Day 11 - Beautiful Biarritz

Bonjour!

I was pleasantly surprised that the entire beach house went to bed before midnight.

However, I was woken up by the smell of cigarette smoke. Some dude decided to have a smoke and sit on the toilet at 4am. I guess he figured no one would know. Well I had to restrain myself from going into full blown "party's over Mom mode". I couldn't get back to sleep. I really couldn't wait to get out of there. I felt like a square peg in a round hole. I left my door open a crack to get some fresh air and the beach house cat pushed his way in. 

He was looking for love and came to the right place. First, he inspected all my gear (security check) then sniffed my boots to see where I've been. I was petting him and he was purring, giving me happy, squinting eyes. He jumped up on my bed (I guess I passed the test) and he fell asleep. 

I tried to pack up quietly so he would stay... and he did. So I had to stay too. It's an unwritten rule that when a pet is snuggling with you, they leave first, not you. You are the chosen one and that shit is sacred 🤣

I came to find out on my way out the door that the cat's name is Zorro. I felt instant relief from social anxiety as I left the house. The air was cool and crisp, perfect for walking again. I found a place to buy a coffee nearby, in a bakery and suffered through the incredible smell of fresh, baked French bread just for my morning fix of caffeine.

The town was sleeping and that made for a peaceful start. Most of today is busy street side walking so I may bypass some of it with a bus ride and save my steps for the beach. 

I shortened my walk today by hopping on a bus to avoid the stress of city walking. The mere 13kms I have put in so far were not easy. The town of Biarritz is full of hills. I was too early to check in so I dropped of my baggage and spent the day exploring town. I tried to stay by the sea but was drawn into the beautiful pedestrian streets and shops at some point. 

The rocky shoreline is stunning with stairs and bridges carved into the stone and views from every angle of beaches and churches and castles. 

I have learned how to save money here. Before I reach the tourist areas I hit up a local grocery store. I buy ham, cheese, fruit, juice and salad and even wine if I want. When I get to a scenic spot I set up my little picnic and Voila!

 Lunch for less with guaranteed gluten free, nutritious and without the language barrier. I may miss out on that perfect table and the local fare but dinner time is when I go all out. Besides from a servers perspective nobody wants to give up a table for just one.

I had a picnic with a view today and had a dozen little birds gather around me in hopes of me dropping a few crumbs.

 I felt like snow white. I ate while watching dogs playing on a little beach and I liked that I was able to keep away from the many tourists. There was a Cathedral by the Coastal road that I went to explore. Not as extravagant on the inside as the outside but I appreciated it all the same.

 The architecture here is for the most part very extravagant. Many castles mixed in with modern store fronts. The town is spotless and everyone smells good. Without the backpack, I'm not getting the glares and the judging eyes...it feels good to blend in. After seeing the entire town, my little feet needed a rest so I found a table for one in the sun with a view of the sea and ordered a glass of wine and some free wifi.

Although I could use a nap, it's still to early to check in so .... more walking. I scoped out my route for the morning and enjoyed the views of the south beach and the hundreds of surfers. 

I checked in finally after 3 and wow... do I feel like a princess. Definitely a splurge night. My room is gorgeous.

 And it has a giant tub so I ordered wine to my room and had a glorious bath to soak my sore body followed by a much needed nap.

While I was out walking earlier, I scoped out my dinner options and found a traditional basque restaurant.

 I am currently enjoying a vegetarian paella and my 2nd glass of wine... here. That's 4 now today if you're counting haha. I got here just in time to beat the dinner rush. People are chatting away in French loud... and it's just white noise to me. I ate the entire paella!!

Perhaps I can fit in a crême brulée?

No sooner did i fit the last  bite of paella in my mouth (yes, I ate the ENTIRE thing) than the server whisked away my plate, do you think he wants to have his table back? 

I think I'm going to take my sweet ass time eating dessert. It came before I even finished typing that sentence lol. 

I love crême brulée so much I'm considering buying a mini torch to make it at home. 

