Montauban - Toulouse - The Grand Tour - 2023

May 19, 2023

Montauban - Toulouse

First a picture from the day before yesterday in Cazals with Denise, our sweet hostess, who wished she had someone to go on bicycle tours with, but she is alone.

Denise and me, Cazals, chambre d'hôtes, Ombre et Fraicheur

Today's story is quickly told. It's a short distance from our chambre d'hôtes to the beginning of our ride on the Canal Entre deux Mers all the way to Toulouse. It's straight, flat and after the first three or four kilometers, you have seen all there is to see. There are similar bridges or locks or intersections about every 500 meters. One interesting feature is when the canal bridge we are on crosses L'Hers-Mort, a tributary of the Garonne. The ride is a bit tedious and it's cold, with wind chill added to the low temps. I even have my booties on to keep my feet warm - but it doesn't rain. So I'm not really complaining, just stating the facts.

This is what it looks like most of the day.

It was hard to illustrate the canal bridge we are on in the foreground and the river it is crossing below.

The river we are crossing, full and muddy from heavy rains

For the last kilometer or two we branch off onto the Canal du Midi before we take to the streets to our hotel. Bikes in the garage, lift to our room, all is well. Again today we nibbled bits of ginger bread caks and a cookie or two (we'll never learn to shop before we leave) and are looking forward to a meal in one of the many restaurants lining the boulevard and side streets outside our hotel. We choose a seafood place with lots of local atmosphere and start with a dozen oysters, very fresh and tasty.

The equivalent to the Life of Riley in German is living "wie Gott in Frankreich", like God in France. I think it applies here.

After a satisfying meal, we shiver back to our room and call it another successful day on the road. Tomorrow we will hang out in Toulouse.

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Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 649 km (403 miles)

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Kathleen Jones“So I'm not really complaining, just stating the facts.” I am so going to use that, daily.

I heard someone else say recently that complaining is really just telling the truth. (But there are ways of telling the truth, n’est-ce pas?)
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11 months ago

Suzanne GibsonHaha, my truth so differs from other people's sometimes.
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11 months ago