Nantes

I cover a good 500 km in one go, which is not typical for me. But the longing for a familiar face is slowly rising and I am looking forward to visiting an old village friend: Lea has been living in Nantes for over 4 years, knows her way around and speaks perfect French, which makes it wonderfully uncomplicated for me :D. Nantes itself also has a lot to offer: the Loire and Erdre rivers flow together here and continue to the sea, as always there are many beautiful churches, although I mistook the Basilica of Saint-Nicolas for a new church at least five times. Orientation in flat landscapes is simply difficult.

The so-called Voyage à Nantes takes us through the entire city along the green line, past the most important sights, and everywhere there are artworks to admire. For me, the most impressive was definitely the wooden elephant based on Jules Verne's novels. Les machines des îles is an island full of small and big surprises.

We indulge in hearty buckwheat crepes, galettes, coffee and cake, and of course a cup or two of cider.

A trip to the sea is a must. So we take the train to Le Croisic and hike along the Côte sauvage and through salt pans. There is plenty of salt in France. But this time, it will only be a fingerbath.

We also had sunny moments, like here at the Château de ducs de Bretagne.

While we're on the topic of the Breton dukes: I thought Nantes already belonged to Brittany. Until 1941, that was the case, Nantes was even the capital of Brittany at times. But after regions were reassigned once again, Nantes is no longer part of Brittany, things can change quickly.