Last days in Brittany

Tuesday, 20 August and Wednesday 21 August

Tuesday
Jessica had a hair appointment in Quimper so Baptiste and I went with her this morning and had another stroll around the old city. We were quite happy to see some more of this lovely place and with brilliantly blue skies the old buildings looked even lovelier than the other day. 


Quimper cathedral

Fortunately Quimper was not crowded and after Jess had undergone a transformation from blonde to brunette we were able to enjoy our second scrumptious lunch at Le Petit Gaveau.  Jess and I had "Croistillant  Burger - crusty burgers. There is a half bun under the meat and cheese and a crispy roti on top.  What a good idea, especially if like me you think that burgers have too much bread.  Delicious with crunchy green salad and pommes de terre grenaille.  Not to mention a chilled chardonnay - the wine is always so good!

Riverside dining, Quimper

Having indulged our taste buds we drove home to collect Maree and Melanie for our afternoon outing.  As the weather was now hot and sunny Jess and Baptiste thought that they should get some beach time in while visiting Brittany. 

Brunette Jess - ready for the beach

We drove west to Audierne which is a busy port and harbour lined with the typical white houses and as an added attraction has a very appealing beach on the ocean side. 


Beach at Audierne

 After depositing Jess and Tiste at the beach, Maree, Mel and I drove back to the town and spent a couple of pleasant hours strolling about, checking out the little shops and generally enjoying the summer holiday ambience. 

Flowery Audierne

We stopped for an ice-cream but the glacier was all out of everything but lemon flavour - no thanks!  Our beach bunnies were ready for collection and we met them at a café on a high point overlooking both the beach and the harbour - and yes the cafe had ice-cream.  Mel and I made the most of one of our last chances for "deux boules, rhum/ raisin and caramel beurre sel"(salty caramel)  - sooooo good!  Why does ice cream taste so good at the beach?  The late afternoon sun on the sand and the water is wonderful - a kind of golden glow.

Audierne

 We left Audierne around 6 pm and took the road to Pointe du Raz,  the most westerly point in France and famous for its lighthouse (called La Vieille) and huge waves which often feature in photographs and paintings.  The landscape became quite rugged as we approached and it is obvious from the low, scrubby vegetation that this is a place of high winds.  Today there was hardly a breathe of wind and the sea was like a mill pond.  Along the way we were surprised to see a large number of houses clustered in small villages as the area feels very remote. It is also very un-French looking (if that is possible).  The houses and landscape are very reminiscent of the wilder parts of Cornwall or maybe parts of Scotland. 

White cottages   - on the road to Pointe du Raz

The last kilometre of access to Pointe du Raz is by foot through fields covered with low shrubby plants that are ablaze with purple flowers - maybe heather, I am not sure.  Anyway it is quite a sight.


Calluna (heather) beside the path to Pointe du Raz (I googled it)

 Pointe du Raz is high above the sea and the views are far reaching with the low lying Isle-de-Sein visible in the distance.  Fishing boats were working in the rough waters around the lighthouse. This is where two currents and tides meet, hence the huge waves, even on a calm day.  There is a memorial to the victims of shipwrecks and a large shipping radar post at the Pointe, otherwise just wide open spaces.

Pointe du Raz - La Vieille and Isle-de-Sein on the horizon

  From the path a little further around the point there is a good view down to a popular surfing beach called, rather morbidly, Baie des Trepasses (Bay of those who have passed on) - apparently bodies from shipwrecked vessels were most likely to wash up on the shores of this bay. 

View along the coast to Baie des Trepasses

 There was quite a crowd on the rocks above the lighthouse, enjoying the evening and no doubt some would be staying to see the sun set but  that was still a couple of hours away and we were ready for home.

Jessica at Pointe du Raz

 It was about 40 minutes back to Douarnenez where we did the unthinkable (in France anyway) and grabbed some Maccas to eat in the garden back at the house.

The hamlet of Le Merdy

Wednesday
A lovely day for our final one in Brittany and we spent the morning catching up on laundry, emails, and just chilling in the garden where the swallows were having heaps of fun doing aerial acrobatics.

Sunny morning at Le Merdy

  After cleaning up all the food left in the frig for lunch I drove Jess and Tiste to the nearest beach, La Plage des Sables Blancs which is at Treboul, for a last tanning session - swimming was not an option for Jess as the water is pretty chilly and not for wimps or Gold Coast girls. 

La Plage des Sables Blancs, Treboul

 As they only wanted to stay a couple of hours and Maree and Mel were happy back at Le Merdy, I took myself off for a bit of a drive in the countryside and tended to some car things for the journey tomorrow.  I followed a country lane for a while and then took a road through rolling farmlands to Pont Croix which advertised itself as a "cite medieval".


Along country roads, Finistere

 In fact Pont Croix turned out to be a very sleepy village on the banks of a tidal river - it was definitely medieval though.  I parked in the square and wandered through the deserted streets to a square with a very grand and very old (C13th) church. 

The church at Pont Croix

A few people with cameras appeared here and there but otherwise there was little sign of life.  There was a tourist office so evidently the town has some claim to fame (maybe the church) - I didn't have time to find out.

Pont Croix

After ensuring that our trusty Peugeot was good for the road I headed back to the beach to collect Jess and Tiste and we went back to Le Merdy to finish packing up.  Later in the evening Jess, Tiste and I went to Douarnenez for an evening meal only to find that the restaurant which serves dishes other than fish was fully booked.  Baptiste's cousin had told him that Douarnenez has the best crepes in France so we thought we would give a creperie a go.  We chose the busiest looking one and were lucky to get a table.  No wonder it was busy - the crepes were certainly delicious!  A lovely evening for our last night in Brittany and I did spot a dream of a French cottage today! 

French cottage anyone? (Pont Croix)

 And some more window artistry!