Albi is such a cool city! It takes about an hour to get there by train from Toulouse and is only 24 euro roundtrip for the standard fare. Seve suggested we go there for the day since everyone else in our program was going snow skiing, and we both wanted to see some smaller towns outside of Toulouse. I couldn't find too much info on Albi before leaving, but we didn't have any shortage of things to do there. We first went to the Cathedral de St. Cecile where the largest 15th century Italian renaissance painting covers both walls behind the main altar. The church's alcoves are covered in bright patterns as can be seen in some of the pictures. After the church we went to the Toulouse-Lautrec museum, and though we only had one hour to look around I think we saw most of the paintings on display for a reasonable amount of time.
After finishing the only two things we felt we needed to do in Albi, we wandered around and started looking for somewhere to eat. We got distracted when we saw the light from the setting sun lighting up the red brick bridges that span the Tarn river, and decided to take a walk and try to get a closer look. After the walk by the river we climbed back up to street level and began our search for food again.
We wandered around in a few directions looking for a kebab shop for a cheap and filling meal but couldn't seem to find anything other than expensive places with table cloths. We spotted a bar across a pedestrian mall and started walking towards it when we noticed lights from an area to the right of where we had just come from. We decided that since we were 2 backpackers on a day trip to another city, we should put the bar food off until later and go investigate.
It turned out to be a small carnival with lots of games like they have at the fair, such as picking up rubber ducks from a pool and throwing darts at balloons. The people working at these games stood out though! Unlike the workers at the State Fair in Jackson, these people were having pleasant conversations with each other, not yelling at you over a microphone, and generally didn't really seem to care if you didn't want to play their game.
After wandering around this carnival for a while we found a kebab stand and had an amazing meal of kebab + frites, though we were freezing by the time we were done eating because the only place to sit down was in a park that was not very protected from the wind. After eating we decided to go and find somewhere to warm up. We ended up in the Brussel's Cafe which was nice and centrally located. From there we figured out when we needed to leave to get back to the train station on time, then sat back with a beer and relived the great day we had.
The train ride back to Toulouse was great. Fast, quiet, and peaceful. I had an hour to kick back and listen to some music before getting home and taking the metro to my bed. Being able to wake up, go to another city for the day, then ride the train home and sleep in your own bed is a great thing.
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| From Feb 14, 2010 |
Jarrod,
ReplyDeleteDid my last comment not come up? I don't know- I didn't see it anywhere. Well, if it didn't I meant to say sorry again that I take so long to respond- I'm very bad at blogging, especially compared to you. You're going to have to tell me how you got your pictures up like that because I need a more effective way to post them. Also, how do you take pictures at night, because I noticed you have some very good ones, and mine never work out. Is your camera special- or is there just a secret trick?
I'm so glad you're doing so well. I can't belive you couchsurfed- that's insane! All the places you've been look so gorgeous though, and I'm so glad you're getting to see all of them. Are you going to be in Toulouse anytime from March 29-April 16? I have my Spring Break then and I didn't know if I could come crash with you sometime if I make it to France?