Gardens-Jardins, Toulouse

This is a very nice garden I discovered while walking downtown to the Musée Georges Labit.
Trees, flowers, fountains operating at full stream and thereby masking the noise of traffic around the roundabout, make a nice stop.
Footbridges are leading to the Royal Garden, or to the large Botanic Garden.
(All the gardens of Toulouse have been described here by the excellent KLOD5 who guided me well in my discovery of his city).

This is certainly the most beautiful roundabout I know in France and elsewhere.

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Voici un bien joli jardin que j'ai découvert en marchant du centre ville vers le Musée Georges Labit.
Arbres, fleurs, fontaine fonctionnant à plein jet et masquant de ce fait le bruit de la circulation autour de ce rond point, forment une halte bien agréable.
Des passerelles conduisent d'une part au Jardin Royal et d'autre part au grand Jardin des Plantes. (Tous les jardins de Toulouse ont été décrits ici par l'excellent KLOD5 qui m'a bien guidé dans ma découverte de sa ville).

C'est certainement le plus beau rond point que je connaisse en France et ailleurs.

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To the East of the Capitole lies the Square Charles de Gaulle also called the Jardin du Capitole. In this space the ancient Donjon of 1529 rears up (it houses the Tourist Office and the City Archives with exhibits). It is topped by a period belfry fancifully created in the 19C by Viollet-le-Duc without regard to its incorrect Northern ancestors. The space contains many shade trees, a pool with geyser-like fountains , walks and benches. At the NE end is the entry to the Metro. At the Capitole end is a monument to Jean Juarez. (We did not see another to de Gaulle). The square is filled with every day people sitting in the sun: strolling , lounging or hurrying young students,elderly sitters and lunch-baggers. Here Toulouse looks like any large vigorous commercial city ignoring its ancient surroundings.

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I wasn't quite sure whether this was an "off the beaten track" sort of tip or a things to do one, but given that this park is right beside the Musée d'art moderne et contemporain and the Hôpital Grave, so it is likely that visitors to Toulouse will be heading this way. The park is a beautiful place to spend a Sunday morning or have a bit of a picnic. In addition to the fact that it has a great view of the Garonne, there is also a pretty manicured garden with various different types of flowers (and sunflowers too) as well of various types of edible plants and ponds. My favourite part was the merry-go-round, which is done with machines from Leonardo da Vinci's drawings of inventions - oh if only I were a child again!

The Jardin Royal of Toulouse, like the Jardin des Plantes, is a lovely green space on the outskirts of the old city that complements the part of Toulouse evidently dedicated to that 18th and 19th century fascination with botany, geology and zoology. Very close to the Musée d’histoire naturelle, it was originally created in 1754 as a Royal Garden (hence its name), but was converted to an English garden in the 1860s. The Garden is 1.7 hectares large (so, if your legs have started to hurt, like mine did when I got there, look for the benches!) and it specializes, in a way, in fragrant fauna, like gingko biloba and cedars of Lebanon. In truth, unless you’re a real Garden buff, this will seem much like the Jardin des Plantes, and equally as enjoyable.

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Even if you’re dead-set on only visiting museums or enjoying Toulouse’s hedonistic offerings, it is difficult not to be draw into the Jardin des Plantes. A large, well-maintained park, this green space provides a beautiful escape from the urban life of the city. Sure, it is packed with attractions that are intended to lure families with small children, but there is still plenty to see and do and enjoy for adults. Of course, there’s the ability to walk about in the shade of the trees and to marvel at the various flower beds and rosebushes that have been planted, but there are also more exotic attractions. In particular, there’s a spectacular small forest that climbs up a man-made hill, complete with gazebo and small waterfall. If you’re visiting the city in the summer, this is especially welcoming, as all the shade and benches will help you avoid dehydration on your trek from the Canal du Midi or the Musée Georges-Labit back to the city centre.

