postcards from Auty

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Now that I'm home from my vacation and workshop sojourn in France, I have a few photos to share. After spending the first part of a relaxing week casually strolling the parks of Paris with my husband, on Saturday I flew on to Toulouse while he continued his journey to Kuwait.  At the Toulouse/Bagnac airport, I joined the lovely group of 14 women from around the States who were spending the next week together (July 4-11) at the first French General Chateau Getaway with Kaari Meng. Once we all packed our suitcases into the mini bus, we headed off through the countryside in the southwest of France to Auty. Our bus driver was in full Tour de France mode as he sped and careened along the narrow curving roads, but the scenery was beautiful.








Chateau Dumas is in the rolling fields of Auty, about an hour's drive northeast from Toulouse. Chateau owner Lizzie Hulme welcomed us with cooling drinks and then showed us our rooms before dinner outside on the veranda, overlooking the chateau grounds. My light-filled room on the third floor included a sweeping view of neighboring farms and a reservoir in the distance. Fields of sunflowers stretched in all directions.












Although the original Chateau was destroyed during the French Revolution (a sad tale we heard over and over as we toured the region), it was rebuilt during the 19th century. As the story goes, the Baron who owned the Chateau was a card enthusiast who continually gambled away the local farms he owned. His wife would then repurchase them during the following days.






Our delicious dinner, and most of the meals to come, was prepared by MamaJo, Lizzie's mum and a former British university professor, who kept us fortified with her cookbook-worthy specialties, lots of fresh produce from the region, and plenty of local wine. In anticipation of a full Sunday with trips to two markets, we headed (relatively) early to bed. In following posts, I'll try to recap each day for you.




P.S. I forgot to mention how this Saturday started. Since my husband and I were leaving at different times from the Charles de Gaulle airport, I was there quite a bit earlier than my flight to Toulouse. As I was reading in the gate area surrounded by sunny windows, a wedding party arrived for a different flight -- charming chattering happy people dressed for a summer wedding, some with long dress bags to hang on the nearby kiosks. Then the treats arrived. Armloads of pastel Ladurée bags were passed out to each member of the wedding party. Not one person could resist unwrapping the beautiful boxes inside and eating the delicately colored macaroons on the spot.
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