Magic Brittany

negative0-05-4a1“Finistère,” “Penn-ar-Bed” (the end of the world), or simply Bretagne, any expression you decide to use, is realized soon enough that this small fence of Northwestern France collects inside of different realities, Latin, Breton and of course French.

Brittany has always inspired me, perhaps because I love the Nordic countries and wild and I love the French.

France, for us who live in Milan, is very easy to reach. Just take a TGV from the Central Station to Paris and the game is done since Ville Lumière is possible to reach every corner of France. In my case, when I arrived at Paris Bercy I took a regional SNCF regional train to Nantes.

Starting a journey from Nantes was not a random choice because besides being the birthplace of Jules Verne, the French author I love is very close to Brittany and in the past was also part of it.

The city, though large enough, is easily visited because it is served by trams that run across the city. What I liked most about this city was the Jardin de Plantes, a botanical garden with well-kept ponds, benches, and meadows, in which loving couples, elderly people, young people and kids love spending time, especially local people and non-tourists. We immediately realize that the park is part of the daily lives of citizens and is conceived differently from us in Italy.

The most historic place in the city is undoubtedly the Castle of the Dukes of Brittany, here you begin to breathe a bit of Breton atmosphere and Breton history, the city is indeed located in historic Brittany and near the castle, it is easy to find several Celtic culture shops.

If you are a gothic-style lover, you can not visit the beautiful and charming Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Nantes Cathédrale that, like all the Gothic churches, strikes a lot of the grandeur and the height.
The most beautiful thing when traveling alone is to be able to talk to local people. Much depends on the character of the traveler, but certainly one of the best ways to grasp the true essence of the places beyond the tourist clichés is to be curious and ready to absorb all that surrounds us. So on the advice of a French lady, I headed to the river Erdre, a tributary of the Loire that is precisely in the town of Jules Verne!

The city of Nantes was largely destroyed during the Second World War and therefore the Old City occupies a very small space. As far as the Jules Verne Museum is located to the southwest of the city, in the Quai Marquis d’Aguillon, it is not easy to reach and not everyone knows it.

After leaving beautiful Nantes, I decided to go to Quimper, a city full of Breton history and ancient Cornwall capital, which is a two-hour train ride away. Here I met two Italian girls and a Prague boy, all like me looking for the hostel which was not really easy to find and so I visited the town laughing with my new travel companions!

This small city that at first glance looks like an Austrian city or, in any case, northern Europe, is perched on a river slope that is embellished on bridges with flowery sills. Just go into the old town to find that you are in a true Breton town, with typical houses with dark wood beams, slate roofs, and colorful colored windows. Walking around the streets of this pretty little town you can not see the facade of the HB-Henriot Faïencerie completely decorated with ceramic saucers. Quimper’s majolica is a famous artisan product and exported all over the world, and its origins date back to the nineties of the seventeenth century. The oldest factory in the area still works is, in fact, the HB-Henriot Faïencerie.

Again traveling to Brest. A premise: Sunday is not the ideal day to visit a country especially if you are a bit saddened or sad to have greetings to a travel companion. In France, but above all in Normandy and Brittany, on Sunday the streets are deserted and closed shops because these are the regions with a higher Christian presence than other areas. Sunday is indeed a feast day dedicated to the church and family.
Brest is a port city and home to the main French naval base. The most deserving part of the visit is the Gallo-Romanesque Brest Castle overlooking the Brest Bay, which houses the marina museum. Another important attraction is Oceanopolis, one of the largest aquariums in Europe.

After the visit to Brest where we spent the night greet the Italian girls, and I decided to take a direct bus to Le Conquet, it is here that ferries leave to the islands of the Iroise Sea, in particular, my destination is l ‘Ouessant Island. For a long time, I have been dreaming of visiting this island, which is the typical landscape that I am most thrilled by the stories and pictures I have seen: cliffs and meadows, driven by windy winds, wildlife, few people, and sheep everywhere. But not only, the Ile d’Ouessant in my opinion is the perfect place for light enthusiasts, yes, because this part of the Atlantic Ocean counts more than 120! A landscape that reminds so much of Cornwall, Scotland, and Ireland.

