Vannes

Yesterday we somewhat sadly packed our bags and bade farewell to St Malo. We had a fabulous time there and watching the tides became an hypnotic part of each day's schedule. Unfortunately we were leaving before the tides reached their spectacular monthly maximum, so maybe we will have to take that into account in planning our dates for our possible next visit in 2019.

Accompanied by the now familiar sound of rolling suitcase castors we walked the 1.4 km to the Gare St Malo and waited for our train to Rennes. Our tickets did not have allocated seats so we had a bit of a scramble to secure places for ourselves and our luggage. An hour later we had arrived at the impressive Rennes Station and looked for the next train that would take us the rest of the way to Vannes.

This time we did have allocated seats, although for some reason the air conditioning in the carriage did not seem to be working. This meant that we had a somewhat uncomfortable time, but the high speed (over 200 kph) of the train and the superb scenery meant that the time went quite quickly.

We arrived at Vannes at around 3.30 pm, the warmest time of the day. The sun had shone brightly all day and chose that moment to shine even more. Our hotel was situated about 1.5 km from the Vannes Station and we had a rather hot and bumpy walk to its front door. Fortunately we made it without losing a castor and the welcoming lady at the desk told us that our room was waiting for us. This is always a relief, especially when the booking had been made almost a year earlier.

We had last visited Vannes back in 2013 and at that time we had been travelling with Paul and Jan Coutts. The following day was spent renewing our knowledge of the historic city and exploring many kilometres of its tiny roads and alleys. In the evening we had a pizza dinner at the same restaurant we had visited 4 years earlier. It is situated right at the top of the ramparts and gives an amazing view down to the manicured gardens below. The evening was warm and perfectly still and we even had the same friendly waiter who had served us four years ago. It was another magic end to a perfect day (and the pizzas were excellent too).

It is also worth noting that I have noticed several Camino signs during our travels this year. These have special relevance to me now that I will be walking the Camino next year. I guess these signs have been here for a long time, but I have never looked out for them before.Read more