Tired French doggy
River boat mascot
After Sarlat, we were headed to Carcassonne for a single nights stay. On
the way, Patrick had scheduled a canal ride with lunch. The canal was
the grand plan to connect the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean,
but was never completed. The tour lasted about an hour and a half, and
we got to go through a couple locks which were interesting.
Following lunch we continued towards Carcassonne, arriving around 2pm. Patrick gave a short orientation walk and then set us loose! Carcassonne was another town I was really looking forward too since I like all things Medieval. Carcassonne itself is immense. The sheer size of the place is overwhelming. After getting settled in our hotel room, Gen and I did some wandering along with window shopping. Carcassonne is touristy but its not as jam packed as Mont St. Michel. We ran across Geannie and Kathy at a cafe and sat down to have a drink and talk. A bit later, KC and Julia wandered by and joined us.
Following lunch we continued towards Carcassonne, arriving around 2pm. Patrick gave a short orientation walk and then set us loose! Carcassonne was another town I was really looking forward too since I like all things Medieval. Carcassonne itself is immense. The sheer size of the place is overwhelming. After getting settled in our hotel room, Gen and I did some wandering along with window shopping. Carcassonne is touristy but its not as jam packed as Mont St. Michel. We ran across Geannie and Kathy at a cafe and sat down to have a drink and talk. A bit later, KC and Julia wandered by and joined us.
We decided to eat at one of the cafes on the square as rain had rolled
in and many of the Rick Steve's recommended restaurants were closed.
Nevertheless, the place was very good. I had the wild boar stew which I
liked a lot. Gen tried the local specialty
cassoulet.
Cassoulet, by the way, is a slow cooked stew/casserole with meat
(sausage, pork, goose, duck or mutton) and white haricot beans which is
typical of the region. Its very good. Kathy was gracious enough to share
her cassoulet recipe following the trip!
After dinner, Gen and I wandered the ramparts and took pictures. First we wandered inside the castle, and then moved outside. Patrick had given us directions on a good viewpoint to get pictures of the entire castle; however, the evening was dark and we took a couple of wrong turns that took us across grassy fields at the base of the castle walls. It was a fun adventure, but we eventually realized our mistake and headed through the town to the bridge Patrick had suggested where we found Julia, Geannie, and Kathy.
With Kathy and I being photography nuts, we took probably several hundred photos between the two of us while the others watched, chatted, and enjoyed the view. Carcassonne is simply beautiful when seen at night with the floodlights illuminating the walls. I also got a pretty good picture of the nearby river and moon.
On our way back to the hotel, we ran into a rather crazy French woman. She was wandering the bridge we were taking pictures from, singing and yelling. She would come along side you and walk with you while yelling something in French at you. She would occasionally grab a backpack or some other item on your person. We made it across the bridge with all our belongings intact, but it still made for an interesting experience -- it reminded me of the story Rick Steve's told at the travel classes he throws in Edmonds. Sit back and enjoy the experience of a strange person slipping their hand into your pocket since all our valuables were in our money belts. Seriously though, it was odd, but none of us were afraid of anything, after all, Julia is Italian and knows how to handle herself :).
After dinner, Gen and I wandered the ramparts and took pictures. First we wandered inside the castle, and then moved outside. Patrick had given us directions on a good viewpoint to get pictures of the entire castle; however, the evening was dark and we took a couple of wrong turns that took us across grassy fields at the base of the castle walls. It was a fun adventure, but we eventually realized our mistake and headed through the town to the bridge Patrick had suggested where we found Julia, Geannie, and Kathy.
With Kathy and I being photography nuts, we took probably several hundred photos between the two of us while the others watched, chatted, and enjoyed the view. Carcassonne is simply beautiful when seen at night with the floodlights illuminating the walls. I also got a pretty good picture of the nearby river and moon.
On our way back to the hotel, we ran into a rather crazy French woman. She was wandering the bridge we were taking pictures from, singing and yelling. She would come along side you and walk with you while yelling something in French at you. She would occasionally grab a backpack or some other item on your person. We made it across the bridge with all our belongings intact, but it still made for an interesting experience -- it reminded me of the story Rick Steve's told at the travel classes he throws in Edmonds. Sit back and enjoy the experience of a strange person slipping their hand into your pocket since all our valuables were in our money belts. Seriously though, it was odd, but none of us were afraid of anything, after all, Julia is Italian and knows how to handle herself :).