The blog is now officially closed until our next trip or other significant reason to post.

The last night in London at the airport was boring except for the fact that we got to watch the debut first episode of the new Downton Abbey season!  It debuts in the UK long before it does in the US.

Arriving early at Gatwick Airport for the flight, we had a breakfast at the airport McDonalds!  Sausage McMuffin with Egg and Hash Browns tasted exactly like they do at home.  Duty free shopping was uninspiring, but Elaine picked up a few “Stay Calm and Carry On” dish towels.

The flight was uneventful although seemingly endless.  Once again Virgin Atlantic had the bags of premium economy passengers on the carousal first, a nice perk.  Customs clearance was a little slow as a plane from Panama was clearing at the same time we were.  Can’t trust those Panamanians, I guess.

Dinner was at Carrabba’s and the night at SpringHill Suites in Henderson.  We were up at dawn to get on the road and were home before noon.

Our last dinner at “home” in Plouezoc’h was simple and yet very French and very delicious, served on a sunny patio.

• A nice slice of duck terrine from the local market
• Camembert and Compte Cheese
• A delicious loaf of afternoon fresh bread from the boulangerie
• A bottle of wonderful of French wine
• Fresh Macarons for desert (four lemon; four passion fruit with chocolate)

Saturday

The Drive to Abbeville

Six hours on the road and we were in Abbeville after stopping for an eminently forgettable lunch of bad sandwiches and Lay’s potato chips at a French Autoroute rest stop.

Twenty odd years ago we stayed in Abbeville a few times en route from Paris to Calais to get the ferry/train back to London.  Abbeville was a drab town, chosen merely because it was about an hour from Calais and, therefore, a good stopping point.  The Hotel de France was an aging French hotel, a little dumpy inside and out, but it was the best in town and it had a good restaurant.

Well, both Abbeville and the Hotel de France have been transformed.  The main street in Abbeville is totally renovated and fully alive with shops, restaurants, cafes, and bars.  It was colorful and lively.  Mercure, a French chain, now runs the Hotel de France.  It is stunningly modern from top to bottom with rooms that any brand new Marriott would be proud of.  (Oh, the wi-fi didn’t work, but it’s France – C’est normale)

Dinner in the restaurant was very good.  We both started with a trio of macarons, each sliced and filled with smoked salmon in one, artichoke and celeriac mouse in another, and foie gras in the last.  The sweetness of the macarons perfectly complemented the fillings.  For my main I had a double order (to Elaine’s chagrin) of steak tartare with frites;  she had country chicken casserole seared in beer and served with potatoes and vegetables.  I had mi cuit chocolat for desert and Elaine enjoyed a final tarte tatin.

Sunday

The Ferry

We drove the hour from Abbeville to Calais in some dense fog, but it was clear by the time we reached the ferry terminal.  We had priority boarding on the P&O ferry and actually got on an earlier departure than our reservation.  The ride was smooth as we watched the white cliffs of Dover come closer and closer from the P&O club lounge.

Actually it was good that we caught the earlier ferry because the drive from Dover to Heathrow to turn in our car took longer than expected.  We dropped the car, and they then  dropped at the Heathrow terminal.  Oh, oh, no camera!  A quick call, and the nice man was back with the camera in hand.  At the terminal, we caught the National Express coach for the hour plus ride to Gatwick where our flight leaves from tomorrow.  We checked into a very nice Marriott Courtyard (using points).  We’ll have dinner there tonight.  The flight tomorrow is at 11;25 am.  We’ll overnight in Henderson, NV after we land and be home by noon on Tuesday.  I’ll check in with a post then.

I’m almost embarrassed to post Elaine’s trip postscript, but it’s a tradition, so here it is:

Elaine’s Postscript

As usual, Joe’s meticulous planning kept us busy for almost 5 full weeks.  We saw more of Brittany than most French people.  From big cathedrals to small gardens tucked away in some small town, there was little we missed.  Cornwall, Devon and the Isle of Jersey received the same attention to detail.  I sometimes say Joe is too anal about some things but when it comes to travel planning, he has no peer.  I also say that we do too much in a day but he says “we can always rest when we get home and we may never be here again” so we march on. 

Joe’s French was ever so good.  He dealt with the Renault service department with aplomb; he got directions for our hotel in Dinan when we were hopelessly lost; he explained to the pharmacist that I needed an antibiotic for an eye infection and he handled so many other things all the while ingratiating himself to the locals. 

There is no one I would rather have as a travel partner and no one I would rather share the road with.  Merci beaucoup, mon cher!

Answers to Some Comments and Questions:

No Oysters Tonight?  Actually, probably yes.  On evenings when we eat out, I normally get oysters for my appetizer (usually nine of them).  I did, in fact, have them when we were in Concarneau as that area is the production center for world famous Belon Oysters.  You can get Belon oysters in Maine, too.  They were exported to Maine from here and flourished there as well.

What’s the temperature average?  It was cool in the UK the whole time (upper 50’s and 60’s on most days).  In Brittany it has been surprisingly mild.  When the sun is out, which it has been for at least part of most and all of some days, the temperature easily gets into the 70’s.  It was close to 80 for several days, warm enough to go swimming (although we didn’t).  It cools off considerably during the night.

When does it get light in the morning and dark at night?  France is an hour ahead of the UK although Brittany is due south of England.  It barely gets light by 8:00 am in France, a disadvantage to early risers like us, so we have staying in bed until after 7:00 am most mornings.  The sun goes down at around 7:30 pm although light lingers on for some time after that.

Closings?  In Brittany in July and August many attractions are open all day every day.  Once September hits, the hours are reduced significantly with most things closing for two hours (minimum) at mid-day for lunch.  Some things only open in the morning or afternoon.  Some things only open certain days.  And when October hits, many things close down completely or stay open only one day a week.

