It's a blessed land of the gods: It's sunny all year round. Narbonnaise, this paradise located on the shores of the Mediterranean one hour from Montpellier, is all contrasts. Striking by its surprising landscapes, berthed by tramontane, between vineyards, wild mountains, ponds and fine sandy beaches, it vibrates from a story worth a detour. A unique identity where it is good to live and whose ancient past houses a nature preserved in the heart of a regional natural park. A Camargue air with its flaming flames, and a typical Mediterranean lifestyle… No wonder that all this wealth inspired many artists. When you tasted it, you intuitively know that you will come back to this "other thing" indefinable. This strange land, we discovered it from another angle. An experience that you are offered to try on the web with the sensitive vision of artists: voyages-en-narbonnaise.com.
The approach is unique in France. The idea of designing tourist routes as we would write a travel book. Drawings, scans, gouache, pastels, impressions here and there of two young illustrators particularly gifted, Laurent Bonneau and Laurence Malherbe. There are sound extracts, reading a few stories, which plunge us into a living bath of sensations. We are exalted by the delicate and poetic videos of director Laurie Grosset. Tours and detours on colorful Narbonnaise sites, from virtual to real, an inventive territory where 42 wifi points scattered free of charge link your access to the net. They can be located on the visit-lanarbonnaise.com site, and wander through its course, find a resto, or lodge to root. For you, we have tested the five unusual routes of the surprising Narbonnaise and it is worth it.
We're leaving the canal du Midi?
A few kilometers from Narbonne, the ancient Roman capital, it is a small quiet harbor on the canal du Midi, Le Somail, where you want to take the time, and to soak up, under a shaded tonneau, to taste some good wines accompanied by a plate of countries. Before embarking on a nineteenth-century template adorned on the wharf, or at least its replica, a curiosity for the uninitiated. We travel smoothly on the quiet waters of the Canal du Midi, which just reopened its tracks to navigation. This works of art, designed by Pierre-Paul Riquet to link the seas and men for over 350 years, is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. After an hour thirty-thirty river trips and the passage from a lock on the mainland, we crossed the threshold of this curious bookstore: Find Everything from the Book with over 50,000 books, ancient as well as contemporary. There are treasures there. A tower in the hamlet is required, Le Somail is one of the few steps that has preserved its built heritage, all dating from the construction of the canal, here the hostel, the House of Guards, there, the chapel or the cooler.
This. 04 68 41 55 70
Do we play 37 ° 2 in the morning in Gruissan?
1986: Gruissan, his wooden houses planted on pilgrimages and beautiful sunsets came out of anonymity. More than 30 years later, and the success of Beineix's cult film, the natural scenery of the 37 ° 2 shooting in the morning did not take a ride. It would surprise itself even to see Betty out of the beach of Gruissan beach, the sensual body turned to the sea. The chalets are just as videogenic as the actress Beatrice Dalle. Here, the atmosphere is quietly calm, quietly serene. The breeze breathes slightly, refreshing, we are well, really, lying on the sand end of the vastness of the beach. The big blue stretches our arms, we escape from the beach towel for a moment. We're in there.
More info on Gruissan and its beaches
This. 04 68 49 09 00
We're investigating the mysteries of an emerald lake?
A stone's throw from the sea, in the heart of the Massif de la Clape, there is an abyss to the unreal color, protected by white cliffs that evoke many questions and intrigue each visitor. The abyss of the sweet eye that it joins the Mediterranean Sea through underground funds, the water is strangely salted. In fact, this strange lake, emerald color, is an underground abyss whose arch collapsed thousands of years ago… Curiosity that we love to contemplate, at the detour of a trekking in the heart of La Clape, a natural site classified a few kilometers from the sea and the lagoons. A privileged place, a paradise for hikers, vetetists or lovers of nature still wild.
More info on Saint-Pierre-la-Mer
This. 04 68 49 60 89
Are we discovering the old stones in Narbonne?
Narbonne, the first Roman colony founded outside Italy, retains some remains of this ancient past. In this Benedictine church, Notre-Dame de Lamourguier, in the heart of the city, conceals a treasure: there are no less than 2 000 stone blocks, one of the largest lapidary collections in the world after the Lapidary Museum in Rome. Resulting from the dismantling of the walls, these stone blocks of funerary origin are now gathered in the church.
History tells us that, in the nineteenth century, these blocks carved by the Romans were saved by a handful of Narbonnais, determined not to let this heritage escape. Leaving the city without a tower under the Gothic arch of the religious building would be sinned.
Tel 04 68 65 15 60
We climb up there to see Leucate Castle?
You have to climb the heights right behind the center of the village of Leucate where the remains of a Vauban fort dominate. For 4 centuries, this region of France was a border post with the Kingdoms of Spain. There is a whole past here. You can imagine the time of its splendor, and retrace its history by admiring the views of oysters, ponds and the Mediterranean Sea with glittering reflections. A breathtaking panorama. Le Massif des Corbières stands, proud and sovereign. Later, we see the Pyrenees. The best thing is to go there for a sunset. Guaranteed frills.
This. 04 68 40 91 31
