In France there is no sky as blue as the one in Collioure…I just have to close the shutters of my room and I have all the colors of the Mediterranean before me. — HENRI MATISSE
Collioure is 26 km/15 miles north of the Spanish border. This very picturesque village is nestled in a small Catalan harbor…View image… sheltered by a quiet bay where the Pyrenees chain meets the Mediterranean Sea. Up early, the sun was shining with not a cloud in the sky and we were completely refreshed after a great night’s sleep. (Whatever you may think, there’s nothing like a sleeping pill to help get over jet lag.) Unpacked, dressed and down for breakfast included in half pension (breakfast and dinner) throughout the entire Vermillion Coast walk. Yogurt, bread, croissants, coffee and juice gave energy to set out and see the town.
Outside, it was in the low 60’s Fahrenheit (even in March) and priorities first, the Information “I” Office…View image, and an ATM for Euros.
There is a market in Collioure on Wednesday and Sunday mornings but today was Saturday. No worries, there were other things to do and see along the walk around the seaside. Collioure became a trading port in 673 and fortifications began in the 10th century while in the 13th century, Knights of the Templars came here. We walked (along with many other tourists) around the ancient quarter…View image… with too many charming little restaurants…View image… and shops to count, visited a church…View image, the Chateau Royal built on roman foundations between 1276 and 1344 for the Mallorcan royal family and walked the “path of Fauvism.”
In 1905, Henri Matisse and André Derain (two masters of Fauvism) came to Collioure. Fauvism art emphasized painterly qualities and strong color over realistic values. Collioure has a “Le chemin du Fauvisme” that showcases reproductions of these artists exactly where Matisse and Derain painted the originals…View image. Much more interesting than viewing art inside a museum.
The famous Spanish poet. Antonio Machado, chose Collioure to live in exile and is buried here. He left Barcelona with his family and some friends to escape Franco’s dictatorship and The “Antonio Machado Fundation” honors his memory by inviting entries in an international poetry competition every February along with lectures, musical castillan dance, exhibits, and ceremonies.
People were sitting along the waterfront just enjoying the views of Collioure and the Mediterranean Sea and we sat and did the same, studying information on the walks over the coming week. There two walks to pick from daily, one a little shorter than the more sportif choice.
If all this has enticed you to visit the Collioure area, check out the rates at Hotel Les Templiers**, and the Hotel Frigate***, next door to our hotel. They had a rate chart outside that quoted, 130 Euros in off season (November-April). We couldn’t have asked for a better beginning to this trip than Collioure.