Carnac

Part of the Menec alignment in Carnac

More of same; the alignments, Mercario, etc., go on seemingly for miles, but are
no more intelligible for their great length and regularities

Old house at start of Menec

 

Typical Breton house in Pont-Scorff

 

Pont-Scorff Mairie

 

Gavrinis

Thursday we drove further into Brittany, to Larmor-Baden, near Carnac. Rebecca's top priority was the boat trip and visit to Gavrinis, the Isle of Goats, in the Gulf of Morbihan. We had done this in 1989. Gavinis is the home of a large tumulus and covered passage grave, large enough to walk into, lined by twenty-some beautifully carved monster-sized stones, the best in all of the Atlantic megalithic area, all neolithic, 3,000 BC or so.

The boat trip itself from Larmor-Baden was interesting. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the Gulf was genuinely crowded with boats of every description. The whole affair has been upgraded touristically. There is signage, a visitor center, and a guided tour, mostly French, but a few minutes for the English-type personnes. We pique-niqued on the island, just to add to the atmosphere.

Then we drove on to Carnac. We stopped at the Menec alignments and never got much further than them and the visitor center/gift store. Somehow, the alignments per se have never sent us—they are so inscutable—and we drove on to the artsy-fartsy town of Pont-Scorff, where we modestly simulated the local artisan economy.

Rebecca's next priority was Pointe du Raz, the Finisterre of Brittany (and France, I guess), so we drove there, at length, and camped at the RV parking lot. I love these familiar places, Carnac, Quiberon, Gulf of Morbihan, Vannes, Lorient, all the villages, etc.

Heavy traffic in the Gulf of Morbihan

Pique-niqueing on the Isle of Goats

Entrance to Gavinis

 

Plan of the interior

 

Interior, big stone on right at end, #15

The "Christianizing" of ancient monuments never ends

 

With the rising of the seas, many of Brittany's monuments are sinking or already
beneath the waves

 

To Paris, and Brittany

[August 14, near Cambridge, UK: the past two weeks have been sufficiently action-packed and internet-deprived that I have only recently started editing pix and text; I hope to post things back up to date in the next few days]

July 27 and 28 were days of driving, Monday into Hamburg and the Camping Salon, then west, through Bremen and beyond to a lay-by just west of Koln. We saw the Cathedral spires int the distance. We visited Koln in 1979, and certainly will return next year. Tuesday we continued on through Germany, Luxembourg, then into France, eschewing the peages for the blue roads (is there a book there: Blue Roads of France?), to just east of Paris.

We have done this and similar routes from the east many times, always forgetting, as we did this time, there are no aires, no campgrounds, municipal nor private, in this part of the world. Vicki has had this theory that, when all else fails, in big cities, there is always long term parking at the airport. In that we were to pick Rebecca up at noon the next day at CDG, we decided to test Vicki's theory. Indeed, the theory worked, although it was as expensive as a campground and provided no amenities. Getting out the next day, in a vehicle longer that 5 meters, proved interesting but feasible, at length, with airport parking personnel assistance (le bureaucracy).

Wednesday, the 29th, after internet at the Pullman Hotel, we met Rebecca at CDG terminal 2E. We had lunch in the camper, unpacked, got out of parking with the aforementioned difficulty, then drove into Paris (thanks, Tom), on toward Rouen, then into Brittany, and finally camped at an Aire near Rennes. En route we had the first of many pleasant supermarche experiences, stocking up for the next couple days. It is good to be back in Brittany, a place we have visited many times and love. I particularly love multiply ambiguous places and stories, and Brittany fits that bill pretty well.

Ribe; and on to Paris

Main street Ribe

Sagging Medieval wall

Inside an amber jewelry shop

Street scene

Ribe's mixed white and red brick cathedral; does not work, IMHO

On Monday the 27th we drove into Hamburg, to our old friend the Camping Salon, where we returned a couple defective items (gladly exchanged) and bought some more stuff for the camper. And then we drove on, on familiar roads through Hamburg to Bremen, then beyond, the Ruhr, camped for evening at a lay-by somewhat west of Cologne (saw the Cathedral spires in the distance). And then we drove on on the 28th, across the rest of Germany, a bit of Belgium and Luxembourg, and finally, into France, where we are parked now, at the Charles DeGaulle airport long-term lot, awaiting Rebecca's arrival on Wednesday.

Last Day in Scandinavia: Jelling and Ribe

The small Jelling stone, Gorm the Old honoring his wife The big Jelling stone, Harald Bluetooth, founder of the dynasty, honoring Gorm and Thyra, his parents Christ on the big stone Dragon Inside the 12th century church Church between the tumuli and grounds Poster of Danish royalty, from Harald to Margarethe Our last day in Scandinavia saw us visiting Jelling for the Jelling rune stones and Ribe, one of Denmark's oldest and best-preserved medieval towns. Jelling is important in that its rune stone, the big one, begins the Danes' monarchy, straight to the present Queen Margarethe, and identifies its founder as the conqueror and Christianizer Harald Bluetooth. It is a national site, and the two stones, one Harald's, one his father's (Gorm the Old, honoring his queen Thyra, “pride of Denmark”), rest beside the 12th century church, which itself sits between the two enormous 10th-century tumuli. Ribe once competed with Copenhagen, but declined when its port silted up. It is indeed well-preserved and picturesque. After skyping with Rebecca and Rachel near Ribe, we drove on and camped at a forlorn rest area in Schleswig-Holstein, 40 miles north of Hamburg.

Legoland

Main gate

Vicki

New Harbor, Copenhagen

Ribe, old Danish west coast town

Stave church

Brygge, Bergen

Holland

After the watery rides, you can dry yourself off in one of these for 20 kroner

The US was very well represented

Me misbehaving with the dance hall girl in western Legoland

Wat Po, really Thai'd things together (running gag)

Vikings of the Caribbean

In the enormous Legoland store

Legoland trash can

Last ones in the parking lot

Part of the Lego factory

Megalithic Jutland, and More

On July 25 we drove north, not to Arhus, but to Aalborg and a couple megalithic sites there. First was the Trollkirken, out in the countryside west of Aalborg, an impressive ship-shape tumulus with a big dolmen atop. Then the Viking cemetery, Lindstrom Hoje, near town. Near Aalborg. It too was impressive in its size and scope, pretty much bronze/Viking age. Then we drove south and near to Arhus (which we never visited) and another tumulus and stone circle, topped by a dolman, the Poskar Stenus. It was unusual in that the dolmen was not centered in the circle.

Later that afternoon, we crossed more of Jutland to visit another historic building site, Legoland, which turned out to be quite amusing and interesting. We camped—our last site in Scandinavia for a while—near Jelling.

Me on the Trollkirken, Troll Church, a ship-shape stone tumulus with big
dolmen

Trollkirken in perspective; pretty large

Vicki at the bow

Map of Viking cemetery, Lindholm Hoje

Smidgeon of the cemetery

Female sites are circular or oval in shape

Male sites are triangular or ship-shaped

1,000 years of Danish history (Vicki hates these shots)

The tumulus/dolmen at Poskaer Stenus

View of Poskaer Stenus

Why there are so few sites left...