Biarritz

Biarritz, Saturday Morning, look at all the surfers in the sea, waiting to ride a wave, most of them have been there since sunrise!

It's my Birthday on Monday, a very boring day to have a Birthday on, so as the weather forecast looked good for the weekend I decided I would like to go to Biarritz for my Birthday, Saturday was the allotted day, I was quite happy to go for the day as it's only an hour and half away by car, yesterday MG decided on the spur of the moment that we should go instantaneously and spend the night, (Friday) he spent some time on the internet looking for a hotel that had availability, a secure car park and accepted dogs, he found one and booked, then announced, I had to get ready.

I was in disarray, chucking things into an overnight bag, the weather has changed dramatically here, yesterday was like a Summers day, what should I take?  Oh God, I am overdue for a leg wax and a pedicure, oh God what shoes, shoes... where is that pretty white bra?  Oh God it's in the laundry basket, which draw are the others in?  Do I need to take a bikini?  No the sea will be freezing, there might be a pool, pool... where is that bikini?  Can't find it never mind, chuck that in instead and that...   twenty minutes later I was ready.

Around an hour later (MG drove like a bat out of hell) we were in Biarritz, mind you it took half an hour to negotiate our way round the Biarritz one way system (with GPS) before we found the hotel, which was located right on the seafront.

We stayed at The Hotel Windsor which looked like it had been recently done out in boutique style, it was immaculate, clean and the staff at the reception were charming, the room was small but perfectly formed, comfortable, clean, with excellent linen and four plump pillows, (normally French hotels only provide, two pillows, with a spare in the wardrobe, why?  I have no idea).  The room was quirky and 'open plan' the bathroom was in the bedroom partitioned by the shower, which was in the middle of the room, I have never come across this before, obviously some kind of space maximisation tactic (you would be hard pushed to find a hotel room here in the high season, so seafront hotels can charge top dollar) there was no bath but the loo was separate with a door!

 We opened the small balcony doors and looked at the view...

Gorgeous, we knew, that night, we would drift off to sleep with the sound of Atlantic waves.

We have not been to Biarritz for about seven years, last time we came, this magnificent resort was looking a bit tired and jaded.  Not any more! Biarritz has had a facelift and been sympathetically rejuvenated in keeping with it's lustrous past, it's the surfing capital of Europe, the hip and the trendy rub shoulders with the elegant and the glamorous.  Biarritz is located on France's South West Atlantic coast, close to the Spanish border, in the Basque country and remains true to it's Basque roots, adding culture, great food and bonhomie to the mix.  Biarritz has been restored to it's former glory, not to mention it's natural beauty and stunning coastline and can happily compete with it's counterparts on The Cote d'Azur.

Biarritz is a popular destination and one of the earliest coastal resorts in France and it's all thanks to one lady, you can't really write about Biarritz without mentioning Empress Eugenie and her summer Villa (Palace) known as Villa Eugenie, now the Super luxurious Hotel du Palais.

The Empress Eugenie in Biarritz

The Hotel Du Palais, can you believe it took only ten months to build, there must have been thousands working on it!

 Edward VII, promenading 1905,  Biarritz was a favourite destination for European Royalty, celebrities and dignitaries, including King Edward VII

The same spot, Saturday, April 2nd, 2011

To read all about the fascinating and romantic history of Biarritz, Empress Eugenie and The Hotel Du Palais click here

When we arrived at the hotel on Friday evening it was already around 8pm, I was feeling a bit crumpled but had no time to change, I just had time to freshen up my make up.  We got some great recommendations for places to eat and drink from the charming hotel staff, there is no shortage of fantastic bars, cafes and restaurants in Biarritz but we were told to head towards the market place, we did and found Le Comptoir du Foie Gras, which was buzzing, it's a tapas bar specialising in regional products.  As the weather was positively balmy everyone was standing outside on the pavement in full summer garb, the atmosphere was great and some great tunes were playing subtly in the background, the tapas looked wonderful so we ordered some, it was so delicious we ended up ordering four plates and stayed there for hours, we never made it out for dinner as we were quite happy where we were and after consuming a lot tapas we were happily stuffed!

