Just returned this week from a short trip to France, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. Though I've had many trips to France, it was the  first time in this region, and I stayed in the Têt valley, in the Catalan Pyrenees of southern France . There were snow-capped mountains, and right outside my window was a view of the magnificent Massif Canigou, at almost 2800 meters. The roadsides were banked with poppies, and many of the fields were a blaze of red. It was fantastic to see.