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Wednesday, Final scenic drive. It was with very mixed feelings that I woke this morning. Was I actually keen to get home? My flight back to Bristol was late afternoon, and the car had to be returned by 2.30. The weather promised to be rather better, and I could hope not to have to use the broken umbrella, even to see a little blue sky. It would only have taken me under an hour to get back from Lisle-sur-Tarn to Toulouse airport on main roads, so planned out a route via country roads and villages. Not as spectacular as I had seen on Monday, as the geology was less dramatic, but pleasant – and it would have been even more pleasant had I in fact seen any blue sky. At least there was no rain. Taking the quiet roads enabled me to see and stop at more wildflower-studded meadows,
and pretty – if forlorn – houses.
This part of France maintains many of the plane trees lining roads, originally designed to shade those walking or driving carts along them. (Other places blame them for car accidents and have ripped them out.)
I had never before seen oaks serving the same purpose.
Coffee time, and I stopped at a town called Villemur-sur-Tarn. No problem in parking here, though I didn’t go right into the centre, but stopped along an embankment of the Tarn.
When I saw this as I walked into the centre, I did wonder if I should have left my phone number in the windscreen!
It was reassuring shortly afterwards to find out that the last time that the flooding had come so high was in 1766.
The more modern notice must have been for the underground car park I had passed.
Further along the embankment, a very full information panel told me that there had been hydroelectricity here as well, from 1896, and that the factory opposite had made cereal foodstuffs until quite recently. But what’s happened to the celebrated French pavement café? I could find absolutely nowhere, inside or outside, to have a drink! Even the Café de l’Hôtel de Ville was empty, not just of people but of furniture!
Fortunately I had water in the car.
I still had quite a way to go, but didn’t take many more photographs.

An orchid I think, but I can’t identify it.
Quite near to the airport I went through another town well-known for its region’s wines, Fronton, and saw an enormous co-operative, but couldn’t stop to record it, just this token one of vines. (A bit irksome to read in that link that the area is known for its dry heat.)I hadn’t seen many poppies, which like disturbed ground, at all, so was very pleased, when driving around a town with a huge gravel works, to see these on a recently constructed bank.
From now on I was concentrating on getting to the car hire depot on time, and on finding fuel to be able to return the car with a full tank. At the airport it was with great satisfaction that I abandoned my poor, spoke-broken umbrella to a bin!
‘Did you have a good holiday?’ I have been asked since. Hmm. Well, it wasn’t exactly what I’d planned, the highlights being cultural rather than rural, and I did feel deprived. It was pleasing to find that not only the lovely views (obviously) but also the lovely fields of wildflowers (not such a certainty) were still there. It would have been great to enjoy them in the ‘normal’ spring weather for that part of the world at this time of year. Did I enjoy my holiday? Yes, overall I did – but I was very glad to have included Toulouse in my plans! And that I now have an organised nature trip to Madeira to look forward to…
PS. I did buy 100 grams of chocolates from that chocolate shop next to my hotel in Toulouse, and they only make very small ones. So, at one a day, and back now a fortnight, I am looking forward to having the very last one with coffee after my meal this evening.
Those fields of wildflowers must have made up a bit for the disappointing weather. Even if it wasn’t the holiday you had hoped for it was all interesting to me, thank you for sharing your experiences.
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It was good to be back in the area again after 28 years, despite the weather.
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Incredible rolling hills and wildflower-carpeted hills. Also, I had a dream about being in France last night. So I got the chills when I opened my WordPress reader and saw this post near the top! Perhaps you blog is affecting my subconscious.
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Perhaps you have a subconcious desire to visit France!
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I think I have a subconscious desire to visit every place.
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I am sorry that the weather let you down. Just be glad that you weren’t on a cycling holiday. The meadows look glorious.
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I’ve not cycled since I was knocked off my bike by a car turning left across me on the way to school. But I can imagine that a cycling holiday in that area in good weather would be glorious – empty roads and wonderful scenery.
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WOW! They really know how to do wildflower meadows do they not? They must have lots of happy insects. But what a shame that the weather was so consistently poor for your trip. However, it is obvious from your pictures that it must be glorious when you get sunshine and blue skies. Thank you for taking us along with you! XX
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It’s the memory of those meadows that took me back. At least they were still there.
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A fine record of your holiday and easy to see why you were keen to go back to the area. You managed to see and do a great deal in spite of the unhelpful weather conditions.
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Heureusement que les fleurs sauvages étaient au rendez-vous contrairement au soleil. Quant à moi, comme je n’avais pas à souffrir du froid et de l’humidité, le voyage a été très intéressant !
Je demanderai à Marie-Line si elle peut identifier l’orchidée (si c’en est une). Et vais pouvoir enchaîner avec Madère, en espérant que là, le soleil ne t’aura pas fait faux bond !
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It was REALLY cold! And REALLY windy. And pretty wet!
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Your orchid IS an orchid : “Serapias” for sure, most probably “lingua”, but Marie-Line wouldn’t be positive about that.
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Thank you Chritine – and Marie-Line.
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