Le Grande Plage

Small cove with rock pools

The Old Port

After an excellent nights sleep,  on Saturday morning we went for a long walk along the beach, followed by a pre lunch aperitif,  Champagne in the Hotel du Palais, Crusoe was welcomed too and thoroughly enjoyed having a good old roll on the sumptuous carpets!  Then we headed off to the rustic Old Port for lunch, the best place to go for fish and sea food, the very plump Gulls kept us amused, once again the food was excellent.

After lunch we went for a wonder round the town, more grand buildings, fabulous shops, Biarritz has all the usual suspects; Hermes, Dior, Prada etc. as well as interesting, individual privately owned boutiques.  The Basque country is famous for it's great quality linen and towels and there are plenty of reasonably priced shops in Biarritz selling amazing table linen and the softest, fluffiest best quality towels and robes imaginable.

We drove home late Saturday afternoon, it was a wonderful trip, we will be returning soon...

Click here to read about other destinations on The Cote Basque

An Interlude And The Most Effective Hangover Cure In The World

Some of you may have noticed that I have not been around much lately, first of all the computer problems rumble on, we have taken the offending PC, (which is only two months old) back to the vendor, they insist that windows seven is compatible and are repairing it.....?  We will see, we want to buy a Mac but we have tons of software, which will not be compatible with a Mac we will have to replace everything at great expense, anyway it is under review.

  In the meantime we are sharing the laptop, which is challenging as we both need the computer to work, as a result my blog has suffered, I have been going through withdrawal symptoms and can only blog when MG is occupied, dashing on when he is in the shower, or has nipped out for wine, at the moment I think he is cooking Spaghetti Carbonara so I am finally able to do a post.

 

 The View, From C&G's Chalet

Chalet Genepy In Winter

We have also had a brief interlude, we swapped one mountain range for another and went to visit some good friends of ours who have a ski chalet in the French Alps, of course we did not go skiing, in the Summer season the Alps have a short season for outdoor pursuits.  What a fabulous time we had, there were nine adults, one child, one small smooth haired fox terrier and one giant poodle.  We drank an awful lot I think from lunchtime till very late at night there was always a  bottle of wine on the go, I woke up with a hangover every morning.  Claire and Giles were always busy in the kitchen, rustling up wonderful food.

Claire And Giles Working Hard In The Kitchen

There were a bunch of other people there who also own chalets we met them in one of the local bars, what a great group, most of them are very sporty and we are talking extreme!  They are all great skiers who play hard and work hard.  Giles organised a white water rafting trip, for twenty of us, somewhere in between glasses of wine I found myself agreeing to go!  I have never done it before, but my motto in life is try everything once.

 White Water Rafting Curtsey of France Raft

Very early in the morning we set off, I was nursing one hell of a hangover, I was  not the only one, we got to base camp where we had to change into full body wet suits, including life jackets and helmets, little wet suit socks and horror of horrors little jelly shoes!  I was starting to get nervous but seeing everyone looking like strange frogman caused much hilarity, we were divided into three boats, when we got into the boats a quick safety lesson (My adrenalin was starting to pump) and off we went, at first I was quite tense but soon started to relax as the guide (a complete nutter) filled us with confidence and made us laugh and when I was splashed with the cold water and we are talking cold (thank God for the wetsuits) an amazing thing happened my hangover started to dissipate.

Our Guide, a complete nutter but loads of fun!

 Claire and I could not stop giggling, we went in tons of times but by that time we felt like seasoned pro's thanks to our wonderful guides confidence building exercises. (the trip lasted for two hours).  the only thing I had not counted on was a brief stop in a beautiful gorge we all scrambled up a steep bank and people started to jump off a high rock six meters to be precise into the gorge in a spot where the water was very deep, what option did I have?  I could not cop out I had to jump....hangover completely cured, (normally I swear by lots of water and a BLT sandwich washed down with a large Bloody Mary, but this was much more effective, a miracle cure!) I floated upriver in extremely cold water, thank God for the wetsuit my uncovered hands were freezing. The only injury sustained, two broken nails.  A great time was had by all and here's the thing, I would do it again.

The next day we trundled back home but the party was not over two friends and one giant poodle followed us, they stopped off In Arles overnight, whilst we continued homeward bound, they were going to join us the next day.

 The Arena, Nimes

 

 Sculpture Of A Bullfighter, Nimes

The Arena, Close Up's

 On route back we stopped of in Nimes for lunch, Nimes is one of my favourite places I love the vibe in Nimes slightly rough round the edges but with a huge amount of character, narrow streets with a mix of run down properties sitting next to imposing done up properties.  Nimes is an old Roman town and has an arena which is used for concerts, events and the odd bullfight.  Nimes had an ancient industry for dying cloth indigo and  is the birthplace of denim which literally means 'Of Nimes'.

It is now very up and coming and they are spending a fortune doing it up, so the traffic system is a bit difficult to negotiate at present.  Some fabulous restaurants are springing up we always stop off at 'Le Cheval Blanc' an excellent winebar with a fine menu it has a wonderful interior with vaulted ceilings and some fabulous artwork hanging on it's walls  and it is situated just opposite the Arena.

Wine Bar, Le Cheval Blanc

I read an article in the Sunday Times about another restaurant called 'Le Lisita' also overlooking the Arena (article here). I will definitely be checking this out, next time we are passing through.

Le Lisita

We returned home safe and sound, managed to get a few jobs done before our friends and their giant poodle arrived, once they arrived, we had more fun and more drinking.  Pepo is the name of our friends giant poodle he is only eleven months old, he is an entire male as is Crusoe, at first they did not get on, in The Alps it was a bit touch and go, lot's of snarling and gnashing of teeth but by the the end of their visit Crusoe and Pepo were the best of friends.

Our friends have now gone, we are slowly getting back to normal, drying out is high on the agenda, until the next time....

I'm Back

I can't believe I have been away from blogging for over a week, so apologies for the post drought and not visiting, I am hoping to catch up with you all within the next few days.   I have to confess I have been away gallivanting, sans laptop, which is just as well as I have had no time for anything except pleasure!

 The Stray, complete with Victorian Promenade Shelter, Harrogate

 I went back home to dear old Blighty, where I spent a wonderful few days back in my home town, Harrogate, Yorkshire, catching up with family and friends, whilst there, I did lot's of wining and dining I was particularly impressed with Harrogate's newest restaurant Le Bistrot Pierre, which has great food and a fabulous ambience, I gather they have a few restaurants in various UK towns, check out the link, and if you find yourself  in any of the locations, where they have an establishment; Go!

I took my Mother down to London for a couple of days, my gorgeous and fabulous Brother treated us to a stay at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington, my Brother always stays in this hotel when he is in London on business. 

The Views Of Kensington Gardens And Beyond From My Room

Wow, what a fabulous Hotel, not so pretty on the outside but the inside, more than makes up for it, it is a family owned hotel and it shows, most of the staff have been there for years and they make you feel like Royalty, nothing is too much trouble, I think it is one of the friendliest and most comfortable hotels I have ever stayed in and if you can secure a room overlooking Kensington Gardens, you will be privy to one of the finest views in London.  Major foodies had  informed me that they have one of the best Chinese restaurants in London; Min Jiang, I have now sampled it and can vouch for it, some of the greatest Chinese food I have ever tasted, with the emphasis on fresh. The restaurant is on the tenth floor of the hotel, so whilst you are tasting heaven you also have an awe inspiring panoramic view of London.

 Min Jiang Restaurant

Another excellent restaurant which has fabulous views over London is Babylon, just over the road, from the Royal Garden, on Derry Street.

I did cram a lot of things into my trip, I took my Mother to the V&A to see the Grace Kelly exhibit, I had heard a few negative reports, on this, not enough dresses, where was the wedding dress etc. Personally I thought it was very well done and so did my Mother, I also have to mention that my Mother cannot function properly in the morning without the aid of great coffee, we walked from the hotel to the V&A, on route there were no cafes, so we stopped off at The Royal Albert Hall's Cafe Consort for breakfast which was extremely good value for money with charming staff serving...wonderful.

 My Mother, after coffee, proving age is only a number (she is 75, sorry Mum!)

The only disappointment of the trip, was me, hotfooting it over to see the Leighton House Museum, which was at the other end of Kensington High Street, a brisk twenty minute walk from the hotel; closed on Tuesdays!  Never mind, my fault for not checking, will go on my next trip, I consoled myself by photographing the blue plaque.

 This Is A Typical Holland Park Property, It Was so Pretty, I Could Not Resist Photographing It.

Well here endeth my little jaunt, I must say I left a warm sunny Britain and arrived in cold and rainy France, apparently it has been awful here for two weeks, rainy, murky and cold... the grass is not always greener......