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Nothing's Coming Up Roses

Posted by Ree in Spain on 19/Oct/2006
Roses Beachside Road An unfortunate foray was made by yours truly into Roses, in response to its overly simplistic bus connection to Figueres - a mistake that will not be made again. This beach town on the Costa Brava has a lovely name, and a long and lovely sand beach, and little else of charm. It is for the most part a package-holiday paradise for French pensioners and young families, with newly built condominiums dotting the shoreline, and many more sprouting nearby. In effect, it is exactly the opposite of what I look for a in a coastal escape.

Don't judge Roses too harshly because of its obvious flaws though. It's not a terrible place to be stuck for a day, or even a week. It's just lacking a bit in character and peace and quiet. The streets are lined with palm trees - and a thousand parked cars.

Although there is an "old town" reserved for pedestrians, it is crowded with overpriced restaurants with menus in 7 languages (always a bad sign - although the one we ate in was surprisingly good) (Then again, how can you possibly serve bad seafood when you're 10 meters from the water) and shops overflowing with pricey disposable flip flops and tacky beach coverups.

If you can ignore these distractions, and make it to the beach Roses might redeem itself in your book. However, for my husband and I, the sound of the waves was drowned out by the not-funny jokes of the loud mouthed tourists lounging around us so we decided to make a run for it, and move on to Cadaques (a decision I'd recommend to everyone).

The world renowned restaurant El Bulli (make reservations for technologically modified food a year in advance) perches in the hills nearby, and a meal there plus a quick swim at the beach (the water is warmer than in Cadaques) might be the only reasons to make a stop in Roses.

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