Hikers combine sport and history.
The Pyrénées Méditerranée intercommunal tourist office continues its thematic hikes: the accompanied hike “On the paths of exile” took around thirty people from Portbou to Cerbère.
Arriving by train in Portbou, the hikers then reached the Col des Balitres on foot, one of the main crossing points for Republican exiles during the Spanish Civil War. The Retirada Memorial is there, at the place where thousands of people fled to France, notably after the fall of Barcelona in January 1939.
At the initiative of this hike, Patricia Baudesson brought with Jean-Pierre the testimony of their families who experienced this painful exile: “France was seen as a land of welcome and freedom and it knew how to welcome, even if the conditions were difficult.
At Cerbère, hikers are received with a glass of friendship, offered by the municipality, in front of an exhibition of more than 350 photos and press articles, organized by the Cerbère objective perspectives association. Jean-Michel Blanc, its president and documentalist, comments on these archive images, in particular the drawings made in 1938-1939 by the children of the Spanish Center. This structure was created in October 1937 in Cerbère at the initiative of Pep Bosch and Julien Cruzel, mayor at the time, to welcome and educate refugee children from the Spanish Civil War and the exodus. The drawing books had disappeared and were found in the United States.
From April to June, then in September and October, a thematic hike will take place every Thursday from Cerbère to the Retirada Memorial. Patricia notes: “Historical and memorial hikes are very successful: locals or visitors, people appreciate the history of the place where they walk.”
2024-02-23 04:09:17
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