Tuesday, September 11

In the morning we join the other guests and the large orange cat on the terrace for breakfast. This cat is as big as my two cats together. Why do I end up with all the shrimpy ones? Mr Orange takes his time making the rounds, sniffing what’s being offered, then goes off to sun by the pool.

What to do today, what to do?

There’s walking around. No, too much walking.

There’s driving around. No, too much being in the car.

There’s windsurfing. No, not enough wind.

There’s swimming. Mmm…

There's kissing.

Oh yes, let's have some.

There’s biking. They have electric bikes for rent.

Yeah, we could try that. Let’s give it a go. There’s a trail along the waterfront that gets us to a lighthouse, and from there we can go on, or turn around.

We barely get going before I’ve just got to stop and look at all the birds having their breakfast in the estuary. Oh, and here’s some more. And look! Flamingos right close to the path! At this rate it’ll take all morning to get to this lighthouse. But whatever, that’s what we’re here for.

So we pedal along, and stop, and pedal. We don’t meet up with too many people at first, but the path gets more crowded as the day goes on. In full tourist season, this must be terribly congested, as it’s the only path in this direction. In spots the wind has built sand dunes across the path. Most of these are small enough to get through on the bike, but some are wide and/or deep enough that you can’t pedal through, you can’t coast through, you just have to get down and walk. Sometimes you think you can get through, and you turn out to be wrong just a few feet from the edge.

He’s having a ball here on the electric bike. No effort at all!  They’re perfect for biking with somebody who doesn’t pedal at the same speed – I’ve not used the motor at all, and he has his on the lowest setting, and that way we advance at the same pace.

Oh, look! Flamingos! While I’m getting just the right angle on the birds, JP phones his brother. Gotta share how fabulous electric bikes are, he didn’t believe they could be so great, he’s going to get one instantly when we get home. First thing! He must have one!

Then we come to a stretch where there are a lot of sand dunes reaching across the path. It’s annoying to have to walk the bike just a few meters so frequently, and we both test the limits on how deep it has to be before you should just give up. Sometimes you know it’s too deep, but it’s not very far across, maybe you can just power through… It’s at one of those, short but deep, where JP gathers speed before hitting the sand, and he gets most of the way across but not quite. He goes down on a knee, laughing, no harm done but sand everywhere. He pulls the bike to the side to let a group of people pass us, and phones his other brother. Having too much fun not to share it with everyone.

We get to the Gacholle lighthouse sometime after 11. Both the lighthouse and the snack stand around the back are closed, though there is a small crowd hanging around. I think I’m not the only one who was hoping there would be snackage and cold beverages available, because it’s getting pretty hot out. Or that you could go in, and climb up the tower to get an exceptional aerial view of this super-flat area of salt marshes, islands and beaches. It would be cool to get some perspective on the place.

Speaking of perspectives, we could go on and hope that lunch will not be too many kilometers farther (a few kilometers, but not too many). We are not yet halfway to the other end of this trail, and who knows how much farther to an eatery. Or we could turn around. Our stomachs are very important body parts, so naturally we turn around.

Back in Saintes, we are wandering through the pedestrian district of town, glancing at all the souvenir shops and looking for a nice place for lunch, when JP stops to talk to a fortune teller. These women are everywhere, begging to read your palm, desperate to tell you your future. I just blow them off, but JP lets himself get caught. Alright. I’ll just go on and see if there are any original shops around, and what looks good to eat.

Most of the shops are utterly predictable, part of a chain where you can buy the same goods anywhere you go. Some nice, some just made-in-China crap. I’d like to see some original art, or clothing, but there isn’t much of interest. The most promising boutiques are closed.

JP is still occupied with his gypsy, so I check out the eateries. Seafood? Or steak? Beef from the local bulls (not steers) is a specialty, and I quite liked it on a previous trip south. I pick a place kind of at random, where it’s just as well that the tables on the terrace are already occupied – eating indoors at least you’re away from the cigarette smoke.

The gypsy is still at it, but JP finally gives her a 20 and breaks off. He’s looking pensive but won’t tell me anything other than he’s meant to lead a long life. Like all the other times he’s had his fortune done. I wonder what on earth she had to say that took so long, and had such a sobering effect.

Lunch is nice, nothing to rave about. Crispy fries, too much dressing on the salad, tender beef. They have a sort of pineapple-yogurt thing for the dessert of the day, and JP has it. I don’t think it sounds like a happy combination, so I stick with lemon sorbet. We probably should have skipped dessert altogether. Why are they so big?

On our way back to the bikes JP gets distracted by one of the menswear shops. They have a vast collection of “Gardian” shirts in the striking floral patterns typical of the region. Not big flowers like Hawaiian shirts, but small, even tiny ones. Sometimes you have to look closer just to tell they’re flowers at all. I quite like some of them, but not the same ones as JP. The best one we both like, they don’t have in his size, ditto for the second-favorite, so he gets the one he likes. Dark blue on white. And a casual jacket with that, even though it’s going to be a while before he needs one. Then we pedal to the hotel for a nap. Next time I promise to skip dessert.

Around 4 I snap my book shut and accept his suggestion that we go out for another spin, this time on the other side of town. And the bird sanctuary a stone’s throw up the road should be interesting as the sun gets lower.

There ought to be a path going around the big pond on the western side of the town, but we can’t seem to find anything but driveways to people’s vacation homes. Though that may be right, the path may exit out the back of one of these properties. As we make another U-turn, JP suddenly throws his bike aside and vomits into the ditch.

I wish I had a bottle of water with me, but the best I have is a package of tissues. You ok?

Yes, yes, fine.

You don’t look so fine.

It’s nothing, just didn’t digest that yogurt at lunch.

Let’s sit down here for a while.

Really, it’s ok. I’ll just go back to the room and lie down for a while. You go on.

You sure?

Sure.

I know how he hates for me to hover around when he’s not feeling well. It’s not the first time he’s had this sudden nausea, and after a lie-down he’ll be fine. It happened once after a bridge tournament in Vichy, much to the surprise of passers-by. Then, as now, he got pretty pale for a couple of minutes, but then it was over. So I watch as he rides back up the road to La Palunette. If he wavers, I’ll go after him, but he goes steady and straight until he’s out of sight.

I try again, but don’t find any access to this silly pond. The best view of the thing we’re going to get is right from our back porch. Maybe the road west along the coast will be more interesting.

Nope. The road has way too much traffic. The path goes from one depressing campground to the next, all trampled crabgrass and dust and debris caught in the surviving greenery. So much for this direction. I should try the bird sanctuary, which is inland.

I’m almost there when I decide that this messing around on my own is not really interesting. It’s about 5, or a bit after. I’m happy to relax with JP on the lounge chairs facing the pond, reading a book then watching the sun go down. Maybe the orange cat will come around for bellyscratching. Maybe we’ll go out again about 7 to birdwatch together at dusk. And we'll drive there, take it easy.

I park my bike by the main building, and go to our room to collect his and turn them in. JP is lying on his side with his back to me, and I think, Oh, sleeping – must be quiet. There’s his bike on the porch. I come back in to look for the key to his bike lock, and notice the silence.