Always wanting to spend her birthday in France since it falls on Bastille Day, we took the 20 minute bus ride to Saint Jean de Luz, France. It was really nice and easy to leave the big city and pass by beautiful countryside to get to the South of France. We didn't even need our passports. The town of St. Jean de Luz was absolutely charming, and it was a welcome relief to not have highrises on the beach.
Karen found us a charming little hotel that served a typical breakfast in the garden with a baguette that had the perfect texture, jams, croissants and coffee and tea served out of silver kettles. La Deviniere was a small oasis located in the center of St Jean de Luz. The garden patio oh so French and his breakfasts even Frenchier. All together our stay was way too romantic for the two of us and the owner, Bernard, wanted nothing to do with me and my broken French. Once again, Karen was the hit with her fluency in the language having studied at The Sorbonne in Paris for a year.
Walking the marina, we fell upon Fete de Thon (festival of tuna)— where the whole village was gathering in the port area, with many small tents, each serving fresh grilled tuna . Everyone ate together at long tables set up at the port. Meanwhile, there were local marching bands with fifes and drums playing around every corner you turn, and two stages set up in the main plazas for bigger bands later that night.and feasted on sardines, danced in the streets with locals, and bathed in the culture like sunlight on the sand. We also had a superb French meal at a lovely restaurant Bernard recommended. It didn’t have a Michelin star, but it was worthy of it! After dinner, we sat on the seawall and soaked up the wonderful scene on the beach, with people playing volleyball, couples coupling, teens flirting… and we watched the fireworks.
The next day I rushed back to St. Sebastián for my morning Spanish classes. My little buddy Karen on the other hand, stayed as it was too charming to leave.
Guetharay
We loved St Jean de Luz so much that we went back there for our final weekend and stayed at La Deviniere again and walked from St Jean de Luz to Guethary, a smaller village that was over 2 hours away.
Guethary was a tiny town but worth the hike with a beautiful path winding through villages and gentle hills. super sweet and best known for its laid back surf vibe. We had the most lovely lunch of chèvre chaude salade and yummy frites, and then took the bus back.
Locals came to eat, drink and dance the night away. It was so fun to be part of, what seemed like, a very local celebration.
Our last day there we hired a guide, Jean Jacques, who took us to the villages of the Pays Bays Français. We stopped in Espelette— famous for its peppers, Ainhoa, and Sare, the last one being a very beautiful village at the foot of the Pyrenees which had these little “chemins” that smugglers used back in the 1700s. We took a fairly rigorous hike in Ainhoa up to a small chapel, and saw many crosses. In all three villages, we visited the most beautiful churches from the 1600s/1700s, with cemeteries that are lovingly cared for.
