Il pleut.

Bon soir, mes amis.

Before I drift off to sleep, I wanted to post the updated photo album for Carcassonne and Toulouse. 

I wanted to give everyone a weather update: it rained today.  

Interesting thing before je me couche (I go to sleep), full of Compote de Cerise and thoughts of my enormous to-do list for tomorrow (at the top of which is "shop for and eat picnic lunch"): In English, we use the phrase, "It's raining cats and dogs."  In France, the phrase is, "Il pleut des cordes" (it's raining cords).  Quite appropriate.  Mes chaussures ont trompee aujourd'hui (my shoes were drenched today).  C'est la vie.

Yours, 

Marguerite.

PS--problem solved about not having a train connection from Nice back to Pau.  One of my new french friends has kindly consented to pick us up from the train station and drive us home.  At 1:30 in the morning on Sunday.  He's visiting his father in Tarbes (where our train comes in), and told me, "Ce n'est pas grave" (roughly translated to "It's no big deal").  C'est la vie francaise.