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Pretty Little Arcachon, France

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Ah, Arcachon, home of the beach-going Bordelais. By the many men in red and yellow jeans and the numerous women carrying Louis Vuitton, it's clear that someone brought Bordeaux to the Atlantic.  I even saw a beach home of a château owner advertising his wine on the front lawn.

Arcachon is only a 55 minute drive from Bordeaux centre, but it you're on a budget like us you can avoid paying for the highway and drive the extra 40 minutes. There's a train station too.
Mat and I are obsessed with the beach. I'm a Jersey girl so I love the Atlantic, but he grew up by the Mediterranean Sea in Narbonne so it's never quite the same for him. First world problems I know. Either way when we move to Florida we'll have the Gulf of Mexico in common (can't wait).

As usual he found a large stick and decided to write me a note. I thought it was going to be something along the lines of 'Danielle smells,' as usual but this time he decided to be nice. Dkon is my nickname by the way, and no I don't want to be a rapper like Akon thank you.
What's different to me than my town in Jersey is how much nature is near the beach. It was nice to see trees and flowers just before it. You could sit on the big red benches like you were in a park while staring at the ocean.
There are so so so many restaurants along the beach. I'd say they're tourist traps and all but being that it's February and the tourists aren't exactly in town yet, it seemed like it was just locals. A 60 euro lunch was just not in my future.
I loved the little plaza so I grabbed a coffee at Brasserie des Marquises. Mat of course had a big Desperados, that rightfully I took several sips of :) There were many stores on Avenue Gambetta, as well as a casino by the beach which looks like a château.
My favorite thing of course was the colorful buildings and houses. When we first entered Arcachon I passed by this row of stores and I made Mat walk 30 minutes with me until we found them again. However, in the opposite direction toward Dune du Pilat the houses are bigger and more beautiful.
On the way we stopped into l'église St Ferdinand. The interior was like most of the other churches in Europe (I love them all) but since no one was there I could snap some pics at the alter.
This was my favorite.
We finished the visit sittin' at the dock of the bay, wastin' time. Ha, I kind of wish this song was playing at the moment.

I'm an American girl living in Florida, so why do I write about the South of France? I have my husband, Mathieu to thank for that! (From the name you can assume he is indeed a Frenchman). We've lived in Bordeaux and have also traveled the country together. Our relationship has resulted in more adventures and cultural experiences than I had ever dreamed of. Thus my inspiration for showing others what France and its surrounding countries have to offer.

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2 comments

  1. Den nationMonday, February 24, 2014

    Don't eat in any of those places! Although once I ate there in November and it was excellent. We were practically the only ones in there. Definitely don't eat there during the summer. You can sit there and have a drink, but don't eat there. The better restaurants are in the city far away from the coast and near the port.

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    1. UnknownWednesday, February 26, 2014

      Oh absolutely. It's the average waterfront tourist trap. I'm sure the foods good but, likely out of my price range for the moment! Much easier to cook at home, and grab a cocktail like you said :)

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