Sunday, July 22, 2018

Île de Batz

Wandering Around Cottage - July 2018 Edition


I haven't left Cottage for my annual week of vacations yet, but I still have a few things from last year I haven't shared with you... So are you ready? I hope you didn't have a big meal just before opening this page and that you're not sea-sick because we need to take the boat for today's post!



Je n'ai pas encore quitté Cottage pour ma semaine de découverte de la Bretagne annuelle, mais j'ai dans mes réserves de quoi vous faire voyager aujourd'hui. J'espère que vous ne venez pas de faire un gros repas ou que vous n'avez pas le mal de mer, car il nous faut prendre le bateau.

When I showed you the beautiful cathedral of Saint-Pol-de-Léon, I told you it was dedicated to Saint Pol who had tamed a dragon that was terrorising the island of Batz. Today, we're hinking on the paths of this island.


Quand je vous ai emmené visiter la belle cathédrale de Saint-Pol-de-Léon, je vous ai appris que le saint auquel elle était dédié était célèbre pour avoir réussi à maîtriser un dragon qui terrorisait les habitants de l'île de Batz. C'est sur les chemins de cette île que je vous emmène aujourd'hui.



So let's say goodbye to the pretty town of Roscoff (on the above picture) where I took the boat. From the coast, it looks like the island is so close you could touch it. But the sea hides many danger and the boat actually can't go there on a straight line, so it takes about twenty minutes to reach it.

Disons un petit au-revoir à Roscoff (sur la photo ci-dessus) d'où j'ai pris le bateau. Depuis la côte, on a l'impression de pouvoir toucher l'île tellement elle est proche. Mais les fonds marins sont redoutables apparemment car le bateau fait un beau détour et il a fallu environ vingt minutes pour atteindre Batz.


Before you set foot on the island, I think it'd be appropriate that you knew how to pronounce its name (always a huge problem with Breton names). It's "ba" as in "Baa Baa Black Sheep". The "t" and the "z" are only here for the show!


Avant que vous ne posiez le pied sur cette île, il faut que vous sachiez prononcer son nom. C'est "ba". Le "t" et le "z" ne sont là que pour faire joli !


The coastline is absolutely breathtaking and altough there were lots of people as I visited in summer, it wasn't too crowded and I had some nice moments where  I could think myself the only human being on the island.


La côte est magnifique et bien qu'il y ait eu pas mal de monde car je m'y suis rendue en été, les chemins n'étaient pas non plus pleins de foule et il y a même eu des moments où j'ai pu me croire seule au monde sur cette île.


There is a path that goes all the way around the island. On one side, you have a beautiful view of the sea - you have to walk in the sand sometimes and it's good for your calves -  and the other is bordered by cultivated land or by pastures.


Un chemin fait tout le tour de l'île. D'un côté, il y a une belle vue sur la mer - ce qui nécessite parfois de marcher dans le sable, c'est bon pour les mollets - et l'autre côté est bordé par des terres cultivées ou des prairies.


What I found very interesting is that the cultivated land is still divided in small areas surrounded by hedges as it used to be everywhere in Brittany before World War II and the "remembrement". It keeps the land safe even when it rains... They removed the last hedge in the fields behind Cottage last winter and now every time there's a storm, there's a flood of mud in our street...


Ce que j'ai trouvé très intéressant est que le bocage a été sauvegardé sur l'île. Chaque parcelle cultivée, d'une taille raisonnable, est entourée d'une haie, comme c'était le cas partout en Bretagne avant le remembrement juste après la seconde Guerre mondiale. Cela permet de garder la terre en place quand il pleut. La dernière haie dans les champs derrière Cottage a été arrachée l'hiver dernier et depuis à chaque orage, il y a un fleuve de boue dans la rue...

I had intended to tour the whole island as the leaflet I had taken at the tourist information center said it was very doable... I guess it was only doable if you walk without stopping to admire the view and without visiting the beautiful exotic garden that's on the way. I did only half the island and it was already time for me to take the boat again.


J'avais pensé en partant faire le tour de l'île car d'après le dépliant que j'avais pris à l'office de tourisme, c'était faisable en une après-midi. Je crois que ce n'est faisable que si l'on ne s'arrête pas pour admirer la vue et si on ne visite pas longuement le beau jardin exotique que l'on croise en chemin. Je n'ai parcouru que la moitié est de l'île.

It was low tide when I came back to the harbour so the view was different and it was nice to admire the town of Roscoff from the sea.


C'était marée basse quand je suis arrivée au port en fin d'après-midi, ce qui donnait aux lieux un aspect différent. La vue de Roscoff depuis la mer n'est pas à bouder non plus.



I have a few pictures from the exotic garden to share with you next time!

J'ai des photos du jardin exotique à partager avec vous la prochaine fois !

