Tossa to Fossa
In Catalan, you might translate “fossa” as a “burial pit”. So… “Fossa de Mar” might easily translate to a “Grave by the Sea”…
The world, though, knows this place as “Tossa de Mar“, on the Costa Brava of Catalunya, Spain. Even with the massive number of non-descript, bunker style hotels that have been erected in recent years, Tossa still retains much charm–the beach, the old part of town, the church and fortress ruins above, the soft sand, the blue-green of the Mediterranean Sea…
Why would I say “Fossa” vice Tossa, you ask? Well, I see it as a sort of play on words to indicate the impending death of this place due to excessive tourism. Only this year’s Covid-19 plague has given the town a brief reprieve. I expect the steady erosion of its quaintness to continue unabated once the virus is no longer a threat to packed planes, trains, and automobiles. On the other hand, those who make a living from tourism are liking the [pre-Covid] trend, so what can I say.
Tossa de Mar was once just another coastal fishing village, also producing grapes for wine and even cork for the bottles. Then, in 1950, Hollywood arrived in the persons of Ava Gardner and James Mason (et al en masse) to film Pandora and the Flying Dutchman. Ava fell in love with the place, they say, and things here haven’t been quite the same since. The gat was out o’ the bossa. Tossa was “discovered”.
So, count Tossa de Mar as yet another casualty of the grand success of mass tourism. I would not recommend a visit during the summer months. I would, though, consider a visit during the late fall, winter, and very early spring months–when the beach and streets are nearly empty of humans and one doen’t feel so smothered by all those bronzed sapiens.
With the world currently semi-shut down due to the virus, our October visit revealed a very calm and tranquil Tossa de Mar of the past… a handful of French tourists, another handful of semi-local Catalan tourists, and empty beaches. Good for photography, but maybe too quiet I suppose for those who have come to rely on tourist dollars.
Monochrome Images
If you Google Tossa de Mar and select “images” to see the thousands of photographs people have taken of this place, you’ll notice very, very few are in black and white. To upset the olive cart, I present the following…
A selection of interesting objects, arranged just right:
The classic Tossa photo… but wait for Jonathan Seagull to cross through your field of view!
The flag of Catalan independence, the senyera estelada. The original construction of the fortress dates back to the 12th century, but it has obviously been fixed up over recent decades and centuries:
I’m always looking up, I guess. Nice trees up by the fortress:
Ava Gardner watches over the town:
Another standard tourist shot of Tossa–everyone stops to take a picture here. In summer, it would be hard to see any sand on that beach for the massive quantity of human flesh sprawled thereupon:
The above, but zoomed in a bit:
This is Església Vella de Sant Vicenç, on the hill above town. Symbolically, it was located above the old town (the people), but below the original castle site (political power)–a message there? This church, like the fortress, had it’s beginnings in the late 12th century, with many destruction and reconstruction cycles up to the present day:
A perfect place for a romantic lunch, high above the sea. But… Covid-19 = No Tourists (the place was indeed open):
Seagulls between sea and pines. Do you see the second one?
The lighthouse, built in 1919:
A spiderweb of pines:
Selective color always seems a bit gimmicky, but what the heck. I liked the private little Eden of the swimming pool and its garden:
Jonathan guards the town with a sharp eye. That’s the “newer” village church in the background, dating from the later 18th century (our revolutionary period in the USA!):
A view of the Old Town, inside the fortress walls:
Roof scenes:
Old Town passageway:
Tower, windows, and walls:
Random Old Town view:
More roof scenes:
A better view of the 18th century Església parroquial de Sant Vicenç de Tossa de Mar:
Another Old Town passageway:
Filled in… when and why?
Telephoto compression and an arcing composition:
Ending with… a classic Costa Brava scene:
In Color
And now, a few images for the “monochrome-impaired”…
A color version of the senyera estelada, the flag of the Catalan independence supporters, atop the fortress tower. Texas and Chile aren’t the only “lone star” flags!
The fortress cafe. On a normal day–even in October–this deck would be quite full of humans with their conversation, laughter, and much clinking of wine glasses:
Joaquina would be honored and proud. Was it the fisherman’s wife? Daughter? Assuming, of course, it was a fisherman since it was decades ago. We can’t assume the same today:
A pair of seagulls float upward, toward the sun:
That turquoise pool really stands out in this full color version… a little Garden of Eden hidden amongst the buildings and vegetation of the village:
Who is that tourist in the walkway?
From Jonathan Livingston Seagull: “You’re never given a dream without the power to make it true.”
A wall and two roofs:
Finally, this one again, in color. I’d love to see it printed at 3 feet by 6 feet and on a living room wall:
