Vigneux-de-Bretagne / A pastoral fantasy of France
Last weekend I found myself once again in the countryside, wearing wildly inappropriate city clothing and covered in mud.
Last weekend I found myself once again wearing wildly inappropriate city clothing in the countryside and covered in mud. (Imagine me hiking up my floor-length wool coat to navigate through a tangle of brambles/under an electric fence while, somewhere in the distance, a gunshot goes off. I’m not exaggerating.)
I’m beginning to accept that this tends to happen every time I venture into the great outdoors. However, I enjoy it more and more, and as I leave my 20s I’m also acquiring more and more practical clothing, which helps.
To be more precise, last weekend, I was in Vigneux-de-Bretagne.
Despite the name (“Vineyard of Brittany”), Vigneux may or may not be considered part of Bretagne/Brittany, depending on whom you ask. Per today’s political boundaries, Vigneux is actually in the department of the Loire-Atlantique and not of Bretagne. However, Vigneux is historically and culturally Breton. And as we spent a good part of the weekend eating Breton galettes and drinking cider, and as it is indeed Breton according to those I spent the weekend with, I think it’s safe to say, yes, Vigneux-de-Bretagne is absolutely Breton.
My knowledge of French regions is not extensive. My understanding of Bretagne can be summed up by this comedic sketch and by the general principles that 1) every French person takes pride in their own region and 2) everybody hates Parisians (truly, it’s even risky for your tires if you venture too far away from Paris in a car with a Parisian license plate). Brittany is a land famed for its beauty, too. One of the better films I’ve seen, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, is set in Brittany and marked by rugged cliffs, sea spray, and characters reflecting on their troubles in solitude from atop various rugged cliffs. Brittany is also famed for its salt, butter, and salted caramel (salt-meets-butter). My French tutor happens to be Breton, and today I learned from him that while French is derived from Latin, Breton is not Latin but Celtic—an exception in the otherwise Latin country of France.
Vigneux-de-Bretagne is not by the sea1 but further inland, by the Loire, and I spent two excellent days picking my way through fields and picturesquely muddy paths, trying to get ponies and fuzzy cows to notice me, loafing by a roaring fire in a country house, eating sausages and boudin noir cooked on said fire, and generally fantasizing about having a French country escape of my own one day.
I know, I know! Tina, you can hardly even drive, how will you possibly fare in a remote village with neither Uber coverage nor any understanding of French traffic laws? But here I am already, in a foreign land with neither a private guide nor a perfect fluency of the French language, and this (kind of) gives me hope. (It’s simultaneously impressive and depressing how well one can manage based solely on social norms/what’s most expected in a given situation.)
A clear question presents itself: Where in the French countryside? Of the places I’ve been:
Bretagne is a bit cold for my liking and far from Paris, as beautiful and culturally rich as it is.
Alsace is also a bit cold for my liking…
Normandy is also colder than Paris, and I’m starting to see that I may be interested in a warmer place.
Provence is too similar to California for my liking, if beautiful.
Côte d’Azur: Wow, I think I’d really like this! But the Riviera is expensive and very far from Paris/more effort to travel to.
It’s time to explore new regions for my dream “country home” shopping: more of the Loire, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, and Bourgogne, I think. Anyone want to check out these regions together on your next visit to France? :)
However, I’m to visit a part of Bretagne closer to the sea in 2 weekends’ time.