Sunday, April 21st, 2019

Started the day with heading to the big local Sunday market. It was a very convivial affair, and I had coffee and then a half dozen oysters. After roaming around for awhile, I headed up to the Japanese garden and to find the statue of Carlos Gardel, who was born in Toulouse. Back to the market area for lunch, and then went to St. Etienne a church and then to the Royal Gardens, a few more places but definitely covered some ground.

Joanne of Arc.

This is the Pont Neuf, the oldest bridge in Toulouse. They figured out how to make the arches flood resistant by adding holes so that high water could flow through and not take down the bridge.

Saturday, April 20th, 2019

Today I did some of the classic tourists things. There was a bit of disruption lurking in the background as the Gilet Jaunes protest on Saturdays. Transit was disrupted and a large but pleasant contingent of CRS riot police installed themselves right by my front door. That said I really didn’t see any signs of protest until I was looking for somewhere to have dinner and the restaurant I headed for was just on the edge of the action, I headed out and not a moment too soon as shortly thereafter, the teargas was fired and people started running. In the meantime, the rest of Toulouse was busy eating and drinking like normal. I headed for the Cathedral of St. Serin, and although the interior is not too impressive, the exterior is. I should digress here and explain that Toulouse is called the “rose” city because everything in Toulouse is made of brick rather than the white or grey stone that characterizes the rest of France. When people say that Toulouse is different, it really is! It is stunningly beautiful and the scale of the buildings made of brick are hard to believe. It is said that Carlos Gardel, the great Tango singer, is from Toulouse, so I went to find his statue, but due to the protests, the public garden was closed. Then the Metro wasn’t working quite right, although that may have not been connected. Anyway took the bus over to the Carmes market area and worked my way back. Great lunch at a restaurant, Cafe Chouchou, where the owner took me under his wing, told me what market to go to tomorrow, tasted wine and generally took great care of me. From there, headed to the Couvent Augustine, where Thomas Aquinas remains are on display, or at least a box alleged to contain them. Back for a break and then a stroll to find a suitable place for dinner. After being almost in the action, a nice creative salad at Florida on Pl. du Capitole in front of the apartment did the job.

This truck had water cannons on the roof.

Well… not as good as The Barrel Thief!

Rooftop bar, Galerie Lafayette.Was headed to a recommended restaurant when I heard the tear gas go off.

Banks are boarded up.

Friday, April 19, 2019

A long day to day, checking out of Carcassonne, taking the train to Toulouse and getting installed there. Did the Red Bus tourist thing this afternoon, and then had dinner with Annie Sargent and her husband of the Join us in France Podcast. We went to check out a wine bar and they gave me the nickel tour on the way back. Anyway, a little tired, so I’ll just post some photos and do more tomorrow.

Lunch and the view of Pl. du Capitole from my apartment window.

Thursday, April 18th, 2019

Headed over to take the 2hr. Boat tour of the Canal du Midi. I was on the fence about it because it was really windy and chilly, but decided to do it anyway when I saw the boat had a corner I could shelter in. We started with a lock which lifted us up about 10 feet and then putted up the canal for about an hour to another lock which lifted us up further at which point we turned around and headed back. The Canal du Midi is interesting because it was built with permission and some support from the king, but largely by a gentlemen, Ricquet, who was a tax official, not an architect or an engineer. At the time it was built, it cut the shipping time from the center of France to the coast from a month or two to three days! 240km, 63 locks, finished in 1681. More on that here: https://joinusinfrance.com/episode/episode-22-canal-du-midi/

Here’s a Wikipedia with a map etc. Canal du Midi

After the boat ride and a cup of tea to warm up, it was time to find some lunch. I had run into a French soldier as I stopped for a nightcap last night and he had told me the La Table de Norbert was good if you liked steak, so, that was definitely warm up comfort food. So far dining in Carcassonne has been somewhat below mediocre, this place did a good job and was reasonably priced. See this pix. Norbert himself running around checking on people and the steak served with an Opinel #10 as a steak knife.

Nothing like a nice healthy salad for dinner, this one from Au Lard et Au Cochon.

Wednesday, April 17th, 2019

Woke up to a chilly and windy grey day in Carcassonne. The owner of the large, funky apartment I’m staying came down to show me how to operate the heating, and we had a pleasant interaction. I had made a loop in a dangling light and tied it up with a zip tie so that I wouldn’t cause my self a head injury on it during the night, she seemed ok with that once I explained. I’m staying in the main part of Carcassonne and the Medieval city is it’s own world, about a 20 minute walk from the downtown. I walked over and did the audio tour of the castle, quite interesting history and rebuild. Dates back to Roman times with numerous things in between. Really is the kind of castle you think about in story book times and apparently was used as the set for Robin Hood. Eating in Carcassonne is proving to be challenging. Last night I went to two places, that obviously had some free seats and got the “we are totally full” line. The French have not figured out that a solo diner will sit and eat and leave meaning they could easily feed someone if they wanted too. Lunch today was a fiasco. Went into the most authentic looking place Dame Carcas, in the medieval city and proceeded to be kept waiting at my table for half an hour while everyone around me had their order taken. Just as I was about to bail, they took my order and got to it reasonably well, but, really the problem is that they had 2 wait staff for a 60+ seat restaurant and for some reason the French business codes don’t seem to encourage hiring part time people. It’s frustrating because this is a super common problem in French restaurants in the smaller towns. Oh well “C’est La France!”

