Seeing the Sites...

The last two days have been a wonderful whirlwind of culture and experience! On Tuesday afternoon, we arrived on the TGV in Bordeaux, the fifth largest city in France. We met our lovely drivers, Jean-Marie and Christian, who have spent the last two and a half days driving us as we have viewed the beautiful French countryside from the coaches. While in Bordeaux students viewed L'Opera and had free time to explore the city, tasting local dishes and treats. After spending a few hours in Bordeaux, we boarded our bus to Biarritz, where we would stay for the next two nights. One thing we was missing in the hotel was consistent, operable wifi; however, the absence of the wifi led the students to play and talk in the hotel's courtyard and RELAX! It really turned out to be a great "inconvenience" for the students and chaperones alike.

Each night in Biarritz, students ate at a lovely, authentic restaurant in the Basque country, Geltokia. 

The highlight of the past two days was our trip to San Sebastián, Spain on Wednesday. It was an easy, scenic 45 minute drive from our hotel. Students learned there was no need have their passport stamped again because since 1998 any country in the Schengen area of Europe has an open border. 

Once we arrived in San Sebastián, we took a walking tour through the old part of San Sebastian called Parte Vieja. Students experienced open air market stands, authentic cobblestone streets and passageways and the architecture of l'Eglise Santa Maria. A beautiful scenic walk up Monte Urgull mendia followed, concluding at Chateau de La Mota. Students were then given free time to explore the old and new parts of the city. Some students went to the beach while others shopped and tasted Tapas at various restaurants. With a quick stop in St. Jean de Luz, students visited the church where Louis XIV married the Infant of Spain when she was 7 years old and he was 14. Our final stop of the day was back in Biarritz on the coast. Students walked through town to visit the coastline and the Virgin Mary statue overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The bridge to access the statue was designed by Gustav Eiffel, the same architect to design the Eiffel Tower. It was a great day of experiences and exploration! 

The vast majority of today has been spent traveling from southwest France to southeast France. We drove to Carcassone, a small Roman, medieval city. There were many cobblestone paths and beautiful castles and structures, many overlooking the town. Carcassone is a contraction of "carcas" and "sone." Carcas is for Dame Carcas, and sone means ringing - the Dame Carcas ringing. Additionally, Carcassone is known for its foie-gras (duck liver) and other duck/geese dishes. Students learned that a lot of these dishes are banned in the United States because they are seen as animal cruelty. After touring with our tour guides, Nicolas and Francy, and viewing "meurtrieres," narrow passages that open wide for shooting arrows, we were given free time for lunch and shopping. Many of the restaurants had outdoor seating and we had mostly beautiful weather - until we were greeted with large gusts of wind and clouds. After lunch and souvenir shopping, we returned to the bus at 3:30 to drive to Orange, the location of our next hotel and restaurant. 

Keep checking the blog and Shutterfly for a picture upload once we reach the hotel's wifi!