La Rochelle 2017

[kerouac2]

This week I decided to spend a couple of days in La Rochelle. I've spent a night there numerous times, but I never really had time to explore much, so this time I gave myself the luxury of two days. The heat wave that had been smothering France had ended the day before, so the temperature was quite pleasant.  However, sunny skies gradually gave way to rain by the time I left. This was perfectly fine with me, as I reached the train station to go home just before the first big downpour.

The La Rochelle train station is considered to be one of the prettiest in France.  We'll get a better look at it later.

Nearly every street in the vieux port area has been permanently closed to motor traffic.

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I couldn't help already looking at some of the restaurant offerings on the way to the hotel.

This is the view of La Rochelle that everybody knows -- the entrance to the old port with the square Tour Saint Nicolas on the left and the round Tour de la Chaine on the right.

It was low tide -- in fact the lowest tide that I have ever seen here.  I saw later that for a few days ferry service was suspended for a few hours every day because the water was so low.

My hotel was next door to the old clock tower facing the port.

I still remember when all of these streets were full of cars.

The hôtel de ville (city hall) dates from 1298.  Unfortunately, it burned down in 2013.

Rebuilding the interior will not be finished for some time yet.

[kerouac2]

All of the streets of the old town are arcaded.





Towns this old don't have much greenery, so I went looking for a little whenever possible.







I was staying at the Ibis chain as I often do (points!) and they are not all cookie-cutter architecture. This is actually an Ibis Styles now, so it has been upgraded.









This is the original anchor used by the Tour de la Chaîne to close the port at night during medieval times.



In the distance, I could glimpse the main small craft harbour, the biggest in Europe with moorage for more than 5000 boats.



The two towers demand to be photographed from every angle, whether you want to or not. They were built in the 15th century.



This was my first chance of the day to look out across the Atlantic Ocean. The United States were not visible today.





Downtown La Rochelle has a couple of small beaches, not warm enough today for most people.





There is a pleasant promenade all along the waterfront of course.









The Tour de la Lanterne is the 3rd and tallest tower of the old port area. It is the oldest lighthouse on the Atlantic coast, completed in 1476.













It's always nice to be able to walk along ramparts.

[bixaorellana]

I have spent zero time in my life thinking about La Rochelle, but your pictures make it seem like an ideal destination in many ways. The beach in the kind of weather you had is my ideal -- long walks on the sand without getting burned and with few other people. As you said, it's always good to walk along ramparts. It's certainly a place I could go click-happy, but couldn't better your wonderful pictures.

Dare we hope for some photos you took from the Tour de la Lanterne?

[mossie]

La Rochelle looks a very well preserved place and the traffic free streets must be a real bonus.

Sorry that you weren't able to sight your new all singing, all dancing pres.

[whatagain]

La Rochelle is one of my favourite cities albeit I have been only twice or thrice.
I should go back definitely, kids have not seen it yet.

[kerouac2]

Thanks all. Another thing for which La Rochelle is famous is the fact that it was the principal Huguenot city and became the refuge for French protestants after the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre. It was under siege for 2 years in 1572-1573 but it was ultimately saved by... Poland. That's because Henri d'Anjou (King Henri III) became King of Poland in May 1573 and at the time Poland had a large protestant minority, so it seemed wiser to negotiate an agreement to end the siege and make La Rochelle one of the 3 protestant safe havens of France. This has nothing to do with any of my pictures.

The tide had risen quite a bit. Oh, I see a boat that I took the next day!



The building in the background is now the performing arts centre of La Rochelle.







A number of these creatures were suspended in various parts of the city.





I used to drive on this street. I like it a lot better now. You do still see an occasional taxi.



high tide now











The train station also looks like a lighthouse.



I stayed in this Ibis hotel the last time I was in La Rochelle with my mother.



That is the municipal aquarium, one of the best in France. In any case, it is the most visited aquarium in France.











