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Serendipity is a wonderful thing. The dictionary defines it as “finding something good without looking for it”.

The concept apparently has a long tradition in the history of science and discovery, but is – in my view – specifically useful as a strategy for exploring a new or even an already familiar place: instead of travelling from A to B in the straightest possible line, serendipity proposes, just roam around aimlessly while taking in as much of your surroundings as you can.

The classic application for this is the town walk, but you can also roll out the strategy on to the scale of an entire country by, for example, deciding on a starting place and then determining in which direction to continue on the basis of regional train connections (since these are the only trains these days which you can board on a moment’s notice), a whim and a prayer.

This, in one word (plus another 150 words of lengthy elaboration), is how we got to Valence.

"Serendipitous in Valence garden"

But it was a political event that turned what would otherwise have been just the briefest of stop-overs into a two-night stay: we got to Valence – roughly half-way between Lyon and the Mediterranean – on the eve of a national day of strike action which meant that no train left town for a 24-hour period. We were stuck.

All I had previously known about Valence was that this was where “the south” begins: “Á Valence, Le Sud commence”, the French are saying.  

And there is a lot of truth in that as you will notice when you approach the town by rail. A few minutes before the train’s arrival at Valence, the landscape suddenly sheds its green coat and takes on a brownish grey, and features are beginning to appear that look much harsher than the lush fields of the central Rhone basin around Lyon.

Serendipitous in Valence

Valence itself is also fairly provençal in character …

"Serendipitous in Valence"

… and there are corners where you feel you are somewhere near Avignon.

You will also see some late medieval buildings that evoke cities much further to the north …

"old buildings - Serendipitous in Valence"

… but overall, the tone of the town is altogether southern.

"market place - Serendipitous in Valence"

One of the most interesting places near the town centre is the Parc Jouvet …

… a public garden that was designed in 1903 on the basis of a nationwide contest.

The final layout of the project integrated elements of fourteen proposals, including a large and complex fountain …

… colourfully arranged flower beds …

"Serendipitous in Valence - visiting a garden"

… and a small network of canals.

The park has since been recognized by the French Ministry of Culture as one of the country’s jardins remarquables.

It also offers great views across the Rhone to the Vivarais mountains on the river’s right bank.

It was from here where I first spotted the bridge – without knowing yet what treasures lay there to be found at its far end.

Late last year, on a day when I obviously had too much time on my hands, I drew up a list of all 95 French départements (mainland France only) and ticked off those that we had already visited.

This turned out to be a fairly large proportion, a little more than half, helped significantly by our familiarity with the Ile de France around Paris and the southern coast.

There were, however, also large white spots in the centre of the country: entire clusters of départements that meant little to me, and it has since been my ambition to conduct voyages of discovery into these “unknown lands”, département by département.

I knew that Valence was the capital of the Drome department (tick), but what I only found out when we took a closer look at the map on our cell phone screen was that the river Rhone actually represented the border to another departement and that the Ardèche (tick!) therefore lay only a few hundred meters away.

For my game of ticking off departements, I had decided on certain rules. It was not enough just to have set foot on a piece of unmarked countryside, while travelling through, for example: the place we visited had to have a name.

We had no idea what we would find on the Ardeche side of the Rhone, but – to my delight – it soon became clear that we would not have to go far to find a place with a name.

In fact, there was one ready to welcome us with open arms!

Guilherand-Grange, I frankly admit, may not be the most beautiful or interesting bit of France. It is, in fact, even less interesting than the view from the bridge suggests, but on that day, I would not have exchanged it for any other.

Another step closer to a full set!

And on the way back across the bridge, as an added bonus, there were some nice views of Valence’s old town.

Such are the rewards of serendipity.

For us, it was serendipitous in Valence. What about you? Where did you experience serendipity in your travels?

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