Tuesday, April 16th 2019

Today it was time to leave Bordeaux and head into “La France Profonde” or deep France. I left my AirBnb and headed for the train station, with some time to kill I managed to have a nice lunch just across from the station and then got on the train. It was a few minutes late, but otherwise a smooth 3hr. Ride to Caracassonne. On arrival I was able to walk to my AirBnb crossing the Canal du Midi and the neighbor of the owner let me in. The place is quite large and very funky with creaky wood floors and slight sloping of various surfaces. It’s quite a contrast after my modern studio apartment in Bordeaux. After a few basic unpacks, I headed off to see the famous Carcassonne old city, which really looks like it’s out of a time warp. After a good walk around there, it was time to find dinner. The two best places I could find both gave me the “we are completely full” routine common to partially empty French restaurants. Never mind, found somewhere eventually and tried my first cassoulet, the national dish of the Languedoc. Sausage, duck, pork and some kind of white beans, tasty, but I didn’t eat too many of the beans for strategic reasons….

This is my second AirBnB in Bordeaux, sort of an executive apartment.

Tuesday, April 16th 2019

I had a low key day yesterday, did some exploring around Bordeaux, including taking the Tram out to Merignac, one of the suburbs in the direction of the airport. Like many suburbs, not terribly attractive, but the efficient and frequent tram makes it doable for many people. I noticed that the Tram had a prioritized on traffic lights, so it can go straight through, and also a separate tramway. I went back to the Ecole de Vin wine bar and this time they were magically able to give me tasting size portions, a much better way to sample. Very annoying place, but good wines and cheap prices. Had a nice plate of charcuterie at a locals wine bar for dinner, and then it started raining. So, all in all a low key day. France is a bit in shock with Notre Dame catching fire in the early evening. As of this morning, it looks like the main structure will be restorable, so that is good news. Also put up a quick webpage for the Join Us in France group with some recommendations for Bordeaux. See menu bar “Bordeaux.”

Sunday, April 14th, 2019

Started the day heading for the Sunday market on the Quai des Chartrons. The usual booths were present, and I managed to have a half dozen oysters for breakfast, followed by finding a good coffee shop in the Chartrons neighborhood. La Pelle. From there, rode the tram out to Cenon, not much to see there. After, time for lunch and because of the rainy morning a crepe seemed in order, so off to La Parentheses. Some down time at home to book AirBnb for Toulouse and a few other things. Then a walk to the Jardin Public and a stop at wine bar Le Vertige. Dinner was serviceable but not great.

This bridge built by Napoleon

Saturday, April 13th, 2019

I got up early today and headed to the train station for a train to St. Emilion. I had booked a half day electric bicycle tour. Ended up being a lot of fun. Basically rode through the vineyards to a chateau where we had a tour and then a picnic lunch. From there we rode back to St. Emilion and then did some more tasting and had a quick tour of the village. After a bus and train ride home, it turned out that protests were going on so all transit was stopped. Did some serious walking, and came upon the protests, which I avoided but it didn’t seem like they were particularly out of control. Anyway here are pictures from the tour:

Main square in St.Emilion.

Friday, April 12th, 2019

Today’s first project was to pack up and change apartments. LM had met me in San Sebastián on the tail end of a long trip to Spain, came up to Bordeaux and then took off to Venice today. Not without a certain drama, as her cellphone was lifted from her pocket last night and the case had some credit cards in it, so she had to scramble to get things cancelled. Luckily she got it done, and we got her to a cell phone store where she picked up a new SIM and a new iphone on the way to the airport, and she was back in business. The apartment we had through AirBnb was funky but cool 2 bedroom, I’ve now moved to another AirBnb place closer to the center, studio of the plain executive apartment type, but brand new and clean. After getting the move done, I headed out to use some of the remaining museum admissions on my Bordeaux pass, good for 72 hrs. So got up the St. Michel tower, a big arrow of a tower with many steps and great views. Then went to the Musee D’Aquitaine and then to the Musee de Beaux Artes. So that was three admissions just today! Some disruption to Tram service as apparently demonstrations going on. We’ll see what tomorrow brings on the Gilet Jaune front. I’m scheduled on a morning train to St. Emilion where I’ll do a half day electric bicycle tour of various wineries.