Christmas Tours: part 1

So before it's too late and people start gearing up for Easter or something, let me show you a bit of our pre-Christmas weekend in Tours.

I spent 4 years here at uni and I really love the town, it's big enough to be interesting but small enough to feel like a proper home. Well it did at the time, now it just makes me feel old to see how much has changed in the last *beeep* years.

This was my first time staying in a hotel in Tours as we didn't want to impose on friends just before Christmas and this made the weekend feel like more of a treat for us.

Check out our cute hotel right in the middle of the old town:

Reception/breakfast room

I only realised on our last morning that the headboard was an actual headboard, not just painted on the wall...go Caro!

Lovely white painted beams, boots thrown on the floor. Nice. 

I liked the "curtains". I'm sparing you the view of richly inhabited pigeon nests and rain rain rain.

Anyway we treated ourselves to a nice dinner friday night...

...and were ready to hit the shops saturday morning, specifically the covered market where we picked up my favourite breakfast from my favourite bakery (oops this post is turning out to be all about food again). Three-chocolate bread anyone?

Then we were ready for some serious shopping:

I love this flower/ home decor shop as it's full of bargains AND now that I don't like in a mini studio (more on that later) I can actually buy some of their stuff!

Like I said: miserable weather. 

But that didn't stop us from raiding the local Irish shop for Banana bread beer that's half the price you'd pay for it in Paris. And a good book. Hopefully. I haven't started it yet. It's been a very intellectually challenging few days, what with all the eating and watching DVDs...

I like the blackboard with the countdown to Christmas. I can't believe we have to wait another 363 days again now. Thank god for birthdays. And Christmas money. And the SALES, yaaaaay!

After some serious browsing, Boyfriend found an old edition of the new testament which he HAD to have. I guess it's a bit like girls and clothes. Boyfriend and books...sometimes I just don't get it. 

The entrance to the Musée des Beaux Arts. Hello photobomber, am I making you uncomfortable?

The gorgeous Cedar from Lebanon that lives in the courtyard of the Arts museum along with this puppy:

Fritz the elephant! It's a real elephant and a sad story so I'm not going to tell it here because this blog is for fluffy bunnies only and nothing bad ever happens here. 

Time for some more photobombing, this time by a strangely oblivious lady. Christmas shopping frenzy maybe?

Oh santaaaaa, I've been reallyreallyreally good this year, lalalalalalalalaaalalaaa (thank you Mariah). Incidentally, The Pale was one of my favourite hang-outs back in the day...I liked that they always ID'd me even though I was a regular customer. There's a lot to be said for consistency.

And at 5PM on saturday afternoon, suddenly the streets are empty and a little eerie. Where is everyone? At the pub! Where shall we go now? To a pub!! And what do you do after you've had a few beers with friends and you're seriously hungry?

You go round the corner and order a vegetarian cheese-naan kebab in memory of the good old days.

Then instead of hitting the bars AGAIN you go back to your hotel and fall into bed with a full tummy because you are now officially old and need to be asleep by midnight.

Coming tomorow: the rest of our adventure including an exclusive glimpse of my very first studio and a lovely before & after by my friend Manu!