GIBBERISH

Off to Vannes - CASTLE DAY 11:17  Our first stop in the lovely city of Vannes .  A walled city and inland port.  Its old town filled with half timbered houses and quaint shops.  Its port on the Vanne R. that flow into the Gulf of Morbihan is full of boats of every description.  12:20 Suscino Castle One of the most important castles of Dukes of Brittany.   2:30 Stopped at a Cidre Place for lunch.  Had a crepe and some cidre.  Delicious. 3:15 Found an unexpected ruined castle along the way to Largoet.  Josselin This Josselin Castle was a beautiful castle above the river.  Most of the castles are on rivers which were major means of transportation and commerce.  Our stay for the next three days is at the Chateau De Codouzan.  This wonderful old manor homes has origins back to the 12th century.  Apparently it has been rebuilt five times.  The current owner claims some kinship to the originals through his wife's family...

Late start.. off like a herd of turtles. Dorian. Tiny sea side port. On to another tiny port. Not as beautiful. Then to Quimperle. Ancient town where three rivers meet. Lunch in a perfect Timber Frame house for pizza. Our 1400s Half Timbered Pizza Parlor Drove thru Lorent. So France does have some ugly cities… Ploneau for dinner. Looking out on the Atlantic and island Fort. Mussels Roquefort for me and fish and chips w potato pan cakes for D. o Along the way we found this wonderful group of menhirs or standing stones. I placed hands upon one to feel a message from the ancients. D asked what I received. The message was “get your grubby hands off my stone!”.

 Wonderful town of CONCARNEAU. At. The port and fortified old town. Lunch at L’Amiral.  Parking meter nightmare. They have a parking system where you pay at this machine called a horror something. It is a horror. $35 fine if you don’t pay. I was ready to lay down and cry. Could not figure it out. D figured it out. Saving an embarrassing scene. Museum of commercial fishing. I was ready to pull out my fly rod and snag a couple of cods. Yes I brought a fly rod. Wha t a wonderful place.  Next the The little village of Nevez. Thatched roof cottages! Then on to Pont Avon. The village of impressionist fame. Absolutely magical. The Avon river runs through it. Once home to many small mills but in houses and small workshops on the river. Center of cottage fabric making. finally to Quimper for dinner . Bigger town with a river running down the middle. Great meal. Best sweetbreads I have ever had. D had sea bass.

To drive here you need to be a confident and competent driver. And it helps to like to drive. The French are fortunately excellent drivers. They always signal, they yield, they stay on the right and they’re very patient. If this were say...Italy, I would be crushed like a bug by now. You drive on the right. The roads are excellent and well marked. BUT in the countryside it is different, very different.  So in these middle ages villages with roads made for pedestrians and horses, the roads are sometimes reeealy narrow… one lane. Especially when our sadistic GPS lady takes us on some impossible road going no where, or some impossibly narrow cobblestone alley.  We think that she is thinking “oh those American tourist I’ll fix them!” We often pray we don’t meet a car coming the other way. Someone is going to have to back up. And, it happens. But people are patient and kind. So we curse her under our breath.  WHAT was she thinking? But we don’t want to anger her…  One w...

 To Lacronon, Trboul, Point Raz, Audierne, point Abby, Benodet.  Sunshine!  Great day.  Little port villages with sailboats and old fishing boats.  Out to Point Raz western most peninsula.  Cliffs jagged rocks, tourists…. Walked about fifty miles to point.  Now crippled…. Dinner in a little port village of Benodet.  Mussels…yum!  Back at the Chalet about 9:30.  Semi-coma… 

 This was the only truly rainy day.  We had a lot of sprinkles but nothing serious until today.  We were delayed by bicycle road race on a windy road that went on for miles.  We couldn't pass most of the time. Then we came into a little village and saw this on the hill above it! St. Thegonnec Landivisian Finally into the port town of La Roche Maurice.   Landreneau Daolas La Faou Camaret Sur Mer Crozon Lacrenon Concarno Our new home Manoir du Stang A delicious crepe.  The most famous food of Brittany.

Breakfast w Canadians also staying here at the z.   11: 30 Up to cairn of Barnrnez.  Very impressive 6000 year old Neolithic burial chamber complex.  Biggest in Europe.  1:00 Then fantastic lunch in little town on the way to Roscoff.  D had galette (crepe w ham and cheese and egg) I had a huge pot of exquisite mussels..  2:30  Port Town of  4:00 Off to castle Rosanbo .  Another wonderful castle.  Grounds open but no one there.  Broke in and made ourselves comfortable.   Roscoff very touristy but neat. Beautiful Port city.   Had coffee at the port. Couldn’t get back to our car because of a wedding party blocking the alley to where our car was parked   Lot of nerve! They could have postponed that wedding !.  5:00 Then to the Chateau Kerjean a wonderful 16th C fortified Chateau.  D tried to lock me in the dungeon. I had been bad, ogling some.. .. you  thought I was going to say mademoiselles.  N...