Bonjour, Albuquerque. We’re home. The bosque is gorgeous. Seeing the golden ribbon from the plane was a treat. The time travel has made it difficult to re-enter this time zone. My sleep is all discombobulated, though I think it’s getting back on track now. Spending an afternoon dancing at Kaktus Brewery in Bernalillo yesterday afternoon seems to have helped!

Here are just a few bits and bobs from our time in France that I want to capture and share.

The St. Michel Tumulus in Carnac, Bretagne is an example of a Western European Neolithic funerary monument, list as a historical in 1889. It is 125 metres long, 60 metros wide, and 10 metres high. It is an artificial mound, built around the middle of the 5th millennium BC and covers a complex funerary structure, discovered during a number of archaeological excavations in the 19th and 20th C. Beneath tons of stones lie galleries leading to 21 stone chests and a crypt that was the burial place of a prehistoric man. Found within are ashes and incinerate bones, 39 stone axes, 39 fragments of ivory, 2 flint chips, and a necklace of bariscite beads and pendants, which can be seen at the Museum of Prehistory located at the Alignments (photos of which I posted earlier). Due to some interior collapse, no entry is allowed. Climbng it though provides a wonderful 360 panaramic view of Carnac and views of the Bay of Quiberon.

One gloomy morning we visited Auray on the River Loch. It seems to be proud of the fact that Ben Franklin landed here in 1776 for a secret meeting with the King.

On a completely different topic:

I guess that’s it for this trip. So many more photos and memories. One more note on French culture – many stores are closed on Sunday. Big stores – Galerie Lafayette and the malls, for instance. Most boutiques and many restaurants are also closed. I think that’s quite civilized. My infatuation with France continues.

If any of my ping pong pals are reading this, I’ll see you Thursday! Same place, same time?

A friend requested a map showing where we’d been. This is the best I can do on my phone. I hope it helps.

I bean by highlighting major areas, then adding lines to show routes. I like this map because it has the administrative regions of France. We were in 5 of the 13. I’m not counting Paris as that was just a flight base.

From Paris we took the TGV to Lyon in Auvergne Rhone-Alps, the long green line, north to south-east. From there, a green line to Le Puys en Velay in the same region. The green line with white dots from Le Puy shows our Chemin hike, mostly in the Occitanie region.

Also from Lyon, a green line to Dordogne, Nouvelle Aquitaine, – that long hot drive in a POS Fiât.

After the Chemin we made it back to Le Puy via van. From there a train to Avignon (highlighted) in Provence, where we rented a much better car, the Renault Clio to go to Isle Sur la Sorgue and other places. Then to La Ciotat, east of Marseilles (highlighted).

Back to Avignon to return the car. Then a long TGV from there to Paris to Rennes, Bretagne, – the long red line.

The blue line from Rennes indicates travel to the Cote d’Armor and St. Malo. Orange line from Rennes is to the Morbihan area. Have I already mentioned that Mor Bihan is the Breton word for Small Sea? Also learned recently at the Musée de Bretagne that cairn is a Breton word, meaning…small pile of stones.

I think that covers it.

No, not that one!

Carnac, Bretagne has the largest collection of megaliths in the world.

Note the alignment of these stones. They were erected during the Neolithic period between 4500-3500BC – 6,000 years ago! There are almost 3,000 standing stones, along 2.5 miles. The people erecting them would have transitioned from hunter-gatherer to settled communities, raising livestock and farming.

Why were they placed here? There’s no apparent relation to stars or moon or sun. So the scientists say. Though it’s difficult to tell, the stones are placed in descending order of height. When we first arrived and I beheld this curiosity, I felt something within; a frisson of awe. Perhaps these people built horizontally what later man built vertically, in terms of cathedrals, to summon a feeling of power, of the mystical, of a connection to forces beyond the known.

The grey sky and on-again, off-again drizzle contributed to the ambiance. It also helped that the place wasn’t overrun with people as it would be in high season. The main parking lot has space for 2,000 cars.

We left the mystery of Carnac behind to walk to the beach. Ed, my pathfinder, used Google maps to determine a route off road. It was a beautiful meandering walk in the countryside, down lanes and gravel walkways. Rounding a bend we came upon this house.

Carnac is on the Bay of Quiberon.

This is not a worm. Something underneath extruded the sand; I saw it happen. But I didn’t see what did it. Dug around and nothing came up. I think it could dig faster than I.

I’d love to have been here just a few weeks earlier when the weather was still good. We’ve fallen off the shoulder season and are heading down the back. Time to come home. Weather has been rainy and chill, and looks to continue in that vein for the rest of our time here. Fortunately, except for two mornings past, it has not kept us in. Though it did keep us from going to Île aux Moines (Isle of the Monks) this morning. It was going to be windy and rainy there. Only 600 or so inhabit the island, so the whole purpose was to walk around (literally around) the island and enjoy the beaches.