Do they speak English?  In Brittany, basically, no.  They do at B&B’s and at restaurants located in very touristy areas, but otherwise very few people speak any English at all.  A lot do speak Breton which might help a little if I spoke Gaelic (I don’t) as the two Celtic languages are related.  All road signs here are in both French and Breton.  Anyway, my French has been pretty good this trip and has been tested in some trying circumstances (like when buying a new phone, when making phone reservations, in pharmacies, and at Renault dealers when recovering from using the wrong fuel).  I give full credit to my Harrap’s French in the Real World, a book I bought many years ago, to my brand new Larousse Dictionnaire (français-anglais; anglais-français), and to Miss Miche, my high school French teacher for three years.  Et une petite merci á Mianne pour l’assistance occasionalle pendant les années.

This will be the last serious post.  Tomorrow (Saturday) morning we leave for the six hour drive to Abbeville where we will stay at the Hotel de France.  We stayed there two or three times many years ago, one time with Bobby Messina.  It was an old hotel then, but now it has been taken over by Mercure Hotels and has been presumably updated considerably.  I’ll do a brief update from there about the drive from Plouezoc’h to Abbeville.  Sunday morning we drive an hour to Calais for our 10:45 ferry to Dover in the UK.  We gain an hour and arrive at 11:15.  Then we drive to Heathrow, turn in the car, and take the National Express coach to Gatwick.  At Gatwick we will stay overnight at the Marriott Courtyard (for free, using my Marriott points).  I’ll do another brief update then.  Monday morning we will be on the Virgin Atlantic plane for Phoenix.  Overnight Monday in Henderson, again using Marriott points at SpringHill Suites.  We’ll hit the road early on Tuesday and  be home around.

Wednesday Night Dinner

Our repeat dinner at Café du Port in Dourdoff, a tinier section of tiny Plouezoc’h was as good as the first time.  We had the same fish special as our first visit.  And the oysters, hatched locally, were delicious as well.  Elaine had fish soup as her appetizer.  The waiter/maitre d’ explained to me in French something about the oysters that I didn’t understand – With some English and some French, he communicated that the oysters were good but pregnant right now and therefore a little greasy.  Did I still want them?  D’accord, apportez les á moi!

Thursday

A Morning in Morlaix and Lunch by the Sea

As we got up and showered, it was raining steadily, and it looked like this time it might be an all day affair.  The big (although not terribly so) city nearest to Plouezoc’h is Morlaix, about a 12 minute drive away.  We hadn’t really spent any time in Morlaix, so with the rain we decided to visit their museum.  Our guidebook reported it was open from 10:00 to 12:00 and again from 2:00 to 5:00 during October.

First stop was at the little pharmacy here in town to seek out some eye ointment for Elaine.  The very nice lady behind the counter spoke no English.  “Bonjour, madame, mon français est trés limité.  Peut-etre avez-vous un médicament ou une pommade pour l’œil?”  She had a look at Elaine’s eye and came up with an ointment (pommade) for her.

It was still raining lightly as we found a parking place near the museum, but the sky was lightening up considerably.  Good thing!  Le Musée est fermé jusqu’à 26 Octobre.  Sorry, we’ll be gone by then.  So magically (again!), the rain stopped and the sun came out.  We spent a very pleasant 90 minutes or so walking around Morlaix which is really quite a pretty place.  It is dominated by the old aqueduct built in the 1880’s for the Paris to Brest rail line.  I’ll let the pictures tell the story of our walk which included many a staircase as we wended our way from the bottom of the town to the top.  Highlights included the aqueduct, the narrow streets and old buildings, Ste-Melanie’s Church, and the fountain at the Carmelite church.  The Carmelites were invited here in the 17^th century to help with an outbreak of the plague.  It must have helped as we didn’t encounter any plague problems.

As lunch time was approaching, we decided to return to the first place we had lunch in the area, a seaside café in Tenerez just outside Plouezoc’h.  I had inquired when we were first there, and the proprietor assured us he was open for lunch “tous les jours a midi sauf mardi”.  We got there at 12:30.  Fermé.  Humph.  In driving around we had spotted another restaurant called L’Abbesse, part of a small hotel named Au Temps des Voiles, that looked appealing and we headed for it.  It was open and we had a delightful lunch:  moules frites for Elaine and an exquisite bar (sea bass) for me.  We accompanied it with a demi litre du vin rouge de la maison.  And they also served us an amuse-bouche that was wonderful.

Then it was home far a nap before another return visit to a restaurant for tonight’s dinner – Les Chaises in Plougasnou.  We were greeted like old friends at the restaurant.  Elaine had crevettes (shrimp) as a starter while I noshed on delicious foie gras.  (Non, desolé, pas des huitres (oysters) ce soir.)  Elaine had a chicken main and I opted for duck breast.  Delectable.  For desert Elaine had deux boules de sorbet (citron et passion) while repeated my desert from the prior visit – mi cuit de chocolat maison.

FRIDAY

Last Full Day in Brittany

The stars were magnificent last night, and today looks like a good day, but anything can happen with the weather here, so we’ll see how the day progresses.  We decided to stay close to home today and explore a few spots that we have missed.  First we went to a historic village depicting life in a French town in the 1800’s.  Michelin assured me it was open every day in October from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm.  Wrong,  Closed.

So we went on the Guerlesquin, a quaint old town with a historic prison and a famous chapel.  We knew they would be closed, but we saw them from the outside.  We also visited the town church.  It’s a very pretty town.

Then we drove to Plougonven to see it’s parish close.  Lo and behold, it was actually open.  It’s actually more impressive from the outside.  Here the good weather disappeared and the clouds rolled in again.

Lunchtime now, so we decided to go home, pick up sandwiches from our glorious little boulangerie, and eat at home.  Time to nap and start packing up.  Tonight we will eat at home as well, a simple meal of fresh bread, cheese, paté, and a fine bottle of wine.

