Looking for a place to stay in Rennes... a place to camp : the camping des Gayeulles : a 3-star open all year (Rue Maurice Audin, 35700 Rennes Tel: 00 33 (0)2 99 36 91 22) and located in a really nice park... north-east of Rennes is done for you. You can enjoy the capital of Brittany and tour around... You're not far from the coast...

The camping place is located in Rennes largest park (100 hectares), you may even think you're in the forest but the place is a creation. Back in 1967, the city of Rennes decided to create a park that will open ten years later when the trees have grown a little.
If you're travelling with kids or teenagers, they'll love this place... Leisure facilities for everyone are available...Sometimes you feel like being in the countryside...



... And at times, you enjoy the leisure of the town ...




Soccer fields, tennis courts (02 99 36 59 71) and squash are provided for you... Golfers can try with the kids the mini-golf ... or all lovers of blue water can will have fun in pool area.

Kids will also use swings or slides. You have no excuse to avoid your traditional jogging in nature ...

If you love animals... you can visit the educational farm, located on the park, where children do things "like farmers" ! Rabbits, ponies, goats, chickens and ducks welcome you... Kids participate in daily activities: they feed the animals or press the apple juice to make cider .... You can go for a free visit: Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Ferme pédagogique des basses Gayeulles, rue du professeur Maurice Audin, dans le parc des Gayeulles, Tel : 02 99 36 71 73).



Read this article in French : Ferme pédagogique, mini-golf ou balançoires : les loisirs de plein air au parc des Gayeulles à Rennes (Bretagne)

You’re visiting Rennes during this Christmas period ??? Then walk around and stay till the end of the day, when night is «on» and enjoy this new show at Place de la Mairie (right downtown) when it is dark.

The show is free and takes place every half an hour from 6 pm to 9 pm.The company SpectaculaireS has been entertaining the Rennais for the last three years and still do… The show mixes light, buildings and music…It is nice for both kids and adults…

And if you’re still around for Happy New Year, spend your last half an hour of 2008 in front of the Mairie de Rennes… You’ll see peculiar fireworks in front of the historical building of the town hall.

Happy New Year.

Read it in French : Spectacles et animations gratuites à Rennes pendant les vacances de Noel

If you are visiting Saint Malo, you should stop at the shop producing and selling the breton speciality called “craquelin de Saint Malo”. Arriving from the highway, take Saint Malo centre and at the first round about, take a right, you’re on the factory (Z.A.C. de la moinerie, 35400 Saint-Malo, Tél : 02 99 81 92 89). You can no more visit it but you can still taste their different specialities.



What is a craquelin ?
Is it a brioche with sugar or a light craker eaten at breakfast time ? Well, craquelins are both ; they are european specialities. The first one is made in Belgium and the second is a breton product.



In Brittany, according to their website craquelins de Saint Malo, it is an old traditional product (almost 400 years). As in 1663 the Saint Malo hospital already mentions it.

Why do we find them in Saint Malo region ?
The first explanation is that Saint Malo has a long trade tradition and in particular with Flanders. And so ? The word craquelin is a Dutch word crakelinc, that means crispy biscuit.
The second one is that there use to be lots of forests on the Rance estuary. To bake the craquelins, you need lots of fagots…

Why is it so successful ?
A craker is dry and therefore easy to preserve and so easy to transport and sell. They were sold on the markets, and women used to carry them (2000 pieces) in big baskets on their backs and sell them on farms. At Dinard, the first seaside resort of the end of the XIXth century, British customers used to love them.

Why is it so special ?
It doesn’t come from its recipe, which is quite simple : flour, eggs, milk. It comes from the way it is baked. The dough is first quickly boiled, then cooled in cold water and then put in the oven. That makes it so special !!!

12 pieces bags are sold for 2,20 euros.



And if you buy 10, you get a discount as local customers do. Hotels are big buyers, and they make it known… Lots of tourists come to that shop to buy them before going home.

The traditional product has now other varieties : smaller ones for salty toasts, chocolate ones that taste like pyms but in much lighter… you can find them salt free.



If you never went to Saint Servan, go for a walk in that nice district of Saint Malo, it is worth it…

Read it in French : Les craquelins de Saint Malo, une spécialité bretonne de l'estuaire de la rance (France)

You want to know if the notions of sustainable development, organic food or ecological houses mean something in France. You should go to this fair.

It gathers biological farmers and organic wine producers, representatives of natural health products or cosmetics and bio fibres exhibitors …



Ecological houses, solar energy or water filters are also represented during this week end.