This was the best meal I've had yet I think...

I feel like a little piggy.

As I sit here amidst the noise, I can't help but wonder if I'm missing the sunset. 

30€ for 2 glasses of wine, a giant pan of vegetarian paella and a crême brûlée. 

Time to walk it off and go to bed!

Day 10 - Surf's up!

I'm writing to you all from my new beach house. I am trapped here even though the beautiful beach is outside my door. I arrived at 3 and thought it best be laundry day as this might be my only chance until Spain. So I started my only load and thought I could hang it to dry in the sun and then hit the beach. Wrong. I started it at 330pm it is now 510pm and it is still going!! My clothes won't be dry for tomorrow.... there's no way. Plus I'm stuck here in my room because I am not cool enough for this place. It is a surf house. Full of hot chick's with chic Bohemian Hippie style and a bunch of hot surfer guys walking around shirtless, tanned and ripped haha and wearing only a towel. And then there is me. Older, chubby, dorky and sweaty hahaha, possibly drooling. They are speaking in a sexy bedroom surfer dialect hahaha je ne comprende pas!! I have a private room but everyone else is sharing 2 dorm rooms. I do however have to share the bathroom. Every time I open my bedroom door I see directly into the bathroom and there is always a guy in a towel coming out of the shower. I feel like Josie Grossie from "never been kissed" (cute  movie by the way)

Omg... I can't even imagine the morning bathroom horrors 🤣

The guy Jeremie who checked me in gave me the grand tour and I felt like saying, look buddy, this isn't necessary because I will not be joining in the hot tub or sharing meals in the kitchen or Netflix and Chilling. You don't need to show me where the surfboard wax is or where to hang my wetsuit. You people are all too beautiful and young and hip and I've never felt like a bigger Nerd in my life hahaha. Could you show me to the nursing home please? I think they may have a bed for me there.

It's 530pm and I think we're in a spin cycle. I can't believe I walked this far just to do laundry 🤣

As soon as the machine stopped, I hung my clothes on a rack outside my room and hit the beach. This beach has remnants of Nazi blockhouses and it seems so surreal, covered in graffiti while beach-goers frolicking about. 

On my way back from a sunny stroll, I found a place to make me a salad. I prepped them for a solid 10 minutes on the gluten free thing and then sat and waited with a giant glass of wine. The salad came out looking fabulous and I was about to take a bite when I saw a crouton. A fucking crouton. My French is not that bad and neither was buddy's English but clearly the kid in the kitchen non comprende pas! 

He took it back and brought another minus the GLUTEN 🤣🤣🤣

It was awesome and so was the wine. In fact, I bought the bottle and brought it back to my room. The owner offered to join me, cheeky bastard but I said it's not enough for two! 🤣

I came back and was forced to say Bonjour to a bunch of hot surfers lol... but then I met a girl from Morocco and she spoke English, French, Spanish and Arabic! She was gorgeous and friendly and I had my first real conversation since Riley left!!

I'm thinking the surfer guys are going to fight over this one!

I have retreated to my room, brought in my laundry and now my whole room smells like a clean European tourist.

 🤣 Quick dry really does dry quickly!! My stuff will for sure be 100% dry in the morning

Today my hike was monotonous. Most of it was roadside but the beauty of the pine forest diminished the sound of traffic. I walked through lingering smoke from what must have been a significant fire. It was limited to a small portion of my hike today but troublesome I imagine for anyone with respiratory issues.

As I got closer to town, I started seeing signs for the Camino, represented by the scallop shell symbol. 

I was aching for more coffee and when I entered a café patio there was a group of boisterous men who all scowled at me. They went from being super loud to talking under their breath, all turning to look at me, and then laughing out loud all the while maintaining a pitiful glare. I wanted to walk up to them with all my pent up French aggression and ask them "what the fuck is your problem?" But I didn't. I was mature and ignored them. Then I thought, wow maybe it's PMS 🤣 

Anyway, it was a great coffee and a clean restroom and it served its purpose. 

