Well, I've finally gotten over the bad taste left in my mouth from all those frustrating years in French class. Never one for languages, three years of French classes didn't exactly leave me hungry for a visit. But hey, that was over 50 years ago, and the ship docked here in Brest, so off the ship I went. Very glad I did. Nice people, and they didn't make too much of my conflagration of English/Spanish/French when I got my late morning espresso.
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We were greeted by a nice lighthouse on our way in to port
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| Brest is in Brittany, a large peninsula in the north of France, with nice gentle landscapes on both sides of the estuary |
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Soon, we were securely docked
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| A very large crane with eighty wheels swung a gangway into position. Seemed like a bit of overkill, but who can argue with French engineering? |
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We were greeted by a rousing performance
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Naturally, after ten days at sea, we needed to go to the National Marine museum
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Here in Brest, in the 1780's over 400 war ships were built and sent to America to help break the British blockade of the colonies. I'd probably speak English if it weren't for their help.
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A bust of Colbert, who did something that was explained only in French. Oh well...
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This really was a hairstyle
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I've been to many fabulous marine museums, and they each have strong points. This one had perhaps the best display of carvings for embellishing ships of any I've visited. What follows is probably an excess of photos, but there was some great artistry and skill on display.
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The baroque artists really liked their flowing fabrics.
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Some 1950's ship controls
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The only street art I saw in Brest. It did capture the feel of the city.
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There ought to be a law about torturing trees
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Some early spring color in le parc
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Our chariot awaits
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Silo's in the port. We often find that our ship docks in the industrial port areas
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Top down view of the colossus of a crane used to move the gangway in. The line are passengers waiting to get back on ship. The gangway was only rated for twenty five people at once, so this took around a half hour. You did have a choice of ice water or hot chocolate while you waited. And the ship did block some of the wind.
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