Vive la France

Buonjour tout le monde! France has been my first stop on my world tour, and has been every bit as wonderful as I imagined...

I’m currently sitting, warming my paws in the sun at ‘un petit café’ on the bank of the river Garonne, Toulouse. This uniquely beautiful city, filled with pink terracotta buildings, has been an absolute delight.

Today I spent the morning doing life drawing in the Musée des Augustins, followed by a stroll to Place Capitole for a café au lait and a pain aux raisin. I even took myself for an introduction to French class at the Alliance Francais – ‘c’etait tres bien’.

I have travelled around the city mostly using ‘Vélo Toulouse’ (basically ‘Boris Bikes’, minus the ‘Boris’ bit…what’s not to like about that.) It gives the rider half an hour of free cycle time at a time and has docking stations all across the city. A healthy, environmentally friendly way to see this wonderful city…and a great way to build up an appetite, something that you’ll need in Toulouse!

Food in Toulouse is not for the faint-hearted…nor the vegan (or vegetarian, or pescatarian for that matter…) Pretty much everything on the menu in Toulouse contains at least one type of meat. However, there is a real tendency towards locally sourced, seasonal ingredients which you can see at the numerous farmers markets across the city. It would have been a sacrilege leave Toulouse without trying the cassoulet. This bean stew is without a doubt the most emblematic dish of the city, and it comes in a variety of recipes- let me tell you, it lives up to the hype. It was fabulous for warming up this little bear after a brisk cycle around the city.

I have found the people in Toulouse to be wonderfully warm and approachable, always willing to chat in a melange of English and French. I haven’t been here long, but I feel this city has already stolen a piece of my fuzzy heart.

A bientôt mes amis x