Be back tomorrow night for a short post on the ride to Abbeville.

 

Monday Revisited

Monday, which I reported on in the last post, was such a picturesque day, here are some more photos:

TUESDAY

The Fishing Museum and a Drive Home

We awoke Tuesday morning in our hotel, had breakfast, and checked out.  We spent a little more time walking around Concarneau which really is a wonderful fishing port.  Then we visited the town’s highly regarded Musée du Pêche (FishingMuseum).  It sounds boring, but it wasn’t.  Some good exhibits and a chance to wander around on an old fishing boat tied up in the harbor next to the Museum.  They had some excellent movies showing different types of fishing that is done from Concarneau.  Besides being a historically important sardine fishing (and canning) port, it has now become a center for tuna fishing.

 Then we drove to nearby Pont-Aven, a small town noted as a resort where painters liked to congregate.  Gaughin headed the Pont-Aven School started in 1888.  We skipped the small museum and opted for lunch on the terrace of a restaurant right on the AvenRiver.  We sat under a sturdy canopy, a good choice since it started raining very hard while we were there.  Elaine Moules au Curry et Frites; I had Moules au Roquefort et Frites.

Then it was back to Plouezoc’h and Manoir de Keristin (La Maison des Araignées).  Before getting home we stopped at a supermarket to get some stuff a dinner at home and, of course, at the local boulangerie for a baguette and desert.  It rained for almost the whole drive home and the prospects for drinks on the patio seemed non-existent.  Again, the weather changed almost on cue, and it was a beautiful sunny late afternoon cocktail hour at our outdoor table.  Dinner was a simple grilled chicken salad with wine.  Then off to bed after killing the day’s quota of spiders (arigneées).

WEDNESDAY

Air Rescue Training at Pointe de St. Mathieu

It was a beautiful sunny morning and we decided to drive the 70 kilometers to Pointe-de-St.-Mathieu, just west of Brest.  We didn’t have the time to do it on our day in Brest, and the weather was promising.  Well, halfway there the weather turned miserable – ominous dark clouds and driving rain.  Not a good sign.  We carried on, and once again, the weather changed almost the moment we arrived in the Pointe-de-St.-Mathieu area.

It’s a beautiful sight at the western edge of France close to the official border between the Atlantic Ocean and the English Channel.  It has two lighthouses, a monument dedicated to the sailors of France (military and otherwise) who have given their lives in defense of the country, and the remains of an old abbey.  Pictures tell the story better than words.

To make things more interesting, the local rescue workers were practicing helicopter rescues on the rugged rocks below the Pointe.  It was interesting to watch.

Then we bought sandwiches at a boulangerie and ate them in a local park that was unfortunately devoid of any good views.  After lunch we drove home, stopping just outside Plouezoc’h to reserve a table for tonight in a return visit to the Bar du Port.  More on that in the next posting.

There will be one more posting from Plouezoc’h (on Friday).  Saturday we will spend the day driving east to Abbeville where we will spend Saturday night (at the same hotel that Bobby Messina stayed with us many years ago).  I will post again from there.  Sunday morning we drive the hour to Calais for a 10:45 ferry back to the UK.

Monday

A Day Away from the House

There was a post late yesterday, so you may have missed it.  Scroll down.   And remember, click on pictures for larger views.

Monday we decided to see some of southern Brittany.  It’s only just over an hour and a half away, but driving in Brittany can be exhausting, so three hours of driving just to get there and back was not appealing.  We decided to do an overnight trip.  After looking at options Sunday night, we decided to spend Monday night in Concarneau.  I found a hotel that sounded appealing (modern and on the ocean – enough with ancient and quaint), so I called and made a reservation.

We left early Monday morning (8:00 am) when it was barely light outside.  Our first stop was in Sizun, a small town with a noted Parish Close (remember your previous lessons?).  It was impressive, but we only viewed it from the outside as it didn’t open until 2:30.  No big deal.

 Then it was on to Quimper, a larger city is southern Finestre, a section of Brittany.  We parked near the river and visited both the impressive Cathedral and the Museum of Art.  The museum is relatively small.  It’s main feature is an exhibit about Max Jacobs, a French writer who was friends with many noted artists including Picasso.

From there we diverted west to visit the Pointe du Raz, highlighted in all guide books as a must see coastal view.  The weather was dreary and overcast but at least not foggy, so we gave it a go.  Just before reaching the Point we stopped to buy sandwiches and cokes for a picnic. (No, Jane, not Subway although we did see one in Quimper.)  From the parking lot at Pointe de Raz, it’s another fifteen minute walk to the overlook.  Still cloudy and dreary, it seemed pointless, but we soldiered on.  Lo and behold, when we reached the overlook, the sun peeked through and the weather improved steadily from there.  The views were indeed impressive, and our trek to the overlook was worth it.  After returning to the car we enjoyed our sandwiches as a nearby picnic table.

Then we stopped at the Pointe du Van, a short ride away.  It doesn’t get the accolades of Raz, and, therefore, it doesn’t get as many people.  Yet, in many ways, it is even more picturesque.

 On to Concarneau, the premiere fishing port in Brittany  As usual, it took a bit to find our hotel.  It’s right on the water, and it’s refreshingly new and modern.  Wi-fi included; English television channels including Sky News, BBC, and, oddly, CNBC and Bloomberg TV.  We checked in, and then headed out to view the ancient ramparts on Concarneau’s port.  We walked the walls and part of the pedestrian only part of town, a tourist mecca.  But off season like now, it’s relatively empty.  Some scenes from Concarneau:

After that, it was wine on our balcony, showers, relaxation, and eventually dinner in the hotel dining room.

The Low and Highs of Renting a House on the Internet

Everything looks good on the internet.

