Pau

We thought we would add a quick blog before we return to Canada. Our finishing days in Italy were great. We were fortunate to get pretty high up on Mt. Etna and feel the hot, venting rocks. We were at about 2500 metres, and there were rocks that were too hot to touch...can't imagine how hot they would be close to the primary craters.
Our days in Pau are winding down and so far we like what we see. The town is much larger than we had expected; probably 200,000+ when you include the surrounding communities. We have had plenty of opportunity to speak French, and it is quite a struggle at times. We drove to Spain yesterday, and as soon as we saw yet another language on the signs, our heads hurt. We had tried hard to learn as much Italian as possible, and with now trying to speak French, just thinking about trying Spanish was a bad idea! And these crazy French computer keyboards! Thankfully, Gilles will be able to use an English keyboard at work.
It is hot and lush here. Incredibly green. The temperature has reached 30 degrees every day that we have been here, and we've been sweating like crazy! We drove to the coast on Saturday to escape the heat and had a great beach day. The beaches near Biaritz get a lot of waves, and are a surfers' dream. It made for fun playing in the water, waiting for the next big waves to come.
We have had a fantastic trip, and assuming we have not developed lung cancer due to copious amounts of second-hand smoke (Europeans don't seem to have received the cancer memo...or they don't care), it has been a huge success. Off to Paris for an overnighter tomorrow, then off to Halifax. See everyone soon!!