It takes place in the Parc expo (Parc des Expositions de Rennes Saint Jacques) from Februar 27th to March 1st. Open from 10 am to 7 pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday, it is open till 10 pm on Friday night. 4 euros (for those who are more than 12 years old).

You’re visiting Rennes with your children. And you want to rest after your cultural visit of the old town of Rennes… Leave the historical monuments and go up North. The park of Maurepas (Parc de Maurepas) is located on the North side of Rennes and is open from 8.15 am to 6.15 pm.



It is a nice garden for young kids to young teenagers…

With your young kids :



they can play on/in the sand … or enjoy the toboggan





or the swings…



You can also try the carrousel on sundays afternoon.



If you came with their bicycles, you can let them go round the playground, on a track that imitates real traffic conditions (lights, stops…).



Your young teeny needs a break. He can use his skate board on the opposite side of the garden, on a street park for skateboarders.



And parents can have a picnic or rest on the grass



(in France you need to be allowed to walk on the grass... in public gardens? And here yes you can !!!) while your baby savours sand, your little girl jumps from the toboggan and your teenager learns to speak French with other skateboarders…

And you can also observe and compare the customs of Mister and Missis Duck.



And your artist side ??? Well admire the statue !!!



Some more informations : the park has been created beetween 1936 and 1939 thanks to the landlord of Maurepas that gave his land. It was already a garden with playgrounds for children : a track for tricycles… It is the fourth bigger garden of Rennes, it covers 5,5 hectares (the bigger is the parc des Gayeulles - 100 hectares-, Bréquigny – 17 - et le Thabor 10).

You can also discover the two unique umbrella pines of Rennes ? Where are they ???



Read it in French : Le parc de Maurepas à Rennes (bretagne) pour les enfants de 7 mois à 77 ans

In Brittany, depending on where you are, crêpes and galettes are not made the same way. There are differents types of crêpes: made with wheat or with buckwheat, and eaten salty or sweet. The breton pancakes made of buckwheat are called galettes in French and eaten in crêperies. But there are local differences ; the farther west you go, the thinner they are and they are made with wheat and the same batter is used for salty and sweet ones. Farther east they are prepared with buckwheat (in french we say black wheat because the flour is brown, galettes de sarrasin or de blé noir) for the salty ones, the pancakes are thicker and the sweet ones are made with wheat (crêpes de froment).




In Rennes and surroundings (Ille et Vilaine, Haute Bretagne), one of the specialities is the « galette saucisse » or even better « galette sauc’ » which is a sausage wrapped with a buckwheat’s pancake. You can eat it plain, wrapped with a double galette, with mustard, with grated cheese… it’s a breton hot dog !!!




You won’t find it in crêperies but at markets fairs and festivals.

In Rennes, during the famous marché des Lices, market that takes place on saturdays, you’ll see the residents of Rennes queuing for half an hour at lunch time to eat it.




A good « galette sauc’ » is made with a lightly grilled sausage wrapped around a smooth and warm galette.




You can also eat on those caravans at markets a « galette complète » which is also traditional : it is a buckwheat’galette filled with egg, ham and cheese. As a dessert take the traditional « beurre sucre » butter and sugar which is the best one.




Read it in French : la galette saucisse une spécialité bretonne à Rennes au marché des Lices

You're a breeder... And you're looking for the famous international exhibition for livestock in Europe... Go to the one where the animal's world gathers... I'm talking about Rennes, in West of France. It began in 1987 and since then the fair's fame increases every year. Although initially there were only 200 exhibitors and some 30,000 visitors. Today, more than 1,000 exhibitors animate the show and more than 100,000 visitors come every year, 10% from abroad.

Why West of France ?...
Well the departement Ille et Vilaine (Rennes is the capital) is one of the place in France that produces the highest quantity of milk. That explains why dairy farming is a second nature for the area .... And Brittany also raises pigs, chickens ... or even ostriches ... and many other critters. In short, to create the show in the Breton capital seemed obvious. And it is every year a success.

Yes, a success story that takes place in Rennes : during the show, you will enjoy the smell of animals... but the life of the department changes during the 4 days of the fair.... The hotels are full, booked, crowded... No rooms are left and are booked for ages .... even around the department Ille et Vilaine.
The entire exhibition park of Rennes Saint Jacques, (close to the airport) is totally used ... 100,000 sqm of exhibition space... all the halls are occupied... All types of livestock are represented: poultry, dairy cows, pigs, sheep. ..
Genetics (this show is in terms of bovine genetics internationally recognized), equipment, research ... Hundreds of animals competing in contests, competitions (about the quantity of dairy products by animals or weight and size of the animal...). The latest findings are presented to professional breeders. Farm visits are available (in English, don't forget it is the international trade fair for livestock!) And non-stop conferences. Researchers and geneticists meet ...
Finally, there are endless traffic jams on the expressway during the opening hours of the show ...