Our first house rental (for six weeks in Dingle, Ireland) was for a restored (to an extent) stone cottage (hut?) and, it was nearly a disaster.  We spent the first 24 hours cleaning EVERYTHING – washing every glass and dish, scrubbing the kitchen, cleaning the cabinets, etc, etc.  Liberal doses of Febreez on all the upholstered furniture.  After that it was livable – just.  Irish clean does not live up to Elaine standards.  Or mine.  I was ready to leave the house the first day and never come back.  We had guests:  Bob Messina and Toby for a week;  Elaine’s Mom and Dad for a week;  and Ed and Phyllis Wrenn for a week.

Our second rental (for two weeks in Rieux Minervois, France) was a small restored apartment built right into the town’s ancient ramparts..  It was spotless, and clean linens were provided for the second week.  The only adjustment was getting used to the endless wash cycles of European washers and dryers.  At least they provided instructions in English.  It was a delight.

Then it was back to Dingle for four weeks where we rented a new home (actually in Ventry, just outside Dingle).  It was clean and modern.  The only down side was the location.  While on a beautiful bay, it was nigh on impossible to walk anywhere.  The most minor of errands required driving.  Bill and Mianne visited us here for a week as did Elaine’s sister Ann with husband Russ.

Then it was Dingle again (for just 10 days this time as part of a trip that included Northern Ireland) in a complex of new homes.  It was within walking distance to town and the Dingle Pub.  It had a combined all-in-one washer/dryer that was cool but still took forever to run a cycle.  Clean.  The only negative:  the son of the people next door was a drummer and he played every afternoon for an hour or so.

Now it’s back to France and another restored stone house. Manoir de Keristin.  There are issues.  It’s not our favorite place.  Remember Irish clean?  The French are not impeccable house cleaners either.

The Report Card

• Cob webs and spiders of all kinds and sizes.  Really large spiders!
• No screens on the windows, so bugs everywhere.
• Irish clean except for the dishes, cookware, and glassware which were spotless.
• Double beds.  Too small for us so we use two.
• TV has a annoying hum.  Ho hum, we can’t understand French TV anyway. No English channels.
• Downstairs is dark inside, possibly to help keep it cool in summer.
• First load of wash took four hours in the machine (no English instructions) and two days on the line to dry.
• Third floor bedroom is big and bright but there are bats or rats or ferral cats or other animals skittering about in the innards of the ceiling.  We stayed off the third floor!
• Second floor shower stopped working on day five.  Fortunately there are three full bathrooms.
• “Sachets” for mites in bedroom closets.  Yikes.
• No mattress pads on the beds.
• No instructions (in English or otherwise) on how to operate anything.
• Constant musty smell.
• There is a beautiful back patio and yard with outdoor dining table (we used it often).  That’s Elaine spot.

So, anyway, when we used the outside patio, we left the door open.  One night when we were done, I closed it.  Then Elaine noticed a big blotch of red by the door.  Did I somehow spill raspberry jam?  How could I do that?  Well, I didn’t.  I opened the door and found that in closing it, I had accidentally crushed and killed a frog, and the red ooze was his blood.  Yucchhhhhh!  There went a full roll of paper towels cleaning up the frogicide.  From then on, the door stayed closed when were outside.  (No, no pictures of the untimely death of a poor innocent frog.)

SATURDAY

Low Key Day

It was rainy when we got up, so we spent the morning at the Tourist Office catching up on email and Google news. Then we drove to Roscoff, a pleasant seaport that is the terminus for ferries from Plymouth, UK and from Ireland.  We had a pleasant lunch on a restaurant terrace (the sun was out now) of  croque monsieurs (grilled ham and cheese sandwiches) with frites and salad.  Beer for me, wine for Elaine.

Then we spent some time in Roscoff’s Jardin Exotique (exotic garden)which features plants and flowers from all over the world.  In the first part of the garden, it was like we had been transported back to Arizona.  Then we drove home.  Time for an infrequent nap for me before cocktail hour.  Dinner was simple and at home:  cheese, sausage, wine, and a fresh loaf of bread from our boulangerie.  We trying different kinds of bread, and they are all wonderful.  It was thundering and raining again, se we partook the meal in the sun room.

SUNDAY

Horse Racing

There was a race day scheduled in Morlaix today.  We went for the 2:30 post time.  This is a VERY small track.  Eight races.  Four flat horse races on the grass and four harness races, also on the grass.  In many years of going to races, this is the first time I have seen harness racing on grass.

There is a program listing the entries (including jockey, trainer, and sire and dam) that shows how the horses have finished in prior races.  That’s the sum total of the information available.  No racing form of any type.  No tip sheets. No jockey or trainer stats.  OK then, I’ll use observations of the horses in the paddock and sire information to make my picks.  First race on the flat – loser.  Second race was a harness race – my nag finished last.  Third race on the flat.  I decided to bet on the jockey who won the first race.  He won again at 6-1.  Celebratory pression (draft beer).  Elaine was not drinking in fear of having to use the primitive toilettes.  Another harness race, another loser.  Then I bet a horse sired by Dynaformer.  He broke on top and led every step of the 2,600 meters at a generous 9-1.  Another celebratory pression.  Harness race next.  I thought the driver of the #14 horse looked professional, so I bet him.  He won at 6-1.  Une pression, s’il vous plait, and Elaine joined me in une verre de vin rouge.  We lost the next and left before the final race.  Wonderful day!  I made 130 euros, and we both had fun.

We had dinner at the little creperie right in our town, Plouezoc’h.  We were the only ones in the restaurant.  It was fine but not memorable.

Later!

