Now , seated in a café in Dax , I poured over our maps , keen to push on into the mountains of northern Spain . Bob was less enthused . I told him to cheer up and pointed out that seeing such a rare lizard up close was actually a stroke of luck . But he disagreed . He said he ’ d rather have a tent without a hole the size of his head in it .
“ Finnish your coffee ” I said . “ You ’ ll feel fine after a good ride . These roads are wonderful . In fact , why don ’ t you ride my Ninja for a while ? I ’ ll plod along on the Suzuki if you like ; the change will do you good …”
Eighty miles later , just outside of Pau , Bob pulled up alongside me at a set of traffic lights , the sun reflected in the chrome of his Suzuki ’ s headlight dazzling and irritating me in equal measure . He ’ d selfishly declined my generous offer of swapping bikes and I ’ d been cursing him for the last hour and a half as we ’ d made our way along the A64 , him reclining on his stupid sofa while I raced ahead , wincing in agony as my back began to seize . The motorway marathon of the previous two days had been a foolish indulgence and I was beginning to pay the price for so many hours tucked down under the screen .
“ Pau looks nice ” I shouted as we waited for the lights to turn green . “ We should stay here for the afternoon . Grab some food and explore a little , on foot ( or in a wheelchair ).”
Bob seemed surprised that we weren ’ t going further up into the mountains , but I quickly explained that riding wasn ’ t everything . On a trip like this you had to saviour each step of the journey and besides , his tent had a big hole in it . We should try and get it repaired .
The tourist information office directed us to a nearby campsite and I set to work relieving the bar of its contents , while Bob wandered off in vain search of a haberdashery .
Bridge of Spies
If you grew up in Britain in the ‘ 80s it ’ s practically impossi every sentence containing a silly reference to soft-rock Sh exhausted the “ are we going T ’ Pau ” pun , but we put our h subtle references , culminating in Bob demanding his capp
Horrible puns aside , Pau is a lovely city in which to spend Pau , a large castle in the centre of the town , is properly im that ’ s both imposing and beautiful in the finest traditions lists Napoleon among its many famous residents ; he once Antoinette , who apparently enjoyed tending the castle ’ s s most interesting history , but it ’ s a nice place to visit anyw