I returned a few days ago from a whirlwind tour of a small section of Brittany. I took the TGV to Rennes to meet my friend Mary  from America and from there we established our base in the beautiful village of Combourg. Each day we drove to a different town, most of them along the northern Brittany coastline. First we went to Cancale – the main feature of which was huitres – oysters. We had a fabulous three course meal that cost only 15€, very reasonable by French standards. The first course – l’entrée –  was a dozen oysters, the second – le plat – was moules frites (delicious mussels and fries), the third – le dessert – a cinnamon-laden mousse au chocolat. We had a perfectly chilled bottle of Muscadet with the meal. Afterwards, we walked along the windswept cliffs overlooking the acres of oyster beds below and Mary, a French teacher, helped me with my French.

The next day we drove to St. Malo, a stunning granite-walled city on the coast. The weather was perfect but I could tell that, for most of the year, its ancient ramparts are battered by wind and sea. In the Middle Ages it was a fortified island and notorious as a haven for pirates. These days it is filled with seafood restaurants and, it seemed to me, loads of English tourists. From there, we drove to Mont St. Michel. I heard that this incredibly beautiful place has become extremely touristy and, for that reason, I didn’t really want to go there. However, I kept seeing the island way out in the water from Cancale and then St. Malo, and its siren call finally worked its magic on me. I just had see it up close. I’m so glad we drove the short distance there. I love the picture I took of the island but if I had turned around and snapped that view instead – well, let’s just say that “enchanting” is not the first word to spring to mind. My friend told me it was even more touristy on the island, so I left with only the gorgeous exterior view in my memory.

Dinan was next. It is further inland but what a setting! The town is built up on a hillside overlooking the River Rance and is full of beautifully preserved medieval buildings. The area along the river is filled with seafood restaurants and that is where I ordered L’Assiette de Mer. Where we live in the south is not particularly noted for seafood, so that’s what I ordered every chance I had.

Our penultimate day we went to Dinard, along the coast near St. Malo, but this town struck me as very touristy. It must be a quick easy trip for the English because there seemed to be more of them there than the French. Or should I say more Britishers than Bretons. However, it did have the best brocante I’ve been to in France. (That’s an outdoor antiques-collectibles market.) I couldn’t resist buying three lovely old glass pharmacy jars which I then had to get home with my other luggage on the train. (Nothing broke!) When we got back to our base in Combourg, we visited the impressive castle there that was renovated in the 15th century.

As we drove back to Rennes on our last day, we stopped in Vitrés, which just happened to have a ginormous castle perched on high. As my photos show, castles in this area have the classic conical-shaped tower tops that we don’t see in the south. The architecture in Brittany is so different from Provence that it feels almost like being in a different country. Considering that France did not really come together as a country until between the 15th or the 18th centuries (historians debate this), I guess it’s not so surprising.

Ruth

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