Lovely house of honey-coloured Charente stone, in walled grounds, offering complete peaceful privacy and relaxation as well as safe, spacious play areas and secure parking. Situated near to an ancient church in a delightfully pretty village. Child friendly. Excellent air, rail and road links for easy access by ferry or cheap flights. Ideally situated for enjoying the beautiful scenery, lively activities and cultural heritage of Ruffecois, as well as trips to Futuroscope theme park, Poitiers, Confolens, La Rochelle, Limoges and Cognac country. Anam Cara is a house of character and rustic charm offering modern comforts. Perfect for couples and for families with children.

A very short drive or bike ride takes you to indoor and outdoor pools, river bathing, horseriding, canoes, kayacs, picnic areas, a bathing lake with beach, a variety of interesting cafes, bars and excellent restaurants. “Booking arrangements, were very easy, and the information sheets that you mailed were terrific as they gave us a chance to think about what we might like to do before we even got there. The house and garden were very well put together, we enjoyed the thoughtful touches in the fridge, so much so, that we got addicted to that delicious chocolate amongst other things! Your lovely, and patient neighbours (-listening to my mangled attempts at speaking french!), deserve a special mention as they were charming and welcoming, even providing us with delicious produce from their garden. Please let them know how much they were appreciated by us. We had some lovely lazy days at 'home', Anam Cara is a very relaxing place to be and the kids loved the pool, while we thoroughly enjoyed some of your books when ours ran out! We also enjoyed the games; our seven year old is now proficient at backgammon, while our nine and twelve year olds have become bingo whizzes, making up their own very funny bingo calling! We visited the interesting Chateau (-complete with spooky caves and dressing up room ...very good for a giggle!)) at Rochefoucauld one morning; which has a fantastic tea room in it's shadow, next to the river that sells fabulous ice creams and crepes. We followed this up by going about 20 minutes further to the lakes at Massignac (we went to the one signposted la Guerlie), which has a terrific beach complete with water volley ball, restaurants, pedalos, canoes and sailing. A practically perfect day out. Another lovely day out was spent at Aubterre-sur-Dronne. Really pretty hill town, has a delightful square in the centre with a gaggle of pleasant parasol-shaded eating places ... we liked 'Sel et Sucre' All very lovely and 'artsy'; interesting shops, and terrific for pottery (pleasant and talented potter based along from the fascinating church sculpted from the rock, although the one opposite it had some good things too.) Definitely take your bathers as the river below was a good find with beach and safe play park, also cafe... in fact we particularly loved this about the whole area in general, that you can enjoy both culture and some outdoor fun mixed in together. We had a great evening at the Confolen festival watching the parade on our last night which was a terrific way to end our fortnight. All in all a very memorable and enjoyable holiday, which we will remember fondly. Thanks for all your help, warm regards Sara & Mike and family. August 2006 “Dear John, We had a wonderful time at ‘Anam Cara’. Your card was very thoughtful. We felt everything was very efficiently arranged and the information you sent us very helpful. The house was lovely and the garden very beautiful. We thought the house was very well equipped. We made good use of the pool, the children enjoyed it tremendously. Our older child was very grateful for the DVDs! He actually put watching ‘Popeye’ as one of his holiday highlights,along with the pool! It was our most relaxing family holiday. We thought the castle at La Rochefoucauld and the small town absolutely delightful.There is a restaurant/cafe opposite the castle, where you can sit on the terrace overlooking the river and the castle. It was very peaceful and the meal was lovely. I’m sorry I can’t remember the name of the restaurant but it’s on the same side as the castle, you see the terrace when you cross the bridge. Confolens was lovely. We also went to La Rochelle, to the Maritime museum. Our French is sadly limited but this didn’t affect our enjoyment. Aigre was a lovely village with a good market and all the shops were open on the Sunday morning. There was too much to see and do in the area and unfortunately not enough time. The neighbours and the people in the village were very friendly and welcoming. We very much hope to revisit ‘Anam Cara’ in 2008. Thank you for letting use your very pretty cottage.” James Family. August 2006 “We did indeed have a great time at Anam Cara – it was just the right place for us. We especially enjoyed Aubeterre-sur-Dronne, Sainte, Coulon, Melle (and the abbey in Celles is wonderful too), Nanteuil (have you discovered the arboretum?), Cognac (the Martell tour is really good), La Rochelle and the Ile de Re, the bakery van, Angouleme, Le Rejallant, the bike (bless you!!!!!), and the weekly Ruffec market. “ Wolfe Family April 2006 “We had a fantastic time in France. The weather ranged from 25 - 36 degrees throughout the two weeks. The neighbour, Jean-Claude was lovely and visited regularly to make sure all was well. When we first arrived we found a nest of blackbirds and it was wonderful to see them grow and finally fledge two days before we left. The birds there are lovely. The house was lovely, although we didn't spend much time inside, only for sleeping and washing. The house book was excellent and we visited a couple of the places listed - the trip to Martell in Cognac was exceptional. We are very happy that we found your house to stay in for this holiday. It was in a lovely setting and you have thought very well about what would make an enjoyable holiday for all. The welcome pack was a lovely idea and gratefully received after the long journey. Thanks again for allowing us to use your house as our holiday home.Kind Regards, Holland Family . June 2006” “Heya, yes thank you we had a wonderfull time, its such a pretty little place. With regards to booking you were great, had no problems there at all. The information was also fine! We had a great day out at futuroscope, loved it! The house was neat and well kept, funiture was good too. Lots of really nice little touches that we ejoyed, from the games there to the postcards, we will be sending a few of thouse out for sure. We didnt eat out all that much, but there was a little pizzaria in ruffec that made rather tastey pizza, Ive eaten a few few in my time and they were probably the best Ive had. Thanks again for a great holiday.” Ben and Jo June 2006 “hello john just to say we had a great holiday at anam cara , sitting out in the garden and enjoying the swimming pool. le rejellant was a lovely spot. thanks neil ps loches was 2 hours drive but what a lovely town shops . cafes, old cobbled streets and old castle” Robertson Family July 2006 “Hello John We have just returned from France and have very much enjoyed our time at Anam Cara so big thanks. We had a great time and I wouldn't have any problem recommending the house or area to others. The children particularly enjoyed the lake at Villefagnan as well as the swimming pool, which they virtually lived in! The information you gave us was excellent in planning days out and we found everyone in the village very friendly. I also noted you have a studio apartment in Paris suitable for 2. Any further details would be appreciated. “Warren Family August 2006

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