My offer was accepted and I was on my way to being a homeowner in France. I was relieved and tired. I woke Friday and decided we needed to go to the sea. I went to google maps and realized the little cottage we were staying at was actually close to something. Finally, I found a place -the ocean-, that was less than two hours away. We drove to Plage de la Mine d’Or with the chaise lounges we found at the house. We stopped and got sunscreen and snacks on the way. We parked the car and walked along a gravel path to the top of golden cliffs that overlooked the beach. There was a stone-laid path that led down to the beach and we found it empty. No one was there. We had an entire beach to ourselves. We set up our chairs and I wandered down to test the water. It was warm like a lake even though it is the Atlantic Ocean. I’m not sure where on this planet I was or what the hell makes the water so warm but it was divine.

We read and napped until I felt compelled to run. I ran the length of the beach a few times as it was only a couple of kilometers long. After my run, I kicked off my sneakers and dove into the water. The tide was high and the waves felt great. I imagined that the beach in Normandy would be a lot colder but I could get used to swimming in the sea without having to get numb first. We laid about until we started to feel like we were cooking and drove back to our cottage.

We noticed a sign outside the bar in the hamlet close to ours indicating that there were burgers, frites, and salad available if we made a reservation. Tori tried to call the number and couldn’t connect. We showered and decided we would walk there even though we weren’t able to make a reservation in the hope they would take pity on us and feed us. When we arrived, we saw several people sitting in lawn chairs in the parking lot in front of the bar drinking beer and wine. It seemed to be a single group and we walked into the bar and inquired about dinner. The proprietor told us dinner would not be served until 9:30 (it was only 7:30) and asked us if we wanted large or small portions. We decided since we had walked there so there was no need to worry about calories so we picked large. Does anyone ever pick small? Or is this just my American mentality?

The wine was flowing and the burgers were delicious. We spent a few hours at the bar even decided we should do tequila shots to celebrate. Our age or temperance caught up with us and we declined to drink the shots. We shyly brought them up to the bar and offered them to two patrons that were there drinking. Our kind bartender, quickly took the shots and said, “Non, they have had to much already.” I hope someone drank them. Anyhow, he told us he had bought us two of our glasses as a gift and wished us Bonsoi before we meandered out into the countryside and found our way to the cottage.