May 10, 2010 - the Village des Pêchers and Collioure

Up early to try our wonderful clean showers. Heavenly! Completely refreshed, we walked to the resort boulangerie to discover it is not yet open for the season. Back to get the car and drive to HyperCasino to do our shopping. It is huge and very convenient. We got bread, butter, cheese, yogurt, confiture and grapefruit juice and returned to the apartment for breakfast.

That chore out of the way, we set off for Collioure planning to stop at the Village des Pêchers at Etang de Canet et Saint-Nazaire on the way. We stopped once years ago and nothing was open. Today nothing was open. We parked and walked through taking pictures of the straw fishermen’s houses, the boats and lagoon and a couple women feeding a group of very chubby feral cats. With fish, tourists and warm-hearted ladies, these feral cats have a weight problem!

Village des Pêchers at Etang de Canet et Saint-Nazaire

Village des Pêchers at Etang de Canet et Saint-Nazaire

Village des Pêchers at Etang de Canet et Saint-Nazaire - The Entrance

Village des Pêchers at Etang de Canet et Saint-Nazaire

Village des Pêchers - Ladies feeding the feral cats

Village des Pêchers at Etang de Canet et Saint-Nazaire

Hopped back in the car and got lost driving to Collioure. There has been rampant development in the last ten years. Too many ugly new buildings, trailer camps, houses, stores, roads . . . probably great for the economy but they are not doing the environment or the scenery any favors. There must be a better way . . .

Driving from Canet-Plage to Collioure

Driving from Canet-Plage to Collioure

We did find Collioure and as usual, even armed with a map, we ended up at the train station. This time we decided to try for better parking so turned around, drove back down the hill and right to the central parking lot. Hooray!

We parked and walked down behind the château, an area of town new to us. Wandered around taking pictures and found the cloisters of the Museum of Modern Art . . . closed for lunch. We started checking menus and eventually ended up at El Campana at 22 Place 18 Juin. We both got the sea bass and it was fine but nothing particularly special. The waiter brought our check before we asked for it . . . as did our waiter last night. This is new in France . . . more American influence?! Hopefully it will only happen in very touristy places and much as I enjoy Collioure, it is very touristy.

Collioure, France - The Château

Collioure, France - The Château - Ed finding the entrance

Collioure - the more peaceful larger beach side from the Château

Climbing down from the Château parking lot

Collioure, France - The Château from the beach side

Église Notre-Dame des Anges in Collioure from the Château

The Château Royal from the Port d'Avall beach in Collioure

Cloisters in the Musée d'Art Moderne in Collioure

Collioure taken from the Plage de Port d'Avall

Typical street scene in Collioure

Colorful fishing boats and Le Copacabana Restaurant in Collioure

Port de Collioure with colorful fishing boats

Looking through a picture frame at a famous scene from art history

This is what I saw through the picture frame . . .

Veranda and beach at La Copacabana in Collioure

Lunch at El Campana

Collioure - small market

We checked the church and got lots of photos then went in search of artists’ ateliers. Very few were open so we mostly walked through the quaint and colorful village. As we walked back along the beachfront, we spotted Brian and Mary Alice at one of the outdoor tables eating lunch. We stopped and chatted for a few minutes but didn’t want to disturb their lunch so walked on.

Église Notre-Dame des Anges - Collioure, France

Église Notre-Dame des Anges - Collioure, France

Église Notre-Dame des Anges - Collioure, France

Église Notre-Dame des Anges - Collioure, France

Collioure, France - Chapelle Saint-Vincent

Collioure, France - Happy little guy on the Plage des pêcheurs

Collioure, France - Colorful Scenery

Collioure, France - Colorful Houses

Collioure, France - Colorful Houses

The French Navy (or some group in uniform) was conducting an exercise involving inflatable rafts they paddled out to sea so we watched for a while and then got a gelato at Para d’Ice . . . highly recommended.

Collioure, France - Exercises at the Port Collioure

Collioure, France - Exercises at the Port Collioure

Collioure, France - ice cream is always popular

Took the walkway around the château and found a tabac where we got a British newspaper for us and Le Monde for Amy to use in her French class. We found a boulangerie for our dinner baguette and walked back up to the car. We noted dark clouds gathering in the distance as we drove out of town and by the time we got to St. Cyprien it was pouring. At least our car is washed. We had about an hour of rain and the sun reappeared. Strange . . .

Collioure, France - one of many towers

Collioure, France - Eglise reformée de France - a pretty Protestant Church just below the parking lot

Walked over to reception and checked e-mail and bank accounts. I got Mother’s Day greetings from all three kids . . . and from BJ. The world, except the stock market, seems to be surviving nicely without us although the stupid volcano has blown up again. Fog has arrived!