The trip to Toulouse involved catching an SNCF coach which took me to Montrejeau-Gourdan-Polignan station, where I then boarded the train which would take me the rest of the way. The coach journey was notably smooth, and I congratulated the driver.
I arrived in Toulouse at about 1.30pm, but check-in to my hotel was from 3.00pm onward, so I found a seat and ate what food I had brought with me outside Matabiau station. It was warm, and there were plenty of people milling about in this cosmopolitan city, including beggars who were accosting people for money, and thieves who were circulating in the hope of robbing anyone who wasn't keeping a good eye on there possessions.
I got to my hotel, La Riquet, a little early, but they let me in anyway. As soon as I entered the room, I flopped on the bed and didn't get up for more than 3 hours. It was as if all the accumulated tiredness from my trekking in the Pyrenees had all come out at once. I also had a bit of a sore throat and found myself coughing. Eventually, I found the energy to walk around the corner to the Hotel d'Orsay where I picked up my hold-all so that I could wear some fresh clothes in the morning. I also bought some food and drink from the local Carrefour, including a small bottle of whiskey and some honey sweets for my throat.
I was feeling much better in the morning. I re-packed the hold-all with all the stuff I wouldn't be needing anymore and, after checking out of the Hotel Riquet, took it back to the Hotel d'Orsay, where I would be spending my last night.
Then it was an hour long walk along the Canal du Midi to the Halle de la Machine. It didn't open until 2.00pm, but there were plenty of cafés around, so I filled the time with some blog writing, people watching and al fresco dining. Once able to enter, I was fascinated to see so many crazy inventions, designed to entertain, such as mechanised drawing machines and musical instruments. Most impressive of all was the Minotaur, a huge mobile mechanical monster that appeared to breathe, snorting and expelling smoke (steam really), and moving its head and arms. It appeared to require 3 people to control it, and it could carry 20 or 30 people on its back. I couldn't resist booking a ride on it.
Back at the Hotel d'Orsay, I watched Rambo in French before falling asleep. It wasn't hard to follow as Syvester Stallone doesn't say much.
I had forgotten that breakfast was included in my Hotel d'Orsay booking, so that was a nice surprise for the morning. After that, I sorted out my luggage ready for the plane and left my bag in reception so that I could take a stroll down to the city centre. My walk took me to the Royal Gardens, then on to Pont Neif and along the River Garonne to the Bazacle, owned by EDF, where they had an excellent photographic exhibition of Marilyn Monroe.
I returned to the Hotel via La Place de Capitole, where I
enjoyed a tasty Tagliatelle Carbonara. After picking up my bag and saying
farewell to La Ville Rose, I caught the shuttle to the airport for my 10.00pm
flight home. The day's weather had been showery, with storms predicted over
many parts of Europe. This hadn't affected my day’s walking, but had affected
flight schedules, meaning that it was nearly 11.30pm before we took off. I was
surprised how many seats were empty on the aircraft, with nobody sitting next
to me. Still, the journey seemed to go quickly, and it wasn't long before I was
meeting Rubi at Gatwick for my ride home.