Brittany—Our First Week

 

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A bridge in the village of La Gacilly, of photo festival fame.

Since we’ve been moving chronologically backward through Brittany, this last installment is of our arrival, in Vannes, a city in southern Brittany. Our other Brittany blogs are here, and here.

This was our second trip to Brittany, the first being in 2016. This time, though, we were joined by Paula’s brother Mark, who had driven up with us from Montpellier. We had come here, at least in part, to escape the heat down south. That aspect of our trip didn’t work so well, at least for the first week.

We arrived in the city of Vannes, our first stop in Brittany, to record high temperatures. Brittany has a reputation for being cold and wet, so nobody has air conditioning!

Paula and Mark at the entrance to the old city of Vannes, Porte Saint-Vincent

Once inside the gates the old city is full of... old buildings!

No one knows who added this couple, or when. Locals call them Mr & Mrs Vannes.

These half-timbered houses are a hallmark of Brittany, and northern France in general.
 (And no, nothing is square or plumb!)

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There were a number of things we'd planned to do in Vannes: repeat the boat tour of Morbihan Bay; re-visit the astounding standing stones in Carnac; tour the countryside around Vannes and visit some of the many picturesque towns. We did spent several days wandering through old stone villages, the ancient buildings now housing cafes, restaurants, art galleries, and shops selling all manner of local products and tourist items. Many of them are designated as villages fleuris*: villages where the inhabitants have made a marked effort to ensure the place is especially attractive, which generally includes planters throughout the city filled with… yes, flowers.

*This is actually an official designation, awarded by an organization whose goal is to encourage the beautification of French towns and cities.

The central square in Malstroit.

Malstroit, along the river.

Paul and mark in Rochefort-en-Terre--a village fleuri!

Also Rochefort-en-Terre. What is it with the old bicycles?

Of the towns we visited—Malestroit, Rochefort-en-Terre, and La Gacilly—the last was particularly interesting because of the summertime photography festival. It features works by artists both famous and unknown. Some photos are displayed as huge posters on the sides of buildings; others in more modest size along the extensive convoluted lanes through parks and woods. Quite extraordinary!

Summertime means photo festival time in La Gacilly.

A path in the woods in La Gacilly.

There are photos everywhere in La Gacilly.

 

And then, as we were driving to the seashore, we came upon the Domaine de Suscinio, the former home of the Dukes of Brittany in the Late Middle Ages. (It's great to stumble on an unexpected gem like this!)

Not far from Vannes is the town of Carnac, with its rows and rows of standing stones—hundreds of them—from Neolithic times. No one know exactly when they were erected, nor why, nor by whom. It’s hardly the only field of such stones, but it is one of the most extensive. We have long been fascinated by these stone alignments, and menhirs (single upright stones); we’ve seen them in Ireland and the UK (Stonehenge being the most well-known, but hardly the only!). But Brittany seems to have an extraordinary number of them.

Carnac, with rows and rows of standing stones... fenced in.

Anyway, we wanted to wander among the stones, as we did last time here. But, no doubt a victim of its own popularity, the alignments are now fenced; access is solely by guided tour. Eleven euros later we were inside the fence, trying to make sense of our guide’s endless lecture. Here we were among these stones that begged to be examined and explored, and all we were allowed to do was stand and stare. Very frustrating, for an area so full of mystery.

Carnac: rows and rows of mysterious stones!

Once done, we drove off to re-discover a menhir we’d discovered before. Fifteen feet high and a bit off the beaten track, it, at least, was not fenced in! 

The Geant du Manio. What was it for? Nobody knows!

But one thing we had not planned on was the July 14^th celebrations in Vannes.

 

July 14th, Bastille Day (as we call it in the US). While we tend to think of Bastille Day as similar to our Independence Day, the Fourth of July, in France it’s more a celebration of history and culture. While the big parades happen in Paris, Vannes celebrated with a medieval craft fair, a day of costumed characters roaming the streets of the city, and a fireworks display at night. It was special in a way that only a city full of 13^th Century buildings can be!

 

The fair occupied the huge gardens in front of the ramparts of the city. While we’ve been to numerous Renaissance Faires over the years, it’s difficult to beat the air of authenticity given by a backdrop of actual 13^th century stone walls. Plus, it’s likely that many of the participants were actually living out the lives of their great-great-…-great grandparents. The gardens were beautiful, the participants amazing; it was really wonderful so long as we could avoid the heat of the sun!

Ancient ramparts give an air of authenticity...

...that compliments the recreation of old (and current!) artisanal skills. A stained glass maker.

Making arrows--and magic wands--was very popular with the kids.

Deeper in the city, costumed characters wandered the streets: older couples representing rich merchants and nobles: younger people in wandering musical groups; and fantastical creatures, some with costumed handlers, and others just wandering wild.

Costumes!

 

Creatures, great and tall.

Mark gets a love kiss!

Read my book?

Oh, you'll want to hear my story!

As we were finishing our lunch at a sidewalk restaurant, Mark was confronted by a huge walking book, a lady’s head peering from above the spine. The tome opened to reveal a story of a knight and a dragon. After a brief response from Mark, the lady said, in lightly-accented English, “Oh, I don’t think I can do this in English!” She then proceeded, in French, to tell the story of the brave knight, Mark, rescuing the princess, Paula, from the ferocious dragon (who may well have been named Paul). And every aspect of the story was lavishly illustrated by drawings in the book.

 

A tale of the great knight Mark...

...defeating the fearsome dragon.

            It was hysterical!

The weather did cool, and we did do all we’d wanted to (except wander among those stones at Carnac!) Soon enough, it was time to move on to our next location, further north in Brittany.

 

 

No, it really is Vannes in 2022! A music troupe, on their way... somewhere.

Up next: We’re off this week to visit Corsica. This time we’ll be taking our own car across on the ferry. We’re sure to have some interesting stories to tell!