Wednesday the 18th. We’ve been so fortunate with weather this trip. Just the one really rainy afternoon on the Chemin and now, today. It was a good day to read and watch a little TV with French subtitles. We also got out for a few walks, one in the rain and wind and another with sun breaking through.

We arrived Monday around 2. The quintessential French woman greeted us at our rental. Tall, spike heels, trim of figure in a fitted dress with narrow belt around her waist. Red lipstick 💄.

After lunch in our garden, La veille ville beckoned. It’s a leisurely 20 minute stroll. It’s Bretagne, so the half timbered houses are present as is part of the ramparts.

We took a long walk from the port, along the marina, to the Gulf of Morbihan.

We cut off from the marina at one point when I saw a side path and came upon this:

We also came upon Philip who told us that people gather here every Wednesday night at 6:30 to pray. We did not go there tonight to verify. He loves Vannes, born and raised here. He’s an avid bicyclist and Vannes has plenty of bike routes.

Being outside of old town, we see lots of construction of new apartment buildings. Some already inhabited, some near completion. We wonder where all the people are coming from to live here.

We’re looking forward to getting out of town tomorrow to see the menhirs of Carnac. Hoping for less wind and rain than today.

May you all be well and finding what peace you can.

Sitting in the rail station at Rennes waiting for the train to Vannes. A bedraggled woman approaches. Matted hair. Shuffling. Drool hanging from chin. Could I help her with some change? I had some and held it in my palm, thinking to transfer it to hers. But no. She held my hand, palm up and picked through the change, taking the 50 centimes piece as well as the 20 and 10 centimes coins, leaving behind the 1 and 2 cent coins. With a “merci” she moved on to the next person.

I guess beggars can be choosers.

Anoter easy day trip by train from Rennes. We took the 7:35 to arrive at market for breakfast. We had been here in 2011 with my mom, using Dinan as base from which to visit Mont St. Michel in Normandy. Both of us remembered liking it and  the market, and not having enough time here. We weren’t disappointed with our return.

Dinan is possibly one of the more photo worthy medieval towns. I finally just stopped taking photos because everywhere I looked was something interesting or charming or quirky.

Dinan has ramparts, but not much of them are walkable. The town administrators sold off parts of them to private owners. But there is one part on the backside of the St. Saveur Basilica, beyond its garden.

As we were at market early, we didn’t buy much food to haul around, but enjoyed appreciating the freshness and the variety. I have vowed to visit our own growers’ market more regularly next season.

The strap to the leather bag that I use when traveling broke while we were still on the Chemin. I managed to make it work with a small carabiner. Luch was with me though as I found a beautiful replacement at this market.

I also found a sweater, which I promptly donned due to an unexpected chill in the air, and a blouse. I thought I might make it through this trip with just the clothes I packed. They were too nice and too good a deal to pass up!

We’ve been easily logging 12 and more miles a day as we cruise around towns. That necessitates a break.

The St. Saveur Basilica had some unusual items.

Saw this in a window – more Chemins in France from various areas. Something to consider for future.

It’s Sunday night and the kids are  not out crowding the pubs. It’s so intriguing that weeknights are party nights and weekends are not. I was halfway hoping they’d be back so I could video the chant. I’m glad they aren’t though as the quiet is welcome.

The weather has turned. It’s autumn and the days are chilly. We even put the heat on in the apartment tonight. And now I bid you Adieu.

I’ve read that there are about 70,000 university students in Rennes. We are staying in an apartment not far from the University of Rennes. I don’t know if there are other colleges here. We are in the “hyper centre” of Rennes. It seems we are in the center of the greatest concentration of cafes. Also in the historic center of the city as witnessed by photos I posted earlier.

We had no idea of course when we booked this place just what the neighborhood would be like.

We arrived last Monday, the 9th. Every weeknight, just outside our apartment, throngs of young people gather to drink and to sing and to pound tables. Fortunately, we have good, pretty well sound-proofed windows. We wondered what the weekend would be like, given the level of party-city that occured on weeknights.

Lo, it’s the quietest it’s been all week! Do students go home for the weekend?

I do wish I’d taken photos and a video of the revelry one of these past weeknights. Thought I’d have my chance on the weekend. Foiled!  Unless, students return Sunday night to get oiled for the grueling school week…

When I think of St. Malo, I remember the book, All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, a WWII novel set mostly in St. Malo. Now I have images of St. Malo’s stately homes, its ramparts, and the miles of beach and ocean.

