Next stop Toulouse

We had a very relaxed start today as we aren’t due to catch our train to Toulouse until midday. We met for breakfast around 8.30 am and Brigitte informed us that she had won a bottle of wine for tipping the closest to the NZ v Italy match. We had arranged with the hotel for a taxi to pick us up at 10.45am to take us to the station, but the taxi hadn’t arrived by 11am and so Brigitte checked with reception. They contacted the taxi company who said they didn’t have a booking (which was a lie), and the hotel told us this happens all the time. Luckily, Julian, the hotel duty manager, offered to take us.

We were waiting on the platform at Albi-Ville when a train to Toulouse arrived. We thought it would wait 20 minutes before departing but, as we were getting on, the departure buzzer started sounding. We boarded it anyway. Actually, we boarded it, jumped off, jumped back on and nearly got caught in the doors, not knowing if it was the correct train until a local confirmed it was indeed going to Toulouse. Turns out it was the earlier train but, as our ticket wasn’t assigned seats, we could catch this one. The conductor didn’t care, and I think had been amused by our little spectacle at the station.

The trip to Toulouse was smooth and quick. On arrival we decided to have lunch at a Brasserie at the station before jumping in a taxi to our Airbnb. We were waiting in the correct spot with an elderly couple, but noticed people waiting closer to where the taxis enter to try and jump the queue - bloody French they love to break the rules. The old couple just ahead of us in the queue told us this happens all the time but they hailed the cab as soon as it entered the area and it came up to them. When the next taxi arrived, the queue jumpers tried to hail it down but we made it clear the taxi was for us and the driver actually told them they were in the wrong spot. So, they moved up to join the official line, making out they hadn’t realised.

Our trip to the Airbnb was fairly short but there were a number of “near misses” with scooters, bikes and motorcycles - you have to be really careful as no-one seems to follow the road rules, especially the scooters and bikes. They go the wrong way up narrow crowded streets and expect everyone to get out of their way. The taxi driver said it had been much worse after COVID.

We finally made it to our apartment and we were met by Nathalie, our host, who explained how things worked and gave us some tips about the area. We are situated right opposite the river Garonne and very centrally located, which is ideal when you want to walk everywhere. We went out to grab supplies from the local supermarket and have a bit of a look around. Tonight we have our wine bar tour with Jessica.Read more