 The fishing port of Sète
The town of Sète, to the south of Montpellier, has long supplied the tasty seafood, les fruits de mer, so commonly seen in the restaurants of the region. The fishing port is the biggest in the Mediterranean and the boats catch a wide variety of fish.
Whilst local fishermen complain that there are fewer and fewer fish, the shellfish, les coquillages, are plentiful. Oysters and mussels are farmed in the calm waters of the nearby lagoon, the Bassin de Thau. The French eat 130,000 tonnes of oysters a year and many of them are cultivated around Sète. Acre upon acre of these oyster farms cover the Bassin de Thau. They can be a good source of income but the whole process takes as long as 16 months.
The tiny oysters are first brought from the Atlantic, then attached to lines on the banks of oyster beds before being left to mature. The many small seafood restaurants in the town will give you the ideal excuse to sample the catch of the day. The town is not only famous for its quality fish and seafood, though: Georges Brassens, one of France's most popular musicians, was born in Sète.
Links
The area around Montpellier including Sète
In both French and English, this contains supplementary information on the town of Sète.
The fishing port of Sète
An account in English of the town's history, places of interest and produce.
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