Photo Of The Day

With the confinement over, we’ve dusted off our bikes and have started exploring the region around Toulouse on Sunday mornings. Pedaling south, we kept the Garonne river on our right. After only 15 minutes, the landscape shifted from urban to rural, and for about an hour we had a pleasant journey over a mix of bike paths, bike lanes, and local roads. Le Parc du Confluent remains closed. After passing that, we were now along the Ariège River. We made it to the south end of Lacroix-Falgarde and passed the Pont de Fer, a small bridge that is badly in…

During a daylong bike ride, we passed through the village of Lagraulet-du-Gers and spotted this unusual water tower covered with an elaborate mural. Only later did we learn that it was converted into a bed and breakfast by the town’s mayor, called Le Château D’Eau Lagraulet. There is the main room, dubbed a “bedroom beneath the stars.” And roof is a terrace where breakfast is brought each morning. Jean-Paul Chambas is the artist behind the fresco. Depending on which days and the length of the visit, prices range from €90 per night to €150 per night.

Saint Paul Saint Louis du Marais in Paris is a church so nice, they named it twice. Originally Saint Paul’s church, dating to 1430, was the main cathedral in this neighborhood. But it was destroyed in the Revolution. So Napoleon eventually designated this one, then called Saint Louis and dating from 1627, to be the new center of worship for this corner of Paris. But as a compromise, the local bishop eventually convinced him to add Saint Paul to the name, in memory of the one old one. Pleasing the parish, even if the final name is a mouthful.