Day 2 – Sunday
We took advantage of the morning sunlight to capture some photos of the Château before piling into the van for our excursion to the sand dunes on the Atlantic coast.
The Dune of Pilat (Dune du Pilat) is the tallest sand dune in Europe and a very popular spot for tourists and locals alike. The place was teeming with cars and parking was at a real premium. Dan skillfully maneuvered the vehicle up, down and around the twisting streets before depositing us at the top of a zig-zagging staircase that provided access to the beach and dune. He parked the car as we followed his wife to sea level.
Out of our nine people, only three–Jackie, Mark & Dan–attempted to scale the dune from the shoreline to its crest…and Dan wisely chose to return to the pack after a bit. Kudos to Jackie and Mark who successfully scaled the sandy Everest.
They described the view of the ocean from the top as just spectacular. Especially the water which exhibited an array of different shades of blue interspersed with white slices of low level sand bars paralleling the shoreline. Unfortunately, during their descent, they discovered there was no direct access from the dunes to the bordering hotel/restaurant where the rest of us had gathered for lunch. They were forced to return to the beach and re-ascend the torturous staircase.
Lunch at the The Co(o)rniche Restaurant (Yes, that’s how they spell it!)
Poolside post-lunch high jinks!
Arcachon
After a delicious luncheon and needed comfort stop at the restaurant, we piled back into the van for our next stop just up the coast. A resort town on the water, Arcachon is a tailor-made tourist destination. From the topmost steps of the church down to the pier jutting into the bay, the main artery is lined with shops specializing in sustenance and souvenirs. One take-away: based on our tour of the town, Arcachon must be French slang for Gelato-land. There were ice cream shops on every street we walked…and each one had long lines of customers!
fascinating about this photo is the unidentified young lady behind the bench.
Is she facing forward? Or is that her backside? It is a puzzlement.
Back at Château Teyssier, dinner was a serve-yourself smorgasbord of edibles—cheeses, breads, fruits, meats and more—and the requisite generous pours of the château’s finest vintages.
Bordeaux 