We arrived pretty close to the height of low tide, which was fortunate so that we could cross the causeway to Isle de Grand Bé, where the remains of the writer Chateaubriand lie.

As the tide was coming in we didn’t dawdle too much on this island. The water was already coming up over the causeway on our return. About an hour later we saw a couple attempt to cross. They retreated back to the island. Would they wait for low tide again? They would be there until midnight or so. Would they call to be rescued?

This beach has a sea pool with a diving board. Below you’ll see it at low tide and then at high tide. Actually, you won’t see it at high tide because the ocean covers it.

Bretagne is known for its buttery cookies, crêpes, galettes, and koing amman. Crêpes are sweet. Galettes are savory crêpes made with buckwheat, and koing amman are sickeningly good. They are light layers of buttery, sweet pastry. We split one and that was plenty.

First views of St. Malo castle and ramparts. The castle currently houses the town hall.

I’ve been noticing many store windows with enlarged photographs of some cute critter’s face. Turns out it’s ermine, the allegorical aimal of the Dukes of Brittany, symbol of purity and loyalty. The photos are there while buildings are being remodeled.

Last thing while I think of it. Brittany has a long history of Celtic ancestry. Many street signs are in French as well as Celt. Some hundreds speak it regularly, and a movement has arisen to bring it more fully back. There are bilingual schools now. One of the railway lines has the name Breizh – Celt for Bretagne.

C’est tout pour au’jourd’hui. I may have one too many apostrophes there.

As does the Chemin…even when you are no longer on it.

I simply love this artwork. Here is what it signifies:

Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Virgin Mary and the Apostles of Jesus Christ while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:1-31).

It has nothing to do with the title of this post.

Warning – this post is more of a personal reflection. More for myself, perhaps… You may be bored! Here is what I want to say about the Camino providing:

After leaving the Chemin in Conques I had real misgivings. I wanted to continue, and I had concerns. Rightfully so given Achilles tendon flare-ups. I missed the Chemin so, even while enjoying the travel. I missed the quietude of walking in fresh air in nature. I missed the people and easy interactions. I missed speaking French with acquaintances. I missed the ease of walking, only planning ahead to the next day’s stop. I still miss it and look forward to completing this Chemin (Via Podiensis) next year. It won’t be as steep, so will be easier on compromised joints.

That said, extensive touring has also given me ample time to reflect. Everywhere we go we stop in the cathedrals, chapels, churches – for the history, the artwork, the architecture – and for time to sit in silent meditation within a sacred building, consecrated over centuries by millions of souls.

In the 3 weeks since leaving the Chemin, I have come to realize that I am ready to give up my long-standing desire to live in another country for an extended period of time as a tourist. Without the comraderie of the Chemin, it’s rather isolating. Is it touring? Is it that we’re staying in one country for an extended period? Is it that our Chemin was too short?

At any rate, I get that even staying in one community for 3 months is not the same as committing to a life there. And I don’t see that happening. Our foray into leaving NM for another state left us clear that it is home.

Once I recognized that leaving the Chemin allowed me to gain clarity, I was able to let go of leaving it early as a loss, and instead be thankful for what its absence provided.

I’ve been having a grand time planning outings and where we’ll go next. Which is Vannes. Next post will cover St. Malo and Dinan. But first, 2 photos that show why Rennes is the Paris of Bretagne.

If you have a hankering for Paris, go to Rennes. It’s such a great size. Walkable. Beautiful buildings, architecture, churches. It doesn’t have the museums. It has them, of course, but not the Louvre, L’Orangerie, etc. We took a map guided walking tour today. It took us the better part of the day, with time out for lunch. I had filet mignon – of pork! It was savory and tender. And a surprise.

The above is just around the corner from us. Cathedral St. Aubaun. A carousel. Copious seating for drinks.

Rennes has some 300 of these old half timbered houses. Many others burned in the great fire of 1720. Brittany is known for them. We are staying on the middle floor. It’s spacious. It’s got massive beams. The floor is really wonky – not level. And the stairs are narrow, steep, and curve around. They would not fly in the States. Otherwise,  it’s quite up to date for a home built in the 15th or 16th C.

As you can see from the photos,  we’ve been having great weather.  80 degrees today. We expected much cooler for this time of year and at this latitude. It was so cold and grey the day we flew into Paris,  August 31.

A few more notes on France: public toilets are widely available. Even along the Chemin. They usually have tp. Only once have I encountered one, in Espalion, that smelled rank.

French love dogs. They also don’t pick up after them. ‘Nuff said.

Train stations have a walkway specifically for the blind. It’s a path bordered by textured brick or tile. They also have an office staffed with people to aid the handicapped in travel.

Make of it what you will.