All good things...

Today is tinged with sadness as our holiday comes to an end and we make our way back to the rainy UK.

Yesterday was our last day and despite the weather looking slightly murky we decided that the best way for us to spend the day was soaking up the last rays of sun.

Moules et frites is an absolute must for me when visiting France. On our last day we thought it was fitting to go out for lunch at Lac de Maubuisson to indulge in a French favourite. It was absolutely delicious.

The lake itself is so beautiful and a great alternative if you aren't a fan of the windswept beach. I personally love the lake due to it's calmness and serenity however, there are always lots of activities going on if you wish to join in.

Not having had one ice-cream at all this holiday, it only seemed right that we should treat ourselves. The range of flavours that they offer are incredible ranging from Kinder Bueno to salted caramel. I opted for Oreo flavour topped off with a huge serving of Chantilly cream which was heaven on a cone. We devoured our ice-creams whilst walking along the sand. Before I continue I feel it only right to point out that as my parents will testify, I am a very clumsy person. So, as we continued to walk, my scrumptious ice-cream decided to part company with the cone but with all the dexterity I could muster I managed to rescue my beloved Oreo delight from a sandy demise... however my skirt providing the safety blanket necessary.

However, today it's time to leave the gorgeous sun-drenched haven we know as Carcans and make our way back to the freezing cold UK. Making our way back to the airport I couldn't resist stopping as we left Carcans to take some photographs of this most beautiful wild flower meadow that we passed each time we entered the village.

It was now time to say 'au revoir' to our trusty little steed which had accompanied us on our journey courtesy of Europcar... Yes, it did have a dodgy interior colour scheme but it served us well and we are definitely going to miss it.

Checking-in brought the usual stresses and last minute panics. 'Do you have the camera?', 'Where's my wallet?'. Other than that it all went swimmingly... until we had to go through security. This is one thing about the airport that totally stresses me out. For some unknown reason, every time I go through security I have to triple check my bags for liquids or any other object that may prevent me from getting through as quickly and smoothly as possible meaning that I can then enjoy the freedom that duty free brings. Why is it that I always feel so guilty despite having done nothing wrong when confronted with a security guard and the 'body scanner'? I know it will be fine and mostly go through without any mishaps. However it would seem there are still some people who are completely ignorant of these security measures and how serious they are and today was no exception as an elderly couple provided the perfect example. 
This delightful geriatric couple who seemed completely oblivious of the requirement of modern day air travel had either never travelled before or were just plain stupid. I am a fairly nosey person so when I saw that there was a bit of a commotion going on I just had to take a closer look... I found the security man asking this elderly woman if she would open up her case as she had some liquids in her bag. 'Oh am I not allowed to take my wine home?' she innocently asked. When the man at security said 'Do you have any liquids on you ma'am?' did you not think.. 'Oh I have that bottle of wine or two in my bag!'. Okay fair enough if this was their first time travelling they may not have know that. but after this her husband then got pulled over and was asked to open his bag as the x-ray machine revealed some scissors... SCISSORS - are you serious!? 
Anyway after them moaning about how it was silly that they couldn't take their new bottle of wine and specially bought gardening scissors through security, I thought it would be okay once we were through to duty free.

After loosing all sense of smell due to spraying way too many perfumes in duty free it was time to go through passport control and get ready to board the plane. Being Speedy Boarders...check us out...allowed us to board the plane first. Being near the front we saw all the passengers get on the plane as they handed their boarding pass over to the air hostesses. Much to my dismay the elderly couple strutted on until they were stopped by the air hostess who asked to see their boarding passes - which we later found out were in their cabin bag suitcases. This entailed them having to forage through their bags to retrieve said passes in the mean time holding up the whole queue of passengers waiting to board the plane.

Arriving back to sunny... or should I say rain-drenched Bristol was all we needed to confirm to us that our holiday was firmly over. Despite this I still continued to wear my sunglasses on my head... well you've got to haven't you!

Thanks for reading,

Martha x

*All images unless stated are photographed and copyrighted by Martha Sanders

A day in Bordeaux

For me, no trip to Bordeaux would be complete without a trip to L'Entrecôte.

This is a restaurant that serves sirloin steak as the only main course on the menu. This must be my 7th visit, and it has never disappointed.

They say that the way the meat is prepared and the sauce that it is served in is a well guarded secret. Wikipedia would have you believe that it is a combination of 9 different ingredients (including blanched chicken livers), but there is much controversy surrounding this…. Whatever, the taste is sublime.

There's nothing that compares to this dish, as the queue outside the restaurant will testify. Today, having arrived at midday (opening time), we were greeted by a queue, which we dutifully joined and which only continued to grow behind us as the lunch service progressed. Despite the rather unseasonal rain, 'punters' were only too willing to wait. 

