My trip through Eurotunnel was so efficient – 35 minutes side to side; straight on; straight off – like clockwork. I always drive from Calais down to Paris and put the car on the train there; then have a delicious roast leg of lamb dinner in the Blue Train restaurant at the Gare de Lyon and get into my first class single compartment on the train, into bed and off to sleep. I wake in the morning and sip my coffee (from a vacuum flask filled in the restaurant) looking out at the blue sea, palm trees and bright Mediterranean sun. The South of France has changed after seven years but still all my old haunts (like the fantastic Michelin starred LouLou restaurant) remain in place unchanged.

Why on earth isn’t the UK in the Euro zone? I went across to Italy a couple of times. Life is so much easier now the same currency rules everywhere important. After Midem, as a blizzard hit Europe, I popped on a plane and flew to Tunisia where the temperature was higher and the sunshine certain.

The wonderful thing about North Africa is the purity of the air. Strangely, in a hot country, breathing is like drinking ice cold water. I think it’s the sand of the Sahara and the clean Mediterranean sea which somehow purifies the air. In America I’ve noticed the same thing in Arizona and suspect that in both places the cactii plays a part. However and for whatever reason, it really cleans the lungs. As I get older, mucous seems to build up inside my inner tubes. The air of North Africa scours that away too, day by day, slowly but surely.

Tunisia does tend to cater to the tourist market. Some magnificent, if tacky hotels, with five star rooms and great views, have two star facilities. The food is sometimes less edible, the entertainment cruise ship standard. However, I got a terrific deal – 7 days in the top 5 star hotel in Sousse (Tunisia’s second city) for £90 – board and breakfast. But the best hotel in Tunisia is further north, in Carthage. The Residence is one of the only hotels to reach all the heights required for a real luxury establishment. It even has a first class Chinese restaurant on the premises!

And the best restaurant in Tunisia, for me, is the Mediterranee in Port El Kantaoui. The seafood there is delicious, as fresh as the ocean. Try the giant prawns grilled – they are fantastic. I ate there virtually every night. Charming staff; owned and run by a very nice couple who greeted me by name with open arms and lead me straight to my favourite table… from several years earlier! Tunisia is only just Internet available; most hotels still use dialup but there are centres for broadband – not WiFi but Ethernet. I used the one in the Sousse Palace - £10 for four hours use and very helpful staff, because you need to request an English keyboard. The Tunisian one is quite different and very hard to negotiate. If asked, they will set you up as they did me with the English one.

The greatest change I saw in Tunisia was the use of mobile phones. Farmers on tractors in rural areas, kids returning from school, drivers in cars (and more intimidating than that, as in France, on motor bikes and scooters, weaving about with one hand clasped to their ears). It’s quite bizarre seeing the ancient, unchanged medina and hearing it ring out to the warbles of cell phones.

There are shops everywhere selling the mobiles. This has been the massive difference I saw between Tunisia years ago and in 2007. Since the overwhelming commodity borrowed from the West I noticed previously, in the last century, was cigarettes, let’s hope mobiles are less damaging. I fear they may not be. Another amusing importation I noticed was, lurking around the corner from stalls selling stuffed toy camels and pots, ATM machines from which Tunisians, like us Brits, can get their cash. It’s best to hire a car – so you can discover the real Tunisia yourself. It is a wonderful place. The people are friendly and welcoming. It is the perfect country to visit to see that Islam and Christianity can exist hand in hand.

And though I mentioned the air, there’s something even more attractive in Tunisia. I left Europe as the freezing January blizzard hit – even Nice was under snow. Yet in Tunisia there was a glorious, sunny, blue sky overhead. 22 degrees. Hot enough to sunbathe.

Fabulous.

I returned to pick up the Rolls – the auto trains were not running (line maintenance throughout February) so I decided to drive back and was astonished by how fast it was – I left Nice at 8am and reached Paris at 5pm, whilst it was still daylight.

I stayed for a couple of nights in a gorgeous converted chateau near Reims and checked out the Cathedral (most impressive; love the Marc Chagall window). Back through the Tunnel (thick fog in Northern France) and home in Britain in time to reach my Mum for Sunday lunch. A fabulous, relaxing couple of weeks. Exactly as I anticipated, absence had made my heart grow fonder.

After the 7 years in Her Majesty’s Estate (and on parole), travel and “abroad” was even more enjoyable.