After Bordeaux, I travelled down the coast to Bayonne and Biarritz, small surfing towns right on the ocean in southern France, then over the border to Spain to another small surfing town called San Sebastian. Lots of beautiful beaches and great swimming in the surf. San Sebastian has 2 beaches right in the city, one is a swimming beach (crowded with hundreds of people laying in the sun on a hot day) and one is a surfing beach (crowded with hundreds of surfers no matter the weather). My first hostel in San Sebastian was in the old part of town with narrow streets, but then I moved to a quieter part where there weren't people walking and talking under my window all night long.

Meals were pintxos (like tapas), they were pre-made and sitting on the counter so you just decide which one or two or three you want to eat.