Beautiful Saint Malo

A little excursion to the northwest of France on the coast of the English Channel (La Manche) today. It was ravishingly beautiful with sunlight gleaming through the air and sea breeze hitting me on the shoulder. Saint Malo is world-famous for its annual regatta race (Course du Rhum-- Rum Race) to the French Antilles that is held at the end of October on the eve of All Saints Day. The town is gorgeous, sitting on an isthmus jetting on the edge of the sea. Pictures are soon to appear. The Griffons and I visited a couple who lives in Saint Malo. They, in fact, have visited Tennessee many times and consider themselves Tennesseans! Patrick has worked with a record company in Memphis and has made the city famous throughout the world with his website. He speaks very good English and I enjoyed hearing about his stories about Saint Malo and visits to the States.

After a very nice lunch with pâté (meat spread) sandwiches on baguette slices and an aperitif of fruit liqueur and sparkling white wine, we made our sojourn to Saint Malo, mostly by foot. We circled the port, where the regatta boats were lined up prepared to make the transcontinental and trans-Atlantic journey southwestward. It was exciting to see all the French and English people in hoards, looking at the marvelous boats. While we were looking at the port, a group of Caribbean (Black-skinned) people were dancing and singing to music in the streets. It was neat to see the spectacle as everyone anticipated the departure of the 80 regatta fleet on the 31 October. Many will flock to the port on Sunday evening around 19h15 to see them take off. Patrick was telling me which one he thought would win (and in fact, it is a woman in the 2015 boat that is expected to have the fastest time).

After we looked at the boats, we headed to the beach to look around the fortress of Saint Malo. Patrick was telling me the entire city was destroyed at the end of World War II not by the Germans but, who knew, by the Americans who were rescuing the Frenchmen from German invasion. Much of the city was soon rebuilt, scrupulously to the very last detail of architecture. It took many years, but the city was completed in the 1970s. The city is guarded by the sea with the tide that Patrick says are the highest in the world. It is, indeed, a sight to see. The sand is grainy and yet beautiful. We made the a demi-tour around the city and came upon a fort. And then, we came upon something I didn't expect to see: the tomb of Chateaubriand! I was like, heck yes; I want to see it! So we made the trip around the city and mounted a hill to see the cross and grave marker that showed where Chateaubriand was buried. There is no mention of the name Chateaubriand. It is unmarked, except for an inscription that says that a great writer was buried here. Kind of odd; you would expect to see some kind of mausoleum for such a prolific writer of the nineteenth century. Nevertheless, it's a simple encased grave site with no markings whatsoever. Perhaps he didn't want the fame after all. Anonymity and French people? Maybe.

The city of Saint Malo is picturesque and yet it is very modern. The buildings retain their sense of centuries-old-ness, with their edifices that remained at the onset of the American invasion, and yet, they have all the modern brands and stores that put Saint Malo in the 21st century. Somehow, the old-world-ness doesn't seem to be completely there. In that respect, I was disappointed. Still, the marvel of this city on an isthmus facing the English Channel is beyond a doubt, a treasure I will take with me in the coming days.