Boat Trip on the Bassin d'Arcachon

Thursday the 10th was a fun little day for us. We got done with class, had lunch, and then crammed onto a tour boat to have a look around the Bay of Arcachon. I haven't been fishing in far too long, and I so wished that I could toss a line in the water. Wrong kind of boat unfortunately. Here we are crammed onto the tour boat with some of our Russian friends.

The view of Arcachon Beach...
This picture is looking towards the Atlantic Ocean, but the Peninsula of Cape Ferret is in the way, and separates the bay from direct access to the ocean.
Aside from tourism, the main industry in Arcachon and the surrounding towns is the oyster farming. Vast fields of oysters are to be found all over the bay wherever the tide levels are right. They are marked by posts, barely visible at medium and high tide...
In the middle of the bay, is a unique island. It is called the L'île aux Oiseaux (birds island), because around ten thousand birds use it as a migratory stop. When they aren't there, these two raised houses are probably a very nice vacation spot.
The other side of the island, looking back towards Arcachon.
Here is a modern flatbed oyster boat used to work the fields.
As we worked our way down the Peninsula of Cape Ferret, we saw some of the poor fishing villages that rely on the oyster beds.
Here is a traditional French boat. It is called a pinnace. Apparently it was a very popular sailing vessel (you wouldn't know by this picture) from roughly the 17th to 19th centuries. It was primarily a coastal vessel, but it is fairly fast, even against the wind. So it was popular with smugglers and pirates.
Here is a little church that was also used as a mosque simultaneously. You can't really tell from this angle with the tree in the way, but the doorway has a very Spanish/Moorish style to it.
Here is the front side of the Dune de Pyla, if you remember it from one of my earlier postings.

That wrapped up our little afternoon. Three of us, myself included, got some ice cream and waited for Professor Wing to come back to the beach house and take us to the Lafayette Club. It is a French American friendship club. They all spoke English, some very fluently. Professor Wing, her son (because one of the law students originally slated was sick), myself, Brian, and Amy Hirst, gave short presentations on different parts of the Obama administration and what Americans think of him. I presented from the conservative side, showing them that there are those of us who distrust all American politics. I actually had several people come up and say how refreshing that was and that distrust and anger over politics between parties is something that we all share. So dad, you can tell uncle Jerome not to worry.