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Published: December 2nd 2008
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And just like that, another week and a bit has whizzed by. The weekdays passed in something of a blur, it's that time of year when there is so much work to do, preparation for my first exams in less than 2 weeks, my year abroad project to research, including interviews with some of the lecturers, sorting out work experience for my month off between France and Spain...
And then it was the weekend again, and on Saturday morning, I got an early train to Toulouse, about 2 hours away, to meet up with Erin, a close friend from uni who is studying in Bordeaux. We were so happy to see each other, and after checking in and dumping our bags at the pretty little hotel (little being the operative word in the case of our room!), we set out to explore the city. It felt so good to be in a big city again, and Perpignan feels very small in comparison. One of the must-see buildings, the Basilica St-Sernin, was right opposite our hotel, and it really is a beautiful building. We wandered up and down the main shopping streets, chattering away, and then found a small restaurant for
lunch. Later, we went to an English pub, which felt even more like cheating than going to Perpignan's Irish pub, but a glass of cider was just what we were after.
Back at the hotel, we briefly toyed with the idea of finding a restaurant for dinner, but as the weather was pretty horrible and Erin had, in a stroke of brilliance, brought her laptop, we decided to buy some food from a supermarket, and go back to watch Midsomer Murders. We ventured out into the damp evening to get our supplies, somehow unable to find the main shopping street we had arrived at so easily before. But we were happy to wander past brightly-lit shop windows, along streets resplendent with Christmas lights, and before long we'd found it again. Tucked up under the covers with a feast of cheese, crisps, cranberries, strawberries and chocolate laid out before us, murders being solved in a sleepy English village, and a plastic glass of Bordeaux in our hands was absolute heaven, ten times better than going to any five-star restaurant you wish to name.
The next day, we headed out into Toulouse again, exploring much more of it than we
in the gallery
itself a work of art! had the day before, just by walking and chatting, our feet pretty much leading us. Being a Sunday in France, almost nothing was open, and some parts of the city were like a ghost-town, where they had been bustling with shoppers the day before. We found ourselves at an art gallery and museum, which was lovely to wander round. The sculpture was particularly impressive, most of it dating from the 13th - 16th centuries, so I was in my element. After some picture-taking and chocolate-munching, we decided to see if we could find a cafe that was open. After wandering a bit more, we did, and had some much-needed hot drinks. We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring more of the city, and finally ended up in yet another English pub (which defy French custom and open on a Sunday) until it was time to collect our bags and go to the station.
It was a fantastic weekend, and we just chatted the whole time, catching up on months of gossip and news. But we both said how much we wanted to go home. We both love France, we even can appreciate some of its irritating quirks, but
it's not home.
However, it's less than three weeks before I'll be on a flight to Bournemouth, and Vicky will be arriving for a couple of days in a week. So time is going to fly, I just need to concentrate on work, and then I can go home. Not long at all.
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