Biarritz

We caught the Metro to the main train station.  Once it got there it was confusing to figure out.  There were many platforms and most of the machines were automated but I finally found a human and purchased tickets with 10 minutes to spare. We were on our way to Biarritz.  It took 5 hours to get there but it didn’t feel long, it was very pleasant and the cabin was comfortable.  We found out later we were accidently in first class, oh well!!    It was nice to see the French countryside – it reminded me of New Zealand.  Half way through the journey we had to change cabins on the train.  We sat by two teenage boys who the girls were infatuated with.  I think it was more about hearing boys speak French.  Yani was trying to be sneaky and was taking photos of one of them and I’m pretty sure he knew.  The girls were playing cards (speed) and I told them to talk to them and ask if they wanted to play but they didn’t.  When the girls went to the bathroom one boy asked me if I wanted to share his chocolate.  SO cute ;)

When we arrived at the Biarritz train station our hosts were there to meet us with two cars.  It was such a nice surprise because I was thinking that we would need to wait for a taxi.  It was 8 pm and I mentioned that I would need to find food for my kids and she took me to the grocery store.  I ran in and grabbed as much as I could for the next few days, about three bags full and it cost almost 50 Euro.  Then she took me to the apartment which was very nice and comfortable.  One thing about staying in homes is that you can cook a lot so we have been saving money by eating at home two meals a day. 

Our first full day in Biarritz was a Sunday.  We walked around into town which took us almost 20 minutes.  The kids were sooooo sooo happy to see the ocean.  The waves were pretty big and looked good but the beach was packed.  We decided not to surf since it was a Sunday and we would be there till Friday.  We had no idea at the time that it would be the only sunny day with the best surf.  Maybe it’s a good think we didn’t know or they would have been very tempted.  On Monday and Tuesday it rained and rained a lot and then on Wednesday and Thursday the beach was closed because of all the rain and pollution from the run off, so we left Biarritz without the kids surfing in France.  I was really bummed about this (more than the kids I think).  About two years ago Amber made a list with her life goals and one of them was to surf a wave in France.  That is one of the main reasons why we went all the way down there and we left without accomplishing that goal.  It was hard for me but I learned an important lesson (to follow).