france - day 5

Day 5 was a long driving day. We needed to get from the Loire Valley all the way over to the west coast of France, on the Atlantic. But, as usual, there were interesting stops along the way.

First up was the chateau in Angers, which is the historic capital of Anjou, home of the Plantagenets and the western gateway to the Loire Valley. The chateau, built by Louis IX from 1230-40, stands on a rocky hill in the town center. The pepperpot shaped towers were removed in 1585 by Henry III and the fortress, which doubled as a munitions depot in World War II, was heavily bombed during the war.

Inside the chateau is the longest (338 feet) and one of the finest medieval tapestries in the world. It tells the story of the Apocalypse, with battles between hydras and angels.

The Loire and Maine rivers come together in Angers:

After a delicious lunch by the riverside, it was back on the bus for a two hour ride. French law demands that bus drivers may not drive for more than 3 hours without taking a 45 minute break. Placido's break came at Les Salines de Guerande, the Guerande salt marshes.

There are 190 member salt workers in the "Les Salines de Guerande" cooperative, operating 70% of the salt marshes in activity. The job of a salt worker is one of the few agricultural professions that does not use heavy mechanisation or chemicals. This traditional production technique is a thousand years old and not ony produces quality salt but also helps to preserve the site. In Guerande, salt is harvested daily and by hand only. Today, the Guerande salt marsh is one of the last places in France to produce traditional salt. Both coarse salt, which is slightly grey, and fleur de sel (flower of salt), which is finer and whiter than coarse salt, are harvested here. When we visited, the harvest of the salt had just ended and there were huge, covered mounds of salt near the information center.

Then we were on to the Miramar Crouesty hotel, located right near the Atlantic Ocean at Port Navalo. Designed to look like a cruise ship, the hotel resembles a ship both inside and out. There is also a well-regarded spa at the hotel and other hotel guests were seen walking everywhere in their spa robes, even into the restaurants.

The view from our balconey was breathtaking:

Before dinner we took a walk to the beach, where there were both sailing and surfboarding schools. But that day the ocean was like a lily pond and not a ripple was to be seen. Later we watched the sun set in the western horizon, sinking into the Atlantic. Atlantic sunrises are our norm, so this was a whole different geography to take in.