The secrets of Vallespir, a region of contrasts and unknown riches in North Catalonia

Ceret / Los Baños / Arles (Vallespir)The days are getting longer, and on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees, at the foot of the Canigou massif, a valley welcomes spring with the white and pink of cherry blossoms. Watered by the pure waters of the Tec River, which rises near the border, Vallespir is a northern Catalan region of contrasts and cultural riches that remains relatively unknown. A thermal valley, in bloom and, above all, not overcrowded, just two hours by car from Barcelona, ​​with ancient traditions and monuments: from the Bear Festival in Prats de Molló to the Museum of Modern Art in Ceret, a mecca of Cubism, and the Benedictine Abbey of Santa Maria de Arles – founded in 1977. The valley offers seven stays to improve health, prescribed by the French Social Security system, for some 20,000 pensioners. Vallespir is divided into two sub-regions, Alt and Baix, primarily due to its topography. Descending from the Ares pass, where thousands of Catalans crossed the border during the Retirada (the Catalan retreat) fleeing Franco's regime, Prats de Molló marks the entrance to the more mountainous region. Céret and its cherry orchards are the capital of the Baix Vallespir, at the gateway to the Roussillon plain. Much of the route can easily be cycled along a greenway with spectacular, ancient metal bridges, such as the 14th-century Devil's Bridge of Céret, one of the largest single-arch medieval bridges in the world. This is the old railway line that connected the Baths of Arles (Arles-sur-Tech in French) with Elna, which opened in 1898 and operated until the 1930s.

The Light of Céret

It was precisely during these railway years that Céret became the art capital of southern France. At the beginning of the 20th century, Parisian artists based in Montmartre sought the Mediterranean light, a primitive and relatively unindustrial landscape, a low cost of living, and a creative community outside the official salons. In 1909, Manolo Hugué, a Catalan sculptor associated with the Modernist circle and a friend of Pablo Picasso, settled in Céret and wrote to his friends inviting them to spend time there. Two years later, Picasso arrived accompanied by Georges Braque, in a period that would be key to the development of Cubism. In the following years, Juan Gris, Marc Chagall, and Amedeo Modigliani visited, and the town became known as the "mecca of Cubism."

That legacy is still very much present in the Ceret Museum of Modern Art, a former gendarmerie and prison converted 75 years ago into a space visited by 55,000 people each year—and the town has only 8,000 inhabitants. "We showcase a journey through the history of different artists who wanted Ceret to have a great museum, rooted in the Catalan, French, and Iberian cross-border area," explains the museum's director, Jean-Roch Dumont Saint Priest, regarding the unique aspect of not having purchased the works, but rather having received them directly as gifts from the artists.

Cherry trees vs. olive trees

When the artists discovered Ceret, they were guided by the light. Cherry trees were already planted, but they weren't the norm. Thanks to the good climate, the valley was full of centuries-old olive trees, which were killed by an unprecedented frost in 1956. "A cherry tree needs three or four years to bear fruit. In contrast, an olive tree usually needs 15. The cherry tree yields much more, but it needs a lot of water. And if anyone has doubts about climate change, they should see what's happening here: the farmers need to irrigate the cherry trees or they'll switch to artichokes, because they're already switching to artichokes, because they've just opened one in Mas Py."

Alongside Ceret, this Swiss man and his wife, Brigitte, who knew the area from summering there, decided to go against the grain two decades ago by planting 2,700 olive trees—now they're approaching 5,000—and creating the largest organic farm in the Pyrenees. To keep the fields clean, they raise Iberian pigs, goats, and twenty-two Catalan donkeys, which they are fighting to have recognized as a breed in France. "They're older, intelligent, and adapted to the region," Stadelmann points out.

The power of thermalism

But above the cherry and olive trees, if there is one deeply rooted tradition in the valley—and little known in Southern Catalonia—it is that of the thermal waters. "The water that flows today at the Baths is from rain that fell 3,000 years ago," explains journalist Josep Puigbert, former director of the Casa de la Generalitat in Perpignan and current head of the tourism agency for the Baths and Palaldà. The Romans established thermal baths there in 180 AD, and a building with a large vaulted ceiling, 11 meters wide, 12 meters long, and 11 meters high, is still preserved; today it serves as changing rooms. The attraction returned during the first half of the 19th century when Marie Amélie de Bourbon, wife of Louis Philippe I, decided to spend her winters there, which is why the name of the place was changed to the French version (Amélie-les-bains). The arrival of the railways popularized it, and after World War II, it fell into oblivion.

But the real boom came in the 1960s, when, unlike in Spain, the French Social Security system introduced "thermal care" as a prescription. "In the south, if you have asthma, they give you Ventolin," says Puigvert. "Here, you can have thermal treatments with medicinal waters that have undergone rigorous analysis." The French system pays between 90% and 95% of the cost of these treatments, carried out in the Mondony area, which must last at least 15 days and are valued at 500 euros. But the problem is that, despite the almost free prescription, there's no time off to take the baths. In practice, this has led to the Baths becoming a village surrounded by hundreds of tourist apartments where retirees stay for little more than two weeks. "We have 40,000 visitors a year, of which 20,000 are priests —the name used for those who go to the baths—who are about 69 years old on average,” explains the town’s tourism officer. Only 10,000 stay to enjoy nature tourism or discover Palaldà: next to the Baths stands a small, picturesque medieval village, with narrow streets and perched above the Tec Valley.

Following the river upstream, the Vallespir becomes increasingly narrow and narrow. Beside a bend, on a small hill overlooking the fertile lands that surround it, lies Arles del Tec. This village, which still retains the circular shape of the wall and moat that protected it from potential invasions from the plain, was founded in the 7th century and became one of the oldest Carolingian abbeys in Northern Catalonia. The church is a Romanesque gem, with a unique Gothic cloister built with nummulitic stone from Girona, evidence of historical trans-Pyrenean ties and the protection afforded by the Marca Hispánica (Spanish March). "They decided to take refuge there after having initially settled in the remains of the Roman baths," explains Anissa Zerrouki, the site's guide, speaking Catalan, which she is gradually learning in order to better serve travelers from the south.

If for centuries Arles was known for its monastery, the arrival of the train in the 19th century spurred an industrial era of textile factories and, surprisingly, a thriving chocolate production – which has recently been revived. Today, that past coexists with initiatives like the Hotel Les Glycines, where two young entrepreneurs have transformed the old establishment into a contemporary culinary destination rooted in local produce. "We've made a big personal commitment by buying the hotel and restaurant," explains Jennifer Sales, who speaks fluent Catalan because she grew up in Prats de Molló. "We hope Michelin will recognize us in a year or two, at least with a Bib Gourmand."

In any case, the food is also one of the valley's attractions. When it comes to sweets, the doughnuts embody a friendly rivalry between Arles and Les Baths to see which are the best. Whether they're the soft, sweet, lemony, hole-free pastries that Touron Pastry Shop in Arles has been making for five generations, or those from Pi Roue Pastry Shop in Les Baths, which Melinda Pi's great-great-grandfather learned to make in Barcelona. They were the queen's "treat" and spread throughout the Vallespir region so they could be sold hanging from a stick. Now they're sold as a sample of Catalan pastry in a valley near the border, where the adjective Catalan It has become an identity trait, but the use of the language has been languishing in recent decades.