Since the majority of my walk was uneventful today, I did a social experiment. I said a cheery bonjour to everyone I passed today. 8 out of 10 people ignored me. The occasional one would respond or even initiate. The tourists on rent-a-bikes, the locals and the joggers were the most friendly. The majority of the serious bikers in their cute spandex and hot pink ankle socks were the ones that didn't respond and/or looked miserable. Maybe their shorts were too tight 🤣

There are so many bike options here. Today I saw a guy with a German Shepard in a cart being pushed. I also saw a cute old man on a bike  with his wife riding shotgun in a cart beside him!

According to my fitbit,  today was 18+kms. I'll take it. Felt like 1800kms 🤣

I'm exhausted. Big day tomorrow.

Bon soir and Bon nuit 

Day 9 - In the groove

I found it! My groove, my mojo!

I am happy, smiling and ready. Maybe it was the steak? 

I have recorded 121 kms since I left home. No more short days or rest days. This is it. The long days start today. Actually tomorrow is only 20kms. I passed out good and hard last night... before even the sun I think and had a much needed rest. I woke up excited to put my solution to the test. It was a cool crisp morning and I was out the door by 0800. I left Linxe by passing my Chateaux and taking smooth, paved, country roads.

My cart, Marcel works well and my back feels better. You can bet my arms will hurt tonight instead and I will likely get blisters on my palms. Let's face it. There is no way to go on a journey like this without pain. This is the part that builds strength.

Who is Marcel? That's what I've named my cart. Or as my Mom calls her own wheelie cart, her "husband on wheels." Instead of Supermarché, mine will be Super Marcel.

I stopped for a coffee in the cutest little Bohemian Hippie Coffee House after a couple hours of walking. I have walked almost 8kms and it is just after 10am. That puts me at about 4kms an hour... I should take another 4 to 5 hours to get to the beach from here if I take less pictures. As if haha.

 I am about 1/3 of the way but coffee is of the utmost importance. 

It was fabulous and worth the stop. Off I go again !

So every day has to have a mishap just to keep things real. This was it today... I left the beautiful little coffee house and walked through the remainder of the busy town. Just bustling with people. I even stopped in a the local church.

  It is a Saturday morning and a weekend Marché (market).

The locals are getting there groceries and tourists are just wandering.

I'm navigating my way on the narrow curb with Marcel and although I thought about finding a patio and ordering an omelette, I decided NON! I needed to keep moving. Soon enough the microscopic sidewalk was gone and I found myself walking on a very busy road. I kept going thinking ok it must get better up ahead but that never happened. It was loud and dangerous and messing with my mojo.

Then some old Frenchman starts yelling at me and trying to get my attention from a few feet away in a parking lot but with the traffic it was hard to hear him. I approached him and he spoke to me in French. I am so grateful for the French I learned in elementary school because it actually helped. He pointed to a sand trail across the street and said to go 200 hundred feet and turn right (in french of course) and I would be on the green trail (it's the trail I wanted actually haha) He was so aggressive and adamant that I do as he says. He was trying to help so I dismissed his crust. I thanked the old guy all day long for not letting me stay on the road.

The problem was the connection trail was deep, beach sand. I looked at Marcel who was just standing there not saying anything haha and I said "alright little buddy, I guess I will carry you" So I did. I couldn't risk ruining his wheels on his first day.

 It was more than 200 feet for the record. Marcel needs to go on a diet. As I came out the other side of the woods carrying Marcel in the front  and my backpack, people on the bike trail looked at me like I was an alien that just landed (or really stupid) and said "the trail is over here" in French. I responded by saying "yes. I know. That's why I am walking towards it" (knowing full well they couldn't understand me) and then I followed up with a wave and shouted a friendly Merci!

On the Camino, if you don't see a back pack every few minutes, you have probably gone off course. Here in France, if you don't have a bike breeze past you every 2 mins, you are likely not on the right path.

Voila. Back on track.

