A little more Brittany

Parc du Thabor in Rennes is home to this pair of pretty birds.

In pursuit of some new scenery, hopefully filled with colorful autumn foliage, we head to Brittany for a few days. We choose the city of Rennes as our home base and decide to confine our exploration to this area. Brittany is big, and having just a few days here, we know that points further afield will need to wait until a subsequent trip. 

Paimpont Abbey was founded by the King of Brittany in 6th century

I'm eager to explore Forêt de Brocéliande, the legendary home to Merlin and King Arthur. We arrive in the village of Paimpont in time for lunch. After satisfying our tummies and an exploration of the village, we have only a few hours before the sun will set. Thus, we'll need to limit ourselves to just one of the six forest hikes recommended by the tourist office. We drive about 20 minutes to Tréhorenteuc and look for the unmarked path around Arbre d'Or. I'd love to say that we completed the loop, but we were chilly and tired and eager to check in to our Rennes lodging before dark. A more thorough visit to Forêt de Brocéliande will also have to wait until our next trip.

From Tréhorenteuc, we set out on a path in the ancient Forêt de Brocéliande.

The first resident of La Tour Duchesne in Rennes was responsible for
opening and closing the Mordelaise city gates in the 15th century.

Rennes's city hall is located in Place de la Mairie, which also
contains the city's opera house.

On Day 2, so we forego the car and take a short subway ride into downtown Rennes. I don't feel at ease in a new city until I have a paper map in my hand, but unfortunately the tourist office doesn't open until the afternoon. Instead we muddle through using GPS and an online map that is too tiny to be much help. 

With its charming buildings and plenty of places to eat, Rennes
is a great city in which to spend a day.

Golden heralders are perched atop the Parliament building in Rennes.

Overall, though, we manage to see a lot of historical sites. Rennes is the capital of Brittany and in addition to an impressive Hôtel de Ville, the Parlement de Bretagne is here. One has to have advance reservations to tour the Parliament, which is now the city's Palace of Justice. Reservations are only handled through the tourist office, so there's no way we can join a tour today. 

Parc du Thabor is at beautiful place to walk in Rennes.

Instead, we head to Parc du Thabor. This being late in the year, there aren't many flowers, but the foliage more than makes up for that. We come upon an aviary where, despite not being a bird person, we spend an enjoyable half-hour watching the shenanigans of the winged residents. The park has a fascinating history. In 1867 Thabor was inaugurated by a decree from Napoleon III who commanded that every large city in France have a public park. Originally, only men were allowed, then another part of the park was open only for women. Within its 10.3 acres, visitors can find rare trees, rose and botanical gardens, ponds, waterfalls, a carousel, a bandstand, as well as the aforementioned aviary. 

Nearly 2 kilometers of walls surround the citadel of Saint Malo. 

The following day, we head about an hour north to the Emerald Coast. Our first destination is the Pointe du Grouin on the headlands just north of the town of Cancale. We arrive only to find that the parking and all access to Pointe du Grouin are closed for safety improvements. It would have been nice if there had been signs alerting us to the closure as we passed by Cancale. Oh well, on to Saint-Malo.

Expect tourist prices as well as ambience in Saint-Malo restaurants.

We park near the tourist office, just outside the old city walls. Saint-Malo was nearly completely destroyed during the allied invasion of 1944, and most of the buildings have been meticulously reconstructed. The old city is easy to explore, but as it starts to rain, we decide to have lunch (an overpriced, but yummy salmon galette) instead of walking along the 2-km-long ramparts.

Saint-Vincent Cathedral of Saint-Malo was severely damaged during
World War II, and its reconstruction was completed nearly 30 years later.

The 15th-century clock tower, Tour de l'Horage
dominates the town center of Dinan. 

The rain has stopped by the time we get to Dinan, a charming medieval town. We spend our time here strolling about and admiring the buildings, particularly the old clock tower. The tourist office, located near the Dinan Château provides a handy walking-tour map for a few centimes. 

Originally built by the Duke of Brittany to dominate Dinan's residents,
the château became the town's major defense against invaders.  

Upon reflection, November is not a bad month to visit this part of Brittany. The weather is a bit iffy, but there aren't any crowds. I look forward to allowing more time on our next trip here to explore much more of beautiful, rugged Bretagne.

Even when the weather is gloomy, the charm of Dinan shines through.

Sunny days in Brittany: Two out of three ain't bad

The Carnac countryside in southern Brittany is dotted with ancient megaliths.

When visiting Brittany in spring, one has to expect a little rain. During our first visit to this region (named Bretagne in French) in northwest France, we are lucky enough to have two sunny days. The third day it pours, causing us to cancel a planned visit to the Paimpont forest, but we console ourselves with scrumptious Kouign Amann (pastry oozing with butter) and getting acquainted with Paul Gauguin. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

The seaside near our campground in Le Raguénès gives us our first
glimpse of the Brittany coast.

For this little road trip, we decide to (kinda) camp. We've booked a mobile home in a Eurocamp park, just a 10-minute walk from the sea. There are resorts like this throughout Europe. Since we're here so early in the season, we've snagged a bargain rate. Later in the summer, this place will be teeming with families making use of the water slide and outdoor pools, but for now it's quiet and nearly deserted.

Concarneau

Ken poses with a big anchor on the bridge to the walled city in Carcaneau.

First thing in the morning we set out for Carcaneau, France's third-most important fishing port. The main tourist attraction here is the old walled city — ville close. The well-preserved neighborhood is set on an island 1,150 yards across. The square and surrounding narrow cobbled streets are charming, and we enjoy pretty views from the top of the ramparts.

