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Cadaques
Travel Feature
Bizarre rocks and the bedroom of Salvador Dali
A visit to Cadaques and
at Cap de Creus in Catalonia.
Cadaques - a beautiful village in Catalonia and the village in whose immediate vicinity Salvador Dali lived and worked with his wife Gala in a small bay nearby.
In any case, over the years very important artists have been guests here again and again, partly before they later became world-famous.
There are names like Duchamp, Picasso and Matisse to name but a few.
Until today, it is a place of culture and in summer there are numerous events on a high level.
The place has something wonderfully grown - the narrow streets- the beach that integrates itself into the townscape at the main square and then Cadaques is also surrounded by mountains, literally enclosed.
Even in bad weather it feels nice and cosy and the small town becomes a protective retreat because it is much less exposed to the north winds than the other places in this region.
The all around view of the horizon gives me the impression of a closed little world in the center of which I am.
Who comes here for a pure seaside resort would be disappointed.
The beaches are too narrow and too stony, and they can't cope with the masses of tourists that come in summer.
The tranquillity and the calming effect of the sea immediately put me in a vacation mood.
I feel on holiday when I have left my everyday life, the daily habits of life take a back seat and I start to do things that I have not done for an eternity and that simply arise out of a whim.
Then finally my soul has arrived where the body is already.
Once I've decelerated and surrendered to idleness, I can enjoy the simplest things for hours without feeling bored.
Seeing the boats dancing in the water and watching the endless variations of the reflection of the waves can be quite meditative in this Mediterranean environment.
This place is magical, especially in the evenings when everything gets quiet.
Then I like to sit by the sea and think about things I haven't thought about for a long time.
And when the night slowly sinks over the bay, a handful of small pleasant street cafes, bars and restaurants compete for my attention right in my back.
Salvador Dali
And then suddenly he's here - Salvador Dali.
Everywhere in and around Cadaques you can find his traces and some views are immediately familiar because they play a role in one of his paintings.
Dali was firmly rooted here and spent the summers in his father's birthplace even as a child.
He loved this little town and spent most of his life here.
Even today the place is characterized by its presence and it seems omnipresent - but at the same time I notice the gap he left when he passed, which is also somehow present here.
Portlligat
When Salvador Dali had spent a few years in Paris and New York, he was drawn back to the picturesque Mediterranean town.
In a neighboring bay he bought several small fishermen's huts and converted them into his apartment and studio.
It was here that most of his great works were created and where he lived with his wife Gala.
Casa Museu Salvador Dali
His house is today preserved exactly as he left it and can be visited as a museum.
But because it is very narrow and winding, it is advisable to book in advance and make an appointment, especially in the high seasons this is sometimes recommended days before.
But if you have the choice, you should rather not come in the high season, because then everything is really overflowing here.
This is the view from the bedroom window of the Dali's to the bay of Port Lligat.
A very own feeling to go by their dwelling. Everything looks in such a way as if they could come home again each moment.
Platja des Sortell
After a few days of daily encounters and exploration of him and his works, sitting by the water and seeing the same places as he saw them, places that inspired him and which I partly know from his works, that actually creates a very special closeness to this great artist.
It feels as if I had met him and at the same time was strangely empty.
Punta de Cap des Creus
The area around Cadaques is very mountainous and crossed by small hiking trails.
Some of them are very old and their history goes back several hundred years.
I like to be surprised where they lead me.
It takes effort, but every time I have climbed one of the small peaks I am rewarded with wonderful wide views, as here on the Punta de Cap de Creus with the small lighthouse.
Cala Fredosa
The Cap de Creus forms the easternmost point of the Spanish mainland.
Here the Pyrenees run out and the landscape is characterized by the proximity to the sea.
Only a few trees grow, but many reptiles and seabirds live here.
A fusion of wind - waves - weather and stone.
The wild and bizarre landscape can be found in many paintings of Salvador Dali and is partly so unreal that I sometimes get the feeling that Dali was a realist and simply painted this unreal landscape.
Text and Pictures Lars Hauck
Hey,
I am glad you drop by!
I am Lars, constantly plagued by wanderlust and I do have a preference
for spontaneous individual trips, outdoor adventures and road trips.
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