I have always read travel books and seen movies and documentaries of adventures in the world and one of the things that has always fascinated me is the encounter between travelers and local people ready to give hospitality. At this point in the journey I have already realized how true the first aspect is, that the journeys especially those in solitary and backpackers are made of unexpected meetings but certainly did not imagine receiving hospitality; instead, at the bus stop to Le Conquet, a couple of Frenchmen who would spend the summer on Molène Island at their relatives’ house, and between a chat and the other ask me if I want to spend days on them on the islet. How could I say no?

Arrived at Le Conquet with my new travel friends, I am immediately fascinated by this small fishing village, the westernmost part of continental France surrounded by cliffs, quiet despite the crowds that crowd the souvenir shops. It is a shame that you stop here just for the waiting time for the ferry to the islands! It is a small fishing village, surrounded by cliffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, only half an hour’s drive from Ile de Molène.

The Ile de Molène is a small island that has been part of the UNESCO heritage archipelago since 1988. Despite these credentials, tourists prefer the nearby and most famous island of Ouessant.

For travelers or tourists who do not have the same fortune to be hosted it is good to know that there are not many places to sleep.
Molène Island has a very small extension so it does not even appear on geographic maps and can be visited in one hour even if it is advisable to spend more time in order to enjoy the island’s true soul.

The first thing you notice once you set foot on the island is the soft ground as cotton, so that when walking almost seems to sink, it’s like walking on a mossy soil. It has a very sweet shape, completely covered with many species of plants and flowers (yellow, purple and white) and the rocks are covered with white and yellow moss.

It breathes much serenity, there are no sounds from nature, only the noise of bees, seagulls and the ocean. On this island, time is driven by the rhythms of nature on which the few islanders try to impact as little as possible.

The most striking thing is the total absence of illumination, how many natural beauties we lose each day in our cities or in our modern living? If you plan to walk in the evening perhaps along the coast it is better to carry a front lamp because the dark is really pesto and there are no names in the streets. But the spectacle of stars and far-sighted lights is guaranteed!

Tip: Bring your swimsuit with you, yes, you understand it well, because although you are in the Atlantic Ocean and the temperature of the water is a bit cold a dip in these waters you will appreciate it a lot. And then, do not forget that it is from the very long algae of this sea that produce the best muddies of beauty. And do not forget the sun cream because the sun shines a lot!

Culinary notes and curiosities: you can not taste typical Breton desserts such as the gavottes that you can eat with ice cream and chocolate and dessert crêpes. If you love to eat fish, try the “Crab”, a giant crab and the “Araignée de Mer”, an equally large spider, are real “monsters” of the ocean that must be eaten with a hammer. Think there are restaurants called “Restaurant avec martheau” where the waiters give customers the hammers with which to break the crust of the crust!
Then mix it up with an excellent “Cidre Bretonne doux”.

In agreement with my host family, I decided to take the boat to Ouessant Island and then return to Molène in the evening. The next day I should have greeted them to continue their journey to the city of Rennes.

At first glance, the island of Ouessant strikes for its impossibility especially if it is compared to the nearby island. It’s wild, full of woods with cliffs and cliffs overlooking the sea.

The best way to visit the island is to rent a bike because there are no other means of transport on the island and I followed some of their tips. To get to the large and tall cliffs and the great lighthouse, the brightest in the world, it’s best to cut the island in two across the country.

The country is not as typical as Molène, it is simply a set of houses but it is very useful especially if you have to buy souvenirs or simply food.

After passing the country you find yourself immersed in an expanse of fields and typical houses scattered here and there and past a historic mill on the island comes to the lighthouse. It is very strange that when you get to the lighthouse you do not yet see the coast, but just past the lighthouse in a moment you come across the cliff and it is at that moment that you feel so small and powerless in the face of nature and we it also feels part of it. It feels lucky and happy to be able to admire and become part of so much majesty.

It is recommended to visit the museum of French lights (Musée des Phares et Balises), which is very interesting on the outside of the lighthouse of Creac’h, the largest in the world.
Do not miss the most extreme part of the island that overlooks the ocean and from which you can see all the lights.

Rennes
When I came back Molène realized that due to the overcrowding of the hostels at this time of year, I can not continue my journey to the west coast, but I will have to move inland to the eastern part of the region where I found a place for a night.

To reach the city of Rennes from Molène, take the boat to Le Conquet, take the bus to Brest from the center of the village and then the train.

