We decided to go on a canal cruise through the Petite Camargue, as visiting the Camargue was one of the main reasons for choosing this part of France to stay in. For those who don't know, the Camargue is a huge national park in the South of France covering the delta of the Rhone River and its tributaries, that flow into the Mediterranean Sea just west of Marseilles (between Marseilles & Montpellier). The region is very flat and full of lakes or lagoons (called Etangs). It is famous for its migratory bird life including flamingos, white horses, bulls and ranchers (called Gardians). A major reason for the Camargue's attractiveness to us was its fame as breeding ground for the flamingos. The flamingos are a migratory bird but they do live and breed in here. It was Alan's first site of one in the wild and what a surprise. We saw several standing in etangs a fair distance from the boat, and saw only one actually flying - but it was incredible, it almost glowed red in the sky as it flew over. Another remarkable experience! (For those who want to see a closer picture of a flamingo, return to one of our earliest blog posts from Hong Kong, where I was able to get much closer in the lovely bird sanctuary gardens in Hong Kong and managed to take some closer photos.)
Over the centuries, the locals have channeled canals throughout the Camargue to make access easier and now of course you can do boat tours along the canals. They will also do a short stop at a ranch so the locals can demonstrate some of their skills - it is very touristy and very staged, but still worth doing and it does give you access to an area that is difficult to access otherwise. The Petite Camargue is an area on the edge of the Camargue proper that is only about half an hours drive from Montpellier, so it was good to start off our forays into this area here. It was also Alan's second only experience of driving in France this trip, so we did not want to drive for too long until we both felt more comfortable. (I might add that this issue is no longer a problem!)
Believe it or not, the Romans grew grapes and made wine in the Camargue, as far back as the 4th century, and it was the Romans who coined the term "sable" which is still used in reference to very smooth fortified wines. One excellent Australian example of this style comes from Wards in the Barossa Valley. In Languedoc & Provence, this type of wine is still under appellation control, is made from Muscat grapes (I think) and is not fortified!
The Camargue is also now famous for growing over two thirds of France's rice production. The area is excellent for growing rice, as being able to control the flow of the water in the canals through a complex network of locks and gates, means the locals can grow rice easily in this soil and climate. The other major produce from the Camargue is salt and once again this area is the major producer of French salt.
As I said, the Camargue is famous for its bulls, both for eating and also for bull fights - once again the Spanish heritage and influence. However the difference here is that the Spanish bulls are bred for one fight only in which they are killed; where as the Camargue bulls are bred for several fights where locals demonstrate their skill at handling the animal and their dexterity in removing small trinkets from the horns or head of the bull. Attendance at a local bullfight is on the forthcoming agenda.
All the above is a prelude to Aigues Mortes - another surviving walled city from the Moyen (Middle) Age. All the tours into the Petite Camargue leave from Aigues Mortes. The name actually means Place of Dead Waters. We drove there expecting a small village from which we would catch the boat (booked in tentative French over the telephone by Pam - not even sure if they had our name or booking confirmed - but all doubts proved unnecessary - our booking was there with names spelt a bit incorrectly, but it was there!!!!! (Yeah Pam!!!!). The drive out of Montpellier was along a spit of land between the coast and an etang. The sign posting was good and we turned into Aigues-Mortes very easily - just another slightly "modern" looking very small coastal village until we rose up and over a bridge over the river and suddenly saw this huge Medieval Wall and discovered the "true" Aigues-Mortes"! As usual the modern city had grown up around the old city and due to the flatness of the land you cannot see the walled city until you literally come to it.
The city dates back to 1240 when the French King Louis IX (also known as Saint Louis) decided to build a port in order to leave for the crusades (there was no port in this area at all until Aigues Mortes was built). Louis was captured, eventually released, returned to France and set off again where he was killed in the siege at Tunis. His descendants finished of the town over the next century. It is a very impressive site and the wall is fully intact. You can actually walk all round the outside of the wall (we did) and along the battlements - we unfortunately arrived 10 minutes too late for the last entry on to the battlements - too busy enjoying coffee and wandering around the outside! The streets in the town do have a Medieval feel, but they have also been cleaned up a lot as it is still a living village - mainly reliant on tourism!! and the local salt industry. However, it still feels amazing to us to be walking along streets that were built 800 years ago, however modernised they are! Unfortunately, this "port" is now about 5kms from the sea, due to silt and changes to the landscape.
Aigues Mortes is also interesting because although it is a genuine Medieval city, it does have straight streets and was actually designed inside along a grid pattern with a central square and of course the Church next to the village square. Louis also built a defence tower to protect the port from "the East by what was called Provence, a dependency of the German Holy Roman Empire, the West by English-held Aquitaine and by Montpellier, a possession of the king of Aragon" - (words courtesy of the Internet). This tower was named after his mother - Constance, and also acted as a tax collecting centre. The residents of Aigues Mortes were exempt from taxes, but as a major port, the King could collect taxes from all those trading with it. Once the port silted up and Provence became part of France, Marseille took over from Aigues Mortes as the primary port of the region, hence Aigues Mortes decline into a small coastal town and Marseille's rise to prominence.
The attached photos show the walled city of Aigues Mortes, and photos from our cruise along the canals including views of the Constance Tower, demonstrations by the Guardians, the flamingoes, salt hills, etc.
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