Brest and Orient

 It was another 2 days in France and it was a mixed bag.  Sunday we were in Brest and we were less than impressed with the city.  Lorient yesterday was much better.

As we sailed into Brest, we discovered that the Queen Mary 2 was just completing a dry dock adjacent to our pier.  We then watched her sail away.

We started the day off the ship by going to the Oceanopolis which was an excellent aquarium.  We spent a couple of hours there.

We then headed into Brest proper and that's where the disappointment set in.  The city did not have much to offer and it was dead, maybe because it was a Sunday.  

After yet another lunch of mussels, it was time to go back to the ship.

Lorient on Monday was a big improvement.  The only disappointment was the tower which, of course, we hoped to climb.  Apparently, the season for climbing the tower concludes at the end of August.

So then the serious walking began.  We walked through the 'old town' which the man in the tourist info center had told us did not offer much and he was right.  We then went to the 'new town' with its park and shopping.  A stop for coffee and a muffin energized us to carry on until we had our lunch of sandwiches in the park.  It was nice to see the park crowded with young people who we assumed were university students.

Then it was off to an area called Lorient La Base.  We had a bit of a diversion along the way to wander through a cemetery.  The last photo of a family plot told a story including the mother who lived to 102.

We eventuality made to La Base which was the site of a former Nazi submarine base.  The area now has museums and restaurants and it quickly became obvious that Lorient is a big center for sailing.

By the time we returned to the ship, we figured that we had walked about 8 miles.

This morning as I write this we are sailing up the Gironde River on our way to Bordeaux.  We'll be there overnight.

Peace and blessings,

Linda and Larry