What a difference nice weather makes. Today is beautiful here in Bayonne. No clouds and a max of 19. It feels strange to wear shorts again. I’ve missed that. Since the first part of Wales, it’s generally been cool and wet
I also miss the daily blogging. Although I’ve been more sociable while off the bike, the daily debrief and reflection is a healthy thing. I guess I’m looking forward to getting back into some sort of rhythm.
Bayonne is absolutely beautiful. It’s got it all – a castle, walls, a big old church, cobbled streets and one of those multi arched bridges that I always have the urge to photograph. It’s also typically french with rustic houses all through the city and funky shops in unlikely places. Most importantly, it’s small enough to enjoy without hordes of tourists right now.
It was an easy ride into Biarritz. I’ve never been there before and I really enjoyed walking and riding along the coastline. I stopped for a late second breakfast at the very nice Boulangerie Noisette. I had a sensational apple pastry (Chausson aux Pommes) and had to have a Noisette which is my favourite coffee in France. It’s a macchiato but small enough so they can’t pour a bucket of milk into it.
It wasn’t really second breakfast. It was more like the first course of lunch, as I then stopped not too far away and had my baguette and cheese – mmmmmm. I then spoke with an old French couple who split their time between here and Paris. They told me some nice places to go, but with some bad weather approaching, I may have to go later.
From there, I followed a path all of the way to Saint-Jean-De-Luz. As I crested the final hill the harbour and town came into view – absolutely stunning.
The place was full of people strolling around and by the looks of them, it seems a fairly high end destination. There were fewer eating options being Sunday and most of them seemed to cater for that crowd. It felt like this was the last day of the nice weather so people were making the most of it.
When I first looked at Saint-Jean-De-Luz on the map, my impression was – looks like a sleepy fishing village. It’s been anything but.
I found something to eat near the hotel and went back. Tomorrow is another short ride (less than 40 kms), but with a sizable climb in the middle.