Are you exploring somewhere new to you this summer?

Et vous, quel endroit découvrez-vous cet été?

See you next time,

A la prochaine fois,

Hasta la proxima,


28 comments:

  1. MAGALI! Hello and I'm glad to see you are enjoying your summer in this gorgeous region. We too are enjoying our local activities instead of flying off somewhere because there is so much natural beauty here in our region.

    School will be starting for both of us soon, so may we both continue to find hidden treasures to bury in our memories!

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  2. Good to see you Magali and these lovely photos from your sojourn. I must say the beaches look very similar to what we have here.

    Enjoy the rest of your summer as I know soon it’s ‘back to work’ for you!

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  3. glad to see you back Magali - thanks for instruction on how to pronounce the name of Batz I would have never known I have read some novels of WWII and it is mentioned now and again and I have been pronouncing it wrong the whole time I'm sure there are other words that I am doing them same for. The island is wonderful. I wonder why the hedges have been being removed when they create a wonderful water break to keep the land in place

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  4. Cette île de Ba(autant supprimer le T et le Z) a l'air superbe ! Il faudra que je me décide à prendre le bateau pour y faire un tour. Bonnes vacances à toi ! Bises

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  5. Hi....looks like a Fabulous place, LOVE when we go on trips with you, otherwise I'd probably never see these places, and a history lesson is always a good thing, sorry they ruined your neighborhood by taking down that hedge, the photo looked beautiful with hedges, and I'm always just amazed to see boats laying on the sand when the tide goes out, the tide around me only goes out by a few feet,hope you've been enjoying your summer off, since it seems to fly by, hope to see ya soon, maybe with some new bookcases.......

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  6. Oh thank you Magali for taking us along on a day trip to the island. It is indeed very beautiful and looks to be so peaceful there. I love walking and I would enjoy doing this for a day. You have a great excuse to return so you can see the other areas of the island you missed. Enjoy your summer.........

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  7. Hi Magali so happy to see you enjoying your summer break from teaching. I love the pictures of the beach. So peaceful and serene. The island is a gorgeous place to visit. Thanks for taking us along with your sweet pictures.
    Happy Summer.
    Kris

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  8. Such a gorgeous place and no people??? Sounds like where I need to go for a vacation :) Thanks for the visit Magali!

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  9. Thank you for this beautiful tour, i enjoy seeing these pictures of your trips, hope you had a good time too.

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  10. I did not know that boats were left like that at low tide! Interesting! You see such interesting places an I love that you share with all of us.

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  11. Thanks for the pronunciation tip...what a lovely post...the turquoise water is delightful. Thanks for sharing.

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  12. Looks like a lovely place to spend a day. I guess the good news is that since you only got to tour half the island, you'll need to go again!

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  13. c'est une très jolie balade que vous nous offrez aujourd'hui !! j'aime la mer, les bateaux, la photo du cheval et celle des terres bordées de haies... progressivement, les haies sont replantées dans diverses régions mais quel gâchis de les avoir supprimées, quelle perte pour la beauté des paysages et pour la richesse des sols - belles vacances à vous ! monique59

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  14. I would say you are busy like everyone these days and I so enjoy popping over to see what's happening in your life and cottage and kitty!

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  15. How wonderful to be in such a beautiful place! Enjoy it!

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  16. Walking on the beach is relaxing, finding all sorts of little treasures. A very pretty place to explore and looking forward to the gardens:).
    Kathleen in Az

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    1. The garden post will be written soon... I had a rough summer and I'm a little late...

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  17. Siempre me agrada ver tus fotos tan bellas y muy bien tomadas y lo mismo leer tus relatos muy interesante todo aquello, y gracias por tener ese tiempo para nosotos los que seguimos tu Blog.la foto de tu sombra me hizo sonreir :) Hasta la Proxima Magali y que estes bien :)
    nelly

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    1. Gracias Nelly por tus siempre amables comentarios. La pérdida de uno de los gatos Cottage hizo que me fuera del blog, pero volveré pronto, espero.
      Magali

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  18. What a lovely spot to enjoy a summer day.

    My favorite pic is the shadow of you.

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  19. Ohhhh, que j'aime cette île !
    Merciii de tes belles photos, j'espère bien pouvoir y faire un petit tour la semaine prochaine quand je serai dans l'ouest, enfin !
    bonne journée de vacances à toi .

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    1. J'espère que vous avez apprécié votre petit tour sur l'île avec le beau temps que nous avons eu cet été !

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  20. Incredible history and all the beauty all around! Lovely indeed!

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  21. I have followed you from the beginning. I do so hope you are well.

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    1. Thank you, dear reader, for your concern. It's been a difficult summer, tending to cat on his last days of life and preparing for a new job... But I hope I'll be back blogging as soon as the inspector visits me on my new job.

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