Yes, the day was coming to an end.

[htmb]

I loved my week spent in La Rochelle three years ago, and am enjoying seeing your photos, Kerouac. We stayed in an inexpensive apartment on the ramparts next to the Tour de la Lanterne. The entrance was just where you took the photo in reply #1 featuring the colorful trumpet vine, and it's possible that was our balcony at the top of the picture. Looking out over the walls, watching boats and people go by, was very relaxing and I enjoyed strolling around the town, as well. La Rochelle was easy to reach from Paris and I found the city had a wonderful, relaxed atmosphere. Just what my friend and I needed after ending our school year. (There's a bit of a report here somewhere).

[kerouac2]

Thanks, htmb. I have yet to meet anyone who did not like La Rochelle.

On the left side of the old port, there was a delightful bar/restaurant/music/video area for alternative moods. I regretted feeling about 30 years too old to fit in.









It should be mentioned that La Rochelle has an exceptional French music event every year, Les Francofolies, this year from 12 to 16 July.



Right next to that area where flood prevention works were in progress, I saw that they had turned into archeological digs, as happens quite often in cities such as this.







The vieux port mesmerizes as night falls.















And the next morning, it was time for new adventures.

[bixaorellana]

Little do those kiddie hipsters know how much you enjoy all different kinds of ambience and music!

If your first few sets of pictures hadn't been so wonderful, I'd have to accuse you of saving the best for last with this bunch -- truly beautiful.

What kinds of work, industry, etc. is there for people who live in La Rochelle year round?

[kerouac2]

On my morning stroll, I was rather surprised how the bottles are collected in La Rochelle. Rather than using big bottle bins that the trucks can pick up automatically, they are in little plastic cases that must be picked up manually. While the din of a bottle bin being emptied is excruciating, I found the numerous smaller noises of the little cases being dumped even more annoying. And I felt sorry for the sanitation workers.

The municipal bike system is the oldest in France. The first version was completely free with no locks at all, but you can imagine what happened to the bikes, even though they were bright yellow.













No matter how old the arcades are, it's always the same 21st century shops.









This is the main protestant church of La Rochelle.











statue by Senegalese artist Ousmane Sow



The cathedral of La Rochelle is quite unimpressive.





However, I did like the style of some of the windows.

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[bjd]

I was glad to see some pictures with a bluer sky or evening sun. Somehow I find it rather colourless when the stone and sky are the same colour. The city seems to be lacking in greenery or colour or something. I have only been there once, mostly to stop at a beach (mud once you get off the bit of sand) and a short stroll around.

[kerouac2]

Back to the old port. What if I take one of the excursion boats?



Here we go. It's probably going to rain.







We passed the huge pleasure craft harbour.







Seeing Fort Boyard 20 kilometres from the coast is a major attraction. It is the location of a French adventure game show that has 40 different international versions, all recorded here.





Only about a half dozen countries get to film the game every year; the others have to wait their turn another year. Even the United States had the show 3 times. 1991 (ABC), 2011-2012 (Disney).





The ugly platform is a relatively recent addition for the needs of the television crews. Somehow it magically never appears on the TV show.



This is the classic view.





It did finally rain, but not too much.



And then we were off to the island of Aix for a technical stop to pick up day trippers.









Here is Aix.





The island has a permanent population of about 200 and no motor vehicles.



And here are the day trippers.

[kerouac2]

And then it was time to return to La Rochelle, still about 45 minutes away.





The island of Aix began to recede from view.



The inside of the boat was now almost full because people had lost interest in the upper deck. The bicycles belonged to the day trippers.



There was still a multitude of sailboats on their way out, even though it was approaching 19:00 and the weather was not ideal. The passion of sailing is stronger than the weather.

