Lonsdales in France: Sun, sand and sangria in Spain

James and I both felt like the need for some sea air so decided to go to the Mediterranean coast. As we had left it a bit late with booking accommodation the town we had wanted to stay at, Collioure, was full so we decided that we would go to Spain! One of James workmates recommended the coastal town of Roses so after a bit of research on google we found an apartment near the beach.

We set off on Friday morning and headed east to Perpignan. James wanted to stop at the memorial for the New Zealanders who died in the Air NZ plane crash four years ago and pay his respects.

We then continued along the coast to Collioure. It was as beautiful as we had heard it was. With a fort and castle on the waterfront and lovely cafes along the beach. we had a packed lunch from home so sat on the beach and ate our sandwiches.

We had a great explore and then carried on along the coast through numerous gorgeous towns.

We crossed the border into spain and drove on to Roses. The outskirts of the town were pretty rundown with graffiti on the walls but the esplanade and beach made up for it. The best way to describe Roses is that it looks like Kaiteriteri on steriods. golden sand, hills, lovely bays, yachts in the inlet but then apartment blocks, hotels, cafes, high rises everywhere! The whole coast line was just dotted with high rise hotels and I can imagine in the summer when all the hotel rooms are full it will be insanely busy. As it is low season here very few hotels and restaurants were open although it still seemed like there were lots of people around.

Once we got settled into our apartment we walked down to the beach. Poor wee Hannah fell over so is looking a bit sad in some photos, but was very brave.

We woke to a beautiful day on Saturday so decided to go for a walk around the headlands. The hills were covered in housing and they reminded James of Mt Victoria in Wellington. We got to the end of the built up housing and found the walkway. We came in at the far end and it was a bit rough with climbing over rocks but we eventually made it down to the beach.

It was starting to get hot so the kids had a bit of a play in the water. We then continued on the coastal walkway enjoying the scenery and the sunshine and having to remind ourselves that it was winter!

We then headed back to the beach as we had seen a nice cafe. It was great to sit and eat our lunch while the kids entertained themselves on the beach - bliss.

We then headed back to the apartment and the kids got into their wetsuits and walked down to the beach. The wind had got up and it had cooled down a bit but the kids didn't seem to be bothered and were jumping in the waves having a great time. We did get some very perculiar looks from people with their kids in their winter coats and wooly coats though!

Once we were home and settled I decided to head back out for another walk. It was a beautiful evening.

Another beautiful day today and we decided to have a look around the old city of Roses.

The roman remains of the old city.

St Mary's church which was partially destroyed in the invasion of 1795.

The medieval village.

The three musketeers.

The horse in the stable!

Patting the donkey.

We had the whole city to ourselves and the kids had a great time running around the old city playing with sticks pretending to be the three musketeers.

We then walked into the new city along the esplanade and found a great restaurant on the beach. Love the restaurants on the beach where the adults can eat and drink while the kids play on the beach!