Holidays during Ramadan Part 2: A French Sojourn: Hardelot (part 1)

It was a mere two days that Margaux and I were in Dubai before we jetted off to our next destination: France! To be honest, it wasn't quite enough time to spend with Thomas - and I hardly had the time to do all of the unpacking, washing, and re-packing (we were going from a winter to a summer destination after all) before we were airport bound again. Getting over jet-lag was never going to happen!

This time my intrepid companion and I flew for 7 hours to Paris and from there spent three hours in the Charles de Gaulle airport waiting for a Very delayed train. All things considering, Margaux was a wonderful little travel buddy.

Scholastie and Hippolyte met us at the train station and took us to the D'Herlincourt family's gorgeous holiday home in the seaside town of Hardelot - a couple of hours' drive from Roncq and very close to Calais. In fact, on a clear day you can see England if you squint.

I didn't realise until this holiday what a boon it was for Margaux to be brought up bilingually. She could be completely involved in the games and activities with her cousins, and understand me in English. It was quite astonishing to witness, because previously we've been with Thomas who has acted as our go-between if needed. This time we were left to fend for ourselves... I felt thoroughly inadequate at times because Hippolyte or Josephine would speak to me in French and I wouldn't be able to fluently respond, however Marie or Scholastie were able to intervene when needed.

I was delighted to be able to share my pregnancy with them, and I even got the green light from Thomas to share the fact I was expecting twins. It was such a relief to be able to openly discuss it! (Of course when we all had dinner with Jean-Paul and Rita at the end of the holiday we had to hide our privileged information...)

The beach was a daily - if not twice daily! - highlight of the trip. Marie and Scholastie gave me some down-time every day of the 10 days we were there to have an afternoon nap (I was quite tired from the pregnancy) and prepare some dinner while they took Maggie with their kids to the beach. Again, it was so great that they could speak to her in French and she completely understood what they said.

Photos are good but movies are better... here's something to hopefully give you a better feel for how much Margaux enjoyed her time at the beach: Hardelot Beach, August 2015

The cousins were all that much older than when we'd last seen them (for Margaux's 1st birthday, about 6 months before) and they were really starting to enjoy - or get annoyed by, from Hippolyte's point of view! - each other.

There was more fun to be had than just the confines of the house, the beach, and the ice-cream shop - we had some exploring to do!