Blogs from Ax-les-Thermes, Midi-Pyrénées, France, Europe

Yesterday looked like it should have been fairly dull. After a late breakfast we headed to the nearest town, Ax, and introduced the boy to French cafe culture as we sat outside and had a plate of meats and cheeses (rather too much meats and cheeses as it turns out!). A wander up to the thermal springs for baby splash time (lots of crying when we had to leave) and a trip to a supermarket before home and a quiet evening. First off, in the supermarket, a very elderly French lady took a shine to the baby and literally followed us around to coo over him. Once was sweet and flattering (no idea what she was saying) twice, amusing, by the sixth time, when it looked like she was actually going to get in the car ... read more

French Pyrenees 13 September 2013 We left the Monestir de Montsoratte after lunch and then drove north to Puigcerda which is on the border of Spain, France and close to Andora (which is a separate country). We were then driving through the French Pyrenees mountain range. There were ‘walls’ of sheer rock everywhere. And of course we went through many tunnels. The road was excellent. We went through one tunnel that was over 5kms long (short by Austria and Switzerland standard!) and was going to go through a 2nd long one before getting to our camp site but it was closed. We had to travel and extra 20 kms and on a road with long and big gradients up and down. Again, wonderful scenery. We found a camping sight at Ax-les-Thermes which was in the French ... read more

Our drive through the Pyrenees on the way to the tour actually wasn't too bad. We decided to take the shorter route(3 1/2 hrs) and forgo seeing Andorra. Maybe next time. The drive actually turned into a little over 4 hours bc we got a little off track and mountain driving means not a lot of road choices. The scenery was beautiful though, and Andrew loved driving. I did not enjoy riding so much. He raced through the switchbacks up the mountain and I looked out my window at the sheer drops just feet from me. I was very glad to see the sign that we were on the mountain where we would "camp". Driving up the mountain was so exciting. Seeing tons of campers and people from all over the world all hanging out and ... read more

Overview It's an event that is followed around the world, crossing across some of the most scenic areas in all of Europe, through sun soaked fields of lavender, rolling farmland dotted with centuries old cathedrals, fortresses, fairyland chateauxs, canyons gorged by roaring rivers and the majestic snow capped peaks of the mighty Alps and Pyrenees. It truly is a one of a kind production bringing together the best athletes in the world to the most gruelling race on the planet. Over 3,000 kilometers in 21 days, riders donned in skin tight spandex advertising the likes of Garmin, RadioShack, Cervelo, the capital of Kazakhstan - Astana - and Rupert Murdoch's Sky television network. Fans from the world over come to experience the epic sprints, mountain top finishes, the tears of victory amd defeat and the epic tailgating ... read more