Le square Charles de Gaulle est le lieux où l'on passe au moins une fois par semaine (ou par jour pour certains) dans Toulouse. Situé à la sortie de la station de métro Capitole, il est au pied de la Mairie, au coeur de la ville. Dans le donjon est le Syndicat d'Initiative. Il y a donc beaucoup de touristes dans ce square, et beaucoup de mauvais garçons aussi. Dans ma jeunesse, on surnommait ce jardin "le Parc à huitre", car il est fréquenté aussi par de nombreuses personnes âgées..

The Charles de Gaulle square is the places where you go at one way per week (or per day for some) in Toulouse. Situated to the exit of the subway Capitol station, it is to the foot of the Town hall, to the heart of the city. In the dungeon is the tourist office. There are a lot of tourists therefore in this square, and a lot of bad boys also. In my youth, one nicknamed this garden " the Park to oyster ", because it is also frequented by numerous aged people...

Le jardin du chateau de la Reynerie a été conservé lors de la construction du quartier du Mirail. Il a été cédé par les propriétaires du chateau, à la Mairie de Toulouse, contre l'engagement qu'il resterait en l'état, qu'il serait entretenu et valorisé. C'est ce que la mairie fait, pour ce jardin qui, s'il n'est pas très grand, présente un grand intérêt pour l'histoire des jardins de la ville. En effet, il est le seul témoignage public d'un jardin privé du XVIIe siècle dans la région. Belles collections de plantes exotiques (on admirera la serre adossée, le lavoir...).

The garden of the castle of the Reynerie has been preserved at the time of the construction of the district of the Mirail. It was given up by the owners of the castle, to the Town hall of Toulouse, against the engagement that it would remain in the state, that it would be maintained and would be valorized. It is what the town hall makes, for this garden that, if it is not very big, present a big interest for the history of the gardens of the city. Indeed, it is the only public testimony of a garden deprived of the XVIIth century in the region. Beautiful exotic plant collections (one will admire the greenhouse, the washer...).

Le Parc de la Reynerie est un immense espace compris dans "la coulée verte" du sud de la ville, dans les nouveaux quartiers du Mirail. Il est construit autour d'un lac, souvenir des anciens étangs qui existaient ici autrefois. Il englobe le jardin du chateau de la Reynerie.

The Park of the Reynerie is an immense space understood in "the green stream" of the south of the city, in the new districts of the Mirail. Iit is constructed around a lake, to remember the former ponds that existed once here. It includes the garden of the castle of the Reynerie.

Le jardin Compans-Caffarelli à été construit à l'emplacement de deux importantes casernes, il y a une vingtaine d'années. Au début il était un peu plus grand, puis, la pression immobilière aidant, il a été grignoté par les promoteurs avides d'espaces. Il est juste à côté du Palis des Congrès, entre les boulevards et le Canal du Midi.
C'est un espace agréable, peu fréquenté.


The Compans-Caffarelli garden to been constructed to the site of two important barracks, about twenty years ago. In the beginning it was a little bigger, then, the real estate pressure helping, it has been nibbled by the promoters greedy of spaces. It is just next to the Palais des Congrès (Fence of the Conventions), between the boulevards and the Cannal du Midi.
It is a pleasant space, little frequented.

Il n'est pas très connu, et fréquenté essentiellement par les habitants du quartier Jolimont. Comme s'il n'avait été construit que pour eux.
L'Observatoire est construit en haut de la colline qui surplombe la ville. Le jardin qui l'entoure est calme, et abrite des essences particulières. Près de là, depuis la colonne du 10 avril, on a un joli point de vue sur la ville.

It is not widely-known, and frequented essentially by the inhabitants of the Jolimont district. As if he/it had not been constructed that for them.
The observatory is constructed in top of the hill that overhangs the town. The garden that surrounds it is quiet, and shelter particular gases. Close to there, since the column of April 10, one has a pretty point of view on the city.