I joined a French language trip for school children, with RG as my companion. Our base was Nantes. We also took up the option of a side-trip to Lyon.

The latter was a big mistake. When RG checked us out of the Lyon hotel I forgot to pack my case, so ended up leaving all my luggage behind in a vast Lyon clothing warehouse.

Back in Nantes, the tourism officials couldn’t care less about my lost belongings – not even my vast underwear collection (some of which really belonged to my mother and sisters) – and would not help me arrange for its retrieval. When I visited the railway station to discover how much it would cost to return to Lyon by rail, I was astonished at the exorbitant train fares.

I eventually set off to walk to Lyon all by myself. I didn’t make it to my destination. This was because I became trapped in a lighthouse that I encountered on the coast along the route.