In short, it's a huge event in the world of breeding, THE livestock fair, farmers around the world come to learn, buy cattle, seed, semen, exchange ideas, compare performance, see new equipment, the latest innovations ...
Welcome to the SPACE... Register on the web site and let's meet in mid-September. It lasts four days, all day from 9:00 until 6:00 p.m... Entrance fee ...

Read this article in French : Le SPACE salon international de l'élevage en France

Once upon a time, there were forests... and trees... now there are climbing courses for adventurers who like to be acrobats.

From April to November, you can in the afternoon climb trees in a park in Rennes (when it is not school holidays, it is open Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday). Depending of the weather, of course ... Heavy rain and - du vent à décorner les boeufs - (wind that will dehorn cattle, as we say in French !) are usually day-offs!



Children can try with 2 (my girl was 3 ½ years and a friend 5 years ... they did the course for 2-4 years). Very quickly, kids are independent and climb alone. They can't fall as they are secured by a rope and an equipment including harness and carabiners ... They learn easily and do not get dizzy, those young climbers.

Several other outdoor courses are possible: for 5-8 years, one for 9-13 and then for over 14 years. The rates are on their website ...

Forêt adrénaline is a specialist... they're not only professionnals of tree-climbing, they are also designers of park adventure: they have already opened several parks in the area: one in Carnac in the 2000s ... one at Betton, 10 kms from Rennes.



Don't panic if you are "stuck" on your monkey bridge or if you're frightened by the zip line above the lake. Supervisors, professionals, will help you through.



Adrenalin Forest also offers corporate seminars, "unusual acrobatic exercices" (to test what you're able to do, you and your boss!). Or you can also check thanks to those flights between the trunks'crowns the team spirit of your company. ... You can also celebrate original birthday parties ... or whatever you like ...



In short, they are professionnals in recreational entertainment.

The park entrance is near the campsite Gayeulles... You can't miss it :there are lots of things hanging in the woods ...

One more thing ... Forests'lovers don't have to worry, those professionals are tree/true friends: they do everything to avoid damaging them (don't forget trees are their way of earning a living), or to hamper their growth (the trunks you climb on!). They try to limit their impact on nature and environment. That 's what they say!

Read this article in French : Grimper aux arbres à Rennes : le parcours aventure de Forêt adrénaline

I don’t know if Yann Arthus Bertrand is known abroad. If not, let me introduce him. He is an ecologist or an environmentalist. It is almost the French Al Gore, but as a photographer and not as a politician…

He has made several ecologist events : books about the state of the earth (Earth from above), films also and exhibitions. And he is also interested in mankind and the show 6 billion others is one of them.

This exhibition was first presented in Grand Palais in Paris and, then a smaller city but still the capital of Brittany Rennes and then far away New York… It presents mankind… 5000 interviews in 75 countries and 40 answers to 40 questions.



It is trite to say but sometimes it is very surprising to compare people's responses to issues such as violence, love, belief, happiness ...

Everyone gives his feeling : a man explains that the birth of his son is the Event of his life, another hopes that the trial of Pol Pot will happen sson, for a third one, happiness is easy … Another does not support people repeating again and again. Or when his wife makes bad cooking.… A survivor of a plane crash who loves life ... You can also leave your testimony, in order to reach .... 6 billion others ...

What I did like ?
It is nice to see mankind speaking… The expo in Rennes was presented in a smaller room than Paris – No wonder it is a smaller city ! – So it had to be adapted to this new space. The solution was to change the themes exposed in the 3 yurts every 10 days.
In short, the show is renewed quite often and you can go several times as long you wait 10 days between the visits ...

What I do not like ?
No where you find explanations to understand how they dedided the themes of the 40 questions… Or how they found the people they interviewed… I know everyone can leave its message but I would have liked to know how they began… Is it spontaneous or sorted? And for what? It's a bit embarrassing to see an exhibition and this lack of transparency ... I know it is not a sociologist work but it tries to look like one…

It is also expensive : 10 euros in Paris, 4 in Rennes, I don’t know how much it will be in New York but …I thought the philosophy of Yann Arthus Bertrand was to permit to everyone to see its works…
Specially when you know that lots of sponsors (cities too) give him money to realize his pictures and films, it would be understandable to get a free entrance…

Open every day except Monday and Sunday until the end of August.