This is the "phare du bout du monde," a replica of the 1884 "lighthouse at the end of the world" off the tip of Tierra del Fuego in South America. It could be seen for 27 km. That lighthouse was abandoned in 1902 after being replaced by a better one (Faro Año Nuevo). The vestiges of the first lighthouse were rediscovered by an adventurer from La Rochelle and it was rebuilt in 1998. On January 1, 2000 the replica in La Rochelle was inaugurated 12,780 km from the other one. An association links the two lighthouses to promote relations between France and Argentina. I like it when things like this are done. No commercial gain, probably a lot of money spent, but an absolute love of the sea and more importantly of adventure.

the vieux port clearly in view now

Before the days of GPS, boats were supposed to align the red and green lighthouses to enter the port properly.

no more choppy water







back in the port



People are still going about their business. The world is calm.



And my brief ocean voyage had come to an end.



The lighthouse downtown seems rather strange embedded in the other buildings.



The next morning, the only thing left to do was to go to the train station.



It has some interesting and elaborate mosaics.







My trip is ending rapidly.





I snagged a first class seat for next to nothing. It consoled me on my way back to Paris.

[fumobici]

Nice report. La Rochelle has some really fine old architecture, and the old port and all its accompanying accouterments add layers of charm and interest too. There's a lot to see in La Rochelle!

[kerouac2]

Just in case you haven't a clue about the Fort Boyard show...

[bixaorellana]

Except for the fact that this report makes me pretty envious, it is just wonderful. You got so many great pictures of sea, sky, and weather along with the interesting architecture of the city. It looks like a fun place, too. I love those flying figures and they fit so well where they're installed.

Jun 30, 2017 4:13:28 GMT kerouac2 said:

No matter how old the arcades are, it's always the same 21st century shops.

That comment made me wonder how much a chain store like Sephora is made responsible for general upkeep. I mean, we go in a place like that and the modern stuff is all sleekly fitted into the ancient walls, but there must be more to it.

Jun 30, 2017 4:13:28 GMT kerouac2 said:

The cathedral of La Rochelle is quite unimpressive.

Yeah, that is a surprise, especially since the town is not shy about using towers. The cathedral looks like some churches in places like Biloxi, which were rebuilt all squatty after devastating hurricanes.

Jun 30, 2017 16:39:57 GMT kerouac2 said:

This is the "phare du bout du monde,"

You are so right in saying that kind of "just because" enterprise is delightful and enriches everyone who sees it. The fact that the ball on the top is mirrored makes it even more wonderful.

Jun 30, 2017 16:39:57 GMT kerouac2 said:

The lighthouse downtown seems rather strange embedded in the other buildings.

I wonder if it was built that way, or if it was once an outpost and the town crept up around it.

Jul 1, 2017 19:08:15 GMT kerouac2 said:

Just in case you haven't a clue about the Fort Boyard show...

Nope, not the teeniest clue! I've had glimpses of those kind of shows on tv, but never gave any thought to the logistics. Wow.

[kerouac2]

Bixaorellana, I know that I am not the only person impressed by your attention to detail in various threads.

As for the cathedral of La Rochelle, my own supposition would be that since La Rochelle is/was a protestant stronghold, either the cathedral was voluntarily muted or else the local catholics at the time just did not have sufficient funds to build a "proper" cathedral.

The downtown lighthouse is the Phare du Quai Valin. It only dates from 1852, so obviously the town was in place already. It is another "alighnment" lighthouse which has to be matched up with another lighthouse to know how to point one's boat into the port properly. It has a green light to be aligned with a red light near the St. Nicolas tower and is still very much in use for this purpose.

I watched the Fort Boyard show last night. After my trip there, it was sort of obligatory.

[spindrift1]

Because I saw your excellent photo of a church I texted friends who were forced to shelter from rough seas and high winds at Boulogne and I suggested they sail to La Rochelle if at all possible.
I have not been there but I can see that it's a port I would love to visit. Thank you for your pictures.

[kerouac2]

Saint Malo would make a lovely stop, too, and is closer.