Work was my reason for visiting Toulouse, so my sightseeing was limited to two evenings. Still, I had several hours to wander parts of old town and thoroughly enjoyed the surroundings.
On my first night I walked primarily around the north part of old city, starting with the large church, Basilique Saint Sernin de Toulouse. The city is known for its pink coloring and I could see that right away in the varied facades.
(l) Basilique Saint Sernin, (r) street scene
Walking down Rue de Taur I scoped out the many restaurants- it was a warm night and nearly everyone was sitting at an outside table.
Rue de Taur with the Toulouse Notre Dame in the center
Continuing on I found myself in the large Place du Capitole, the large square that is the center of town. On one side was the imposing building, on the other a large number of busy restaurants.
Continuing south I wandered through a number of small streets full of shops and more restaurants.
After dinner I walked down to the river. I had missed the sunset, so I decided to try and come back the next night a little earlier for more photos.
I also found some interesting street art.
The next evening I made it back to the Garonne River for the sunset light.
Dome de la Grave and the Garrone River
On my way back to the hotel after a great dinner (nepalese curry at great dinner at Le Petit Rajistan) I heard music coming from the main square. Much to my surprise they had a video show playing on the Capitole!
Even in the summer time Toulouse still had a buzz to it, so I imagine that when university students return in the fall it is quite busy. Hopefully I’ll get another work trip here in the near future!