Hello on the bus, chocolatine, bilingual metro… These specificities that only belong to Toulouse
By Maxence Dourlen
Published on
What image do we have of Toulouse when you know very little about the city? We think of the pink city (but we don’t know why), at the Capitole, at Claude Nougaro, at rugby, at cassoulet, (a little) at TéFéCé… And after? What does it look like when you set foot there? When we settle down for good?
A brief overview of the things you see or hear in Toulouse and (almost) nowhere else.
#1. Chocolatine, pocket, ratchou…?!
Distrust at the time of breakfast… Everyone knows that, absolutely everyone. But a bad reflex happened so quickly…
So when you walk into a bakery and ask for a Chocolate bread or worse, no chocolate croissant, disaster is not far away. ” What ? What do you want ?! “A loaf of ch… Uh, a chocolatine ! » and the atmosphere becomes cordial again… But it was less one. On the verge of provoking an interregional conflict… for a pain au chocolat.
Better to swirl your tongue seven times in your mouth before going to do Classes also. Everything is a story of reflex, once again. A wafer of butter, toothpaste and three potatoes, it fits in a bag ? In Toulouse, no. On the other hand, it fits into a cover. Second interregional conflict over!
And when in the evening you are asked to pay for the first round and you no longer have a round, you are told that you are a rathou ! And here is the pompom… In short, always think before opening it, boudou !
#2. A story of politeness
Take the bus a Toulouseit’s a bit like facing the final boss of the politeness. The one that takes you by surprise, but still leaves you with many choices. We get on the bus, the journey progresses, the stops pass and the end of the trip is approaching (too?) quickly. The red button is activated, the moment descends is not very far. The stress rises, a drop of sweat appears on the forehead… The fateful moment is there.
A passenger gets off: “Goodbye, thank you! “, a second follows suit:” Goodbye, thank you! “, then a group of friends, in chorus:” Goodbye, thank you! “. A remarkable and “suspicious” politeness when it is foreign to the ear. What must we do ? Say nothing and take the risk of passing for “a guy from the capital” or adapt and be betrayed by his lack of accent? When in doubt, we whisper a discreet “thank you, have a nice day”, but it is far from proven. Passable, we’ll do better on the next trip.
Conclusion: Toulouse is the capital of politeness. ” Goodbye thanks ! “.
#3. A bilingual and “connected” metro and cable car
“Totes los passatgiers son convidats a quitar lo tren…” The first time is surprising, but over time… you get used to it. In addition to being “connected” (meaning that the network is not cut off), the Toulouse metro and cable car have a very unique feature: that of being bilingual.
“Atencion davalada a esquèrr” (caution, descent to the left); “Estacion terminus, totes los passatgiers son convidats a quitar lo tren” (terminus station, all passengers are invited to leave the train); Estacion venenta: Capitòli (next station: Capitole)…
Let it be said, this little touch of Occitan goes into the head… And it’s not to displease us. Estacion venenta: Ernest-Wallon.
#4. See life in red and black
“In red and black, I will exile my fear; I will go higher than these mountains of pain, In rouuuuuuuge and black…”, sang Jeanne Mas in the mid-80s. Almost 30 years later, Toulouse has still not apparently turned the page…
So yes, purple persists and has been revived in recent months thanks to the TFC, but red and black are undeniably anchored in the hearts of Toulouse residents. The real ones, those who grew up with an oval ball in their hands and a mouth guard in their mouth. Those who are not afraid of taking a cathedral tackle set foot in Saint-Pierre Square. The real ones… Here, ovality is a religion and we feel it every day. When Stade Toulousain wins, a whole people triumph. The inevitable subject at the coffee machine on Monday morning. Except when Castres wins…
#5. One tavern per inhabitant
In Toulouse, we don’t say “grow like a mushroom”, but rather “grow like a guinguette”. Between “the most rustic”, “the most electro”, “the trendiest” or even “the most rugby” (!), we no longer know where to turn…
But let’s not sulk our pleasure, the other cities of France are far from being so spoiled at this level. In the Pink City, it would take more than a summer to discover them all… or else turn the city into a giant guinguette, which is almost already the case. Come on, everyone at the guinguette, no time to waste!
#6. In Toulouse, we drink pastis Ô Maître (not alone!)
In Toulouse, going to Chez Tonton is like visiting the Old Port of Marseille or Place de la Pucelle in Rouen. Inevitable. Even if “alcohol is not cool”, “pastis by the meter” has become an emblematic formula of the Pink City and Saint-Pierre square. And it doesn’t take long to hear about it. The tester is something else. Even with water…
.
Was this article helpful to you? Note that you can follow Actu Toulouse in the My Actu space. In one click, after registration, you will find all the news of your favorite cities and brands.