The first impression is of a very touristic, university and apparently multiethnic city. Characteristic for homes with typical beams typical of the Norman and Norman countries, with many cafes, restaurants, and bars.
I can not say much more because I spent only a few hours before resuming and so Rennes turned out to be just a step away.

Dinan
If like me, someone decided to trust the Lonely Planet guide and chose to stay at the Moulin de Méen hostel in Dinan you will probably walk to wonder if this hostel really exists, so to get there you have to go all the city’s historic center going into a forest.

But I can assure you that the “fatigue” will be repaid from the view of the water mill, the hostel in question completely immersed in the greenery. This hostel is ideal for those who love to stay in touch with nature, in peace but at the same time is the ideal place if you want to know travelers from all over the world.

The town of Dinan is an ancient medieval town crossed by the River Rance. They say that this town is one of the most beautiful in France, and whoever says it is unclear why this village has been able to preserve its ancient soul and also because of the natural context in which it is laid it has something magical. At the same time, it tries to keep up with modernity and can be seen from the restoration of the houses or the construction of new ones that try to keep up with the times without betraying their past and traditions.

It is recommended to visit the Dinan Castle and the “Chemin de la Ronde”, a route that allows a visit to the old town.

Dinan, as well as being a must-have for a trip to Brittany, is the ideal starting point for other places of interest such as Saint-Malo and Dinard.

St. Malo can be reached by bus from Dinan. It is a seaside town very popular with tourists, surrounded by defense walls because in the past it was the subject of pirate assaults.

There is, therefore, a city between the walls (intra-muras) and one outside the walls (extra-muras) facing the sea or precisely at the Channel of the Channel. What is most affecting the visitor’s eye is the phenomenon of tides that characterize this particular geographic area (including nearby Dinard and the famous Mont Saint-Michel) and that there are some very extensive beaches of bathers and of surfers.

Though it will hurt you to bathe between these crystal clear waters, I recommend you to visit the part of the city inside the walls, full of bars, restaurants, and shops, but the most characteristic of the great number of road artists.

If you want to get to Dinard just take a boat that will soon bring you back to the land.

Dinard has vast sandy beaches surrounded by red-brown granite cliffs and plenty of vegetation. It has a very elegant character and has in the past been a popular holiday resort of English and French elite. At that time, the curtains laid over the sand remained to shelter themselves from the wind and the blue and white striped sun that still today are the symbol of this town.

The holiday resort is well-known, following the beach where many hotels and hotels are located, where you can take a promenade called “Promenade de la lune”, which is very interesting from a naturalistic point of view, as you can admire the beach again the sea with the phenomenon of low tide.

Not to be missed is the “great plage”, a very large beach that, because of the low tide, is no longer made up of sand and sea but mostly of sand.

Mont Saint-Michel
Getting to this famous destination by Dinan by public transport is quite complicated and so I accepted with pleasure a break from the new traveling companions known in the hostel. The way to get to the mountain would definitely be on foot, by bike or even on horseback, but I must admit that getting to the car is also fascinating, because the road to a certain point “runs” the mountain and suddenly it will suddenly come to light a spectacle of nature and famous man in the world.

If the tide allows it, it is advisable to wander around the mountain before climbing the abbey. Having arrived in the afternoon, the tide had almost completely retreated, so there was only a little water around the mountain. It’s amazing how the visitor when he’s up to the mountain does not realize what’s waiting for him because he’s surrounded by meadows where sheep graze or there are people on horseback.

Unfortunately, the notoriety of this site generates daily hordes of tourists who virtually flock to the abbey and which has altered the character of this sacred place by creating so many, indeed, too many shops for souvenir tourists and typical products and jewellery various kinds.

The only luck for allergic people to the crowd and the chaos is that after passing the first alley at the entrance of the abbey, tourists are scattered here and there and you can continue your visit in peace.

The most exciting experience is to visit the abbey, especially the cloister, but above all from the panoramic terrace from which you can understand and realize what the tide phenomenon is about.

The tides of this landline are one of the strongest in the world and create an incredible water displacement. The mountain is in an extraordinary position, and due to this phenomenon that draws the waters approaching incredibly to the land, both Normandy and Brittany claim their membership.

It is good to remember that when the tide is low and retreats there is only sand and is very dangerous, it is as if it were a clay desert. Over the centuries many people have died, in fact, in all the tourist offices and accommodation facilities, the tide map is distributed with the timetables.

August 2009

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