We started by heading up towards Cap Fréhel, to explore some of those famous wild landscapes (undeterred by the decidedly ominous-looking clouds in the sky). We stopped for lunch at Saint-Cast-le-Guildo, a nice seaside town, very sleepy this time of the year (but apparently overrun by tourists during summer). We found a charming little creperie, where we had a VERY reasonably priced crepes lunch (10 Euros for three crepes – you would get about 1 crepes for 10 euros on the Cote d’Azur). Our stomachs filled, we headed down to Cap Fréhel – in spite of the lack of improvement on the weather front. 
Cap Fréhel is quite a good introduction to Brittany landscapes. It’s a barren, wind-swept, rocky piece of land sticking out into the Atlantic, covered with broom (a yellow flower, in case like me you didn’t know that ;-) ) – which is apparently the symbolic flower of Brittany. The walk was very nice indeed – the fresh air and landscapes did their trick on us. The weather was pretty much OK for the 1st half of the walk, which took us up to the light house at the end of the cape. From there on, things got worse, as the mist got thicker and it started raining. That’s Brittany for ye, I suppose ;-).
The walk finished at the Fort-la-Latte – a castle impressively located on a piece of land sticking into the sea. This castle, dating back to the 13th century was used as a setting for several films, including The Vikings (the 1958 film starring Kirk Douglas and Tony Curtis). It’s a pretty cool place, a proper medieval castle this one (I prefer those to the fancy renaissance castles that you find quite a lot in France). A perfect ending for a nice hike – and best of all the rain even stopped…
The next stop on our tour was Dinard, where we decided to do a short stop since we still had an hour or so of daylight. Dinard is all about the Belle Epoque. The place was made a fashionable seaside resort by British and American aristocrats at the end of the 19th century, and was the most popular European seaside resort until the 1930’s (when the Cote d’Azur took over ;-) ). The Belle Epoque can definitely be seen in the architecture, especially on the two “capes” which flank the beachside. We didn’t have much time to explore the town, as it was getting dark… 
This time we were staying the night at Anne and Olivier’s place, who live in a small village (with an typically impossible-to-remember name) located between Dinan and Dinard. Anne and Olivier are globetrotting friends of Mathilde, who used to live in Paris (where I met them), but have since migrated to the wild west of France… Great to hang out with them again – and to meet the youngest family member! And the dinner Anne had prepared for us was top as well. 
The next day, we decided to explore nearby Dinan (not to be confused with Dinard, which we visited last night). Dinan is one of the more famous historic towns in Brittany, and I absolutely adored the place, with its cobble-stone streets, half-timber houses and medieval feel. I would possible even go as far as to say it’s my favorite medieval town in France so far (I’m sure the population of Dinan would be so proud to hear that…). We spent a couple of hours in the morning walking around in the old town centre, and then took Le Jerzual (the steep and very picturesque street which connects the old town with the port – the height difference is an impressive 75 meters) down to the river where the port is located. 
For lunch, we found a very charming looking creperie (what else!?). The crepes and cider were predictably tasty, yummie – and again we noted the very reasonable bill… After lunch, we continued our walk, this time along the city walls – which are very well preserved and the longest ones in Brittany. The city walls offered us great views over the river, the port, and the old town. After doing the tour of the city walls, we still had time to check out the medieval cathedral. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to visit the impressively well-preserved castle. Next time, I suppose ;-).
Since it was still kind of early, we decided to catch a movie – and decided upon Biutiful, which was showing at Dinard. So, off we headed to Dinard again. This time we had a little bit more time to explore the faded Belle Epoque glamour of this place, which sort or reminded me of Brighton a bit. The sun came out as well, for the first time during our stay, which was a positive surprise. We were also treated to some rather splendid views towards Saint-Malo, with the sun setting… Magnifique !The film was pretty good, but rather depressing. It’s a bit like taking all the bad things that happen in life (cancer, domestic violence, crime, illegal immigration, police corruption – I’m sure I forgot something) and putting them all in a film. Good acting, good film, but a bit too heavy for a holiday cinema session…
After another great evening and night spent at Anne and Olivier’s, it was time to bid them farewell, and carry on our Odyssey. The plan for our last day in Brittany was to start with a hike around Cancale. We selected a nice-seeming walk going to the Pointe de Grouin. Actually; since it was a six-hour walk, we only decided to do part of it. Cancale is, as you may or may not know, famous for its oysters. Ands it is actually a very charming little town as well. The seaside is pretty much spot on as I have imagined a port in Brittany, with its pretty little houses, and fishing boats stranded on the beach during low tide. The rows of restaurants on the seafront only slightly disrupt the picture of harmony.
The walk we did was great, again evoking the landscapes one expects to see in this part of the world, with the mighty waves crashing against the high cliffs. The walk took us along the sentier douanier (the custom officers footpath ??) up to the end of the cape- the Pointe de Grouin. What made the walk especially great was that we were actually treated to glorious sunshine for the duration of the hike. So pretty much the perfect way to spend an autumn afternoon in Brittany, I’d say!
The plan was to spend the night in one of the most famous towns in Brittany, Saint-Malo. Thankfully we arrived early enough to be able to explore the town for a bit before it got dark. So after checking in to our hotel, we headed off towards the walled old town. The harbor was extremely busy, since the Route de Rhum was about to kick off. It’s basically the biggest sailing event in Brittany (and in France, perhaps?), taking place once every four years (the race starts in Saint-Malo and ends in Pointe-à-Pitre, in Guadeloupe). After checking out the cool sailing boats, we headed into the old town. 
It’s a very different place from the other historic town we’d seen, Dinan. At first glance, I didn’t actually find it that charming. Saint-Malo is all about big, austere, granite buildings, and feels less warm and cozy than Dinan But once you get a feel of the place, the austere harmony of the place gets to you. And a walk along the city walls is pretty amazing, especially with the late afternoon sun we were treated to. The old town was mostly destroyed in World War II; so very good restoration work has been carried out there, as well.After an aperitif in a cozy bar we found, we headed out for dinner, to a small nice restaurant by the old city walls. We were kind of surprised to find the city relatively calm at night, actually… The meal was great, and the perfect way to end our stay in Brittany!
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