An unforgettable lunch at Casa Olympe. Some dishes speak directly to your soul; Olympe Versini’s sublime cocotte de pintade aux épices tugged at mine till I was near weeping. Following this, an improbable victory by England, 1 – 4, away to Croatia have left me bereft of words.

How wonderful when two of my favourite things—food & football (sandwiching a trip to The Red Wheelbarrow to buy beloved books)—combine so fabulously in one day.

This truly has been one hell of a memorable holiday.

My old college roommate, Jo, chunneled in from England today; haven’t seen him for over five years . . . funnily enough that was in France, too . . . Provence 2003. Having a great time catching up with a dear old friend who’s done bloody well for himself . . .

Spent part of the afternoon at La Cloche des Halles and then at Willi’s Wine Bar before a very lovely meal at La Ferrandaise. Jo and I had the candied lamb shoulder which was meltingly tender and properly gamey; The Wife had langoustines with coco beans; but the veal for two (shared by the table next to us) looked like the real winner. A monumental cut of beautifully roasted veal.

Came back home and logged in to see that England could only manage two goals against lowly Andorra. Once again, I’m so proud to be English.

The Times offers their top fifty “wish you’d been there” moments in football.

What if you had a time machine and could set it to take you back to any point in football history? Which matches, which moments, would you choose—so you could proudly say, years later, “I was there”?

For me, No. 2, “The miracle of Istanbul, 2005,” will always be No. 1 (until, of course, Liverpool wins No. 6 or No. 19; or England wins No. 2).