I had lunch with a friend of a friend and her husband who live in Montauban. Julie introduced me to Maureen by text after we had talked earlier on this trip. Maureen is married to Herve (a Frenchman).

It was interesting to hear their story. They met on a plane flying from Chicago to Los Angeles where they both lived at the time. They now live part time in Palos Verde, California and part time in Montauban. Herve’s is originally from Montauban and they bought a property there to live as well. Herve is still working and has a couple of years more before retirement. Maureen has stopped working. It was fun to meet them and I hope I see more of them. Montauban is not too far from Toulouse so I can definitely head up there and visit them.

Herve is interesting as he participated in the Dakar rally when he was 22. This originally was a rally car race that goes from Paris to Dakar. It is basically an off road rally that uses all types of vehicles from motorcycles to vintage vehicles (20 years old or earlier). It is now held in Saudi Arabia. It is one of the toughest endurance rallies in the world. Herve now participates in the vintage version of the rally. As an aside, we at JGo near the Victor Hugo market and when we sat down Herve saw one of his old friends who had participated in the Dakar when they were younger. The world is a small place especially in southern France.

Herve family was in the goat cheese business and the company is one of the purveyors of goat cheese to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. The company has been sold but Herve still works in the industry. Maureen said because of the business they have lots of friends in the restaurant circles in southwest France.

I hope to see them more while I am here.

At the run this evening, Marc’s brother Miguel was there and I had a nice run with him. I was not running fast as the legs were still tired so I could not keep up with Marc on the “free runs” tonight. It was interesting talking to Miguel. He is a student doing work-study program in biopharma. He spends 2 weeks in Rouen going to class and three weeks in Toulouse working in a lab. When he is finished he wants to stay in Toulouse and work. He likes the south better than the north of France. Again, someone who can easily move between three languages with ease. The most interesting part of our chat was I learned he is learning to be a trapeze artist. He does not run with the group on Thursdays as he is taking trapeze lessons. He says he really enjoys it but has not progressed out the harness yet (he says he is nervous about that) but he did do a solo leaving the platform and some tricks. He seemed slightly embarrassed telling me this but I pointed out that I rode a unicycle for many years in high school and college. I joked with him that after college he might runaway and join the circus.

I go re-acquainted with Clara who I had met last fall with the run groups. She is very entertaining and fun to chat with. Another guy, Martin, was in Toulouse for work from Germany and we chatted. We both discussed how running was a great sport when one travels for work as you just bring your running gear and you can run anywhere.

I am really glad that I have been able to run with Run in Toulouse and gotten to know people through it. I might not have close friends here in Toulouse but I am definitely building a community which is nice.

When people ask me why I choose Toulouse as a place to live, I generally point out that I saw the Run in Toulouse group the first time I visited Toulouse and knew that with that type of running community I could be part of something even if I did not really speak French or know anyone. It would be a good activity to participate in and have some fun. It has turned out better than I could have expected.

When I went to the farmer’s market this morning, I saw a small street march and demonstration by some workers. Not sure why they were marching and protesting but it was interesting.

Also, I have become obsessed with the small avocados I found in the market. I saw them again today and bought some more. I think they are a good deal as I got 5 for 2 euros ($2.34). They taste good and are healthy so I have added them to my lunch diet.