July | 2014 | Mon Fabuleux Destin

Despite the remarkable history of Collioure about an hour away from Béziers, I had never heard of the picturesque coastal town before my visit there. It was so beautiful however that I had to make a second trip back there. Despite its small geographical size, the town is rich in history. It has a strong Catalan heritage and is only a 2 hour drive from Barcelona.This is most definitely evident when you are in the town itself. It feels very Spanish with its narrow winding streets and the terrasses offering sangria and tapas. There were also many Spanish tourists there during my visits.

This is hardly surprising when one considers the importance of Collioure in terms of Spanish culture. The celebrated Spanish poet Antonio Machado fled here during the Spanish civil war and stayed until his death in 1939. It is possible to visit his tomb here in the local cemetery. I studied some of Machado’s poetry in my first year of university and I must admit to having not been a particular fan of his work during this time. I do believe this was due to a particular lecturer than the poetry itself. I am now certain of this since visiting Collioure and reading some of the beautiful poems that he wrote during the remainder of his life there. The town is also famous for the many artists that have spent time there including most notably Matisse, Picasso and André Derain. The town is very proud of this artistic heritage and as a result, the streets are filled with many art galleries where you can buy a work of art for yourself.

For the more athletic of us, there are two main hikes. One ascends the hill up to Fortresse Saint Elme whereas we decided to take the walk alongside the coast. This was absolutely stunning and the views were worth us getting slightly lost and ending up having walked all the way to the next town of Argelès-sur-Mer which is also spectacular. Warning: fuck Luke Skywalker, the force is strong next to the sea, so much so that I had to take out my drop-style earrings which were thrashing non-stop against my neck. Bringing a whole new painful meaning to ‘thrash metal’. Thankfully the spectacular views made the pain worth it.

In the town, there are also three little beaches for the sun worshippers amongst us. These are adequate for relaxing on but the town is not particularly worth going directly for the beach as it can get a bit over-crowded and there are other more pleasant beaches to be found in the region. There is so much more worth visiting in this marvellous town that it would be a sin to sit on the beach all day.

I’ll leave you now with the beginning of the last poem Machado ever wrote in Collioure: