Arcachon, France

We spent the day driving around the coast near Bordeaux. Arachon is popular for beaches, but we were there because it is where oysters are farmed. You can see the appeal. Cap Ferret, which is directly across the bay from Arcachon, is a spit that separates the bay from the Atlantic Ocean. I have not spent much time in French beach towns, but the architecture here is different from any French town I have been in before.

Arcachonnaise is the local name for an Arcachon villa, which is the architectural style of many of the older houses built in France. It is a type of Victorian architecture. These fantastical homes are equipped with balconies with chiseled additions, turrets, colonnades, neo-classical facades, extravagant roofs, singular stairs, verandas and exotic gardens.