Friday July 7, Fontet

Somehow the weather seems to be a focus on the blog!! Today has been a scorcher with temps getting to 36 degrees this afternoon. Jill and Paul had recommended a great little restaurant beside the canal at Fourques-sur-Garonne, just over 20 km’s ride along the canal. A good incentive. It was such a tranquil ride, mainly in the shade of the huge plane trees that line much of the canal. There were people sitting in the shade fishing in the canal although never saw anything they caught. All sorts of different summer grasses and flowering plants lined the canal. Loved peeking into the gardens of the houses we rode past. And the cooler air was coming off the water.

A weed cutter was working on the canal, which got Ian stopping to check it out! It was paddler wheel driven and travelled down the sides of the canal cutting off the weeds and collecting it all. Certainly made a good job where it had been working.

The weed cutter.

Wonder who owns this?

Noticed a very sad looking smallish river boat moored on the canal with New Zealand written on the back. Seems who ever owns it has not been back to check it out for quite some time – suspect it is abandoned.

Arrived at the café by 12.30, nothing special to look at but it was just about full with local people, always a good sign. The young lad who served us spoke quite good English so explained the menu to us. Once again, we had the Plat du Jour which had 3 different entrees, mains and deserts to choose from. I chose the gazpacho soup for my entrée, a cold tomato soup that was served with Parma ham and was just perfect. Need to learn how to make that when I get home, such a nice summer lunch. It was a wonderful leisurely lunch, everything was superb, and the total cost for the 3 courses including a carafe of wine and an espresso was €15 each. And the best part is that I don’t need to cook dinner tonight!

But the worst part was that we had over 20 km’s to ride home during the heat of the afternoon but thank goodness for those trees providing shade. It was after 4 when we got back and got straight into a cold shower to cool off. Bliss. As I am writing this at 7pm, inside with the aircon going, Ian checked the outside temperature and it had hit 39 degrees! It will be a very quiet evening, very glad I don’t have to cook!

War memorial in Fourques-sur-Garonne

Reflections