Visit to Cerbère

A few weeks ago I took the train to Montpellier and saw that it went daily to a place called Cerbère.  Where?  A tiny seaside village on the Spanish border, 3 hours' direct train ride down the coast from Lunel.  So, accompanied by Mary's cousin (on a visit from Costa Rica!) we set out on Tuesday and trundled our way past Sète, Agde, Béziers, Narbonne, Perpignan, Collioure and more besides, between étangs and the sea, to the terminus.  The line goes on to Spain, but we alighted in this last French outpost.  The station shows signs of its former importance as a border crossing with disused customs areas, and from it we made our way  steeply down towards the centre ville.  Not far, and the sea was almost instantly in front of us.

We had about 6 hours until our evening trip back to Lunel, time for a stroll round the village and its 5-stall market, a great fish lunch, some time on the little beach and a slow climb back up to the station in the hot afternoon.  The modern town relies on concrete for its cantilevered roads, elevated pavements and the huge railway viaduct high above the harbour.  It was pleasant, unpretentious and obviously popular with walkers.



This extraordinary and now derelict hotel by the railway is the belvédère du Rayon vert, a listed building designed by the architect Baille. It is a relic of the heyday of Cerbère as a customs town and rail centre.  It has a grand staircase, and was once a casino with theatre, cinema, its "Bar Bleu"and its terrace complete with tennis court. Beneath the roof is an ingenious early system of ventilation based on a 'bees nest' or honeycomb system. The external staircase is Florentine.

It's hard to believe that this sleepy little village was once such an important frontier town with a population of over 1300!