Dining on the Canal du Midi

#moulindetrebes #canaldumidi #thegoodlifefrance #unescoworldheritagesite

Friday May 31st, 2019

Well it’s the end of May, the end of my birth “day” month and tomorrow we are heading back to “Home Sweet Home”.

I followed my usual morning routine checking the view from the bedroom window, it looked to be a promising day! The sky was blue and no clouds were visible over the rooftops and mountain.

Can you see the rays of sunshine and the swallows?

We did some packing and then headed off to Trèbes for a send off lunch on the canal at “Le Moulin”.

It was a glorious day with blue azure skies, bright sunshine and hot temperatures ... maybe “Mother Nature” & the “Weatherman” finally got it together. 

I was treated to another trip beneath the plane tree canopy. 

We arrived early in Trèbes in order that we could do a couple errands before lunch. 

Today we were lunching along the Canal du Midi. 

A bit of history from the Canal du Midi tourism site.

“The construction of the Canal du Midi is one of the major achievements of Louis XIV’s reign (17th Century).It is 240 kilometres long and links the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. This masterpiece of engineering, thanks to the genius of Pierre-Paul Riquet, is one of the prides of the Languedoc. The canal brought commercial prosperity to the region. Today, leisure cruises have taken over and the Canal du Midi has been a major tourist attraction since it was granted world heritage status by UNESCO.

Pierre-Paul Riquet

Born in Béziers in 1609, Pierre-Paul Riquet made his fortune as a salt tax inspector. He was thus able to acquire the Domaine de Bonrepas, near Toulouse, where he carried out numerous experiments to find a solution to the problem of supplying water to the canal at its summit at the Seuil de Narouze.

Having convinced Louis XIV and his minister, Colbert, of the commercial benefits of his project, Pierre-Paul Riquet embarked on his great enterprise which was to take 14 years. Riquet’s strong personality and perseverance enabled him to overcome all the obstacles encountered during the canal’s construction. Sadly, Riquet died penniless on 1st October 1680 without having completed his masterpiece, which was inaugurated soon after his death in 1681.”

Le Moulin de Trèbes is owned/operated by the Chef Pascal and his wife Sophie, both very friendly and personable. 

We were seated at one of the tables nearest the canal on the terrace ... from here we could watch all the activity thru the locks. 

Today’s menu was interesting and delicious.

Salmon tartare with a shiitake mushroom /coriander confit and brightened by the citrus smear from the aromatic “yuzu” ... a variety of lemon.

Mouthwatering delicious and beautifully presented.

Roast pork a top a bed of eggplant/ zucchini with roasted potatoes and a Parmesan/ olive oil sauce. 

Yummy.

And the finishing touch to this wonderful meal ...

A pineapple (thinly sliced) salad with coconut and brown sugar crumble! 

I will be making this one at home. 

Light and just enough sweetness. 

It was a perfect lunch date to celebrate our last day in France.

Thank you Pascal, Sophie and Anais for the delectable food and superb service.

The boats being lowered in the lock ... the water draining.

 I’m thirsty ... said this puppy! 

Tomorrow it’s hurry up and wait day on our way to “Home Sweet Home!”

Monumental Moments in Burgos

 The city of Burgos has many historical monuments ... Many churches, palaces, and other buildings dating back to medieval times.

This post (I originally started writing this post June 9th) is about the "Cathedral of Saint Mary of Burgos" which is famous because of it's vast size and unique architecture.

"Catedral de Santa María de Burgos" in Spanish ...  a Roman Cathoic Church dedicated to the Virgin Mary was primarily built in the French Gothic style with Renaissance features added later ... Gold leaf and paintings everywhere.

It has an unique collection of artworks  ...such as paintings, tombs, and stained glass.

It also displays extraordinary works by many architects, sculptors, painters and grill masters.

It is the oldest Gothic church in Spain, and one of the first built in Europe.

Construction began in 1221, with the majority built during the 13th to 15th centuries.

In 1984 the Cathedral was designated an Unesco World Heritage Site.

Today we toured the Cathedral ... For a fee we received admission and a handheld audio device in the language of your choice (well most languages)  to allow us to self tour this massive Cathedral with it's many rooms, chapels and the cloisters.

 

 

    

   

The Golden Stairs...

Here I said a little prayer for all my family and friends ...

The cloisters...

   Hope you enjoyed this "birds' eye view" of this magnificent Cathedral!