Eric was working during the day while when we were in Toulouse, so after putting in a few hours of work in the morning myself, I took advantage of some breaks in the rainy weather to explore the city on foot.

The location of our hotel was very central, so with just a few miles of walking each day I was able to visit several cathedrals, the riverfront, canals and discover some tasty lunch options.

the Capitol square

Basilique Saint-Sernin de Toulouse

interior of Église des Jacobins – including “The Palm”

view across the Garonne River with Pont Neuf bridge and Hôtel Dieu Saint-Jacques

Toulouse Cathedral – an interesting mix of Roman and Gothic architecture

farm workers parked their vehicles on the main street during a protest – manure was also dumped in several squares

Lunch places are typically open from noon to 2pm, so I had to make a special effort to find a place during that time frame. It was very rainy until about 3pm on the first day, so instead of a sit-down meal, I grabbed a four cheese pressed sandwich from O Délices d’Emilie and munched while walking around.

The second and third days I found two cozy places that offered a plate plus drink for 10.90 and 9.50 respectively – a reasonable $12-13 for a filling lunch and glass of red wine.

Duck breast with hot apples, ratatouille and green salad @ L’herbe Tendre and Goat cheese, honey and duck breast in a buckwheat crepe @Le grenier de Pépé

I found Toulouse to be a very walkable city with lots of interesting doorways and charming streets and would welcome an opportunity to come back.