basque country guide + la rentrée
basque country
Our week in the basque country covered every type of climate-hot, rainy, steamy, sunny, muggy. Fun, relaxed, high energy, laid back. We went to a few coastal spots along the way, but spent most of our time between St Jean de Luz and Biarritz. Notably, we had lunch and a beach afternoon at Ozeanoa in Anglet. And we had drinks and dinner at some food trucks in Guéthary.
The Basque country is cool. From the moment we boarded our second flight in Paris, the landscape began to shift to chic Parisian women heading to the coast for some r&r. The terrain is lush from year round bouts of rain, and surfers fill the streets creating a laidback vibe. There are tons of cafés and everyone seems to know everyone. The branding on pretty much every shop is so good, but seemingly effortless.
We had many afternoon picnics at the beach. Ozeanea in Anglet and Margaret in Biarritz were highlights. We played many rounds of secret hitler, apéro-ed with basque saucisson and natural wines. I got one *very sandy* beach nap with Charlotte and it was honestly the highlight of my trip. I also got a morning *alone* to grab an oat milk latte and stroll the streets sans stroller, before a Gyrotonic lesson at Tonic studio with Christine. We tried mouchous and gâteau basque, drank a little too much, lay in the sun without sunscreen(briefly) and cherished some final summer moments before heading home on possibly the busiest sunday of the year to travel in europe.
I shot some mirth clothes-loungewear, summer, and a peak of fall pt. 1 while we were there. My suitcase was stuffed with caftans and soft fleece pieces to pop in and out of and style throughout the day. I got to dress up my chic friends and follow them around the marketplace/old town streets to try and capture the essence of the basque charm.
The last evening, we tried out a relatively new korean bbq spot called deoun and it was delish. Although, a french man mansplained my own culture’s food to me, I looked past that for a truly delicious meal that left us stuffed.
Some new spots we found this trip include:
sowe- for bathing suits
jaun coffee shop
maison monik- handmade jewelry
caracoli coffee
margaret- for a lunch to pick up before the beach
edariak- natural wine cave with a friendly caviste
chez nadyne- gorgeous spot to share a bottle of wine and watch the sun set
la rentrée
Come September 1, the streets in France are abuzz. Shop windows and boulangeries have re-ouverture signs in their windows. Grocery stores have displays of compotes and snacks set out for kids. Everyone returns from their summer holidays in Corsica, or wherever they went, bronzed and rested. Around 8:15 every morning, the streets are filled with kids in their personalized smocks heading to école maternelle or crèche or lycée.
Charlotte isn’t even a year yet, so she isn’t donning a smock quite yet, but she’s beginning in a maison d’assistance maternelle with two lovely ladies at its helm. My friends seemed to be shocked by the usage of the word school for an 11 month old, but I’m not sure what else to call it. “day care” doesn’t have the same ring as crèche or mam does. Anywho, the first week includes adaptation days, where the child progressively goes each day for longer periods of time, leading up to the second week of school where they then take on their full schedule. Her “full” schedule will only be two days per week, but they’re quite lengthy days from 8:30-4:30.
If I’m being honest, the hardest person to get out the door that early is myself. I feel immediate reminiscence of my hurried breakfasts, running to school with a smoothie/coffee in a to go cup and a quick goodbye to my parents. Except somehow, I’m the one on the other side now. I’m the one packing the backpack and heading back home after drop off. When did that happen? (I thought I would magically become a morning person the moment I became a parent. But the transformation has yet to happen.)
My friend asked me how I’m doing with the start of school and my baby being away and I really haven’t had time to process. I have a list of things to do for the house and travel arrangements to solidify for offseason. We went straight from our basque holiday to hosting various family members and now I don’t know what to do with my own free time. The to do list is so long, but I find myself sinking deeper and deeper into the couch.