Time ~ 2pm

I found a random lonely bench in the woods to rest on so I've removed my boots and socks so my feet stay dry and cool... imperative every 1 to 2 hours to avoid blisters. The act of removing them alone guarantees me a 10 min break. Any more than that and my muscles will seize up. It's extremely hot, I'm guessing about 28° in full sun. Shade is harder and harder to find despite being in the middle of a forest. I have walked about 20k total so far today but I think I have 4k more to go. I'm making great time considering I stopped and had a little a picnic with Marcel. 

I just listened to Beethoven "Für Elise" and I am feeling alot more refined than I actually am haha. I know, weird music for hiking. My playlist is very eclectic. A mix of folk, classical, rock and even some pop tunes to keep me moving and thinking...and appropriately I named it Camino Norte. It has fueled me all day.

Ok.... breaks over... here we go. 4 more kms.

Yes my feet hurt. Legs are solid although I'm getting random bruises. Back is meh and arms are getting stronger. I avoided blisters on my hands by wrapping fabric around the hard plastic handle. 

The last 2kms into town were tough... it was HOT. But I did enjoy the bike trail I was on all day. I had one biker give me the strong arm to cheer me on and another dude with dreadlocks wished me a bon journèe as he sped past me. Everybody else either looked at me confused or did not make eye contact. There were a few awkward smiles and few responded to my cheery Bonjour! Most did not ... oh well! C'est la vie en France!

I found my town Vieux Boucau des Bains and my hotel pas de probleme. I'm on the 3rd floor with a balcony that I am about to enjoy right now!!

I made sink laundry a priority today and used the towel heater to dry my clothes and am amazed at how well it all worked out. Everything is coming together and I feel like I am already developing my routine.

Walk. Shower. Eat. Explore. Drink. Write. Sleep. Repeat.

Upon arrival and after a quick shower I grabbed a pokebowl to go from across the lane from my Hotel. It was fabulous. I washed it down with some grape juice of the Rioja variety.

Then I headed for the beach to explore and it was nothing like I expected but quite interesting. 

This isn't just a standard beach town. It's on an inlet and if you follow the long boardwalk along the water, you will eventually reach a massive beach that is actually divided. 

The north side where I ended up had your typical beach goers, fishermen and surfers of every variety. 

The waves were massive and many kites were flying in the strong winds. I could faintly see in the distance the mountains of Spain that I will be climbing in a few days. They look way bigger than I anticipated. Look closely below.

It was too early for a sunset and I was, not surprisingly, hungry again so I went on a search for gluten free yummies.

I found a place to eat,  a busy patio where even the menu advertises gluten free. I just had another Galette and I'm on my 2nd glass of wine. I ordered a gluten free salad and they brought it to me with BREAD on top of it!! I was baffled. Then when I said "I'm sorry I can't eat that, they said "oh, well we can just take it off for you." I think I paused and stared for a minute but calmly said, "no thank you. It's contaminated. I won't eat that" Maybe I should have said "NON!" with my faux French moustache! They replaced it and my belly is full. I was lucky... all the other restaurants had line ups... probably waiting for seafood.

I've been getting devoured by mosquitos every night and I seem to be reacting to them. Remember the nasty toe in Spain?? Yes that was an infected mosquito bite. Maybe it's all the wine I drink...and to them I'm like an open bar at a wedding... except nobody gets married.

All evening there has been a fire not far from here that is concerning. There is lots of smoke and it looks like it's in the forest that I'm walking through tomorrow. I can't monitor it from my room as it's on the other side. I guess I'll find out in the morning.

I will keep you posted.

Bon Nuit xx

Day 8 - You can not break me...

Bonjour Mes Amis,

Last night, after enjoying my glass of wine and a glorious sunset, I organized myself for today. I removed items I deemed least important and prepared a bag to ship home.

I woke up to a lovely sunrise and started my day still tired.

