Grandparents Visiting
31 July 2023 – Concarneau, France
My grandparents flew to France to visit us, so we sailed back to Brest to pick them up. It was great to see them again and to celebrate my grandpa’s eightieth birthday together the next day. There is a large fort overlooking the harbour in Brest, which was originally built in the middle ages as defence against the English and has now been turned into a naval museum. It was interesting to walk through the castle itself, as it had been well-maintained, and to see an exhibit of gigantic carved wooden figureheads, mainly of various Roman gods.
Château de Brest – Brest, France
Figurehead of Minerva in the Château de Brest – Brest, France
Our original plan was to sail to Île de Sein and spend the night there, but the harbour is completely open to the north and there was a swell coming in. Instead, we walked around the island, which has beautiful little houses, beaches, and scenery, and then left to cross the Raz de Sein.
Île de Sein, France
Île de Sein, France
The Raz de Sein is a potentially treacherous passage between Île de Sein and the Pointe du Raz on the mainland that can become extremely wavy due to strong current. We timed crossing it perfectly with the current, though, so it was nearly flat calm as we sailed through.
Our next port was Concarneau, which is my favourite town that we have been to so far this year. There are lots of shops, cobblestone streets, a market where we bought croissants, baguettes, and cheeses, and a delicious crêperie. There is also an old town which can be accessed through walking through the remains of a castle which felt like something out of a myth.
Entranceway to castle – Concarneau, France
Concarneau, France
Unfortunately, my mom broke her tooth on a baguette and had to go to the dentist, but our friends whom we had recently met up with kindly drove her and my dad to a nearby town. There they had lunch and visited the biggest gothic cathedral in Brittany.
Gothic cathedral and Miss – Quimper, France
