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Saint Brieuc – The Best Things to See and Do

Saint Brieuc Port on the River Gouët

Saint-Brieuc - The Best Things to See and Do

Saint-Brieuc in the region of Brittany is a wonderful city to explore with a stunning harbour, cobbled streets in the old town and a fortress style church. The wider area around Saint-Brieuc with the spectacular nature reserve and long promenades are very popular with visitors and trekkers. Let me share with you what I think are the best things to see and do in Saint-Brieuc.

Gare de Saint-Brieuc is a large beautiful railway station that's on the direct line from Gare Montparnasse, so it's where we alight from the TGV on our journey from Paris, to then catch a cab to our village house. Saint-Brieuc is my go-to town for car mechanical work and servicing, major electrical appliance purchases, furniture and building materials and garden supplies. It's only 30 minutes from my village and is really pretty with the River Gouët flowing through the town's ravines.

Paris Bistro Chairs – The Origin of the Bistro Chair

Le Bistro Chair of Paris

"When you spend as much time in cafés as I do, you begin to notice that the typique bistro chair is like a snowflake. They are alike, yet no two are the same" - Janice MacLeod, A Paris Year

I absolutely love this quote by Janice MacLeod, the author of two of my most favourites books about Paris, A Paris Year and Dear Paris. It perfectly describes the iconic Paris bistro chair that we all love, and that is as much a part of Paris as is the Eiffel Tower, fresh croissants and the Louvre. In this blog post we look at the origins of the Paris bistro chair, why we love them and the unspoken rules around what and what not to do when seating yourself at a Parisian bistro. And I've got a wonderful gallery of photos taken from my wanderings in Paris of the different styles of bistro chairs.

National Rose Month

National Rose Month

Did you know June is National Rose Month? The whole month is dedicated to celebrating the beauty of roses, their history and the culture behind the flower's eternal meaning of love? The rose as well as being the symbol for love has, in some cultures, symbolised war and politics.

In 1986 President Ronald Reagan declared the rose as the National Floral Emblem of the United States, saying “Americans who would speak the language of the heart do so with a rose.”

14 Facts You Didn’t Know About Marie Antoinette

14 Facts You Didn't Know About Marie Antoinette

What do you know about Marie Antoinette, the Queen of France (1755-1793) and Versailles? Here's 14 facts you may not know about this iconic French Queen who started a new life in France with youth and enthusiasm and ended up living in one of the most tumultuous periods of history.

Described by her brother, Emperor Joseph II, as “honest and lovable,” Marie Antoinette was an Austrian princess and the wife of King Louis XVI. She remains one of the most iconic characters in Versailles’ rich history. She arrived at the French Court aged only fifteen. From the time of her marriage to the Dauphin Louis, heir to the throne, she found it difficult to adapt to French customs and when she became Queen, she committed more and more blunders, often unwittingly, which gradually alienated public opinion, helping to tarnish her image in a most disastrous way. - Chateau of Versailles official website

Life in Rural France – Foraging for Vegetables

Life in Rural France - Blackberry picking in Fourdan Guern

Life in Rural France - Picking Wild Fruit & Pommes Aligot Recipe

Life in rural France revolves around the seasons and that means food, festivals and chores vary depending on the ebb and flow of seasonal weather and produce. There is a time for everything. Such as delicious artichokes in March and scrumptious apples in September.

My family does not have a history of farming or land ownership so our hands on experience with crops and stock is very limited. Living part time in a farming village in France has really opened our eyes to the life of a farmer and the very real connection between daily weather, seasons and produce. Getting in tune with nature has been a very positive part of living amongst the cow pastures, chicken farms and maize crops that surround our tiny village.

Maison de la Tour Eiffel in Pontrieux

Maison de la Tour Eiffel, Pontrieux

Pontrieux is a town nestled slightly inland from the coast of northern Brittany just north of Guingamp and is home to the well known Maison de la Tour Eiffel (a half timbered building in the centre of town). The town is so pretty with all its flower boxes, colourful bushes and historical buildings and I've written about it before (see posts below). This blog post however, is all about the half timbered houses including the 'Eiffel House' or otherwise called, Maison de la Tour Eiffel.

Librairie Jousseaume – Ancient Bookstore at Galerie Vivienne, Paris

Librairie Jousseaume the ancient bookstore at Galerie Vivienne, Paris

Librairie Jousseaume is an ancient bookstore in what is considered one of Paris' loveliest covered passageways, Galerie Vivienne. Galerie Vivienne was inaugurated in 1826 and with its neoclassical decor, mosaic floor and cupola it quickly became Paris' loveliest covered passageway. Located in the central 2nd arrondissement, the gallery is 176 metres long and just 3 metres wide and has been listed as a historical monument since 7 July 1974.

Librairie Jousseaume, Galerie Vivienne, Paris 1905

When the passageway first opened, the bookstore (librairie) was one of the original tenants. The name of the initial store was Librairie Petit-Siroux and you can still see this original name above the store's window. Librairie Jousseaume is in fact made up of two shops which face each other at the point where the covered passage changes direction.

An Insider’s Guide to Provence by Keith Van Sickle

Market place with cafes in Arles, Provence

'An Insider's Guide to Provence' by Keith Van Sickle

The opening quote in Keith Van Sickle's latest book, 'An Insider's Guide to Provence' is the perfect quote describing the beautiful area of Provence ...

"When the Good Lord begins to doubt the world, he remembers that he created Provence" - Frédéric Mistral

Author Keith knows Provence well and his latest, and third book, is a guide sharing everything he's learnt over more than a decade of living part-time in, and exploring Provence, with his trusty co-adventurer and wife, Val. Acknowledging that the region is vast and covering it in one book would be impractical, Keith instead focuses on St Rémy de Provence and the places they know best.

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Saint Brieuc – The Best Things to See and Do

Saint-Brieuc - The Best Things to See and Do

Paris Bistro Chairs – The Origin of the Bistro Chair

Le Bistro Chair of Paris

National Rose Month

National Rose Month

14 Facts You Didn’t Know About Marie Antoinette

14 Facts You Didn't Know About Marie Antoinette

Life in Rural France – Foraging for Vegetables

Life in Rural France - Picking Wild Fruit & Pommes Aligot Recipe

Maison de la Tour Eiffel in Pontrieux

Maison de la Tour Eiffel, Pontrieux

Librairie Jousseaume – Ancient Bookstore at Galerie Vivienne, Paris

Librairie Jousseaume the ancient bookstore at Galerie Vivienne, Paris

An Insider’s Guide to Provence by Keith Van Sickle

'An Insider's Guide to Provence' by Keith Van Sickle

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