Sunday, November 23, 2014

Late Autumn Stroll in Bourran, Rodez, Aveyron



Most Ruthénois would not recognize this park in the Bourran business district

We have had a return of warm weather -- to my taste, a bit too warm for November. But it did allow me to get out on a late autumn walk during one of my lunch breaks last week. 


Getting away from it all only a few blocks from my workplace

I work in Bourran, the "new" business district of Rodez. It's actually not that new anymore, as I think construction started there about 20 years ago, right before I first moved to Aveyron. But at that time, it only had a few buildings. Now it is covered with businesses and apartments, and somehow more seem to crop up all the time.

There is a little haven of peace in this area that I only discovered last spring. A bit below the hospital, somebody had the wherewithal to create a nice little park. Most of my colleagues don't even know it exists. I don't know if it has a name or even when it was built, but it is a lovely place for a picnic or just to clear one's mind.


The cathedral appears as a distant detail

This view of Rodez, taken from the park,  will surely never be used on a tourists' brochure!. But it gives an interesting perspective on a city that can't be reduced to its historic sites and the new Soulages museum.

I actually quite enjoy working in Bourran, which has quite a few decent to excellent restaurants, as well as really friendly shopkeepers.


Back to work....

8 comments:

Phoebe @ Lou Messugo said...

Hi Betty, thanks for commenting on my blog recently and welcome back to blogging! I'm going to start a monthly link up all about France in the new year. Any posts on a french theme will be welcome to join in - old, new, travel, culture, language, food...anything goes. It should be a fun way to find more blogs about France and grow our readership. I hope you'll join in. Are you on Twitter? I'll send out some invitations/reminders at the time mainly through Twitter, so if you're interested do let me know.

Betty Carlson said...

Hello Phoebe,

I'm glad to know my comment went through. Somehow signing into your site seemed complicated, and I wasn't sure it had.

I am on Twitter at @bcinfrance but I'm not an avid user, even though I have piled up a number of tweets over the years. If I'm not tagged or DMd, I may or may not notice something of interest.

It is fun to already be invited to participate in some sort of activity so yes, of course I would be interested. You can't imagine how many blogs are gone since I started in 2005...most of my network, actually. But I know I will build it back up little by little.

Bye for now!

Katie Zeller said...

The colors have been really beautiful this year, more so than usual.... Probably due to the warm weather. It's been unseasonable here, too - hardly need any heat. Your walks looks lovely

Betty Carlson said...

It was, indeed, a beautiful fall. It's my favorite season anyway, and when the weather is lovely, it's even better!

Sara Louise said...

The weather looks perfectly crisp for Autumn, lovely! :)

Sara Louise said...

The weather looks perfectly crisp for Autumn, lovely! :)

Unknown said...

I always love your photos.

Mimi

Betty Carlson said...

Thank you for your comments Sara and Mimi!

Sara, we did have an extremely nice autumn. I can see winter coming on in the light, but so far it is not very cold.

Mimi thank you for the encouragement! After a few years of taking pictures with my phone only, I have slipped my camera back in my purse.