La Poste was 10 steps from my Hotel, I figured maybe it was a sign. I was there promptly at 9 am and was greeted by a sour, older woman who glared at me from over her spectacles. I was polite and spoke in my broken French and asked if she spoke English. Again, I get the NON! And said with such force and disgust as if I have somehow offended her. I was clever this morning and used my Google translate while I had wifi and took a screenshot of what I wanted to say. I showed her my phone screen and she motioned me to a touch screen machine which I thought is fine, it's probably friendlier than her anyway hahahaha. It also spoke English 😉

I navigated my way through and almost choked when it told me 70€. I paused, then began filling out the form on screen... but it wouldn't accept my Canadian Postal Code. Voila! Another sign.

I accepted defeat and left...still a heavy load. I bought myself the best coffee I have had since arriving and tried to calm my increasing anxiety from over-packing. 

I am hoping to hire a bag transfer and just carry less without having to throw out any of my stuff. It's also an expensive option but I need peace of mind and haven't had any yet. Still haven't found my groove.... I am hoping I find it when I get to Spain.

Today the distance was too far to walk, no train nor bus for me to take. I was forced to take a taxi but knew this well in advance. I had hoped this town would have had something to offer but it's really not much to look at. My hotel is locked and won't open until 5 so I can't even drop off my 400lb bag. There was a pizza place across the street so I went there hoping for wifi and a coffee. Nice enough guy cleaning the patio tried to speak English and said they don't open until 12 (it was 1145am) but then said "but let me ask my wife" 🤣

He came back out with "she said NON!" Despite being rejected I will return there for wifi until my hotel is forced to accept me. For now I found a big restaurant with a patio and ordered coffee. I still have not eaten. There is a market across the street with produce and baked goods and a huge table of just fromage! 

Aprés café, I went back to the scary wife pizza joint and as it turns out she was amazing! Not a word of English but hubby was a decent translator. We are now bffs hahaha. 

They gave me wifi, a pinchet of wine, it's a carafe ... like half a bottle... cold water and since I can't eat pizza she made me a giant deluxe salad and it was probably the best salad I ever had. I don't even know what the greens were but they looked like 4 leaf clovers lol.

I guess it's my lucky day. And for the record, the wine was fabulous, from a local vineyard.

Using their wifi, I tried so hard to work out all the kinks of my planning. I have since organized a bag transfer in Spain so I can enjoy the walk and save my knees and back. I tried to do the same in France but they are fully booked. Again with the NON! France is trying but I won't give in. Me and the internet are a force to be reckoned with. I researched until I came up with a solution. I stashed my ridiculous backpack behind the hotel and went to the grocery store... again. I bought a little granny grocery cart to get me through the next few days in France. 

France has been trying to break me since I arrived. But guess what France? You can't break me. I am Canadian. We don't break that easily. I left the grocery store feeling like such a clever beast. I walked back to my hotel with my new 2 wheel drive and well I can't tell you exactly what I said but let's just say I had the biggest grin. I had plenty of wine in me and my music playing and I was singing and smiling.  If France has given me anything at all it has been strength and freedom. And also perhaps a big ass attitude. I will not be broken.

I finally checked in and had an hour to kill before the bar opened. I went for a walk and stumbled into a Chateaux. Only in France. It was like an absolute dream.

 I stood there just waiting for Prince Charming to come out and say, "oh there you are darling"... but he didn't. So I came back to my hotel for another pinchet of wine. Feeling no pain today folks!

I've been day drinking again and at around 7pm I had the best mandatory meeting with my coworkers, mes amis, my friends. Thank you ladies for keeping me company!

I have relocated to the back garden of my hotel and it's lovely!! And all for just me!

I have been promised a steak (entrecote) with vegetables and a salad... I hope they don't notice that I am sitting here drooling hahaha.

I inhaled my dinner in about 3 minutes. The tomatoes and peppers were perfect. The steak was good the wine was the best. My belly is full and this is just the meal I need to fuel me for tomorrow.

I know tomorrow will include alot of road walking and will likely be flat and uneventful. When I arrive at my destination tomorrow however I am hoping for another glorious sunset on another beautiful beach .

Stay tuned and Bonsoir xx

Sent from my Galaxy