Read it in French : L'expo de Yann Arthus Bertrand : 6 milliards d'autres

What are they doing, those mammoths, here in Brittany…

Well, they used to live there long long ago… when ice was everywhere and Britain and Brittany did belong to the same land...

They’re back. Because of the Parisians.Yes, the exhibition you can discover in Rennes was conceived for the National Museum of Natural History in Paris a few years ago and it is now adapted for a smaller place, l’Espace des Sciences at Rennes.

And if I do speak about it, it is because the whole expo is subtitled in English … or translated as you want…



The expo is called At the time of mammoths, it is nice ... I have just spent an hour and a half with my young nephew (6 years old).

The tour begins with all possible fantasies that existed when men discovered those huge bones. People attributed those pieces of skeleton to imaginary figures ... until a whole mammoth was found and one could imagine the disappeared animal.

The exhibition then explains the time of glaciation, the climate, and the BEAST.
You can touch things (I won’t tell you what, you’ll discover it by yourself) and it is nice to do.
Then we live the everyday life with our forebears who lived at that time…In short we become experts in the woolly mammoth.

The exhibition also shows the local history with a short film on Mont Dol (you know the mountain we have between Cancale, the oyster city and the Mont Saint Michel !) where the remains of mammoths have been found during the 19th century. It ends with a long movie whose hero is ... this big animal, which is a good resumé of everything we have learned visiting the expo.

I (we) really liked it but we were almost alone in the expo. But the problem with Champs Libres is often the same, rooms are small and sounds clink…

I needed to concentrate to hear the soundtrack for the documentary on Mount Dol, (which I found rather interesting), especially when my nephew was listening to the weather report next to me.

The children and the mammoths?

From 6 years old, indicates the brochure. My young acolyte found it nice to try the trunk or to see a baby mammoth… a real one named Dami and usually living in a Belgian Museum. He did like to touch elephant skin and to compare it to the missing pachyderm.
My young friend was really interested in the life of mammoths. So he loved the exhibition. But sometimes it is nice to help the child through : lots to read… less in English though !!
The film at the end of the exhibition sums up the entire expo and it is so real, you feel like being back some thousands years ago…

In short, the adult (I) was not bored (not at all) and my nephew either. We did enjoy it. Not in front of the same things or stands, but whatever.
At the exit, a "true woolly mammoth" is watching you...

4 € for adults and 3 for 8 years old and older.
From Tuesday to Sunday (12h - 19h on weekdays and 14-19 on weekends), 21h night until Tuesday. Until March 7, 2010.

Read it in French : Les mammouths arrivent et reviennent à Rennes, une exposition à l'Espace des Sciences aux Champs Libres

... You like wine .... natural and good ones ... and local food, typical local meals... Then follow me... to Vini Circus ...

In the French village Dingé or Hédé (it's like good wine, it depends on the year) since 2004, April begins with a party for wine lovers ... and good food amateurs.
There is a lot to do during the week end : from Friday evening 7 pm to Monday 1 am, all sorts of things are possible. During the day, you'll learn, while sipping a glass, the French cuisine's secrets thanks to cooking demonstrations with French famous chefs. Or, if you're there just as a wine fan, follow the wine talks that bring together specialists speaking about their favorite drink.

There are numerous exhibitors: fifty vineyards (no Bretons, thank God, they do not know how to make wine! …). There are also breweries, cider producers... and representatives of other local French specialities ... butter, oysters, charcuterie (prepared meats products), bread ... The exhibition is international ... Exhibitors from Italy and Belgium are also presents...
Artists and sculptors are also here with their creations.

3 nights of festivities will take place during the wine weekend ... concerts (programme is on their website) and especially winemakers menu ... For two evening meals and nights (Saturday and Sunday until 2 am)... Not to be missed ...

So, after a perfect dinner and the best wines you have ever tasted … you have to come back home... No worry... if you're staying in a nice hotel in Rennes, you are spoiled … On the way in, you take the train at the gare de Rennes, someone will pick you up at the station of Montreuil sur Ille ... and after the meal, at 2 am , there is a departure by bus which goes directly back to the Breton capital (I mean Rennes …).
A shuttle service also brings back home the other festival lovers ... 15 km around. Better though, the wine is at will ...

Read this article in French : Festival des vins et des bonnes choses : Vini Circus