A flight to Carcassonne, a car for two weeks and absolutely no idea which to go when we get there! Probably not the best way to plan a trip, especially when travelling with my wife, who is a bit unsure of spending two weeks of her hard earned holiday, in a car on the wrong side of the road, with me behind the wheel. Anyway the weather forecast was looking very changeable for the first of our two weeks so we thought at least this way if it rained we could either drive into the Pyrenees or head further south into Spain and maybe find the sun, in the end we done both. Happy Days!!
The weather forecast was right, late on Sunday afternoon Carcassonne was very quiet and looked a bit grim in the wet, so with the rain and wipers going at full pelt, we headed south.
As we hoped the skies became clearer as we drove higher into the Pyrenees. The season was all but over, the highest peaks still had a fair covering of snow but the lifts had stopped and the designer shops now had all the attention.
We drove between France and Spain for the next couple of days in the lower Pyrenees, through some beautiful countryside , staying in the spa town of Vernet les Bain and the old village of Santa Pau. But the days where getting warmer and it was time to get to the sea and find some where to base ourselves for the next few days.
For our first night on the Spanish coast we decided on Cadaques a small white washed fishing town on the Cap de Creus. It was quiet in the town, mainly local people but a few tourists where wandering around, struggling under the weight of easels and paint, no doubt inspired by Salvador Dali who lived in the nearby village of Port Lligat for much of his life.
We travelled further down the coast the following day, driving around long bays lined with hotels until the coastline changed and gave way to pine covered hills and tiny coves, we reached Tamariu. The guide book promised a beautiful bay with some of the most translucent waters on the coast and it did not dissapoint. As we had covered more miles than perhaps we intended to over the last couple of days we checked into a hotel close to the beach and stayed for the next three nights.
The time came to leave, the TV was forecasting rain for the area, so we drove even further south and regretted it, the rocky coves dissappeared and the hotels started to spring up again and the weather was still pretty bad. Now I have never tried it, but I imagine that I would be bored stupid in a Spanish holiday resort full of english pubs and breakfasts, even more so in the rain. We knew that we both wanted to get back to France, as quick as we could!
Driving north along the French coast from Spain you arrive in Collioure, a lovely town dominated by the Chateau des Templiers. The streets behind the old harbour are lined with cafes, restaurants and art galleries. On our second day in Collioure the sun came out and we took a walk through the olive grove to the windmill which overlooks the town and then spent the rest of the day on the small beach by the Chateau.
We had discussed staying in Collioure longer if the weather remained sunny and warm but in the excitement of sitting on a beach and reading a book the previous day, my wife had forgotton to put sun protection on the back of her legs, so this was no longer an option, as her legs where looking very red, hot and sore,at least it was a little cooler in the car. As we drove further north along the coast, It didn’t take long for us to decide to head inland as the coastal resorts along this stretch don’t really have a great deal of character.
We where now quite close to Carcassonne again and it started to feel as though our trip may be over, but we explored the area visiting some of the historical sites around Cucugnan and enjoyed a great day cycling along the Canal du Midi, near Homps.
Back in Carcassonne and the sun was shining, a very different day to when we where there two weeks previously. We walked around the wall trying to avoid the living statues and shopped for gifts before giving up and heading back to Homps for a picnic by the canal.