THURSDAY

Parish Closes

Brittany is famous for its Enclos Paroissiaux (Parish Closes).  These are architectural monuments dating from the 16^th and 17^th centuries.  The typical close includes a triumphal arch to mark the transition from the secular to the sacred world, an ossuary where bones of deal parishioners are displayed. And a calvary decorated with vividly sculpted figures representing various stages of Christ’s Passion.  The church interiors are colorful with brightly painted statues and altarpieces.  Each community, some very small, tried to outdo the others with the splendor and artistic invention of its close. [end of religion lesson]

We visited four Enclos Paroissiaux today:

1) St-Thegonnec

2) Guimiliau

3) Lampaul-Guimiliau

 

4) La Roche Maurice

Then it was on to the shore again for a picnic in a nice spot by Aber Wrac’h harbor.  There were high clouds but the sun shone through.  It was pleasant weather, and our bread from our local boulangerie and the cheese we had bought at the Plougasnou market on Monday made a nice lunch.  The cheese was smelly, but even Elaine enjoyed it greatly.  Would that we remembered what it was called.  We will revisit the cheese monger at Plougasnou market next Monday and buy some more good stuff.

Then we drove merely two kilometers down the road to view the sand dunes at Presqu’Ile de Ste Marguerite, and the fog became so thick you could hardly see the ocean even fifty meters away. And so we headed home with a brief stop for some supper stuff.  Once home, I headed out for the Plougasnou Tourist Office to post yesterday’s blog entry.

Home again after internet duty, it was for gimlets for me, wine for Elaine, and eventually home cooked chicken breast fillets with peppers and onions and a salad.  Of course, we had stopped at our local boulangerie for a loaf of bread, this time a boule de paysan (a wheat round) and two delicious looking tartes aux framboises (raspberry).

FRIDAY

A Boat Trip

In the Bay of Morlaix there is an old fortress visible from several of the overlooks that we have stopped at near our house.  On some days there are boat trips to visit the fortress, the Chåteau du Taureau, from Plougasnou.  Alas, today was not one of those days and the last trips for the season are this weekend with the only from Plougasnou being on Sunday.  Sunday is reserved for other things.

But all was not lost.  My friend at the Tourist Office in Plougasnou said there were trips today from Carantec, across the Bay from Plougasnou.  That’s only a few kilometers as the crow flies, but going by car involves going back into Morlaix and up the other side of the Bay.  We just had time to do it, and the TO lady booked the tour for us.  We arrived in plenty of time at KerlannBeach in Carantec and had time to spare to watch some young kids learning to sail and some intrepid woman going for a swim.  The swimming is not that surprising, actually, as the weather has been much warmer than we expected.  Temperatures have been in to 70’s and nearly 80 some days when the sun is out.  Very comfortable beach weather.

The Chåteau du Taureau is built on an island named Taureau (the bull).  It was built as a fortress to protect Morlaix from raids by the British back in the 16^th century.  It was designed by Marquis de Vauban, and the fortress used every available inch of the small island.  It worked very well as protection as invading ships headed for Morlaix had to pass close by.  Cannon fire could be directed into the hull of ships from the lower batteries of the fortress while fire could be projected from the upper sections into the masts and sails of the frigates.

The Château also became a prison for misbehaving royals and rich whose family wanted them interned.  There were twelve cells, and prisoners were only interned when the family requested it of the king..  The family was required to pay an annual stipend that was used to feed and take care of the prisoners during their internment.  If the family didn’t pay, then that prisoner was released.

It was eventually decommissioned and in 1917 the Château was named a national monument.  Oddly, it was then leased to Mélanie de Vilmorin in 1930, and she made it her principal residence for quite a number of years.  From 1960 until 1980 it served as the headquarters of the sailing school of the Bay or Morlaix Boating association.  After that restoration work began to make it the tourist attraction it is today.

It’s a pleasant 15 minute boat ride to the Château.  You then have an hour to walk around and read the bilingual interpretive signs and view the orientations tables.  All very well done.  Then it’s back on the boat to return to the beach, passing an interesting inhabited island (one house with a lighthouse) on the way.

There are several restaurants right at the beach.  We picked one and each had a bowl of fish soup.  Then we shared a raw seafood plate, washing it all down with nice chilled white wine.  We never get white wine, but the waitress brought it by mistake.  We kept it and enjoyed it.  Picture of the fish soup (with croutons, aioli, and Parmesan) is below, but I forgot to snap the fish plate of scallops, shrimp, clams, and three different seafood spreads on toast.  Yummy.

We then visited two churches (yup, more religion) in St-Pol-de-Leon: the Kreisker Chapel, noted for its fine belfry, and the Cathedral.  After that we filled the car up with gazole (diesel) and headed for home.

The plan for dinner was to eat at the Hotel de France in Plousganou, but when I called to make a reservation, there was no room at the inn.  So on the way home we stopped at a fairly nondescript place, Cafe du Port, just a few kilometers from our house, and booked a table for 7:00 pm.  After a rest and a drink, we went back to the restaurant and had dinner on the terrace on a beautiful night.  We started with Kir Petillant cocktails:  sparkling wine from Saumer with raspberry liquor.  Elaine had a goat cheese salad for an appetizer while I enjoyed nine local oysters.  We both had the special for our main course – a beautifully prepared cod with an assortment of fresh vegetables.  This place, unassuming as it looked, may warrant a return visit next week.

Sunday will be a day at the horse races in Morlaix . On the way home from tonight’s meal, we stopped at the creperie/restaurant right in our town and booked a table for Sunday night.  This place is close enough that we can walk to dinner.

Next time, a retrospective on the ins and outs of renting a house on the internet.  See you then.

I am back at the Tourist Office in Plougasnou (10 minute drive) for another two-day blog update.  All is well. 

All you really need to know to survive in France is “bonjour”, “merci”, “d’accord”, and “un baguette, s’il vous plait”.

Tuesday

More of the Cote de Garnit Rose

Tuesday broke beautiful and I was up at 5:00 am to write that long post for the the blog.  It doesn’t really get light here until almost 8:00 am.  Then I went out to get un grand siècle, our baguette for today’s picnic lunch.  I also picked up six macarons (macaroons) —  three citron (lemon) and three fraise (strawberry).  Can’t wait for lunch!

