Collioure....the delights of a seaside town

Thursday 4th May

A freak photo: where did that bird come from?!

The sea air has caused us to go into beach holiday mode and we all felt the need for a quiet relaxing day after yesterday's exertions . And Collioure is the prefect place for that.... after we managed to get ourselves organised it was a wander around town to discover many artists had followed in the steps of Matisse and Derain and others who have lived here. There were lots of galleries where artists had a shopfront bearing their personal interpretations of the beautiful views here. Many of them bright and colourful.

Painting by Derain on display outdoors in town

After a quiet coffee overlooking the bay and a trip to the post office we wandered home again for lunch. None of us are moving too rapidly after yesterday's climb, which just confirms my belief that you should travel while you still can! Whilst they pay a lot of attention to disabled access here there are a few castles and ancient buildings that would be impossible to reach at all.

However we had been passing by the Chateau Royal which is ....you guessed it! - another castle  fortress, But this time it was in the middle of town and I had already taken many photos of it. However we felt we had better have a good look before we left.

A basketball court! Really!?

With Liz  & Ewan clutching the maps and me taking photos - our usual castle visiting arrangement - we headed off to enjoy the sights of the castle. Like many of them it had originally been a small modest building with huge stone walls and very few windows, for protection. But it had been modified, extended and reinforced over many centuries. To our surprise it had a basketball court! Then we realised that the local Commando Training Centre had access to some of it which explained the presence of a very contemporary sports field! There were some archaeological digs in one part that were unearthing some of the old foundation stones. One of the intact more recent buildings had been refurbished as gallery space, which must help to improve the coffers, as well as providing lovely display space. The views from the top gave us another perspective on pretty Collioure.

 We headed home for lunch and I opened a packet of the local specialty - anchovies in vinegar and lemon. Liz wasn't interested at all but Ewan and I thought they were great and they reminded us of the many anchovies we had eaten as tapas in Spain.

After we combined the anchovies with the usual fare of crusty baguette, ham, cheese and salad we decided to go for a drive around some of the other bays as energy levels were low, So we meandered  along the coast far enough to almost see the Spanish border, which is only a few kilometres away.

This area is part of the Catalan coast and Catalan flags are popular here as they are in the neighbouring Catalan region of Spain. Will they ever secede from Spain and France ....who knows?

Port Vendres and Banyuls sur Mer were both terracotta-roofed towns set on the steep hills rising straight from the sea. Both of them considerably larger than tiny Collioure.

The Spanish coast

 We were fascinated to see many vines clinging to the rock terraces that had been painfully created embedded in the steep hills. Each vine was attached to a stake and fairly stumpy. No irrigation systems and no wires for them to grow horizontally. But thousands of vines and looking healthy, which was surprising given the environment they were growing in, or the 'terroir' as the French call it.

Lavender growing wild and some of the
many terraced vineyards climbing the hillside

We stopped at a lookout to admire the views and were surprised to see a little cabin which was for wine tasting. I'm not sure driving and drinking should be so closely linked! Liz spotted a track leading out to a small peninsula so she and I decided to be adventurous and follow it to get an even better view further out into the Mediterranean.


 As we negotiated the rocky path weaving its way through lots of wildflowers I eventually noticed that we were surrounded by lavender growing in the wild. Very strong scent and deep purple in colour. We perched on the edge of a rock outcrop with the sea pounding a very long way down, and then decided to return, to Ewan's relief.

Home for dinner, some packing up and an early night as we were off to new adventures on the morrow.

your refreshed correspondent

Dianne

Heading southward for the sun.... a lesson in optimism

Tuesday 2nd May: Languedoc - Roussillon

After consulting various weather forecasting services with conflicting ideas about weather for the next few days, we packed up and headed for a tiny seaside village in the south of France.

Ewan was determined to be optimistic about the chance of sunshine but as you can see, initially it was misplaced optimism! He kept informing us, as we journeyed on, about any tiny patch of blue sky. However the glimpses became less frequent the further south we went.

We had entered Cathars country so a trip to Carcassonne was essential. They are a fascinating fundamentalist Christian group who basically set up their own country in Carcassonne centuries ago in one of the most remarkably well-defended fortresses we had seen to date. It has been beautifully restored however we were surprised to see that it includes a HUGE amphitheatre!

So we donned our rain gear and, despite the continuous rain, we tramped around all of it and even strolled the rampart walls trying to appreciate what was left of the view through the rain and wind.

Surely that earns us a few points in the Most Persistent Tourist Awards?!

Notice the two walls to protect the castle within.

Walking the highest ramparts trying to see the view in the rain!

Liz at out front door

After we divested ourselves of wet jackets and Ewan skilfully drove for another hour in the rain we arrived at our destination  Collioure. It's a very lovely tiny seaside resort on the southern mediteranen coast. Not far from Spain.We had carefully chosen the apartment so that it wasn't on the top of the steep cliffs that surround the Bay. It was located in the centre of town on the flat: good for everyone's aching legs! Although uit was still a few sets of stairs of course! Oh the joys of travelling when you get old!
For future reference - AirBnB -Grand 2 pieces + mezzanine au coeur de la vielle ville - host is Jose
Of course it did involve two flights of spiral stairs as our very large apartment was on the top floor. And the second bedroom was a mezzanine with tiny stairs and low beams. Liz says she won't bang her head on those beams but we will see......!

The rain had cleared and we went for a stroll around town. As it is spring the tourist masses aren't here and so we promenaded along some of the many walks and enjoyed the views peacefully.

Then alas! Ewan spotted the equivalent of a citadel perched high on a hill above town and announced that we would have to climb it.

The citadel is not the fortress at sea level but
the one perched on top of the hill ( of course!!)

For those of you who may have read the blog I did for our trip to Turkey a few years ago, Ewan has an obsession with climbing 'citadels' as they are called in Turkey, or castles/fortresses as they are here. So Erin and I ( I can hear Erin moaning!) were forced to climb up to the top of every citadel at the top of the highest hill in every town, and in 30-40 degree heat ( not likely to happen here thankfully!). I looked at the glint in Ewan's eye and knew we were not going to escape this one.

Liz looking at a copy of a  Matisse painting
 which corresponds to the view behind her.

After a good night's sleep we firstly had to visit the market to buy provisions for the climb: pumpkin, mushroom and goat's cheese quiches were the choice.. Whilst we couldn't resist the soft nougat , we did manage to resist the amazing array of saucissons: French salami ( well sort of!). It comes in lots of sizes and uses all types of meat. It even comes in tiny mouthful sized pieces covered in black pepper: delicious!

After obtaining a map from the Tourist Office, donning our walking shoes and filling our backpacks with wet weather gear, we set off around the Bay. It's hard to take a bad photo of Collioure, as you can see. It's beauty had been recognised by many of the impressionist painters and there were lots of their artwork hanging at the appropriate location all around town..

We eventually set off up the hill as the path deteriorated from tarred pathway to rough concrete to rocks and dirt. Onward we trudged and finally we came to the top. Liz and I were happy to forgo the paying of  7 Euros for the joy of going even higher to the top of the ancient fortress itself. Ewan set off and came back with the glow of achievement making him smile.

Liz and I had discovered a back gate that was unlocked but we are far too truthful to cope with defrauding the fortress owners of money so we crept back out again!

The views of the towns clustered around the edges of the bays , and the hillsides covered in vines were well worth the climb.

Some of the many vineyards  on the neighbouring slopes

Proof that Ewan made it to the top. Liz and I waving whilst a group of young Spaniards ate lunch to hip hop music !?

After a bit of down time in the gorgeous apartment to rest our weary bodies we set off in search of fish for dinner as we were, after all, at the beach ( although the beach itself was a mixture of sand, pebbles and dirt so not very inviting).

Lots of choices for 'fruits de mer' ( fruits of the sea) and none of them with outside chairs in the sun which was now shining. So we settled on a cozy but inexpensive one and ordered the three course menu: anchovies (the local specialty), grilled fish - only Ewan had pork!- and dessert was creme catalan  or ....you guessed it...... creme brulee. Fabulous.

your far-too-well-fed correspondent

Dianne

Toulouse (of Lautrec fame)

After the open spaces and almost white limestone architecture of Bordeaux we arrived in Toulouse to find red bricks and pink stone everywhere. Again some very large buildings and lots of lively squares. However the biggest difference was that there were people everywhere in the city. We have been very surprised about the lack of people and activity in some of the big cities.

I'm including this photo as it it the world's most understated
 McDonald's store. They must  have strict rules here!

Of course we had arrived on the Saturday of a long weekend which explained the holiday spirit. The Monday public holiday was equivalent to our Labour Day. The lady in the Tourist Office said all workers would be on holiday and everything would be closed and we weren't sure how to interpret that exactly ....but most importantly she told us the Boulangeries (bakeries) wouldn't be open. Ye Gods!!!!! How could the French possibly survive without their daily baguettes.


After spending our first afternoon getting oriented to the old city we realised we would have to cover quite a few attractions in one day, as on Monday all of the museums, art galleries etc would be closed.

Ewan decided to take himself off to the Aeroscopia (Aeronautical Museum) and perhaps the Airbus factory for the day. so he can tell you about that.
Tempted though Liz and I were (!) we decided to check out the galleries, cloisters and some other interesting attractions (that's another way of saying going shopping!).We had purchased a tourist pass for a day which meant free entry to all of the places we wanted to visit, and free public transport so we set a route based on a checklist to get to everything!

We set off in beautiful sunshine, although the weather forecast predicted rain and thunderstorms. The route looked like this:

1. Fondation Bemberg, a magnificent private mansion built in the mid 16th Century and filled with furniture, objects and paintings. Quite a diverse collection and very enjoyable.

Degas: my favourite!

Henri de Toulouse Lautrec - I couldn't resist! 

