HENDAYE AND JOURNEY'S END

Last night, we arrived at Hendaye and this was our journey's end. It was 39 miles and there were two colls but they were getting smaller. The excitement of our achievement was subdued because it was raining hard and we were soaked. Also the traffic on the very beautiful Corniche from St Jean de Luz was relentless and many cars overtook missing us by just a few centimetres. So here is the end point at the Atlantic Ocean.

My thoughts on this journey across the Spanish side of the Pyrenees are remembering children and families playing in the squares of the towns. The evenings seemed to be times for families to go out. Sometimes they were playing football, others on their bikes but always the cafes seemed to be places to meet and talk.  I was frustrated at being unable to speak the language.  Dagmar can speak some Spanish and did very well.
While cycling, birdsong and colourful wild flowers were always with us while the farm animals could often be heard by ting a lings from the bells around their necks. I loved finding the old towns where the church, a cafe and the square were the centre pieces. Motorists did not demand the roads and it felt safe and enjoyable in all these towns.
None of the hills were steep by British standards but they were often very long with many hairpin bends. In many places people were on motorbikes.  They too were careful with cyclists and on several occasions we talked to motorcyclists.  We marvelled how they had to wear such enormous and very hot leather gear while we were in shorts and tee shirts.
Today we left our bikes behind and travelled by train to St Sebastian, European Capital of Culture for 2016. We discovered a city where the streets were filled with inquisitive people and, like elsewhere in Spain, it felt safe to walk and discover its beautiful old world charm.  People were encouraged to come by bike, bus and train so the roads were not busy.
Dagmar and I are already making plans for our bike adventure in 2017. This is her story