After wandering among the beach villages of Cap Ferret looking for a hotel room, we decided our plan to drive and find a place to stay might not work so well in areas where the French are also vacationing. So for our next destination, Biarritz, we fell back to Plan B: American Express Travel Services. They secured us a room at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Biarritz. Thank you AE!
Biarritz was an obscure whaling village until the mid-1850's when Eugenie, the last Empress of France and wife of Napoleon III, came to Biarritz on the recommendation of her physicians to partake of the healthy air and climate. Eugenie loved the area so much that she built a little beach house.
Eugenie's palace is now the Hotel Palais. After she finished the beach house, she built a church at the other end of the main beach in honor of her namesake Ste. Eugenie.
Empress Eugenie was a style-setter in Europe in her day, so naturally her friends and other influential and royal people of the time flocked to Biarritz in her wake, changing it from a peaceful whaling village to the international vacation destination it remains today. Biarritz is in the Basque region of France, 11 miles from the border with Spain, so the area has a flavor of France and of Spain.
And in Biarritz, the main attractions are the beaches, people watching, and the cuisine. So here is a look at all three.
The main beach stretches between Eugenie's palace and her church and is anchored by the casino you can see over Tim's head.
Colored umbrella tents are the hallmark of the Big Beach in Biarritz.
But unfortunately, when the sun comes out, so do all the French people! It is wall to wall sunbathers! So we drove a few miles north of Biarritz to Vielle St. Girons where we found miles of gorgeous golden sand sugary beaches. And not as many people!
We found a sign on the beach that said something in French like "Limits of Regulation." On one side of the sign, people had clothes on. On the other side of the sign, everyone was nude.
Can you guess which side of the sign Tim is on? (And yes, we were both on the same side of the sign!)
As we walked along the beach on the "nakey" side of the sign, we even saw a nude surf school. Now that's something you don't see every day! Can't put any pictures of that on the blog! But it was fun to watch.
And now for the people part of Biarritz!
There are beautiful people everywhere you look.
Of all ages!
And all the ladies wear stylish wedges--even to the beach. And especially to shop! Any woman of style in Biarritz only goes out in public in heels. Any woman wearing flip-flops in public must either be Euro-trash or a Spaniard!
And how French can you get!
And last but not least, the food! Voila! (French people actually say "Voila" quite frequently. When the waiter brings your wine, "Voila!" When he brings your food, "Voila!" And yesterday, we even heard a woman say "Ooh-La-La!" Seriously!)
Basque cuisine has influences from the French and from the Spanish, so it differs from traditional French cuisine in that it is less "buttery" and more "tomato-ey."
Dinner at Bistrot des Halles:
My appetizer was stuffed eggplant with smoked salmon and baby greens.
Tim's appetizer was gazpacho with butter croutons.
My entree was Durade (Dorado) Royale with pesto, grilled tomato and artichoke, and rice pilaf.
Tim's entree was shrimp grilled in garlic and chiles over pasta.
House-made tiramasu for dessert. And cognac, of course!
Our table mates were two chatty Italian girls from Milan, Roseanna and Marta. Over a second cognac, they shared their world travels with us. Apparently Europeans, unlike Americans, use their ample vacation time to travel the world, not to visit relatives!
Next morning, breakfast on the beach. Cafe and croissants, of course. Tres Francais!
And then dinner at Cafe Baleak:
My appetizer was crab meat served in cold avocado soup.
And Tim's appetizer was scallops in Thai consomme.
For entree, we both had the sea bass filet with warm tomatoes and potatoes au gratin with red peppers.
And for dessert, chocolate spring rolls with vanilla dipping sauce. This was dessert to DIE for!
And so, sunset in Biarritz. Our favorite place in France...so far!
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