Visiting St. Gildas des Bois and Redon (Brittany, France) with Juilliard Graduate Florence Paget and Savvy Mom Ruth Paget
My daughter Florence and I began our tour of deep Brittany, or le Bretagne Profond, in St. Gildas des Bois, France.
This town reminded me of Virginia with its beautiful gardens and pretty churches. We arrived just in time for mass in the town’s gray, granite church that was cool inside despite the warm weather outside. It is hard to carve a stone like granite, leaving church faรงades rather austere.
I thought this church would be desolate looking in winter, especially since it rains so much in Brittany. Next to the church stands a convent that was built in the eleventh century. We saw a couple of nuns leaving in their old and tiny, but immaculately clean cars.
This way-off-the-beaten-track church and convent made me think of how the church still organizes much of the life in this part of France.
After visiting St. Gildas des Bois, my daughter Florence and I visited Redon, which my Michelin Guide du Routard called a Breton Venice, because its many bridges span the Nantes-Brest Canal. Several vacationers in canal boats floated by as we admired the scene.
The most striking feature about Redon when you arrive is its floral decoration. Huge pots of flowers decorate every street, making Redon a contender for the coveted “Most Flower-filled Town of France” award. The city hall had red geraniums cascading down its three stories. Flowers framed the entrance to the building. Even the suspended tracks for France’s high speed TGV trains were decorated with flowers.
Deep Brittany is a flower-filled path to follow!
P.S. I just learned from Michelet's History of France that Heloise and Abelard had a rendezvous in Saint Gildas according to the Bretons.
My daughter Florence and I began our tour of deep Brittany, or le Bretagne Profond, in St. Gildas des Bois, France.
This town reminded me of Virginia with its beautiful gardens and pretty churches. We arrived just in time for mass in the town’s gray, granite church that was cool inside despite the warm weather outside. It is hard to carve a stone like granite, leaving church faรงades rather austere.
I thought this church would be desolate looking in winter, especially since it rains so much in Brittany. Next to the church stands a convent that was built in the eleventh century. We saw a couple of nuns leaving in their old and tiny, but immaculately clean cars.
This way-off-the-beaten-track church and convent made me think of how the church still organizes much of the life in this part of France.
After visiting St. Gildas des Bois, my daughter Florence and I visited Redon, which my Michelin Guide du Routard called a Breton Venice, because its many bridges span the Nantes-Brest Canal. Several vacationers in canal boats floated by as we admired the scene.
The most striking feature about Redon when you arrive is its floral decoration. Huge pots of flowers decorate every street, making Redon a contender for the coveted “Most Flower-filled Town of France” award. The city hall had red geraniums cascading down its three stories. Flowers framed the entrance to the building. Even the suspended tracks for France’s high speed TGV trains were decorated with flowers.
Deep Brittany is a flower-filled path to follow!
P.S. I just learned from Michelet's History of France that Heloise and Abelard had a rendezvous in Saint Gildas according to the Bretons.
By Ruth Paget, Author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
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