Vannes, Carnac and l'Aber Wrac'h

Our goal today was to get to l'Aber Wrac'h to meet Marie-José Kersebet at the appartment we would be staying in for two nights. We got to the car rental place (a block from our hotel) at 9 and were on the road by 9:20 a.m.. We had asked for the best way out of town toward Brest. It turned out that we had to follow signs for Bordeaux South rather than Brest North. It was a short-cut to the périphéique, the expressway around the city. It lead directly to the highway to Brest; once on it, all one had to do was follow the signs. We were remembering our four trips around Caen, two in each direction, trying to get off its périphéique five years ago. By contrast, this highway had great signage and we were off to Vannes, our first stop in Brittany.

It didn't take us long to realize how much we missed a GPS system. Vannes is typical of most French cities in that there are very few street signs, especially on main streets. I knew we had to get to the port area so we followed the signs, but weren't sure which street we were coming in on, so didn't know where parking would be. We did find parking next to the port. It was a free parking area, so was as always filled beyond what it should have been. The good thing is it was right next to a pay lot and there was lots of room there.

The boat harbor of Vannes.

City gate of the old city of Vannes.

The middle of Vannes is famous for its old town with fantastic flower gardens at the base of the old town walls. Also the old wash house where clothing was washed in Medieval times is still along the river at the base of the walls.

Once we got a parking spot next to the harbor, I had no trouble finding the old city, and the remparts which form a background for two large parks along the river. The old washhouses are also located at the river's edge next to the ramparts.

Ramparts and garden.	Garden, closer view
Washhouse	Washhouse

After viewing the gardens we knew we had to go back to the information booth to find out where Jan could get her cell phone fixed. We knew we would have to call Marie-José to meet us at the appartment, but the special phone and SIM card we bought for France wasn't working. The information booth was able to give us a map and directions to the cell phone stores. We stopped in one where we figured we could buy a SIM card if needed. After Jan explained the problem with the phone, the salesperson removed the back of the phone and rotated the SIM card 180 degrees and the phone worked! It helps to know your business or have some instructions.

With the phone working, it was time to find lunch. There were lots of places to eat in the old town. We found one with a nice Salmon plate.

House in old Vannes.	Jan ready to eat!
	Alignment at Carnac.

After lunch we noticed it was after 1 p.m. and we weren't even half way to l'Aber Wrac'h. We wanted to stop at Carnac, the location of over 2700 monumental stones that date as far back as 4000 B.C. The road we wanted was actually called Route des Alignements. The monuments are placed in large aligned rows called Alignements. This area is not all that far from Stonehendge in Western Britain, here there are so many different structures you get the feeling the importance is lost to the sheer expanse of the area.

The rest of the drive went quickly and we found l'Aber Wrac'h with no trouble. I had seen the appartment and the area around it on the Google street photos. I knew we would have to park across the street at the marina. That isn't a problem in fall. Once Jan called Marie-José it only took a few minutes before she was there with her new dog.

The apartment bedroom/livingroom.	Apartment kitchen/diningroom.
L'Aber Wrac'h harbor from the apartment bedroom	Sailboats from the apartment bedroom.
L'aber Wrac'h Harbor at sunset.

The apartment was on the third floor and looked directly out on the harbor. One of the things that interested me was two groups of catamarans anchored next to each other in the harbor. The wind and tide would align them in different ways frequently during the day. They were used by groups of weekend sailors and on Saturday afternoon, each of two small rubber boats with motors pulled one of the group of catamarans out of the harbor for a weekend sail. The boats returned later in the week.

The rocks at the mouth of l'Aber Wrac'h just after sunset.

L'Aber Wrac'h harbor just after sunset.

Lighthouse from Ile Vierge shines across l'Aber Wrac'h.