2. Musee des Augustins - Musee des Beaux Arts, with an extensive collection of medieval sculptures and paintings up to the 19th Century. It is all housed in a gorgeous red brick 14th Century Augustins convent complete with cloisters and a row of gargoyles

It had an astonishing display of capitals from the top of pillars which was great as these are the part of the architecture you never get to see up close. Most of them tell interesting stories so we spent some time wandering around them admiring the detail and craftsmanship you never see..

3, Couvent des Jacobins. This was the former monastery of the Dominican friars commenced in the 13th century and famous for it's palm tree decorations in the gothic arches of the church. The cloisters were beautiful and the inner space filled with fruit trees and gardens. A small chapel had some 14th Century frescoes.

This delightful guy who was working on the restorations of an old chapel decided to add to my photo of this statue:
very funny!

Whilst being impressed with the age of many of these beautifully restored buildings and the artwork they contained, it was time for something slightly more modern!

But first it was time for sustenance and coffee specifically,. We found a cute cafe near the Pont Neuf over the Garonne River (Liano Cafe) and ordered salmon lasagne, which was enormous, and we were thankful that we were doing lots of exercise!

So it was over the windy bridge, watching the families and couples enjoying the sunshine, to the next stop on our schedule.

4. Les Abattoirs. This is a museum of modern and contemporary art set in - not surprisingly! - an old red brick abattoir building. There was a lot of different artists and medias included, some of them part of an exhibition from the Pompidou Centre 40th Birthday celebrations. As usual some of it we hated and some of it we loved and some of it was just weird...but each to their own when it comes to modern art!

Old coffee grinders in case you're wondering!

To our dismay when we emerged into the outdoors it had been raining, so the weather forecasters were right. Fortunately it was dry as we made our way to the last stop for the day so our checklist was complete.

5. Le Chateau d'eau. A restored  (I know...another old building!) tower which was probably an old mill judging by the size of the water wheel it contained. It specialises in photography exhibitions and is very small. As the weather worsened we strolled around inside enjoying the exhibitions.

When we finally emerged, the wind was fierce so we decided to hurtle ourselves across the very windy Bridge before the rain started again. We moved fast, I can tell you, but managed to get to the Metro station and home without being blown away or getting wet.
We have been trying to convince ourselves that the weather will be warmer as we head south, but it's a bit erratic. Most days it is very sunny but still with a cold wind, so we are looking forward to warmer climes.

We did discover in our travels that NONE of the shops are open on Sundays so that put paid to our ideas about ending the day with a bit of leisurely shopping.

After our very busy day we had a home-cooked meal in the apartment and early to bed!

(NB the apartment was in an 'aparthotel' so it had a lift (!) and no beams or angled walls for us to run into. Phew!)

Monday 1st May
Having experienced a complete close down of everything on Easter Monday we were a bit worried about what we would do for a day whilst all of the workers had a day off. The Victor Hugo Market was open so off we went to stock up on food for the day. It appeared that not everything was closed but the one thing we did need - the Metro -was closed. We arrived at our local station to find it blocked by a gate complete with huge padlock!

It was back to the car and to the market where we bought Dauphinoise potatoes ( an essential for Liz) chicken with lemon casserole, ham, jambon, very good coffee and lots of other delicacies. Stocked up it was back home via a very circuitous route because we came across the May Day parade barring our way.

Watched by police kitted up in riot gear ( no photos as I didn't wan't to get arrested!) hundreds of people paraded down one of the main streets representing various Unions and the Communist Party and all sorts of radical organisations. The problem was our car was on the other side of the Parade and the route home was to go down the street they were using.

After negotiating all of that we went home so we could have lunch, I could do the washing and Liz could spend a few hours swearing at the French railways website which kept crashing just as she was booking her trip to Barcelona next week.

Once she had success (thank heavens!) we decided a trip to the Jardins de Plantes and the Royal gardens next door would help her stress levels. So we spent a couple of hours wandering around trying not to get in the way of too many tiny French kids on very small bikes and scooters letting off steam.

To our surprise there were chooks wandering around the very lovely gardens.

We were pondering on the meaning of a war memorial that looked very recent but actually had the words 'barbaric Nazis' in its description when a delightful older French man came to explain it to us in fluent fast French. He didn't seem phased at all that we didn't understand most of what he said, but just kept passionately describing the memorial in detail. We think it was a memorial to those who died in the resistance from 1940-1944 and whose participation had been inaugurated in the this memorial only a few years ago. It was very kind of him to try and help us understand  and he clearly was very passionate about it. There are a lot of war memorials in France as there are in Australia. The difference is that many of them are for the many civilians who died here, as members of the Resistance or innocent victims of war. lest we forget.

Home to our meal from the market and packing as we head off again in the morning.

your cultured and relaxed correspondent,

Dianne

PS : Ewan says that if you want to look at the photos in a larger size then just tap on one and all of them should be able to be seen more clearly, one at a time.