La ville en rose

On Thursday afternoon Kathy and I arrived in Toulouse (the Southwest of France) to fourteen degree celsius weather and to my surprise to brick architecture everywhere. I knew the city was called the pink city which I now know is because of whatever material the bricks are made from. Its odd because no other place near Toulouse, whether it be Bordeaux to the NW or medieval Carcassonne to the East or the Mediterranean towns to the South, have that type of architecture. I took a million pictures just of the architecture because of the colors and how it still has this historical flair to it that makes it different from American brick architecture. The city also has gorgeous churches, one called Saint Etienne which ended up being my favorite. The pictures can't demonstrate how enormous French churches are. And I enjoyed the tranquility of walking along the Garonne river in the sun and sitting in the park by the modern art museum and hospital where there was a carousel with turtles and airplanes to sit in. I also tried the local cassoulet dish at Chez Fazoul which was recommended by a store owner and had a delcious salad in the Place Capitole. Kathy couldn't believe how much American influence there is in France.