Biarritz

Checked out at 11 am. and back at 2 pm. after a 5 km walk along the sea promenade, taking in the views. In 1660 King XIV, the Sun King, married a Spanish princess Maria Therese (who at age 21 was reputed to be quite ugly with only 3 teeth due to her love of sweets and lack of modern dentistry). With their union, the wars between France and Spain came to an end. They were married in a nearby small town called St Jean de Luc. We are just 22 km from the Spanish border. Napoleon III, in addition to remodeling Paris, designed Biarritz to be a major destination for 18th century upper crust society and since the 1950’s a surfing culture has developed. It is very clean, and although some of the original concrete and pavement is weathered in a charming European way that make falls easy. Overall, it is a prosperous looking place. We took in the central market and then walked the long promenade with its beachfront views passing through the old fishing port and then via a pedestrian bridge out to the rocks with its statue of Mary. A quick rest at the B and B and we were off by bus and our meet-up with for the one week Rick Steves group tour of The Basque Country.Read more