An eco-conscious weekend in the shadow of the Montagne Noir

On our second weekend in France, the group split into two and one half spent Saturday in the midieval fortress of Carcassone, which will be detailed later, while the other half went to the department of Tarn to spend a couple of days experiencing nature and considering our place in it

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We started with a visit to a local dairy farm where we learned about the work involved in raising dairy cows and goats while discussing the commercialization process for small farms like this one.

After the dairy farm, we arrived at the Domaine du Thore, our home for the next two days, had lunch, and began activities like 'martelage' which involves choosing plants from the surrounding areas and lightly tapping them with a hammer into some fabric in order to stain it. The stains were eventually set using an iron oxide solution to complete our artworks! We also learned about different animal tracks we could find on the property.

After activities, it was time for some rest and then dinner, but programming wasn't quite done for the day. After dinner, we were led in an evening hike by our guide, Roger, who explained more of the history of the town of Labastide Rouairoux, including its former position as one of the major players in the creation of fabric for the French fashion industry.

On Sunday morning, we were led by Pascal in an activity in which we used yarn and fabrics, formerly the main export of the city, to create some works of art including bracelets and cards.

Students were excited to exercise their creativity while learning about the rise and fall of the textile industry in the region.

Our final activity was the weekend was a hike from the town of Mazamet up to the old city of Hautpoul, a trek that takes you across a suspension bridge hanging 200 feet above the valley below. All students bravely conquered the bridge and were able to experience the spectacular view.

After an extremely full weekend, we drove back to Toulouse and dropped our students back off with their host families where they will certainly sleep extremely well in preparation for more French class and a visit to the space museum tomorrow!!