And we headed out early back to la Cote de la Granit Rose.  First stop was in Plousganou (where I now use the internet at the Tourist Office).  We hadn’t planned to stop there, but it was market day.  Market day in France is sensory overload for foodies.  You want to buy everything!  We bought some cheese.

Then it was off to nearby St Jean du Doigt, home to a parish close (more about them in a couple of days).  St Jean du Doigt is St John of the Finger.  The first joint of St John the Baptist’s finger is actually here in the church treasury (which wasn’t open – now I’ll never see his finger).

Then we drove along the coast, stopping at overlooks and beaches along the way.  For lunch we picnicked at St-Michel-en-Greve overlooking the sea:  our great bread, terrines left over from last night’s dinner, cheese, and some of those macarons (en français) which turned out to be indescribably melt-in-your-mouth good.  France is all about food.

We visited a small local Aquarium in a semi-cave that was inhabited by troglodytes in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries.  It’ is hardly a world class aquarium, but it was fun and worth doing.  After that we headed home.  On the way we stopped to buy water, diet coke, and some vegetables for tonight’s home-cooked omelet dinner.

Some Random Pictures from the Day

Wednesday

A Day in Brest

Brest is the largest city in Brittany (I think), about an hour due west on an autoroute (speed limit 110 km/hr).  The original plan was to drive beyond Brest and then work our way back to Plouezoc’h along the slow coast road.  But it was cloudy and foggy, so we changed plans and decided to visit Océanopolis, what is reputed to be the best ocean center / aquarium in Europe.

We were at Océanopolis at 9:50, ten minutes before opening, and we had the place pretty much to ourselves.  There are three major viewing areas: polar, tropique, and temperate as well as a new European otter exhibit.

The otter exhibit has two viewing areas:  one has nothing to do otters but has two California sea lions; the other has two European otters.  They have a deep salt water pool, some shallow fresh water pools, and a plant/rock covered land area.  Interestingly, after swimming in salt water, they have to rinse off in fresh water to get the salt out of their fur to keep it protective and warm on dry land.  On land they are very elusive and like to keep hidden.  We caught a glimpse of them scurrying from one side of the land enclosure to another to hide and go to sleep under some vegetation.

The polar exhibit is brilliant.  There is a great Panoramic film of animals of the north and south poles starring the penguins.  The penguin enclosure itself is huge, and the inhabitants seem happy and content.  There is another huge tank for real arctic ice seals.  All the enclosures have both above water and under water viewing areas.  And there are king crabs and anemones from the polar regions.  It is all very well done. Below are some shots:

The tropic exhibit features a glass elevator in which you watch tropical fish and sharks as it descends from top to bottom.  There are endless tanks of all different kinds of fish.  There is a mangrove and a tropical reef.

We spent less time in the temperate zone which has jellyfish, seals of Brittany, a kelp forest, a deep fish viewing area, and burrowing Norwegian lobsters.  Who knew they burrowed?

Océanopolis lived up to its hype, and we greatly enjoyed three full hours there.  Even the gist shop was enjoyable, and Elaine bought a scarf.  Now I have to get a Breton scarf for me!  By the time we left the weather had cleared a bit and the sun was shining through, but it was still very hazy.  Rather than head for the shore, we had a picnic lunch (sandwiches and decadent dark chocolate & orange Breton biscuits sitting on a bench overlooking the harbor just at the Musée National de la Marine de Brest.

After lunch the command decision was to investigate the Maritime Museum rather than do a lot of driving along a hazy coast.  Good decision!  The museum is exceedingly well done, and the auto-guide headsets provided interesting information about Brest’s maritime heritage.  The museum itself is located in an old fortress, part of which is still a French military installation, that is enjoyable in its own right.  The ship models were brilliant.  I bought a French Navy hat in the small gift shop.

By the time we got out of the Maritime Museum, it was 4:00 pm, and it was raining lightly.  We hopped back on the autoroute and hightailed it back to Manoir de Keristin.  Time for a little rest and a little wine, and then we were off to dinner in Plougasnou (15 minutes away) at Restaurant Les Chaises.  We discovered it yesterday when we were in town on market day.  I had successfully called and made reservations while on the road yesterday – so nice to have a working phone!

Dinner was great (pictures tell it all further below):

Elaine:

Starter:  Smoked Salmon with Breton Chutney

Main:  Cassolette of Scallop and Shrimp

Desert:  Two Scoops of Sorbet (Passion Fruit and Lemon) with a Breton Biscuit

Joe:

Starter:  Nine Oysters on the Half Shell

Main:  Cassolette of Scallop and Shrimp

Desert:  Mi Cuit de Chocolat Maison (delicious hot chocolate mousse with vanilla bean ice cream)

 

Sorry for the long delay in posting, but we have not had internet access in days.  So here is a LONG post about what’s happened in the interim.  From now on I will be using public wi-fi at the Tourist information Office, so I will post every other day instead of every day.  The posts will include only limited links to places as it takes too much time to do them all.  Use Google!  And all photos will not have captions to save me some time.

Remember to click on photos to enlarge them and see detail better!

FRIDAY:

A Day to Forget (Mostly)

Breakfast was fine (as usual), and then I shagged the car from the car park to load it up outside La Maison Pavie.  No problem.  Next we needed to get gas before we headed for our next stop.  That’s where the trouble began.

In the UK diesel pumps at the petrol station are labeled in green.  Unthinkingly and without looking closely, I unwittingly filled the car up from the green labeled pump in Dinan.  WRONG MOVE, JOE!!!  In France the diesel pumps (gazole) are black and the unleaded pumps (essence sans plomb) are green.  Once filled up, I drove off and almost immediately the car started running very rough.

