Sep 29, 2011

Well we were back on the road again today and I was thankfully feeling a little more rested as well as less like an invalid which was a welcome improvement. The temperature yesterday got to 32 degrees in San Sebastian so we expected a hot ride today and by the end of the day it was certainly that though I don’t know how hot it got (29 in Paris so would have been hotter here). I peeled off all the layers I could except for one because I didn’t want to arrive at our accommodation with only a bra under my jacket! I was grateful this was the first hotel we have stayed at that has a pool. As a matter of principle I jumped in and lowered the core body temperature to a tolerable level.



A beach view at Biarritz

The highlight for our day was our visit to Biarritz which was a spectacularly beautiful spot. The terrain was hilly around the beach which gave character to the beach areas and the promontories had rugged protrusions of rock thrust up out of the sand and ocean. The beaches were just beautiful and everywhere we went around the beach there were little vantage points and alcoves with seats where you could sit and contemplate every possible angle you could think of. The town was well maintained and the newer buildings didn’t detract from the old so planning has been effective. We could have gladly spent a couple of days here and I would even have enjoyed swimming at one of the little beaches we found as well as exploring the rock pools. We spent quite some time wandering about before we got back on the road.



Streetscape Biarritz showing a variety of differing building styles and eras

The countryside itself today after Biarritz was incredibly flat and featureless and reminded me of the flat conifer forested areas along the Brisbane to Sunshine Coast Freeway. We were on motorways nearly all day and roadwork’s and reduced speed limits for at least half that time. The road looked like it was probably one of the early motorways and was in the process of upgrade but was obviously a main freight route between France and Spain and we were blown away by the sheer volume of trucks on the road (mostly single drive and tri-axle trailers). If I had a dollar for every one I saw today I could have paid for this whole trip! For the first time ever my eyes were burning and streaming from the diesel fumes no doubt because of so much slow travel so it was good to get into Arcachon and the suburban streets.



A view to the main beach across the ancient marina with many small boats moored there still and close to sitting on the mud at low tide but protected from the ocean

Arcachon is a quirky place and we are basically in the ‘burbs’ in our hotel…well what were the burbs in the 1800’s when it was built. At that time it was referred to as the ‘Villa Regina of the Forest’ and has been a grand building surrounded by what looks like many expensive smaller villas which would have been wealthy seaside accommodation where over time the space has gradually been filled up with other houses though many still in keeping with the original designs. The hotel halls are lined with photographs of many of the villas when they were newly built. We wandered down to the Plage d’Arcachon (main beach) and had dinner before walking back as the sun set.



Another Biarritz street scape back down a lane to the Ocean which led up the hill to a lovely open paved area and many upmarket and well preserved buildings and stores

Bits and Bobs:

Heaps more people of ALL ages smoking in France than Spain…and BIG numbers in France.

Bread of all descriptions in France is beautiful……much more basic in Spain.

Motorbike parking in France is pretty much anywhere and literally on any street (as in footpath) you can find but in Spain they definitely have to be parked in a parking spot and saw one getting a ticket even though it was no hindrance to foot traffic.
Car parking also seems more stringent in Spain compared to what appears more haphazard in France. On our visit to Comillas Sharen and Ken parked in front of the municipal offices where there were no signs or indicators NOT to park but when they asked some locals sitting close by if it was allowable to park there their response was ‘you may like it, but the police WONT like it’. Needless to say they kept driving until they found a car park.



The Spanish Do not Disturb sign from the Hotel cracked me up!

Last nights’ accommodation:

Silken Amara Plaza
Plaza PIO XII, 7
San Sebastian Spain

The hotel is a lovely building beautifully maintained with many different places to eat and relax. The rooms are generous as well as the supplied toiletries. The restaurant meals were very nice and the included buffet breakfast delicious. The reception staff is exceedingly helpful including almost instantaneous response to plumbing problems in the night as well as delivering my parcel (riding glasses) when they arrived…. I think this has been the pick of the hotels so far as far as actual hotels go though our Apartment Hotel in Paris made it possible to live cheaply and was yummy as well.