So I went to Cadaques and I fell in love with Dali…
I can’t remember the day but I remember the bus journey, needless to say, it was long, it was hot and the bus meandered many hair pinned mountains bends on the way to Cadaques. I have to admit, I didn’t know much about Dali before this trip and I won’t profess to be a expert now.
So we got to the little fishing village and wandered around, we were told Dali’s house (now open to the public) was going to be easy to find, we were told wrong. We walked up one mountain and down another until we found two little locals girls who became our guides, I suppose you could call them girl guides! They couldn’t speak English but we all spoke pigeon and got on fine. The two girls took us back into town and to the tourist office where we found a map and booked our slot to Dali’s place (I now know viewings must be booked!)
With map in hand we found our way through the back streets of Cadaques to a little inlet and the home Dali shared with his wife Gala. The setting was perfect and I could see why he choose this place to live. His home sat perched on a cliff edge overlooking the sea. Inspiration was everywhere. Our time was called and we were greeted at the door by a polar bear holding a light. I loved him already…
As we walked through the house lots of little quirks appeared and I slowly began to get a feel for the man. He had a mirror on the wall opposite where he slept so he could see the sun rise from his bed. He cut a hole in the floor of his art studio so he could remain seated as he painted a large canvas. Gala had her own walk in wardrobe, the glass panel of each door filled with pictures of Dali and a wealth of stars, some of the pictures now beautifully brown and grained with age.
Just off the dressing room was a room Dali created especially for Gala, eleven years his elder she was both wife and muse. A surreal experience, the room was circular, seating hugged the walls and as I walked to the middle every sound felt as if inside my head, it’d send a sane man mad and a mad man mental. Outside there were disembodied heads on the roof, a giant man in the garden and a penis pool.
Dali was a mad man and I love him for it. Eccentrics are the best sort!
PS “Did you Know?”… Dali designed the Chuppa Chups logo (I didn’t but I do now)
