Lyon

Our train ride from Biarritz to Lyon took 10 hours and we had just enough energy in Lyon to get groceries, make a pasta dinner and head to bed.  In the morning we had free breakfast at the hostel (cereal with milk and baguettes with either jam, honey, or nutella).

First on our "To see" list was the Roman theater. It's just hanging out at the top of a hill.  No entrance fee, no roped off areas, and built in 15 AD.

After we were done playing on the 2000 year old stone steps, we walked over to the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière.  It was very impressive and perched at the edge of a hill with sweeping views of the city and surrounding areas.  There is a path that wanders down away from the Basilica and around the top of the hill with more views and we walked around for an hour or so, trying to find our starting point for the day.

For lunch we decided to check out the daily market next to the Saone river.  It was mainly meats, cheeses and bread and we bought a small wheel of goat cheese, a loaf of bread and a couple apples.  Back at the hostel we ate our market finds on the terrace which had amazing views of the city.

After lunch and an afternoon rest, we headed out to find a mural painted on the side of a 7 story building.  After an hour and a half and miles of wandering, we never found it.  We did, however, wander through a nice part of town with small windy streets, impressive fountains in squares, and city hall.  For dinner we had pasta with a butter and vegetable sauce and met a couple of Americans, a Canadian, and an Aussie.  The guy working at the bar in the hostel gave me a free glass of beer while cooking in the kitchen, which was awesome!

In the morning we headed back out to see the mural with better directions.  Turns out we were too far away from the river before we started looking for the mural.  What do you think, worth the trouble?

For lunch we made scrambled eggs with onion and tomato. We ran a couple of errands after lunch (like picking up our train tickets and checking out the Apple store) then came back to the hostel to relax and make dinner (refrigerated microwave meals).

Biarritz

From Amsterdam we took a bus to Paris, where we had just enough time to take pictures of the Eiffel Tower before catching our overnight train to Biarritz, France.  Brenda had suggested Biarritz and it worked out well with the overnight train (skipping an expensive night in Paris).

When we arrived in the morning we were able to check in immediately (at 830 am!).  They also allowed us to have free breakfast of cereal and baguettes.  We napped for a couple hours then headed to the beach closer to the hostel.  It was a nice walk through a park with trees and a lake.

The beach was gorgeous.  Huge rocks off the coast and blue water as far as the eye can see.  We spent several hours just soaking up the sun.  On the way back to the hostel we stopped at the grocery store to make tortellini with a red sauce for dinner.  We hung out in the bar area and talked with fellow travelers before heading to bed.

Obligatory ice cream cone

The next morning we had more free breakfast and did laundry.  For lunch we made a pizza in a large fry pan because there were no ovens (didn't think to check before buying the pizza).  We took the bus to the main beach area, where we ran into Dan and Kate, two travelers we talked with the night before in our hostel.  The ocean water was cold and refreshing due to how hot is was outside.  We bought a cone of chocolate ice cream and walked along a path that went up the coast for a ways.

On our way back to the bus stop, we ran into Dan and Kate, again, and they pointed us in the direction of a closer grocery store.  We picked up supplies for dinner and our train ride the next day.  For dinner we heated up some frozen vegetables and added couscous.  We headed back out in time to see the sunset over the ocean with a bottle of wine.

Surfers at sunset

On our way back to the hostel we ran into Dan and Kate yet again, drinking in the park close to the hostel.  So we stopped and drank and chatted about life until midnight and then went to bed.

The lake at night, Jupiter on the left