Europe - August 2023

Today is the start of our journey back to Noosa. We flew to Lyon this morning with HOP!, the low cost carrier of Air France. Later today we fly Emirates to Dubai and then Emirates to Brisbane. It’s a long trip but we hope to sleep well on at least the Emirates flights.
Over the last 2 days we have walked a lot around Toulouse. It’s a very nice clean city which gives the impression of affluence. The buildings are typical European in style and are well kept with many painted colours and shutters, and there are a number of lovely botanical gardens and parks.
The Rugby World Cup is being held here next month which of course is a huge event and the city is preparing for the large number of visitors that will descend onto the city. The gardens had special statues and flowers dedicated to the countries participating in the World Cup.
Our first day there was a Monday and of course the French don’t like working on Mondays, so many of the shops and restaurants remain closed. It is always hard to understand why the French like reducing their income and business potentials by closing on a weekday!!
Carolina was in her element on both days with lots of nice shops and she spent many hours with Lou wandering around the shops. She even found a poodle in a wheelie case that looked very much like our Chanel!
Peter and Pete were less interested in shopping and instead spent a bit more time working on the boat generator which needed some maintenance.
Our last dinner with Pete and Lou was at a local French restaurant that served lovely tapas while sitting out on the pavement watching the world go by. We had a lovely time with them and we want to thank Pete and Lou very much for their kind hospitality on their lovely boat. It was a wonderful experience for everyone!
So now we are looking forward to getting back to Noosa and seeing Chanel and our family and friends. Our holiday plans all worked out well and generally smoothly. Yes there was a bit of travel involved in cars, trains, planes, busses, and boats, but we had good relaxing breaks in between and did not get tired. The long journey home now is probably going to be the most tiring part of our holiday!
Au revoir La France et l’Europe!Meer informatie