Which places inspire you?

I have written before about my favourite place in the world, where I feel inspired. This is the lovely town of Menton. It is nestled between Monaco and Italy, a paragon of a frontier town. It is said to be the Pearl of France.

It has many literary associations, mainly because consumptive Victorian writers came here to recover their health or to die. Writers who visited or stayed here include Robert Louis Stevenson, Katherine Mansfield, Guy de Maupassant, Gustave Flaubert, Emile Zola and Jean Cocteau. WB Yeats died in the next village. I love it.

I get my inspiration from two places. One is a lovely cafe overlooking the Mediterranean. I imagine Greek Triremes sailing past on their way to Marseilles, or even Odysseus searching for the Western Seas. I get my best ideas for stories here, for characters and plots. I scribble furiously in my notebook then glance up and look at the shimmering sea. Time for a glass of wine, I think.

The second place is sitting on a bench looking at the view of the old town.

My wife and I conjure with our life dreams here. I love Menton and we visit three or four times each year.

Now we are planning to take a senior gap year there, starting soon. Can't wait.

Where are the places which inspire you?