Toulouse

Keith, Nicole, Parkes and I visited Toulouse last week for four days. We had a smashing time there and returned feeling not exactly refreshed but certainly like we'd been away.

Toulouse is a student city so there is lots of hustle and bustle and plenty of places to dine and wet your whistles. The city also has historical sites and many of the buildings there were constructed using a pinkish-coloured brick giving the city a pretty if slightly poofy feel. However this didn't stop us power-shopping for clothes and shoes on the first two days. On day four we took a train out of the city to a small town called Gaillac where there are stacks of vineyards and one of them allowed us to sample some of their finest produce. We also came face to face with a baby Goshawk which was being hand-reared by one of vineyard workers for future pest-control purposes. It was a beautiful creature - all beak and fluff.

The real highlight of the trip, apart from the company, was the food. There was not one meal which escaped the praises of at least two or three of us. The cassoulet probably was the finest meal Keith and I tasted. We also had month-watering steaks, sizzling snails, foie-gras, confit of duck, magrêt of duck, Lebanese-style kebabs, Nepalese curries, Thai curries, fantastic pizzas and the occasional croissant thrown in for good measure. The beers were less exceptional but always refreshing in the sticky weather. However we did find a good microbrewery in The Frog & Roast Beef pub where we watched the England game against Trinidad. The wine was very good and always reasonably priced.

Below you will find an assortment of piccies from the trip.