To the Pyrenees - Jeff Bailey IV

Left the city life behind again today which will be for quite a while. Paris will be the next occasion. Off to the Pyrenees. Again, it was very hot and in the 30s. It reached 38 yesterday! Felt like Melbourne.

As we reached the border of Spain and France we came across some 'well aged' cyclists who had just completed 41km of a 100km ride they were doing. They had just slogged it up at least 12km of a heavy climb to the pass. Being so hot they deserved medals.

Apart from a couple of stops in other delightful villages, our main port of call was to a French village called St Jean de Pied Port. This is an important centre for the pilgrims who complete the walk to Santiago, which we mentioned earlier.

We are loving the shopping in these small French places... spent far too much on tablecloths. Yes tablecloths .... and had to get the store to send them and other stuff home by mail as we do not have enough room in our bags anymore. Also had to take out a new mortgage !

What's more we haven't reached Paris yet. We were meant to go on a one to two hour walk but the shopping and the temperatures dictated time at the bar and a cold beer was more appropriate. At the bar, we met a woman called Maia who was a video analyst for the local rugby club.

She is mad keen on NZ rugby and was wearing a NZ 'Haka' T-shirt. She has been in NZ and is coming back in November. We exchanged e- mail addresses. Maia was a Basque but spoke excellent English.

We tried to drive up one of the climbs used in the Tour De France called the Col d'Aubisque but unfortunately the roads at the top of the mountains here are still closed, not because of snow but from debris yet to be cleared. This will mean we cannot ride the Col d' Tourmalet tomorrow. Damnation!

We arrived in a little hamlet hotel which is our home for the next two days in a mountainside village called Viscos. The views of the mountains and some other surrounding hillside villages are stunning. It even has a swimming pool which we hope to take advantage of tomorrow if this weather keeps up.

Better photos to come of this area I suspect as we arrived very late in the day so the sunlight not the best for photos. The dinner was top quality as was the wine. First course was smoked trout followed by confit of duck and a strawberry slice dessert. The wine was Chavel Blanc.

Man, are we eating well. Thank goodness for the pre travel diet! Lots of walking tomorrow!