France doesn't disappoint - April 25, 2024

 Well, maybe a little - when we arrived yesterday, it was cold and blustery with grey clouds half covering the Pyrenees. Not the weather we were hoping for. Toulouse was cold -  temperatures only in the high 30s with a cold wind. We were not dressed for the weather and we wondered if we had mis-judged how much warm stuff to bring with. But today is different - sunny, high 50s, but with a blustery wind. Catnap warm in the sun, but cold in the shade.

There were snow-covered mountains way in the distance as we drove from Toulouse to our house.

But we have now had our first croissants (flaky and buttery) and our first lunch - French baguette labeled "tradition," slices from a huge heirloom tomato, thick sliced pieces of cheese ("bleu" for me) and ham. Served with cucumber, small radishes, and the sweetest red pepper I've ever tasted. (Arwyn and Tristen, I wish you were here to taste the red pepper. Crunchy and sweet.) All eaten at our home for the next 2 months, Le Cazal, with sun on our patio and the Pyrenees mountains off in the distance. 

The view from our kitchen and patio.

Getting here was an adventure. On Tuesday, we flew from Madison to Detroit, where we met my brother, Dale, and sister-in-law, Kim. We left together around 6 pm to fly overnight to Amsterdam. The plane from Madison had the most uncomfortable seat I've ever sat in - so narrow that besides my "shapely" hips being squished between the window on the right and the armrest on the left (no, it couldn't be raised.) and overhead compartments hung so low that even I bumped my head. Turbulence on the flight across Lake Michigan meant no drink service and no snacks. So no lunch. waah!

Our KLM flight to Amsterdam was the standard too-narrow seats, but with an armrest that could be raised for an extra inch. Food was OK, wine was free, sleep was impossible even though we tried really hard. We had a 4 hour layover in Amsterdam (and a long walk from our arrival gate to our puddle-hopper flight to Toulouse. I was a bit dismayed as this last leg of our flight featured a small plane parked away from the terminal (therefore no jetway). Passengers would ride a bus from the terminal to the plane, then walk up steps to enter the plane.

People boarding our puddle-hopper from Amsterdam to Toulouse

I had handicapped assistance at every stop, each of them wonderful. I was allowed to drive my mobility scooter from the plane to the next gate and down the jetway to the next plane. It had worked very well and made the first two flights easy for me to navigate. This one had me worried, but the person at our gate assured me that they knew about my needs and all would be well. 

When it was time to board, two women arrived and escorted us (Dave and I and two other wheelchair couples) out a side door and onto the most amazing bus I've ever seen. It's called an ambulift and it was as cool as any carnival ride. First the bus lowers flat on the ground and I drove my scooter onto a "porch" on the front, through a door, parked my scooter, and took one of the half-dozen seats. 

Ambulift on ground with porch in front

When we were all loaded, one of our assistants raised the bus back so the wheels showed. Then she drove us out to where the plane was parked on the tarmac. 

Ambulift driving with porch on front of bus

Once there, she raised the bus so the porch rested against the back door of the plane. She pounded on the door and one of the stewardesses opened the door and we were helped inside. 

Ambulift with porch extended to meet the back door of the plane.

My scooter, which stayed on the bus, was handed to the baggage handlers once the bus was lowered to ground level again. What a ride! I want to credit this site: https://www.bulmor-airground.com/uk/special-prm-boarding-ambulift/ for the photos I've shared. I was so in awe of this procedure, I didn't even think about taking a photo!  If you want to see more, check out this YouTube video for a brand of ambulift. It was so cool!!! https://www.bulmor-airground.com/uk/special-prm-boarding-ambulift/

Toulouse was the only place where there was a glitch in the scooter assist. Once off the plane, the baggage folks didn't know what to do with it. So I was wheelchaired to the baggage claim - where it wasn't. Finally, the wheelchair assistant took Dale into some private area where they located my scooter on an elevator somewhere and wheeled it back to me in the baggage claim area. Whew! Glad we didn't lose that before our vacation had even begun!

With all our bags gathered and the scooter reclaimed, Kim and I waited for Dale and Dave to pick up our leased car, a brand-new Peugeot 5008 EV, a hybrid SUV. Comfy and roomy. 

Peugeot 5008 hybrid - only ours has red "temporary" license plates

We reached Le Cazal in just over an hour - thank goodness. After 24 hours of travel and little sleep, we were beginning to disintegrate. After meeting our hosts, Lorna (great name, right?) and David, (another great name!) we tossed our things inside and headed the 5 miles into Mirepoix for a quick grocery shopping for breakfast and lunch basics. Oh, and some wine, "naturellement." We had planned to eat out in Mirepoix for dinner, but decided instead to just have cheese and fruit at home. Good thing, we all fell into bed after finishing "dinner," not even bothering to clean up our dishes. Oh, and Dale made a fire in our living room stove to try to take the chill off this barn of a house we're now living in. Next post will show you our new digs. 

(Note to the grandkids - Penny, Evie, Tristen, Arwyn, Sonna & Sasha - If you have questions, let Grandma know in the comments and I'll try to answer. I know this post is probably pretty boring, but the next post will have pictures of our rental house.)