Collioure

Camping is great fun, that is when stormy winds have died down, the clouds have passed to give a blank canvas of a sky and you are just a short walk along a coastal path to the beautiful seaside town of Collioure. Situated along a stretch of the Mediterranean called the Côte Vermeille, not far from the Spanish border in Southern France. It's about 2 hours drive from Toulouse! Collioure was founded by the Phoenicians and Greeks as a trading port but was later occupied by the Romans, Visigoths and Arabs.
I have to admit the first night spent at the small beach side campsite was probably the windiest night I have ever spent in a tent, and between the canvas being bent down to my face and reassuring Oli that the tent would still be over our heads in the morning I didn't sleep that well.
Still, imagine waking up to the gentle lapping of the waves on the sand and strolling along a pretty coastal path littered with flowers and giant cactus plants.... you can imagine all worries just faded away! It was a little paradise above the sea. One last slope and we were confronted with the fabulous view of the town and harbour.

Curving bays, lined with street cafés with hills, mountains and vinyards as the backdrop! Quaint little houses in an array of coulours...you can see why so many artists such as Matisse have been coming here for over a hundred of years to capture its beauty!

The harbour is overlooked by a castle. There are also further Cathar castles way up on the hills and one fort is still used by the military today. The castle that sits on the harbour front is the château-royal and was founded by the templars in the 12th century. A hundred years later it was used as a residence by the kings of Mallorca and Aragon.



Most of the activity was along the beach front where we sat drinking Sangria all afternoon, slowly getting drunk!!! It made the walk back to the tent interesting as once again the wind had got up, the dry grasses were clacking, the old WW2 coastal watch bunkers ominous in the dusk, I managed to spook myself rather!!!
After the first lazy day we spent the second looking around the narrow streets known as the Mouré and the chateau, where we got some great views of the bussle down below. We were also lucky enough to see some traditional Catalonian dancers. The Catalan region stretches into Spain across the Pyrenees. It was traditionaly in the realm of the counts of Barcelona. The French crown took control of the territory on the French side in the 15th century. Catalan is the language of the medieval troubadors, it is still sometimes spoken here and some of the folk customs and tradition still survive. The peak of the Catalonian sacred mountain Canigou can be seen on the horizon behind the town.





















The church of Notre-dame-des-Agnes at the other end of the harbour was built in the 17th century and once also doubled as a lighthouse! It has been damaged many thimes by storms and war. The narrow streets are full of great places to eat. There are also lots of touristy shops, though in the side streets are many art galleries and shops of the local artisans.












It was so hot that we decided to head on back to the campsite and get changed for an afternoon on the beach. We stayed there until the sun began to set and I nipped back to the tent for a bottle of cider and we sat by the sea watching the sun go down and listening to giant frogs croaking in the twilight! A lovely end to a great weekend!!!! I fell in love with Collioure and can't wait to go back and highly reccommend this place for a perfect weekend away!!!