If you are looking for more than just a relaxing place to stay then we can arrange various courses with local people, from painting through photography and French cookery to Tai-chi.  If you have any other ideas then we will try to source an expert! Photography The owner, Chris, has been a professional photographer for over 12 years.  In 1994 he won the prestigious Professional Photographer of the Year competition, having submitted pictures for each month throughout the competition.  Since then he has worked for many magazines including Super Twins, Collect it!, 100% Biker, American-V, and Antiques and Heritage Lifestyle.  In addition he was the in-house photographer for KP Foods and MacVities (and yes we do miss the free samples!). Whether you are using film or digital equipment, and whether you are a beginner or are looking to improve the quality of your results we can tailor a course to meet your needs.  Choose either mornings, afternoons or full day and the subjects you would like to cover and leave the rest to us! Charges:- Half day 25 Euros per person  Full day 45 Euros Tai-chi Chris is also in charge of the tai-chi courses!  Having studied the art for over 20 years he is qualified to offer a number of interesting possibilities!  For a complete beginner the short form (in the Yang style) may take too long to completely learn in a week, but there would certainly be enough time for a very good introduction to the art.  For more experienced practitioners, he is able to offer courses in the following weapons forms:- 2 sword forms, spear form, sabre form and the truly elegant fan form. Charges: Hourly rate 10 Euros per person   French chef for the evening   Depending on his availability, for that special touch, we can arrange a French Chef de Cuisine to come to the gite and prepare a gourmet meal.  He will consult with you as to your menu requirements and availability of the ingredients (remember we are more at the mercy of what is in season here in France!).  He will then arrive and prepare and serve the meal for you - or if you'd prefer a little privacy he can just leave you to eat in peace!   Charges depending on the menu! Bikers Having been into biking ourselves (we own a Harley and write for biker magazines) for about 30 years we like to think that we know a bit about what bikers like - and we will make you very welcome!  Bikes can be parked undercover in the barn - and we've plenty of polish and rags to hand if you really feel the need to spruce up the steed whilst you're here!  the roads in this region are superb for bikes - and the French have a very different attitude to bikes which makes for a very pleasant experience!  We can either offer advice on 'best routes' or, if you prefer, then we can accompany you on ride-outs tailored to your preferences.  We can also offer a picnic service - we will turn up at an appropriate time and place, lay out the goodies and all you have to do is turn up and enjoy! Charges depending on picnic menu. Gaming No, we're not referring to an in-house casino!  But we do have rather a lot of games like Carcassonne (with pretty much ALL the expansions), Valley of the Mammoths, Ra, Trans-Europe Express, and of course our all time favourite Catan (Settlers) with absolutely ALL the expansions.  So if you're into gaming you can borrow any game we have in stock - and with very little persuasion we are happy to drop almost anything we're doing to join you!  No charge !! Househunters If you've been watching programmes like Place in the Sun, and are looking for a property in this area and would like to talk to someone who has been through it we would be more than happy to sit over a coffee and go over the basics.  We've renovated the gite and most of the house (and one day we might just finish it all!) and so can give you pointers as to the do's and don'ts.  We can also put you in touch with a number of estate agents in the area, many of whom now speak very good English! No charge !!