Toulouse

Today the sun has come to the South of France. The climate is warmer and the accent is also different. Sadly, they don’t speak Frenglish like me. We arrived in wild weather at the home of Marie-Jo and Jean Marie and the rain continued for 2 more days. The Garonne river is high with water from the Pyrenees Mountains.

This is our taste of life in le grande ville. The apartment sits behind the street a hundred meters from Pont Neuf. There is evidence of the original construction with timber beams and a central spiral concrete staircase. Ascending the stairs from the garage underneath, the main living space is open plan with a mezzanine atop the staircase. An open air courtyard gives light to all 4 bedrooms and living space. That sounds like an amateur real estate brochure, but forgive me, it is a beautiful home. The walls are lined with various artworks. Their nest is usually empty but we are very happy here for the remainder of our trip.

Up until now we have been lying low and catching up with some school work. This morning shadowed Marie-Jo as she shopped at the local fresh food market.

The narrow streets are lined with little shops, both French and North African. Lissa spotted a second hand clothing shop and I ventured into a small Algerian café with some north African craftwork. The lady was so nice to me and the kids, so I bought some sweet baklava for us all. It is hard to resist all the goodies. I think it is an true test of your residential status: If you can walk into a boulangerie/patisserie and exit with only a baguette, you are a local.

Marie-Jo’s daughter Amandine lives in Cornibarrieu on the outskirts of Toulouse. Her husband Andreas works close by for Airbus who is based in Toulouse. Amandine cooked us dinner on Tuesday night and we spent the afternoon raiding one of the cherry trees (one of the delights of the French climate).

Andy also lured us into a post dinner sauna. 85 degrees in the sauna then 15 degrees in the swimming pool certainly blew off the cobwebs. Saunas are very popular in Andy’s home, Germany. Swimming costumes however, are usually reserved for swimming.

Amandine has 2 children, Arthur 4 and Anna 1. They spent the day here yesterday as 

Amandine was at work. We were able to escape a bout of “cabin fever” with a walk to the park. Typically, Kael wasted no time joining a game of tips with some local kids. This park also has a carousel which the 4 bigger children enjoyed. 
The shopping centre ride is embarrassing cousin of the real carousel.

 Lissa and Marie Jo had a night out to see a Belge modern dance performance. Jean Marie took the boys to see the quarter final Rugby match between Castres and Montpellier. It is a testament to French culture that no talent was wasted on the cheerleadering troupe. Castres were dominant but had to hold on to their lead in the last 20 mins after their lock was dubiously sent off for a high tackle. I’ve seen worse tackles at a budget fishing shop.

We are all feeling a little run down right now but the warm weather has boosted our energy. 

This weekend may not be so fine, but flea markets will do the trick.