Mercy! Mercy! That Dang Nabed PERCY!

Sea-Wall and Beach

This photo shows the sea wall and beach that was two blocks from where we lived on Rue Marguerite. The houses are very old, huge and well maintained. It is like walking back in time to the 1700’s except for the automobiles. There is a large tree at the far end of the picture that can be seen from the center of town. This tree is a familiar landmark that often pops up in my dreams.

In the summer, this beach is one of the beaches where tourists and seasonal residents sunbathe and while not a “nude” beach, the French are much less inhibited about getting a tan in certain places than Americans.

While you can’t see it well here, beyond the sand is a mud flat where the sunbathers would wallow as the tide was coming in. This mud was said to be good for arthritis and have cosmetic properties, good for the skin.

In the summer time a carnival would encamp at the far edge of the photo that was put off limits by American authorities. This was because metal flecks from the Bumper Cars had gotten in peoples eyes. Norman and I would dress as “French” as we could and sneak down and ride them anyway. We had our berets and European wool ensemble and would speak French whenever the Military Police (MP’s) came around on compliance checks. We would have never fooled a Gendarme but the MP’s were either not so perceptive or didn’t care…. Anyway it was very exciting and we never got caught.

These homes along the sea wall, like I mentioned above are traditional and old with high ceilings and with that architecture we associated with “Haunted Mansions.” Many of our older cities had these stone like villas with the pointed roofs, long windows, shutters and vaulted ceilings. They were the houses of the rich and affluent. I love the style of these homes and if we ever hit the lotto, Linda and I will certainly buy one. As an aside, a house in France costs about twice what a similar sized residence would cost in the United States. In fact you can’t really buy anything similar in the US unless you have several million to invest. In France these old stone homes are scattered everywhere and can be purchased, but again, real estate is double what you would pay here for something similar.