Today Suzie and I decided to rent bikes and ride around La Rochelle, which has an extensive network of bike lanes and dedicated bike-only pistes. In the end we rode about 13 miles, which doesn’t sound like much, but the bikes were clunky and heavy, and much of the time we had to weave and dodge to avoid ambling, inattentive tourists who didn’t understand that a bike lane is effectively the same as a street: Outside of crosswalks, the bikes have the right of way. Would you step out in the street right in front of a car? Alors, ne marchez pas devant mon velo, je pourrais vous faire un choc très grave.
The day today was sunny and warm, not a cloud in the sky. I didn’t want to carry around my heavy camera on my back, so I had to make due with the tiny GoPro knockoff I bought a few weeks ago. Starting from the bike rental place, we first went west and a bit north to the Plage Chef de Baie, passing the Tour Carrée, which was built after the horrible siege in 1627-28 of La Rochelle and its Protestants by the Catholic King of France, Louis XIII.
This stop also gave me the chance to take an action shot of Suzie cycling:
The beach was nice enough, if rocky (I was glad I wasn’t having to walk to the water). We had some drinks, then sat awhile and watched the scene.
Awwwwww…..
Returning to the city, we stopped at a restaurant that our friend Isabel had recommended, a small, unpretentious restaurant called Café Corniche, where we both had a salad with fois gras; thinly sliced, smoked magret de canard (duck breast); and delicious small new potatoes.
From there we pedaled (more slowly for a time) back to and through the Vieux Port area, getting slightly lost, but eventually getting to our destination, the cliffs past the Plage des Minimes. We stopped at a pretty, quiet, and shaded spot looking out to the Atlantic.
Then it was a fast ride back to the other side of the port again, to make sure we got the bikes back in time. Which we did. But on the way home we began to realize that we were very tired, not so much from the riding itself, but from the sun and wind. It wasn’t terribly hot (around 85 F), but the sun was intense, and gradually over the four hours, it took a toll.
I know, I know, it’s bad form to complain about having to ride a bike in the sun in a beautiful spot in the middle of a six week vacation. Forget I mentioned it.
Tomorrow we may take a bit of a break. It’s been go, go, go so far and a day of light walking and cafe-hopping sounds really good right now.
Categories: Blogging