40th Anniversary Olympia 2012

   This week Alan Stivell has released the CD / DVD of his Paris Olympia concert in 2012 and I've bought a copy (www.alan-stivell.com). The CD is wonderful and brings back so many memories of that amazing night! Yes, Paul and I were there in the MIDDLE OF THE FRONT ROW. And we danced.
   I can't wait to play the DVD. I know we'll be on it - immortalised - as I've already seen bits of it on You Tube. Little did I think back in 1973 in Finistere, when I was initiated into his music, that I would still be enjoying it as much as ever and that his creative genius would have such length breadth and depth.... and commitment.

 

 



Afternoon Walk in Huelgoat Forest

  I had a lovely lunch with Wendy at L'Autre Rive (our café-bookshop in the middle of the forest) followed by a walk. It was beautiful, very peaceful and soothing. Ally was very good, as always, and so I was able to do a walking meditation. Bliss.



Presqu'Ile Saint-Laurent

   Bernadette and Jean-Pierre invited us over to Lanildut today (21st July). After a wonderful lunch (merci beaucoup, c'etait vraiment formidable!) we had a walk on the Presqu'Ile Saint-Laurent near Porspoder. This was the first time we'd been here and as with everywhere we go to in Finistere it was stunning. Here are a few pictures:

      The picture in the centre shows how suddenly a sea mist can come in when it is very hot, and the one on the right shows Jean-Pierre and Paul shaking hands after building a cairn.

 



A Day at the Seaside!

   We went to the little beach by the Pointe de Primel. It was lovely to see the families having fun. Later in the afternoon we had a walk on the Pointe which was beautiful (as usual).

 





In the Garden

   Our garden is only small but we've made it into a lovely space. We've spent quite a lot of time relaxing there in this glorious weather.

Joe and Pauline Stayed With Us

   Joe and Pauline came to stay with us for a few days. Paul and Joe had a great time catching up, they've been friends for 53 years! The weather was lovely and we all had a very relaxing time around the beautiful area of Huelgoat.

Joe and Pauline relaxing in the Garden

Pauline and Paul trying to move La Roche Tremblante

 

Evening Walk in Huelgoat Forest

  After the excitement of the Benodet celebrations we had a quiet walk in Huelgoat Forest the next evening. Paul did some forward planning and picked up some fire wood ready for winter. (NB the temperature on the patio had hit 37 degrees that afternoon.)



Le 14 juillet - Alan Stivell concert in Benodet

   We went down to Benodet for the Bastille Day celebrations and it was simply amazing! Benodet is a holiday resort in the south coast of Finistere. The weather was fantastic - a heat-wave infact - and the papers estimate that there were between six and eight thousand people there for the concert. Alan Stivell and his musicians did not let us down, their energy and talents were phenomenal and we the crowd adored it. What a celebration of music and culture!

      The crowd were fantastic. There were people of all ages all enjoying themselves. No-one was behaving badly, getting drunk or being objectionable in any possible way. It was just really happy and so civilised. There were fireworks at 23 30 and the (large) beach and promenade were full of people just being happy!

 

 



Le Guerzit

   We took Theresa to Le Guerzit, one of our favourite beaches. There were lots of really good rock pools!



Le Dossen

  Paul and I took Ally to Le Dossen and she loved it. She ran, played and explored and it was the first time that she was really joyful since the operation to remove her eye. Le Dossen is an amazing beach just  a couple of kilometres west of Roscoff. It is so vast and the atmosphere can change from one moment to the next as the sky changes.



 
  This doesn't really do it justice so I am putting together a video clip of the photos - watch this space!







Ile Callot and Roscoff

   We spent a lovely afternoon with Theresa at Carantec, Ile Callot and then Roscoff. I mainly took church photographs, although we did spend some time on the beach on Callot. 

    Roscoff church was decorated for a wedding, it was interesting to see the wheat which (correct me if I'm wrong somebody) is a symbol of fertility:

 

 

There are some great things to look at in this church, here are just a few of them:

 

 

 







The Three Woods Walk

  Wendy, Theresa and I did a lovely walk through Les Trois Bois not far from Pleyber Christ. The countryside was lovely. Ally and Tex enjoyed it too!

Back in Brittany

   We have finally made it back to Finistere after a very difficult few weeks. It's good to be back. Some things take a while to heal, but this is the place to do it.

  Our first trip to the coast was back up to Le Dossen (just west of Roscoff). The weather was rather bracing for June but we had a great day.  I love the way the weather changes in Finistere, it's like looking at all the beauty through many different lenses. Here is Le Dossen as it was on that day:

  Ally recently had her right eye removed (primary glaucoma). She is just getting used to her mono vision and she really enjoyed it on the beach! So did we.