The first thing you notice when you cross the border is that Spain is a much poorer country than France. The roads are in less good condition, the houses look more neglected. I must admit, at a first glance I thought, crikey, I want to go back to France! Then I thought, how ridiculous, the first time we went to France, I was desperate to get back to England and familiarity. How strange that after three visits, I now feel perfectly (almost!) at home in France. Anyway, I am getting used to Spain, although not having any Spanish is a hindrance!

Our first stop is at Port Lligat, where Salvador Dali lived for many years.

The house of Salvador Dali at Port Lligat. He lived here with his wife Gala, who features in many of his paintings, for about 50 years. They originally bought just one fisherman’s cottage, single storey, then bought all the attached ones, extended upwards, and also bought the land around. The house is a labyrinth!

I don’t know if this pink plastic chair is part of the whole “Art” experience, or if it just washed up on the beach. We have seen pink plastic artworks before, haven’t we?

A view over the top of the house.

The garden – an egg on top of a dovecote.

‘Christ of the Rubbish’.

We didn’t get to see these from the front.

Nice. One of the few bits that I personally could live with!

Poolside.

The pool area is amazing – I thought you swimming pool owners might appreciate the ideas:-) (Also see the banner)

More ideas:-)

The bear hall.

Yes, real dead swans. They saw animals differently in those days.

Dining room.

Unfinished paintings in the studio. He left the house when Gala died, never to return.

I wouldn’t like the job of dusting this house. Everything is original, except the books.

Bedroom – there is a mirror on the wall so he could watch the sunrise from his bed.  

The summer dining room. Doesn’t look very comfortable!

A niche – yes, that is us, upside down in the mirror.

Another view of the egg.

View from the garden. Really enjoyed seeing the house!

We thought this dog was a dead ringer for Harvey. He isn’t as friendly though! I felt as though I knew him, but he obviously didn’t know me! He had Harvey’s trick of looking away when I pointed a camera at him.

The nearby town of Cadaques.

To round off our visit to this area, we went to Cap de Creus, where the strange shapes of the rock formations inspired many of Dali’s paintings. Look them up online and see what you think!

I can’t say that I like Dali’s work, as in I wouldn’t want it on my wall, but he was obviously very clever, very talented and imaginative, and his paintings are interesting.  Colin likes him a lot.

We are now off to Figueres and the Dali Theatre-Museum, very much looking forward to it!