Elaine insisted, quite rightly, that we turn around and go back into Dinan where she had noticed on arrival that there was a Renault dealer.  Why she noticed it will never be known, but it certainly helped to know it was there.  We made it back, barely, and in I went to explain the problem to the English speaking staff.  WRONG AGAIN, JOE!  French only!  I persevered and made the problem known after a big “excusez moi de vous deranger, monsieur, mais j;ai une grande probleme.”  I still didn’t realize I had bought the wrong gas.  At this point the car wouldn’t even start up again.

They towed it into the service bay and after 15 minutes informed me that unleaded gas won’t run a diesel engine.  D’oh.  Within 45 minutes they had pumped out the tank and gave me 10 liters of diesel.  Since my contract with Renault is full coverage for everything, all I had to pay for the 10 liters of gas.  They even washed the car “gratuit”, and off we went to re-fill the tank – with gazole this time.  (I used a different gas station so the attendant wouldn’t know that I was the idiot that I am.)

Then it was on to our intermediate stop, the town of Josselin.  It’s a beautiful city with a high castle located on the Nantes-Brest canal.  It was now 1:00 pm, about three hours later than we had hoped to get here. It was time to search out a spot for lunch.  Brittany is famous for crepes, so we picked the La Marine Creperie where we both had gallettes, buckwheat crepes..  Elaine’s version had blue cheese, pears, walnuts, and salad.  Mine had Camembert cheese, honey, and salad.  Un pichet (25 cl) du vin rouge for Elaine and a 50 cl beer for me.  All very, very good.

Then we walked around the town, taking lots of pictures of the castle, the canal, the quaint streets, and the Notre Dame church.  Castle visits were by guided tour only, in French, an hour long, and the next one wasn’t for a half hour.  Since we were running late, we skipped that.  Josselin would have been a great place for our overnight stop.

Anyway, back to the car and we were off Rochefort-en-Terre, thirty minutes away.  This is a very small town and we found Hotel Le Pelican quickly.  I illegally parked in an alley to register.  NOT SO FAST!!  The hotel seemed totally closed.  Elaine made me move the car to a legal parking lot, and we walked to the tourist office.  The nice lady there called the hotel and then told us it would be open again at 5:00.  OK.  So we did a walkabout of the beautiful little town of Rochefort-en-Terre, accurately noted as a city of flowers.

Back at the Hotel Le Pelican, the exceedingly nice woman at reception said they had no record of our reservation.  OH NO, ANOTHER DISASTER?  No worries, they had a room.  It seemed a pretty basic affair, but “d’accord”, it would do.  So went to the car, got our bags, and returned with my reservation confirmation in hand.  She apologized and said these glitches happened often.  (C’est normale)  She noted from the reservation that I had reserved a nicer room and that too was free, so we moved from room 2 to room 1.  It was significantly better.  And we reserved a table in the restaurant for sept heures et demi (7:30).

Now I had to use my cell phone with an international multi-country sim card to call the contact for our rental house to confirm my arrival time tomorrow.  The cell phone worked flawlessly in the UK.  Not so much in France.  I would dial and the phone would reboot.  Occasionally I would get through and the phone then almost immediately dropped the call.  BAH, WILL ANYTHING GO RIGHT TODAY??  So I wandered out looking for a pay phone.  With the advent of mobile phones, pay phones have almost disappeared in France and this small town had none.  I went into a small restaurant and talked to the guy in charge.  “Excusez moi de vous deranger, monsieur, mais j’ai un petite probleme.”  He let me use his cell phone, and I made the call.  All is arranged finally!

Given the day’s trials and tribulations, we had low expectations for dinner.  Those were unfounded, and dinner was grand in the beautiful hotel dining room.

Elaine:  Terrine de Campagne as a starter.  Medallions of Pork with vegetables as a main course.  Deux boules (two scoops) of sorbet, one strawberry and one prune, with fruit as desert.  High marks for all from Elaine.

Joe:  Nine oysters on the half shell for a starter.  Two lamb sausages, each differently prepared, with fresh vegetables for my main.  And a chocolate and caramel desert.  All wonderful.

Off to bed and a stress filled but ultimately enjoyable day was complete.

SATURDAY

Arrival at Our Manor House

We started with breakfast at Hotel Le Pelican and then loaded up the car for a leisurely journey to Plouezoc’h with some stops planned along the way before our 4:00 pm appointment to take possession of Manoir de Keristin.

First stop was at Carnac to see the Carnac Stones.  Earlier on the trip we saw Stonehenge where the stones are enormous but relatively few in number.  Here the stones are smaller but run on for what seems like a mile or more in long parallel rows in almost perfect alignment.  It is really quite amazing.

Onward toward Plouezoc’h, and we arrived there at about 2:00 pm, too early to meet our contact for the house.  So drove to the coast at Terenez, walked about, took pictures, and killed some time.  It was beautiful there, but it was cloudy and the coast always looks better in the sun.  Then it was time to find our house.

Plouezoc’h is very small.  It has a drug store, a bakery, a small restaurant, and a convenience store.  And our house is down a long dead end road bordered on both sides by corn fields.  (There is corn everywhere in Brittany as well as lots of other crops.)  The directions to find the house were spot on and we pulled in at 3:50 pm.  Shortly thereafter Emmanuelle, the agent for our hosts, Heleny and Phillippe, arrived.  She showed us the house, gave us the key, and she was off.

It’s a big house:  Nicely fitted kitchen, very large family room/dining room, three bathrooms, a glass sun room, a small laundry room (with washer, dryer, and dish washer), and four bedrooms.  But the best thing of all is the huge backyard with an outdoor dining table.

