Warmer climes
November 1858. Charlotte, Mary and Mr Kerr find Paris too cold, so they head south for some warmth. They spend several days in Bordeaux before heading to Pau in the Pyrenees.
23d Tuesday
Left Paris for Bordeaux, to try & get some heat. Our companions were a French officer, & another foreign looking who I first thought was Spanish, then discovered to be the English Consul at Bilbao. He talked incessantly principally to Mary. Stopped & lunched at Orleans, then not till Angoulême, where we dined about 7 o’clock. There we found a remarkable change in the climate. It got so warm, that I found my cloak too much. Arrived at Borfeaux about 10 P.M. The quays lighted up so beautifully; seems a fine broad river. Got into an omnibus, drove along the long bridge, & alighted at the Hotel de France. The quays seem, very fine, – so very wide.
24th
Walked about & looked at the quays. Very handsome indeed, & very fine wide streets, – rather dull, perhaps. Went into what will be a very pretty garden; it has apparently only just be laid out; it is full of Magnolias, pines, aloes &c. A sheet of water in one part, & a fine large glass conservatory at one end. Such a lovely day. The therm: was 60° at 9 this morning. The river is very wide & full of shipping The opposite banks are not very high, & covered with vines. Now they look very brown. Dined at the table d’hôte. Small party; we the only ladies.
26th
Walked across the river. From the other side, the quays remind me slightly of Brighton. The architecture is Italian, a good deal decorated, & the buildings very white. Lovely day; very warm.
27th
Went to the Cathedral. It has two very pretty open work stone spires at the north end; said to have been built by the English, during the 300 years they had possession of the town. The inside is not pretty, – the nave has no aisles; the chancel however, is better being pointed Gothic, with slender columns & narrow windows. Close to the Cathedral, we saw the “Tour de Pey Berland”, a curious old place, built by an old bishop of the name. Looked into one or two other churches; but all ugly and uninteresting. The two old gates of the town, that remain, are curious & picturesque, & some of the old streets. The Theatre is a very handsome Italian building, with columns, & a row of statues on the top. At the table d’hôte, sat next an old English gentleman, who talked a little.
30th
Left Bordeaux about 11 o’clock, for Pau. It rained as soon as we left the station. First passed through vineyards, then got into the “Landes a most extraordinary country; the sod looks peaty & sprinkled with white sand. The vegetation seems to consist of fine tall heath, whins, & ferns, & great forests of the “Bordeaux pin”, so beautifully green and tropical looking. The stems have a curious appearance, as each has a slice of bark cut off downwards, to let the resin collect. As we passed, we saw whole tracts of the young forests close to the railway, burnt to charcoal, almost; I suppose in the hot, dry weather, the sparks get among them, & ignite them, & the fire seems to spread in spite of the trenches they dig to try & stop it. We saw a few cattle & miserable looking sheep, tended by shepherds on stilts, sitting on the tops of railings, looking like solitary herons, & with sheepskins on their backs, & knitting stockings! At about ½ past 3 or 4, reached Dax, where we waited in the rain till the diligence was parked; then got into the coupe, & started for Pau. I rather enjoyed it; we went very fast, all the 5 horses frequently going at a gallop. Reached Pau, in a pouring rain, about 10 o’clock. Had to splash through mud to get to the hotel. Got nice rooms on the premises; had some bouillon & went to bed. The maids wear handkerchiefs on their heads, instead of caps.
