Arcachon

We have just spent a week in a house exchange at Arcachon on the Atlantic coast of southwest France. On our way down the coast we stopped in at La Rochelle and went across the bridge to the Ile de Re. The island's largest town, St Martin-de-Re is well worth going to, with a little harbour and many seafood restaurants:

Further south, Arcachon is a magical place with a lovely beach and temperatures of around 28 degrees with a sea breeze:

Oysters are everywhere. This lady has an oyster stall which is open on weekends:

There was a bakery around the corner where we got a baguette each day and, for a special treat, madeleines, just like Proust described:

The town is divided into four quarters, named after the seasons. The Winter Town is up a hill and has many large, nineteenth century houses:

Arcachon has a market on Wednesdays and Saturdays:

This is the Art Deco public lift between the waterfront streets and the Winter Town:

My Lonely Planet guide says that the local dish is oysters with sausages. I wanted to try it, but found it was not as commonly available as the guide had said. Eventually I managed to order it and it was as good as I had hoped:

'

And ten minutes' drive away is the massive Dune de Pilat which is growing and has already swallowed a hotel: