The joys of slow travel…

Slow travel or rather no or little travel for this vacation so far is teaching us the benefits of staying in one place (rather than our usual hopping around in the camper van) and we are discovering hidden gems right under our nose.

We originally passed through Berck Sur Mer on the French Opal Coast (where we have taken root whilst we wait for news on the camper van) on our way south looking for a place for lunch but on first impressions were not keen so moved on.

As the old saying goes “Don’t judge a book by its cover” because although Berck Sur Mer is not itself on first inspection a pretty place the beach is stunning and the surrounding areas are full of history. Most of the seaside places around here found their heydays in the thirties and I love the architecture of that period.

Berk Sur Mer was mostly destroyed in World War II and there are only a few of their historic and 1930s style villas built for the visitors from Paris left in tact. The rebuilding along the seafront looks brutal in its boxy concrete style and is sadly not a treat for the eyes.

There is a lot going on here though as we soon discovered.

The town was the home of the first sand yacht club in France and you can see them hurtle up and down the beach at great speeds. The world record was set here in 1991 at 151.55 km/ph and each year they also hold an international kite festival. The founder of the modern Olympics Pierre de Coubertin was a member of the sand yacht club.

In the 1800s the therapeutic effects of the sea air and sea bathing for children suffering from Tuberculosis were also pioneered here with a large institution built to house sick children from the nearby French towns and cities and especially Paris. The hospital was opened by Empress Eugenie the wife of Napolean III. They still call this place the wellness city and it is famous for its medical care.

We also discovered that there is a colony of seals, grey seals and harbour seals, which lounge around on the sandbanks at low tide in the Bay d’Authie. There were quite a few on the day we visited. If you love bird watching this is also the place to come.

Lots of famous artists also came here to paint as the light is so good and established the Berck school of painting. The museum houses many of their paintings. Henri Letrec visited the nearby St Valerie to paint.

It goes without saying that the seafood here is wonderful. They are rightly famous for their Moules Bouchot…a cooking technique introduced by Irish fishermen which they still use today. We had these little mussels cooked in tarragon, white wine and Pastis. Delicious.

We are hoping for more news on the van but whilst we wait, we are enjoying this lovely part of France especially the beautiful sunsets.