Blogs from France, Europe - page 1607

The Sights We took the public bus into town which was effortless. The new metro is open but it is still only one line and only gives access to the most populous places. Old Toulouse is pretty small so it was not too much trouble to get around town. Toulouse is really an incredible city and probably does not get its due credit despite being the 5th largest city in France. The town has changed and the population of North Africans has increased significantly to the point where it was shocking. Toulousains joke that in the center city you will no longer find any French people, this was sadly near to the truth.... read more

September 13 Monday From Russia, we flew to Paris for the last leg of our adventure. Taking the Air France shuttle bus to Etoile then taking a taxi to #24 Avenue Gabriel, we were so warmly welcomed by Cynthia. It was good to be “home” again. We told Cynthia that we will spend the night there but need to leave early the following morning for Orly airport for our separate flights to Lourdes and to Marseilles. Emy and I are splitting up so I can visit Lourdes again while she visits Avignon and Arles, which I have visited back in 2003. We promised to meet up in Marseilles from where we can go to Aix en Provence before flying back to Paris. The 'plan' didn't meet with Cynthia's approval, insisting that we two should travel together. ... read more

Quite a few of the group were having a lay-in this morning, but I was one of the ones who walked to Biot station, where we were to pick up the train to Nice. It was 3 euros to Nice, so Paul got us all our tickets. There were delays on the trains this morning, so we had a bit of a wait and a good chat, but it came along in the end. It was about a 20-minute journey to Nice Ville station. Nice is the largest resort on the Mediterranean coast, and the fifth biggest city in France. However, it has the second busiest airport, only behind Paris. It was founded by the Greeks, and colonized by the Romans. It has long been a big attraction, due to its warm winter climate and its ... read more

An early start this morning, as we departed for Antibes, on the Côte d'Azur. Our morning song, ACDC's 'All Night Long', played once again on the way. We stopped off at Avignon in Provence, for a couple of hours, allowing us to have lunch and explore the wonders of this medieval town. Avignon is enclosed by massive ramparts, and became a papal territory when Pope Clement V descended from Rome in 1309, and taking up residence in the Palais des Papes which is a towering sight overlooking the town. Avignon remained a papal territory until 1377, by which time every successor had transformed a once modest building into a magnificent palace. The town also contains other charming sights - the 13th-century Petit Palais, once the Archbishop of Avignon's residence, the Cathédrale de Notre-Dame-des-Doms, and the 14th-century ... read more

Jean guided us to Colmar and showed us what was his parent’s home. The place is now abandoned and in disrepair, the reason is a long story and best let slip into the shadows of my memory. It was built in the early 1800's in what was a prosperous farming area at the time. The district has now been swallowed up by the town of Colmar and borders on the "rough" end of town. It had recently been sold as a development site and would soon be torn down or remodeled as part of a trendy townhouse complex. Our little tour of the almost ruined house would be the last time Jean would visit there. The tears in his eyes told how he felt about its uncertain future and the memories which connected him to this ... read more