Author(s): Alex Dingwall-Main

Travel Writing

What happens when you relocate to the perfect house, in the perfect village in Provence, and nearly ten years later the shine has gone?
Garden designer Alex Dingwall-Main is facing cultural brick walls, neighbourly warfare and non-paying business clients. He and his family are thinking of packing their bags and their pets and of starting all over again, back in England. The final straw comes when a well-known restaurateur cannot pay his [pound]10,000 bill. Instead he pays Alex in 12 bottles of exquisite French wine. One dark and somewhat drunken night, Alex decides to give it one more go - to travel and find the France he fell in love with. With a hangover and an uncertain heart, Dingwall-Main sets off on a pilgrimage to the spiritual core of his adopted land - to the chateaux and vineyards of France. The people, the gardens, the wine and the landscapes that he encounters make for an adventurous and beautiful summer. But an unexpected one - stereotypes, assumptions and idylls are uncovered. Alex's relationship with his adopted homeland is revolutionised into a much more dangerous and intimate affair. Whether he stays or goes is another matter...