open at weekends. So, with tiredness setting in after two long days travelling, and little time to suss out the best eating places, we resorted to fast food!

Tomorrow, we pick up the hired car at the station, and head down the A9 towards the Spanish border. Let's hope it's air conditioned...

Trams in Montpellier

Place de la Comédie, Montpellier