Le Touquet ~ "Paris by the Sea"
Le Touquet is a seaside resort in the Nord-Pas-De-Calais region of northern France. The long, sandy beach of the âEURoeCote de OpaleâEUR (the âEURoeOpal CoastâEUR ) is the drawing card. But of course, in early December when we found ourselves there, it wasnâEUR(TM)t the beach that drew us. Hans wanted to show us the architecture of the town as well as âEURoeintroduce us to real French restaurants where the food just melts in your mouthâEUR . Several years ago, Hans built and operated a B&B in Touquet so he knew this region very well. We stayed at Hotel Jules, a recently renovated small, inexpensive hotel in central Le Touquet. It was the perfect place because everything was in walking distance.
à  According to Wiki, Le Touquet has real estate agent classes the reputation as being "the most elegant holiday resort of northern France, the playground of rich Parisians."
"The popular resort of Le Touquet evolved from an isolated moor, inhabited only by wild animals, into one of the most chic of the northern seaside resorts which reached its peak in the 1920s. à  In 1819, the state put up for sale 1,600 hectares of land.à  à  It was bought in 1837 by two Frenchmen, Alphonse Daloz and Alyon, who tried to make it profitable,à  initially with a distillery and a potato industry.à  à  After many attempts, Alphonse Daloz planted a pine forest in 1855 and in 1852, two lighthouses arrived, providing employment for six families of lighthouse keepers.à  This was the beginning of Le Touquet Paris-Plage.à  à  It was in 1874, however, that it occurred to Villemessant who owned the newspaper âEUR~Le FigaroâEUR(TM), that this could be the perfect situation for a seaside resort and the first villas were built in 1882.à  (from Le Touquet Town Guide)
à  à  à  à  à  à  à  à  "In 1912 on 28th March Le Touquet became an independent town with the name Le Touquet ParisPlage. à  Shortly afterwards, the First World War halted its development temporarily and the smart hotels became hospitals for a while.à  However, in the heady atmosphere of post war society, à  Le Touquet became one of the smartest resorts in the then modern world.à  The
crà ¨me of British High Society were regular visitors and the resort gained a reputation for being fashionable with the wealthy and powerful, including potentates from as far away as the Orient and the East Indies.à  By 1927, the Casino was foremost of its kind in France.à  As a result of the townâEUR(TM)s new-found prosperity, the Town hall was built with the proceeds of one yearâEUR(TM)s winnings."à  (from Le Touquet Town Guide)
Town Hall à  à  à  à  à  à Â
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After a hearty French breakfast, Mag and I explored all the various shops in the downtown area.Ã Â One of our favorites was the Patisserie.
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I think I could spend days here feasting on these wonderful delights. Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â Ã Â
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And then there were so many "chocolatier" shops. Ã Â
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à  We also stopped at the fruit store to pick up some healthy snacks to go along with the breads, the cheeses and the chocolat.
But while we were surveying our choices, the guys at the fish market waved us over.Ã Â So much for fruit on our trip!
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à  All fresh off the fishing boats that morning. à  à  à  à  à  à Â
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On our way back to the Hotel we saw many colorful villas. I couldn't help but think that they reminded me of the property for sale in sidcup Oak Bluff gingerbread cottages on MarthaĂƒÂ˘EUR(TM)s Vineyard.
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New villas are being built today, but I don't think they have the charm of the older villas.
We did find two fixer uppers in the town....
but neither Mag nor I have a million dollars to invest in seaside property in France.
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