Off to Bordeaux...Eventually 7/27/08

Wallet: Day 21
Shorts and T-shirt

This morning I woke up something was missing. My Livestrong band that I have worn for over 4 years had fallen off at some point in the night. It was slightly ironic because today was the final stage of the Tour de France and we went to Champs Elysee to see the finale. Weird coincidence.

Loyd, Kim and I headed to the train station near Audrey's so that Loyd and I could get tickets to Bordeaux. It was good Kim joined us because the ticket she had printed out back in Dubin was in fact just a confirmation so she would have had to pay full price for a ticket on the train. Loyd & my tickets each cost 3 Euros, not bad for a 4 hour high speed train.

We finally made it home after another hot and humid metro ride. Once gain, it had been over a day since I last showered, I can't believe I am starting to get used to it; especially considering how I generally shower twice a day. Once clean we went to Arc De Triumph and saw the madness that is the Tour de France finish line. It was nice to see so much commotion and excitement over the is race that nearly lost its legacy recently with all the doping scandals.

Time was flying by so we headed back to Bree's apartment to catch the 5:15 train to Bordeaux. We made it to the station with very little time to spare and Loyd and I had to walk a good half mile down the track to the first car. Adding the distance and the packs on our backs, and the heat of the day and you have a lethal combination. The AC on the train couldn't cool us down any faster, we were drenched.

4 hours later we arrived in Bordeaux. Coco led all 6 of us to her car around the corner from the station;. It was absolutely one of the smallest cars I have seen but all 6 of us managed to pack in with all our bags. It was a sight to see. We arrived at Coco's moms house as the sun was setting. I took some amazing pictures of the sunset.

We were served an incredible dinner of roasted duck and pasta. We were also introduced to the jugs of wine people in Bordeaux consume on a daily basis. The wine is made 2 minutes from Coco's house and couldn't be more fresh or tasty. We enjoyed more than 5 liters of wine that night and got to be around 3. Our plan for tomorrow is to either go to the beach or check out some of the surrounding Chateaus. Win/Win situation...without a doubt.