Toulouse - hanging out at the university

The view from La Manufacture at 4:45

Well.... it seems that the University of Toulouse has a pretty old pedigree:  founded in 1229 (29 years after the Sorbonne).  It also has something like 97,000 students.  I don't quite know how to compare that with the University of Victoria, which will turn 50 this year! haha  :-

Same view, 5 minutes later!

There are three buildings linked to the university.  One is la Manufacture des Tabac (or just "La Manufacture", as the locals call it).  Our little apartment (or rather, big apartment) is on the 5th floor.  it is the end of the building, so has windows running around three sides.... LOTS of views!  From the side with the little kitchen and living room, we look out across the rest of the building (thus the roof tiles you can see), and can catch a glimpse of the Garonne River. I already posted pictures of the view from our room at sunset, but here are a few more.

From the other side of the apartment (that is, from my bedroom window) you get a view of the Brienne canal. The canal is lined with trees that are more than 5 stories high. they are amazing. I can't quite get over how still the water is in the canal: it is a mirror! Here too is a photo taken from the opposite side of the canal:  our apartment is the very top corner of the building. You can get a sense of how tall those trees really are!

View FROM my bedroom in La Manufacture

View OF my bedroom in La Manufacture

the Brienne canal in front of La Manufacture

And no two ways around it.  the canal is simply beautiful.  The other building we have been hanging out is called the Arsenal. It has all the markings of a modern building, but the courtyard is older, and looks more like it belongs to a church than an aresenal (if you ask me). The wall in the inner courtyard feels very much like a cloister. Even the walls have that pink colour you see all over Toulouse. The whole city has a soft feel, even in crumbling brick (brick that looks equally fantastic in daylight or by night)

At the Arsenal

The wall in the Arsenal at night