Week 1 Ends, Week 2 Begins...

Below is a recap of our end-of-the-week activities.

THURSDAY
Today was our first free day. Fortunately, the weather was nice enough for interested students to enjoy the beach.

FRIDAY
After class, the students and I took bus number 6 to the Musée du Chocolat in Biarritz. We learned about how Biarritz became the gateway city for importing chocolate throughout France in the 17th century. We were forced to eat a variety of chocolate, and drink real chocolat chaud (not the powdered Swiss Miss to which many of us are accustomed) throughout our guided visit. No one was harmed in the process.
After viewing a short film on the trans-Atlantic history of chocolate, as well as looking at some amazing chocolate sculptures, our visite culminated in the chocolaterie, where we filled our sacs à dos with goodies.

SATURDAY
What a day, What a day!
We arrived at at Cambo at 9:45, where we marvelled at Edmond Rostand's (the reknowned author of Cyrano Debergerac) gardens, dubbed the petit Versailles. We then took a guided tour of his manoir, consisting of 40+ rooms, including a sauna, library, servants' quarters(he had several), dressing room, and plush gardens. This year, they've opened up another room to the public, so we got to view Rose's (Rostand's wife's) living and bathing quarters.

Following the museum, we ate lunch in Rostand's gardens. We took a few photos, and had a surprise visit from a peacock while we ate. We left the museum around noon and headed to the Pyrenees, La Rhune to be exact. Our guide Philippe was there to greet us and gave us the option of hiking La Rhune, or taking the charming little train up. We hiked 900 meters (over 2900 feet) to the summit. A fun fact about La Rhune is that you're in France until you reach the top.

Endurance awards go out to Gray, Gwen, Savannah, and Stephan for their ascent/descent by foot. Rob gets a Medal of Honor for encouraging us (namely me) to stick with it. He also gave useful hiking tips. Finally, since there are no words to describe this experience other than to say "si se puede," Katrin, Kathy, and me get the award for embracing the challenge.

SUNDAY
On the seventh day, we all needed to rest. Many of us enjoyed a day at the beach, in addition to the Fête de la Musique, which is taking place all over France and in much of Europe.

Pictures to come. Post a comment if you're following our blog.

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