The main square in Carcaneau is nearly empty on the morning of our visit.

Boats are moored at the inner harbor in Carcaneau.

A stone man keeps watch on a wall in Carcaneau.

This window contains another little stone man in Carcaneau.

A horse sits on a rooftop in Carcaneau.

Quimper

Quimper is the unofficial capital of Cornouaille, a historical region of Brittany steeped in culture, art and nature. The city stands at the confluence of the Odet, Steir and Jet rivers; appropriately enough, Quimper's Breton name is Kemper, which means "meeting place of three rivers."

A souvenir shop is adorned with ceramic bowls, a popular Quimper momento.

We spend a few hours exploring the city and have a great debate over where to eat lunch. I win, so the only thing left to do is choose from one of the dozens of crêperies here.

While in Quimper, we have to try authentic Brittany crêpes, and I choose the
picture-worthy smoked salmon with creamy leek sauce.

After lunch we wind up our visit to Quimper with a visit to Faïencerie de Quimper where the beautiful pottery for which this area is famous is created. Unlike the inexpensive knock-offs found in the local shops, this store (which also offers tours of its workshop) stocks the real thing ... lovely, but way out of my price range.

I develop a case of ceramic-envy in the Faïencerie de Quimper shop.

La Mise au Tombeau was installed in Quimper's Cathédrale Saint-Corentin in 1868.

I allow Ken to take my picture in Place Terre au Duc in Quimper.

Carnac

Église Saint-Cornély de Carnac is a mixture of
architectural styles.

Tuesday turns out to be the best day (weather-wise) of our trip. With clear blue skies we've picked the perfect day to check out the Alignements de Carnac. This area offers an exceptional archaeological landscape. More than 3,000 menhirs dominate the surrounding fields and pastures.

A farmhouse sits at the edge of a field of megaliths in Carnac.

The Carnac alignments (rows of standing stones) were erected in the Neolithic era (between the fifth and third millennia B.C.). The megalithic landscape includes menhirs (lone stones), mounds (individual tombs), and dolmens (collective tombs). No one know for sure why the stones were erected and arranged this way. Through the ages, the megaliths were at various times believed to be Roman legionaries turned to stone, magical rocks, Celtic temples, or burial grounds. In the last century, efforts have been made to preserve the megaliths and the land surrounding them. Visitors can walk in the fields among the stones in the winter, but between May and September must be part of small guided groups in order to preserve the ecology of the land.

The Alignments of Carnac are a 6,000-year-old mystery. 

Stacked stones, or dolmens, in Carnac are believed to be ancient tombs.

Presqu'ile de Quiberon

Yes, the sea really is that blue on the day of our visit to Quiberon.

As mid-day approaches we head to the Quiberon Peninsula, once an offshore island. The two-lane road along the peninsula is narrow enough for us to see the calm sheltered waters of the Baie de Quiberon to our left (east) and the tempestuous Côte Sauvage of the Atlantic Ocean to our right.

Auray

Saint-Goustan in Auray was once a busy port.

Perhaps my favorite village we visit on this little trip to Brittany is Auray. After our requisite stop at the tourism office, we follow the suggested route that takes us by Église Saint-Gildas, named for a monk from Cornwall who founded an abbey near here in the 6th century. Half-timbered houses from the 16th century and narrow freestone mansions from the 17th century line Place de la République, Auray's economic center since the Middle Ages.

Auray's Saint-Gildas Church contains a magnificent sculpted wooden organ.

From the main part of town we head down a steep hill to the Saint-Goustan quarter. This port was once one of the region's busiest, but the development of the nearby Lorient port and the railroad diminished its importance.

In 1776, Auray had a visitor, one that is of particular interest to us. Benjamin Franklin set off across the Atlantic to Nantes, entrusted with the mission of asking for France's help in the upcoming War of Independence. Bad weather forced Franklin's ship to dock at Auray where he spent the night before continuing on by land to Nantes.

Auray's port, Saint-Goustan, contains a quay named in honor of Benjamin Franklin.

This little stone watcher on a building in Auray sits above a sundial.

Pont-Aven

From beneath my umbrella on the opposite bank of the Aven river, I spot
this lovely vine-covered house in Pont-Aven.

OK, so Pont-Aven may be our second choice for where to spend our third and final day here, but the little artists' colony turns out to be a charming consolation prize, even in the rain. In addition to galettes ( butter biscuits), the village is best known for its association with post-Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin. At the end of the 19th century, the artist and his contemporaries, including Émile Bernard, Paul Sérusier and Maurice Denis,  formed the École de Pont-Aven art movement, which focused on color and symbolism. Housed in an annex of L'Hôtel Julia (which has its own fascinating history) Musée de Pont-Aven contains an impressive collection of works by artists of the Pont-Aven School.

Paul Gauguin created this zincography entitled Les Dames de la mer, Bretagne
in 1889.

Musée de Pont-Aven contains around 200 paintings and graphic artworks
of the famous Pont-Aven School.

This W.C. (public restroom) in Pont-Aven has to be
one of the most unusual we've encountered.

As the summer heats up here in France, our travels cool down. For the next few months we'll be sticking close to home, enjoying local events, spending time with friends (especially those with swimming pools), and avoiding large crowds. While the next big trip won't be until fall, you can keep up with me via Lot of Livin', the blog I write for the AngloInfo website, which you can find by clicking here.