Then we drove to Morlaix, the nearest big town, about 15 minutes away to visit the Intermarché to stock up on necessities.  Amongst other stuff we bougt some chicken breasts and vegetables for tonight’s dinner and wine.  Oh, and very importantly, some ice cube trays to make ice for use with my still unopened vodka from the ferry.  Oh, and we stopped at the little boulangerie in Plouezoc’h (which is fantastic!) and bought un grand siècle (a wheat baguette) and some tartes au citron (lemon tarts).

The bread was to die for.  Dinner and wine and tarts were fine, and we were off to bed after another long day.

SUNDAY

Glorious Weather and Exploration of the Immediate Area

We started the day by driving just up the road a few minutes to a national historic sight, the Barnanez Cairn, an ancient burial site.  The weather was beautiful and sunny, and we met some Americans who we chatted up for awhile.  We have seen very few Americans on this trip save for one morning in Dinan when all the people at breakfast where from the USA.

Then we drove back to Tenerez and enjoyed the coast and the harbor in dazzling sunshine.  The temperature today reached the upper seventies, and I could have, but didn’t, wear my one pair of shorts.  We had a delightful lunch at a restaurant at Tenerez:  gallettes with salmon for Elaine and a delicious cassoulette de le mer (scallops, clams, calamari, mussels, and fished all baked in a wonderful sauce) for me.

Driving on up our little peninsula on the Bay of Morlaix, we discovered the town of Plougasnou and the stunning Pointe de Primel.  We will be back here again soon on another good day for a picnic.

Home again, home again.  I changed into my shorts, and we relaxed in the back yard.  We had ice now, and I had makeshift vodka gimlets.  First vodka since we left Las Vegas!)  No Rose’s lime juice in France, so I had bought two varieties of lime (citron verte) mixers to try.  The first one I tried works just fine.  Dinner was ham & cheese sandwiches made with another delicious grand siècle loaf of bread and a home made salad.  We have beautiful flowers on the outdoor dining table and in the house, all picked from the back yard.

MONDAY

A Drive and a New Phone

Today our goal was the Côte de Granit Rose.  It was another beautiful morning and we drove inland on the autoroute to the furthest point we wanted to see at Paimpol.  But along the way we stopped in Guingamp, a large town to visit a huge Intermarché.  We needed more wine, and I was hopeful I could buy a French sim card for my phone to make it usable again.  They didn’t have one, but Elaine noticed an electronic store nearby.  It was small with only one attendant (who naturally spoke no English).  My French is getting a workout on this trip, but I’ve been doing pretty well at it.  I got an Orange (France’s Verizon) sim card and inserted it in my phone.  Nothing.  The phone has essentially become a brick.  So I bought a new (pay as you go) phone, the Orange sim card, and 60 minutes of air time.  Voila, I now have a working phone.  I also enquired about a mobile hot spot for my computer for internet access, but either we weren’t understanding each other or they didn’t have one.

We stopped for a nice moules-frites (mussels and fries) lunch in Paimpol by the port.  The weather had turned cloudy and foggy, and the coast was dreary and chilly.  We stopped at Pointe de l’Arcouest to look around.  You can take a short ten minute ferry ride from here to the small Ile de Bréhat.  Given the weather we declined, but judging from the parking lot, it’s a popular destination.  Maybe we will be back.

We drove on to Plougrescant to view the little church with steeple balanced at a weird angle.  The church is under heavy restoration (i.e., the ever-present scaffolding that seems to be on every historic site these days), but you can get a good picture of the steeple sans scaffolding.

The weather had cleared and we made another stop at Pors-Hir to see a picturesque little house between two boulders (overrated) and a nice beach.  The next thing to do would have been a circuit of the Corniche Bretonne, but it was getting late, so we decided to save that for tomorrow (or another day) and headed home.

The brilliant boulangerie in town is closed on Monday, but the convenience store was open.  They have a very nice deli-like counter, so we bought two kinds of terrine (terrine forestiere and terrine canard), a loaf of very good bread, and some fruit.  Home for gimlets, wine, and a terrine & fruit salad dinner.  La vie est magnifique.

Yesterday’s post was late again, so you may want to scroll down and view.  Back on schedule today.

As always, click on any photos for larger views

As usual, our B&B breakfast was wonderful.  Just the breads would make it grand.  At 9:30 we ventured out into Dinan.  Since the Saint Sauveur Basilica is almost next door and it had just opened, we wandered it.  An eclectic combination of Gothic and Romanesque architecture (yes, I read the guide), we especially admired the beautiful stained glass windows.

Next we descended down a long road to Dinan’s harbor on the River Rance.  There is a short (one hour) boat tour on the river, so we took it.  While we were on the boat, the skies cleared to beautiful blue.  The trip only goes a few kilometers, through a lock, and turns around at the St-Magloire Priory built in the 12^th century.

On returning to the port we did two food things.  First I made reservations for dinner tonight at the L’Atelier Gourmand.  Second, we decided to have lunch outdoors on the river at the Café Terrasses.  Food-wise it was fine, but weather-wise the blue skies disappeared under thick clouds again.  No rain though, and the food was good.  I had fish soup followed by a delicious salmon in saffron sauce, all accompanied by a large Meteor beer.  Elaine had a Breton pate and wine.

Then we climbed back up a different steep hill, and on reaching the top we did a partial circumnavigation of Dinan, sometimes on top of the ramparts, sometimes beside.  En route we visited the St Malo church to see more beautiful stained glass.  Then finally after meandering the narrow streets of the town, we reached the central square again where we stopped for some much needed rest and beer at a sidewalk pub.  Then it was nap time. (Amazingly it was my first nap of the trip.)

Due to the steep hills down to the port, we decided to drive down to dinner.  Going down would have no problem walking, but the climb back up when all you want is your bed would have be tortuous.  L’Atelier Gourmand is noted for its moules (mussels), so there was no question what our main courses would be.  Pictures tell the story:

Appetizers

Mains

Elaine had Tarte Tatin for desert while I opted for just two scoops of delicious raspberry ice cream.