Lanester, France 13 October 2019
It took us most of two days to reach the next stop on our trip. We took the train from Orvieto to Rome, then flew to Paris and spent the night at a hotel virtually in the airport. Then we took the high-speed train to Rennes, the largest city in Brittany, and on to Lorient. (Despite the high speed, the train was 45 minutes late because of goats on the track. Oh well.) Our HomeExchange friends from nearby Lanester brought us to their house, and after a huge lunch of fresh prawns, snails, crabs, oysters, cheese, salad, and wine, it was time for a walk.

Lorient is right on the Atlantic, and the ocean is very accessible from the shore: our friends swim regularly in the ~60-degree (F) water. Here we are below a house that must see some dramatic weather:

And here is a feature of the landscape that gave me a somber feeling. It’s part of the Atlantic Wall built by the Germans to protect against attack by the Allies:

Lorient is a major port, and it was significantly damaged by bombs, so had to be largely rebuilt. Most of the buildings are ho-hum concrete and stucco, but some stand out, like this one in our Lanester neighborhood:

and another, just down the street, reflects perhaps a more agrarian family history:

After our friends left the house to us, we made our first trip to the local supermarket, located in the aptly-named Giant Gallery shopping mall. We were relieved that Google Maps worked better for us than it had in Perugia, as we managed the numerous roundabouts and mostly unsigned streets. Supermarkets may have been invented in the U.S., but Safeway and Whole Foods don’t hold a candle to the vast Géant Casino where we shopped. My favorite feature was the fresh fish, and especially this display of scallop shells. (Zoom if necessary.)

We bought more landlocked stuff such as bread, cheese, juice, cereal, and Breton apple cider, which we plan to sample assiduously.