BLAKK

We were in two minds about going to Cite l’Espace. It would take at least a couple of hours, and leave little time to reach Millau in the afternoon. We decided to go there, then decide whether to go in. Of course, once we were there, going in assumed a kind of inevitability. It was rather good, with real stages from Ariane rockets, a full size Ariane 5, a Soyuz capsule used to visit Mir, and an actual Mir space station that you could walk through. The best part was a partially cut away Viking rocket engine.

While waiting for the Imax presentation about a French astronaut’s experiences in the International Space Station, there was a promo of highlights of the Midi Pyrenees region. I caught a 2 second glimpse of an intriguing Medieval hilltop village and enough of the name to find it in Google Maps. Cordes sur Ciel. We’re there now, only about 65km from Toulouse. Continue reading “Day 30, Saturday, Cordes sur Ciel”

The continental breakfast at the hotel was good. I’ll rate the hotel 10. Today is our full day in Toulouse. We thought about going to the end of Metro line B and taking the 37 bus to City l’Espace, but it would have taken up most of the day. Instead, we went to the Musee Saint Raymond, with its relics of Roman settlement of Toulouse (Tolosa) and Narbonne (Nabosa). On the way there we visited the Basilica of St Sernin. Continue reading “Day 29, Friday, Toulouse”

No breakfast at l’Hostalet this morning. Anne remembered a patisserie near Place Gambetta. The great thing here was that the patisserie owns the cafe just across the lane, so you can select what you want in the patisserie and sit down and eat it with a coffee, one payment. That solves a problem we have in France where you can’t combine your patisserie purchase with a civilised coffee. If you want to sit down with a coffee at a cafe, you can’t really consume your patisserie purchases there. In Australia, since hot bread shops turned into bakeries and installed espresso machines in the early 90’s, we have not had that problem, but our bakeries just aren’t the same. Continue reading “Day 28, Thursday, Toulouse”

I don’t write many reviews in Booking.com, it’s too much work. Only for the places that really stand out. L’Hostalet is one of them.

This was one of the very best places we stayed in a four week driving tour in France. Mathieu texted instructions, we parked for free near the Mairie, a short walk from the BnB, and Mathieu transported our cases in his bagage triporteur. Mathieu was a great host, very friendly and helpful. The restaurant he recommended for dinner was one of the best too. Things we liked:

Convenient location in the centre of the town, large bedroom with tea/coffee making facilities and a fridge, air conditioning, comfortable bed, high quality bed linen, exhaust fan in the bathroom (surprisingly uncommon), silence (with the windows closed, but we could hear the life of the town around us with the windows open), better-than-average wifi. Nice details, including artisanal soap. Above all, the excellent breakfast, with freshly squeezed orange juice, fresh fruit, a variety of local cheeses, breads and five  varieties of home made jam, all served behind the hotel, adjacent to the Place de la Republique, as the weekly market unfolded around us. 

At breakfast, we decided to stay a second night. Continue reading “Day 27, Wednesday, Argeles sur Mer”