The only course on the menu that varies, is the pudding, and today we decided that the only way to conclude our meal was to indulge in profiteroles. These were ice-cream filled and had copious amounts of thick dark hot chocolate sauce topped with flaked almonds. Wow! This was then rounded of with a shot of expresso… Perfect.

A short walk from the L'Entrecote restaurant is the Opera House, home of the Opera National de Bordeaux. As the rain persisted, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to have a look around the inside of this truly impressive building. We've been to Bordeaux on numerous occasions, but have never ventured inside this beautiful 'theatre'. There was an exhibition being shown, based around the Alice in Wonderland story. The building itself is a grand,18th Century architectural monument with a rich 'royal' interior of blue, gold and white. 

I don't want you to think this is all high culture and food here in Bordeaux, just a few paces from the Opera House is the longest shopping street in Europe, stretching an impressive 1.2km... We just had to fit in a just a little 'retail therapy'.

Thanks for reading,

Martha x

*All images unless stated are photographed and copyrighted by Martha Sanders

Chill out day in Carcans

Friday is market day in Carcans, when I say market I mean about a dozen stalls contrasting highly to the one we visited in Lacanau.

Brioche

The local church in the square where the market is held

Poppy (my Auntie's dog) accompanied us on the way there, however on the way back she clearly did not want to walk as she just decided to lie down mid walk - she even had to be carried part of the way, lucky thing!

As the weather today was pretty hot we decided to venture to Carcans Plage - the local beach which fronts the Atlantic Ocean. Turns out quite a few people had the same idea, it was packed but lovely all the same. Just listening to little snippets of French conversation made me feel a bit more connected to France.

Thanks for reading,

Martha x

*All images unless stated are photographed and copyrighted by Martha Sanders

Market day at Lacanau Ocean

Wednesday is market day at Lacanau Ocean. Being only a 20 minute drive away, it seemed like a great way to spend the morning. Turns out Lacanau is fairly popular on a Wednesday. Crazy!

As with most French markets it was absolutely packed with typical French foods including all the usual suspects such as oysters, garlic and mountains of cheese. One of the things I absolutely love about these type of markets is the variety of aromas that infuse the air as you meander from stall to stall. From the aromatic scent of the herbs to the pungent 'whiff' of the cheeses!

Lots of people in such a restricted space makes things a little claustrophobic which is a problem if you're like me, and enjoy having the freedom to saunter. Don't get me wrong I do love a good french market but they do have their downsides. I even managed to get hit in the face by a child who was having a whale of a time waving her arms around whilst sat on her Father's shoulders - she just so happened to be perfect face-hitting height!

No French market would be complete without its resident 'weirdo' with musical instrument in hand. On this occasion we were treated to various renditions from this 'hippy's' less than extensive musical repertoire! The children loved him though… bless. He seemed lovely.

Thanks for reading,

Martha x

*All images unless stated are photographed and copyrighted by Martha Sanders

Monday

Day 1…

Today started with a super lazy breakfast - which actually ended up becoming brunch. Day 1 in France usually means food shopping, so after navigating our way through the back streets of St Medard in our flashy new hire car (see the picture… who ever thought that bright red 'accents' was a good look) we finally arrived. 

Before we even made it to the supermarket I noticed a shop nearby and just had to take a closer look. Why? Well, the shop was called 'Real Chocolat' - I was already sold - not only that, but it was pink and when I say pink, I mean PINK inside and out, I just couldn't resist. The service in the shop was fab, the assistant was really helpful..we managed with a combination of 'pigeon English and French' and a series of extravagant hand gestures - its great fun when you can't quite understand each others language. She gave us some suggestions, including her own favourites and was happy for us to try what ever took our fancy - which of course I didn't turn down. Overall the shopping experience was great and its fair to say I came out with a large bag full of 'goodies'.

Having left the mouth-watering delights of 'Real Chocolat' (much to my dismay) we made our way in to Leclerc, the supermarket. Personally, I love going food shopping in foreign countries and looking at all the different food that they have and comparing it to that of the shops we have in Wales. Some things however I do not enjoy, like seeing fully intact, (but short of its furry coat) rabbit at the meat counter along with horse. Mid shop I decided that I was getting a bit peckish and I managed to find bread tasters, which I ended up visiting on multiple occasions.

My Auntie has been having 'mole issues' (the animal kind) and during dinner the next door neighbour, Eveline (aka the 'Mole Catcher') visited with tools in hand to help out… lets see if it works.

Mmmm... think we may need another visit!

The best thing about holidaying in France has to be the fact that you can eat as much bread and cheese as you like and still be considered normal.

Thanks for reading,

Martha x

*All images unless stated are photographed and copyrighted by Martha Sanders