First to the soft, golden sands of La Tranche-sur-Mer (south Vendée) and then to historic harbor of La Rochelle (Charentes), both facing the Atlantic.
M, H's friend from law school, drove to La Tranche with his wife and baby for some peace and quiet before their big move to China. H and I did not have time to visit them in Rouen like we promised after New Year's, so we decided to visit them there instead.
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This resort town is packed in the summer, with people pouring in for the Déferlante festival, and of course the great sunny weather to be had. But the sun was nowhere to be found and the town looked deserted that weekend, so water sports was the last thing on our minds.
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| This road leads to the beach. Beyond that arch in the back is the Atlantic Ocean. |
Good thing at least one snack shop was open, and the house was stocked with food and drinks for a night of drinking various brews and spirits that inspired me to invent cork Jenga (pictured), and earned someone the nickname "Space D*ck"... Ok, it was me. Long story.
It rained all morning the next day, but lucky for us the clouds parted "un petit peu" as we reached La Rochelle, which was three swamp towns away. (About an hour's drive from La Tranche-sur-Mer.)
Some luck with the weather, at last!
La Rochelle is a thousand years old, and is featured a number of times in our study materials at Alliance Française.
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| Port of La Rochelle by pointlist Paul Signac (1921). Displayed at the Musee D'Orsay. |
It's one of the most beautiful cities in France, and one of the few that kept its medieval architecture practically intact as perhaps evidence that the harbor walls were highly effective in keeping the money in and the enemies at bay.
The templar knights kept base here, and for centuries English, French and Spanish armies would battle over control of La Rochelle for political, economic and religious reasons.
Three towers distinguish this harbor: the Saint-Nicolas military tower on the right; the Tower of the Chaîne which controls the passage of vessels into the port; and the Tower of the Lanterne at the left, which is the only surviving mediaeval lighthouse on this coast.
From any angle, it looks more like a church tower than a lighthouse.
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| Picture by H |
The port is as popular for its good restaurants as it is for the views. We strolled down the harbor and went on a promenade inside the Quartier de la Chaine, then said a prayer at the 12th century Eglise Saint-Sauveur which, one blogger quipped, is the unluckiest church in La Rochelle. It was burned and attacked so many times that it ended up looking like this.
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| Photo by H. |
Even with recent restoration efforts it still looks like an unintentional Gaudi. In fact, it reminded me of the opening sequence of Bob's Burgers. (If you've seen the series, bravo to you.)
Then we rewarded ourselves with a gaufre (waffle) and crepe before driving over to the bridge towards Ile de Ré just in time for sunset.
I should mention the Futuroscope trip here too since it's in the area, but technically it's not in a beach so I'll save that story for later :)
Up Next on Frigid Beach: Normandy?
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