Thursday, May 5, 2011

Toulon, France

 

May 5th:

Today, we did two different tours.  Anne went to Sanary Sur Mer and Bandol and Wayne went to Bormes les Mimosas.  Both tours showed the beautiful country side of Southern France.  Anne’s tour stayed along the coast.

We were the only ship in port today.

Toulon 00

Sanary  Sur Mer was a quiet, clean little area.  For us it had one interesting and little known fact the granite for the base of the Statue of Liberty came from here and it is supposed to be the hardest granite available. The countryside has beautiful views and marvelous vineyards.   

  Toulon 02    Toulon 03

In town we sat at a little cafe and just enjoyed the view of the people and the harbor.  I was able to visit the little church which had recently completed a renovation of the inside and contained beautiful paintings done in the Russian style. The center of town had a small carousel and it was fun watching the little ones enjoying the sun.  

  Sanary 01    Sanary 02

Wayne’s tour traveled to the foothills above the coast of southern France.  Bormes is a 17th century town tucked into the hills near a long gone castle.  The quaint nature of the town remains with many steps up and down as we did a walking tour of the town. 

Bormes 01

Besides the main drive through town (which was just a narrow byway) the it had numerous walking paths between the buildings.  Luckily some of the shrubs were still flowering to add to the enjoyment of the tour.

              Bormes 02    Bormes 03

Bormes 04

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