After a wonderful month in Colorado filled with hikes, friends, and margaritas, it’s time to start our real hurricane-season adventure. On July 8th, we became global nomads again, taking the red-eye to Paris, then easyJet to Biarritz, then a bus to the Centreville, to the smallest studio apartment I’ve ever seen.

We only had one full day in Biarritz, but we made the most of it, hiking for miles along the gorgeous coastline, admiring the beautiful architecture surrounded by hydrangeas, and doing lots of people watching!

It was fun to use my high school French again. Thank goodness I can still remember how to order two coffees, and to ask if they have any gluten free bread! What else do you need? That little bit of French came in handy when we loaded up on delicious meats, cheeses, and rillettes for a picnic near the Roche de Vierge – the rock of the Virgin Mary. Her statue high atop this rocky island is intended to protect the fisherman at sea.

I have a feeling this will be the first of many amazing picnics! After lunch, we have in to the call of the sea and got our feet wet. This whole side of the town is simply one beautiful beach after another. Climb up a little hill and down the other side, and another amazing mile of sand appears. We’re trying to beat jetlag by walking it off! Over 20,000 steps today.

That evening, we stumbled into the Wednesday market. (I guess my French isn’t really that good – I translated the signs to mean they were closing the street for a parade. Oops!) So much fun to see the narrow brick streets jammed with people of all ages, and everyone happy, smiling, shopping, and drinking wine. We grabbed wooden platters of sausage and cheese and a couple of glasses of crisp rosé at Least Comptoir du Fois Gras and soaked it all in.

Lest you think we only eat cheese and sausage, never fear! I discovered another food group as a sign posted outside Les Halles market drew me in. A dozen oysters and two very small plastic cups of wine for 10 Euros! That’s the face of a happy Jenn.

I may not believe in jetlag, but apparently it believes in me. We headed back to our teeny tiny little studio apartment before dark, which isn’t quite as pathetic as it sounds because the days are crazy long this time of year. I tried to finish my Duolingo Spanish lessons, but I was falling asleep between questions. So I guess it was time to say bonne nuit to Biarritz.