Sunday 1st April

We took the train from Nice to Cassis in the morning, which took about 2.5 hours. This little port town is situated in a spectacular setting, sandwiched between Cap Canaille (France’s highest sea cliff) and the Calanques National Park. We would have loved to stay longer and do more hiking, but we had to settle for a little taste of what Cassis has to offer. After picking up a baguette and some cheese for a picnic, we headed off towards the Calanques. The Calanques are big rocky coves forming steep, narrow valleys in the limestone rocks along this section of the Mediterranean Coast. The plan was to walk to Calanque d’En Vau. My memory is foggy, but I think there were signs pointing the way to the trail through the town. It was approximately thirty minutes to the first Calanque, Calanque de Port-Miou. The path then followed the water to Calanque de Port Pin. We took a little rest at Port Pin, and G and S decided they were not up for the walk to Calanque d’En Vau, so I continued on myself. I followed the scenic coastal route, and the views were stunning. I didn’t go down to the beach because it was a steep climb and G and S were waiting for me.

Dinner was at a small seafood restaurant in town, where we were served free limoncello at the end of our meal. Then, we finished the night with a stroll around the port area.

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MONDAY 2nd April

We had another fairly early start. We caught the train to Marseille to pick up our hire car and drive to the Camargue, a wetland area south of Arles. This area is quite different from the rest of Provence. The Camargue is famous for its white horses, bred by the guardians (Camargue cowboys). Our first stop along the road was to walk out to see a traditional Guardian’s cabin. The roof is made of reeds with cement-lime mortar layered over the top section. The north face of the cabin is rounded to protect it from the strong mistral wind.

I had booked a horse ride for S and I. The horses were very calm and although we are not horse riders we enjoyed experiencing the wetlands from the back of these hardy animals.

While we were riding G went and checked into our accommodation at Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, then came back to pick us up. The apartment was just opposite the beach and boy, was the weather wild while we were there.

After our wild walk on the beach, we went back and fixed our hair, then headed into town. The Camargue is also known for its bulls. In the Camargue version of bull fighting the razeteurs compete to remove tassels and other objects placed between the bulls horns. UInlike in spain, the bull is not killed. After our stroll around the town we ate in a typical restaurant which understandably served a lot of seafood and meat. It was good though.

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TUESDAY 3rd April

Today our first stop was Aigues-Mortes. We parked just outside the old town and walked in. The medieval walls still completely surround the town, and you can walk all around along the top. The town was founded in 1240 by King Louis IX as a staging ground for the seventh and eighth crusades. The walls were constructed later in the 13th century, but the Constance Tower was part of the original fortifications. We walked around old town, then up onto the walls and explored the various towers before heading out into the marshes for a look.

After some lunch we went for another walk at the Carbonnière Tower, about five minutes from Aigues-Mortes, then headed on to the Pont de Gau bird park to to check out the pink flamingoes that breed in the Camargue as well as many other types of birds.

The Camargue is a wild, wind-swept place and it was good to have a little look at this area of France, but we hoped to have a little less wind at our next stop. It’s amazing what a variety of landscapes are in this corner of France. Our hire car was completely covered with a layer of salt and sand.

Have you been to this part of France? Which of these would you most like to see?