A special place in the Catalan hills

Over the years I have been to Collioure, that little gem of a town on the Côte Vermeille, many times, but on Monday of this week I was introduced to a wonderful place hidden in the hills above the town. A place of Catalan culture and local spirituality, it also has a hotel, bar and restaurant and a small church. This site is known as L’ Ermitage de Notre Dame de Consolation or the Hermitage of Our Lady of Consolation.

Friends who have an apartment in Collioure had invited us to a simple barbecue supper, but asked us to arrive in the late afternoon so that we could have a short walk in the hills and then they could take us to the Hermitage, and we would be able to enjoy the wonderful view down the valley to the town and the Mediterranean Sea beyond.

Our walk took us along the Douy valley up out of the town, and soon we were surrounded by vineyards, which in this area are planted in terraces along the contour lines. The walk to the Hermitage was not too far, only about two kilometres, but the climb was quite steep. We passed under the viaduct, which towered above us, carrying the road from Perpignan to the Spanish border between Cerbère and Portbou, and then all was quiet and our only company were the birds of prey circling above.

As this pathway was also a pilgrims’ path, we passed the little wayside shrines to St. James, St. Theresa and St. Anne, and then we rounded a corner in the path and there in front of us was the Hermitage, a cluster of ancient stone buildings housing the church, the cells and the hotel, with the more modern building of the bar-restaurant in between them.The origins of the place are shrouded in mystery. Originally on this site stood a temple dedicated to Neptune and then to Poseidon, the Roman and Greek gods of the sea, but the Christian church which now occupies the site is old, the original building constructed by Dominican and Cistercian monks back in the twelfth century, and the outer walls of the church contain a number of individual cells. Records show that in 1496 the place was known in Catalan as Maria de Consolacio, and in 1549 it was “a chapel of a hermit”. Since then it has had two restorations, the latest being in 1975.

The buildings themselves are interesting, but the view from the terrace of the hotel is stunning. Looking back down the Douy valley, one can now see the town of Collioure hundreds of feet below with the blue sea glistening in the distance.The hotel is used by walkers, pilgrims and those who want a little peace and quiet, but others are welcomed. Groups come to hold barbecues, parties, even marriages and baptisms, and three times a year there are pilgrimages, on May 1st, mid August and on September 8th, the birthday of Our Lady in the Christian Calendar. Catalan culture is also celebrated here with many opportunities for those who are skilled in the art, to dance the Sardana, the Catalan dance performed in a large circle with the Cobla, the band consisting of woodwind instruments and a little drum, providing the music and the beat. Sadly there were no dancers on the day we visited.Too soon we had to make our way down the hillside and back to Collioure. Our friends had prepared a very welcome supper of melon and Serrano ham, followed by Catalan sausages grilled on the barbecue and served with ratatouille. A good wedge of the flower shaped Saint Albray cheese, and a beautiful raspberry tart meant we felt replenished after our exertion in the heat of the late afternoon, and we were able to sit on their terrace as the sun went down and the moon rose and the stars began to shine. As we drank our wine and reflected on a part of Collioure we had not seen before, we were grateful that, for once, we were not down there in the town with the thousands of holidaymakers and tourists.