St-Savinien Music Festival, Melle

28 May - 8 June 2011

Held in the church of St-Savinien. See www.ville-melle.fr

Festival Ludique International de Parthenay or FLIP

6 – 17 July 2011

Computer and Other Games Fair in Parthenay Congress Hall. Outdoor venues with themed ‘villages’ and streets lined with up to 300 hand games which you can participate in. Also boardgames and organised team games in Place du Drapeau. Contact Parthenay Tourist Office for details.

Deux Sevres’s Tales and Legends

Tales and legends abound in this green and magical place which, together with the departments of Vendee and Vienne, once formed ancient Poitou. Medieval stories tell of the fairy Melusine who flew and built towns and castles all over the province including Parthenay castle.

In Niort, find out more of the battle between a warrior and a winged dragon now used as the town’s tourist symbol. The legendary giant Gargantua from around Thouars features in stories by French Renaissance writer Francois Rabelais.

Let your imagination run riot in the Jardin des Chirons at La Moreliere, Largeasse, where huge granite boulders in fantastical shapes become a night-time meeting place for elves, giants and witches. It is said the huge balancing ‘Rocher Branlant’ can only be made unsteady by the touch of a cheating wife’s hand! Contact (00 33) 5 49 72 02 44 for more details about the garden.

A new legend was created in the little village of Pougne-Herisson in 1990 by French actor and comedian Yannick Jaulin. Find out about its bi-annual festival on www.nombril.com

Please check precise details and dates with event organisers before making your holiday and travel arrangements.