Showing posts with label Carcassonne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carcassonne. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 04, 2018

April is here! IWSG and A to Z

IWSG WEBSITE
April has arrived, and so have flowers, greenery and my husband. He got here mid March and we spent a week babysitting a friends house, alone, together, getting to know one another again after 2 months apart. Our little dog, Boney, made the trip across the big blue with no fuss, in spite of a flight attendant bent on not being nice about him being there. We were proud of his no-issue journey. Boy was he glad to be on solid ground!
I took a few weeks off, basically, from writing, to spend time with my loved ones, and am back on track. My goal is to finish this draft before I head back to the States in June. So far I'm on track. I hope those of you participating in the AtoZ Challenge this month are doing well and keeping up!!!

This post is also in honor of the French policeman, Col. Arnaud Beltrame, who gave his life in trying to save others during an attack in Trebes, France March 23, 2018.
We were in Carcassonne at the time of the attack there and in Trebes, locked down in a restaurant in the old city, but were released later, safe and very thoughtful, aware of our mortality. I am deeply saddened that it turned out the way that it did, and hope wherever he is, he knows he is honored and his sacrifice remembered...
Below are some photos we were able to take on our short jaunt into the old city before...

Olga Godim, Chemist Ken, Renee Scattergood, and Tamara Narayan are our co-hosts for April 4th! Please drop by their blogs and thank them for helping out...
Staircase up to the Old City, "La Cite".

My husband and Boney going up to the old city

Carcassonne...

Us in front of the "Chateau" in the Old City

In the restaurant where we were locked in. Great food!

The Old City from the New City



Saturday, April 19, 2014

Q - Quatorze Juilliet - Bastille Day in France




I’ve been in France three times on the Quatorze Juillet, or Bastille Day as we English speakers call it. Once in Tarbes, once in Blagnac and once in Saint-Émilion. The French have a knack with fireworks, as I’m sure you’ve seen before in photos. Though I've been to Carcassonne, (near Toulouse) it's never been on le quatorze juillet and it's always been the one place I've always wanted to see the display of feu d’artifice. My children have seen it. They actually went to the spectacular show they put on and came back raving, even though they didn’t care for the crush of people. Over seven hundred thousand visitors descend upon Carcassonne each year to see the show in the old city.  I’ve tried to find photos of the "River of Fire" online, but no one seems to have any. I have seen this on a video my kids brought back to me, but I can't find a version of that online. There is some footage of it on youtube which you can see HERE starting around 9:57… but it isn't the quite the same. Carcassonne is one of my favorite places to visit in France. It is the oldest existing fortified town continuously inhabited in Eastern Europe and sets fire to imaginations across the world. It’s been used in films like “Robin Hood Prince of Thieves,” “LesVisiteurs” and others. Though this post is about the 14th of July, it centers on Carcassonne, where I think the best fireworks display is given. Someday I’ll get to see it in person! 

 


Fire works in Marseilles
French Foreign Legion on Parade
No caption needed here!
Or here.... Love the planes in the back
With the A380!
Fireworks in Blagnac
Military parade in Marseilles
My kids watching the parade in Toulouse
Carcassonne on fire.... works.

Carcassonne in action, you can just see the city under the fireworks.
Le bleu blanc rouge....