Friday, July 14

Bastille Day…for the people of the Pyrenees it’s a combination of 4^th of July and Patriots Day.  Everyone watches the Tour…family style…usually three generations all together!

On our way to our viewing spot we ran into a lot of traffic, so we had to change our plans and we ended up in a tiny little village, Le Trein d’Ustou, which is at the beginning of the climb up the Col de Latrape.  We were only about 30 km from the start, so we knew the riders would be still close together and going very fast, but that’s Tour viewing.  You have to be flexible and make the best of it.

This village was beautiful, as were the people, most of whom were local residents or good friends of local residents.  A group of friends who were just across the road from where we were parked invited us to join them.  They saw our American flag and wanted us to have a good time.  We did. 

The pictures tell the story.  This is why we love watching the Tour in the Pyrenees!