ST. MALO

Saturday, April 25, 2009 Saint Malo, Dinard & St. Enogat

Out the door before nine am for the short drive over to Saint Malo. We got a bit turned around at first because the signs to the Centre Ville suddenly were gone. Stopped and checked Rick Steves and the sign in this particular city is “Intra Muros”….not sure why but it worked and we were soon at the Ancient City Center. Parked and walked in through the gateway under the ramparts. I thought it was brisk but Mary said it was “very cold”. She had two jackets with both hoods up, a scarf and her gloves. I was dressed lightly in my windbreaker and no socks with my sandals but loved the brisk wind in my hair as we walked around the ramparts from the port to the chateau. The tide was in and actually splashing over the wall along the port at the beginning. We could barely see the outline of the swimming pool wall near the center of the ramparts above the port. By the time we reached the far side the tide was beginning to recede and people were starting to walk out onto the tidal basin to reach the off shore fort that only moments before had been surrounded by water.

Walked to the center of the city to visit the Cathedral of St. Vincent; over the centuries it has had its problems but WW II was very difficult for the structure. Eighty percent of St. Malo was damaged during the invasion in 1944. There were photos of the damage and the church was basically a shell with partial walls, partial towers and not much else left. It’s amazing to realize the restoration process that has been done over the past sixty years. This church is dedicated to sailors and explorers, two of the people buried here in this cathedral are Jacques Cartier and Duguay-Trouin.

Our three hour exploration was over too soon but we were ready to return to Dinard. We will go over to St. Enogat for Mass at six this evening and possibly stop by to check the tide levels while we are out. . The sun was shinning brightly for our morning excursion, coming home we noticed some dark clouds and now two hours later it is raining. Nice to be home and watching the rain out of our window!

Our evening trip was under sunny skies with fabulous clouds. Arrived in St. Enogat early and took the extra time to explore the beach area in this little “Newport Beach” of Dinard. Beautiful old stone vintage homes, several of which had signs on the gates indicating that they may be rented for a week at a time.

The church was beautiful and we enjoyed the Mass even though many people were coughing and sneezing all around us. But, all in all, it was a nice way to end the week.

Tomorrow morning we head south to the Lorie Valley and a week of visiting the Chateaus along the Lorie River before our final days in Paris.