Un jour a la plage

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After a busy day yesterday with the trip to Monaco, today we needed a recharge. And we wanted to do somthing that was fun for the kids. So we decided to head to the beach. There are lots of world class beaches in Nice, Antibes, St. Tropez and other places along the Cote d'Azur, but we were looking for something a little closer to our base in Aix-En-Provence and we wanted to avoid the crowds. Charlotte discovered just what we were looking for in a great little travel blog.

We headed to a local beach, St. Croix. It took us about 45 minutes to get there; just west of Marseille on the west side of a town called Sauset Les Pins. Access was very easy, parking was cheap (3.20 euro) and we it was not crowded at all. Perfect!

We picked up towels and a beach mat at a local shop by the parking lot and setup on the beach. The kids went down to play in the water. Charlotte and I enjoyed just relaxing and watching the kids enjoy themselves in the water. And we could watch the ships sail in and out of the nearby port at Marseille. A great way to wind down from the last few days.

After the beach, we headed in town (Aix) for dinner. We were planning on dining a restaurant called Pasta Cosy - it got great reviews on Trip Advisor. Unfortunately they were booked for the evening. We asked the owner, Fabien, if he could recommend another restaurant. He suggested we try Hue Cocotte, which was recently opened up by his former head waiter, Julien. We decided to give it a try.

We were not disappointed. It was a great meal! Their specialty is dishes cooked in individually sized cast iron dutch ovens (like Le Creuset). Charlotte and I both had a delicious white fish with rissoto and vegetables. And a local white wine to complete the meal. Definitely recommend this place to anyone staying in Aix.

Tomorrow is our last day in the south of France before heading to Belgium. We're planning on going to the town of Arles, to see some of the best ancient Roman sites.

Au Revoir

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