On the road

Although I travel some for my job, it's usually by plane. And my daily life here in Aveyron doesn't leave me much time for hitting the open road.

Driving alone, heading somewhere in France without totally understanding how to get there, listening to MY choice of music at the volume I have chosen...these are rare and wonderful moments for me.

Usually, I have to make them happen. Last week I did. On Tuesday, I had to drive to Toulouse for a meeting that was going to end in the early afternoon. Rather than driving straight back to Rodez, I was able to work out my schedule to make a detour to see a good friend in Canal du Midi territory.

Driving along the freeway past Castelnaudary and Carcassonne in T-shirt weather, I was taken aback to see significant remnants of snow drifts on the side of the road. I knew that it had snowed a week earlier, but here in chilly Aveyron, our snow was long gone.

Even if it was a little crazy to take this detour for one afternoon and one night -- I was back at work the next morning (OK, late morning) -- the dose of sun and good cheer was just what I needed.

Amsterdam Five: Holidays must end as you know

Six weeks later, and I am finally finishing my series about our trip to Amsterdam. Our last day actually included some real activity, since our plane for Toulouse didn't leave until 8:15 pm.

After enjoying the hotel buffet breakfast together -- the only time on the trip both girls managed to be up in time to take advantage of it -- we packed our bags, stored them at the hotel, and walked through the brisk cold to the Katten Kabinet, or Cat Cabinet.

I had really been looking forward to what sounded like a deliciously off-beat site: a huge house on the Herengracht dedicated to the memory of a cat.

"The Cat Cabinet was founded in commemoration of the red and frisky Tom Cat John Pierpont Morgan, the life-long companion and buddy of the museum's founder, Bob Meijer," explains the rudimentary website. For information, the cat lived from 1966-1983.

It was a fun and funky visit, but I expected a little more as far as feline-related works of art. We were also disappointed that much of the house was closed off to visitors. Let's just say we were expecting a little more, but definitely enjoyed the opportunity to pet some of the kitty residents that roam freely through the mansion:

Our next stop was another smaller museum, this one exhbiting handbags and purses. After the somewhat underwhelming Kat Kabinet, we weren't sure what to expect from the Tassenmuseum Hendrikj.

Before the visit, we were lured into the lovely coffee shop:

Lovely, cozy coffee shops such as this one were one of our favorite features in Amsterdam:

After our refreshments, we visited the museum which, to our delight, holds an astounding and well-curated collection of bags, wallets and luggage throughout the ages. I don't have any photos to share of this museum, but the website provides a good idea of what is on display.

All good things must come to an end, and after the handbag museum, we realized we were down to a few hours before having to walk back to the hotel and take the taxi to the airport.

It was about 4pm, the perfect time to eat a lunch/dinner/whatever in the city. We were lucky enough to stumble upon the Get toGether restaurant, a rather chic eatery connected to The Albus Grand Hotel:

Gazing in from the street, we couldn't quite believe the reasonable prices on the lunch menu. This light meal was perhaps the closest we got to typically Dutch restaurant food: delicious soups and sandwiches at a price that seemed unbelievable for a European capital.

For example, I savored the "creamy spinach soup with goat’s cheese and pieces of smoked chicken," a meal in itself, for only 4,50 euros.

I don't really want to go into detail about what followed: the last-minute souvenir shopping, the taxi trip to the airport, Starbucks in Schipol.

All of that went well, but it's not what I will recall years from now.

"Holidays must end as you know/All is memory taken home with me" (Nathalie Merchant)

Amsterdam Five: Day Three

Monday December 28th was the most glorious of our days in Amsterdam weatherwise. It was sunny from dawn on, and with no biting wind.

Of course the sun rises late up there -- well past 9am at the time we were in the city -- so we had a hard time getting a move on in the morning -- I'm an early riser and found myself sleeping in until 9:15 through the whole trip. I don't think all four of us got moving until past 11, but Thierry went out earlier to take some photos in our "neighborhood," including the one above.

Well, now you know our main destination for the day. After a nice walk through neighborhoods we hadn't seen yet, a snack of waffles, and a short stroll through Vondelpark, we got to the Van Gogh museum... and almost decided to put off our visit until the next day. The lines appeared dreadfully long, and we feared a crowd inside.

We decided to see how the line was moving and, surprisingly, got in after only a 20-minute wait. And I'm not so sure where all of the people ended up going, because the exhibit halls were hardly packed:

Some of the crowd was in the gift shop, where my husband was tempted by these volumes, which represented the exhibition that was on at the time about Van Gogh's letters. Fortunately, I convinced my spouse that the 6-volume set would be a bit heavy in our suitcases.

After a leisurely visit in the museum, which I had already seen once but didn't remember that well, we walked around the Hoofstraat area, where many of Amsterdam's luxury shops are located.


We had dinner at an Italian restaurant that I would highly recommend: the Ristorante Saturnino. It's clearly a popular joint, and the waiters started all contacts by speaking Italian, which was a fun touch. Prices were reasonable, the atmosphere was jolly, and the upscale pasta and pizza absolutely delicious.

I'm starting to regret not taking pictures of our food...

(All photos except #2 courtesy of Thierry Jouanneteau)

Off to Paris

I'm off to Paris for work today, which means getting up at 4:30 am and getting home at 10pm -- providing there are no plane delays! So this will be my semblance of a post for today...

Wordless Wednesday 77

(Photo courtesy of Thierry Jouanneteau)

A timid return for a Word-light Wednesday (74)

Cool lights, big city. Hanover charmed me and I want to go back...

The Colors of Colmar

This year it was my turn to go to the national convention of the organization I work for, and I couldn't be more delighted that it was held in Colmar, Alsace.

I only found out about the possibility of going two weeks ago, and I must admit that at first glance the travel plans were daunting. Flying from Rodez to Paris, then Paris to Strasbourg, then take a taxi or public transporation into the Strasbourg train station, then take a train to Colmar? All of that sounded pretty complicated, and would have left quite the carbon footprint behind.

I opted for two night trains for the Paris-Rodez leg, and did the whole trip by train. Luckily there was one night in a hotel involved in between, even though I love night trains and sleep soundly on them.

Unfortunately, my photos didn't turn out very well, as they were taken quickly with my small camera as I rushed off on foot to and from the convention. So I won't post any more here -- I just wish I had been able to truly capture the city's vibrant colors. They amazed me at every turn.