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Our road trip from the Italian capital took us along the stunning Mediterranean Coast, and when we saw a sign for Monaco we simply had to call in. Our visit was faster than the Formula One Race which is staged there. A 15 minute detour included a quick lap of the Grand Prix circuit.

 I drove the BBC Newsline van around Casino Square and through the famous tunnel, about 140 miles per hour slower than Michael Schumacher! You can watch the video of our quick pit stop.

Then it was back en route to Castres, 750 miles of motorway, and then about 70 miles winding our way through the country side until we arrived in the small town in the South of France. Castres is about the same size as Newtownards, and is rugby crazy with over 10,000 people turning up for every game.

I had organised to hook up with two former Irish internationals Mark McCall and Jeremy Davidson, who are both coaching at the club. Both are leaving at the end of the season, and hoping to secure new jobs in rugby in the UK. You can hear from them in our video story, and watch some highlights of Saturday's draw against Brive in the French League.

After a night in Castres we drove the remaining 450 miles to Paris, and had a quick whistle stop tour this morning. The last time Ireland were here French flyer Vincent Clerc broke Irish hearts, as he did in Dublin the year before. Let hope for revenge next Saturday!

I have also posted my interview with the French manager, who looks back at the Six Nations game in Croke Park, and you can watch highlights of Ireland v France from last year.

Tonight I reported live for BBC Newsline in front of the Eiffel Tower. Watch the full report here.