MONDAY-25th took the number 6 bus to BricoMarché, the local big box hardware store, to look into ideas to keep Sophie from escaping the apartment. Did not really come up with any good ideas, so we will just have to stay vigilant.
In the afternoon we walked to the harbor.
Threatening skies in the afternoon, but no rain.
TUESDAY-26th had our haircuts at Studio 3 at 10:30. Then we went to the Intermarché Super for our normal big store shopping.
In the late afternoon we took a walk to the harbor and then headed to the Café de L’Ouest to meet our friend Jean-Michel for a drink. He surprised us by bringing crêpes to the resto. So with our Orangina drinks we got to try some very tasty crêpes. The crêpes were from the crêperie owned by the same company, Maison Hector, which owns the Café de L’Ouest. They own 4 or 5 restaurants in the area. Well the crêpes were wonderful, so we will have to try the crêperie in the next couple of weeks. Jean-Michel was giving us a taste of the crêpes which originated here in western France, Brittany.
the Renardthe Renardobviously a helicopterobviously a helicopterobviously a helicopterthe Renard, a replica sailing vessel and a modern helicopter, both by the harbor
WEDNESDAY-27th We did a long walk on the digue in the morning to see the sights.
Sights we saw on the digue Wednesday morning.
In the afternoon we went to the boules court and then to the harbor. There were a lot of people traveling back and forth between Saint-Malo and Dinard which is on the other side of the bay of Saint-Malo. It is a 15 minute boat ride.
A lot of people coming and going on the shuttle boat between Saint-Malo and Dinard.Fishing boat unloading its catch at the harbor.Sights at the harbor this Wednesday afternoon.
THURSDAY-28th was the day the city water department decided to tear up the street about 30 meters from our apartment building. They made a lot of noise to replace about 3 meters of pipe.
tamping down ground after the repair and before laying the asphalt
In the morning we walked to the Rocabey marché for meat; sausages, beef and sandwich ham.
a magpie on our way to the Rocabey marché
In the afternoon we walked to the boules court where we saw the vans from the BACKROADS bicycle tour company. They are a common sight here in Saint-Malo in the summer. Bicycling is a very popular activity in the area of Brittany.
BACKROADS cycling tours, a common sight in the summer
FRIDAY-29th And without any demands on our time we took a walk to the Bas Sablons area of Saint-Malo. It is the area just south of us that has the big harbor for pleasure boats. There we explored an area which we had not visited for at least 5 years. We found a nice resto/bistro to have a drink before returning home.
resto/bistro we foundviews from the end of the pier on the Bas Sablons side of the harbor.
In the evening we met our friend Guy for drinks. We met at a resto/bistro across the street from the train station which was about the same distance from both of our apartments. The Cuisine de rue is a small resto/bistro which was perfect for our needs. We had Oranginas, beers and chips. We were able to catch up with what was new with Guy. It was a very nice evening.
SATURDAY-30th and we took the bus to Rochebonne and returned via the digue.
In the afternoon we were at the harbor as the Commodore Goodwill left for its next stop.
SUNDAY-31st the last day of the month. An overcast day without sun in the morning. We took the number 9 bus from the esplanade Saint-Vincent to the Kennedy bus stop in Rochebonne. Then we walked along the digue on our way home.
Our balcony with Sandy’s great looking geraniums!Pictures from our walk on the digue on this last day of July.
Now that you have made it this far you have a choice on how to continue. Below is an album of photos from this week titled 2022-07-31 week album. There are two ways you can view the photos.
The first way is to click on the title area of the album. So click on the 2022-07-31 week album and the album will open in FLICKR.
The other way is to click on the right >arrow in the area below. Clicking on the arrow will show the next photo in the album.
Monday afternoon walk to the harbor and mole
Monday afternoon walk to the harbor and mole
Monday afternoon walk to the harbor and mole
Tuesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Tuesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Tuesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Tuesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Tuesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Wednesday morning walk on the digue
Wednesday morning walk on the digue
Wednesday morning walk on the digue
Wednesday morning walk on the digue
Wednesday morning walk on the digue
Wednesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Wednesday afternoon walk to the harbor
Thursday morning walk to Rocabey marché
Thursday morning walk to Rocabey marché
Thursday afternoon at the boules terrain
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Finishing the water pipe repairs
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Friday morning walk to Bas Sablons
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday morning walk on the digue
Saturday afternoon at the harbor
Saturday afternoon at the harbor
Saturday afternoon at the harbor
Saturday afternoon at the harbor
Sunday morning walk on the digue
Sunday morning walk on the digue
Sunday morning walk on the digue
Sunday morning walk on the digue
Sunday morning walk on the digue
Sunday morning walk on the digue
Sunday morning walk on the digue
That is all for this week in Saint-Malo.Au revoir.
If you want to see the album of our pictures from June 2018, you can click on this link, June 2018.
If you want to see the album of our pictures from July 2018, you can click on this link, July 2018.
le lundi 6 août 2018 – Monday August 6, 2018
Today was the first day of the two-day Intra-Muros braderie. Many individuals had already spread out their blankets, towels, etc to display their items for sale. Sandy just quickly glanced at them as she bought our breakfast.
On her way to the boulangerie she dropped off our recycling at the “center.” There are several “centers” around town both inside and outside the walled city. Today a man was standing in front of the garbage machine with his garbage bag in his hand. He looked at Sandy and appeared to need help. She was not sure what language he was speaking. She pushed the open button, pulled open the door, the man threw his garbage inside, Sandy shut the door and pushed the compact button. The man said “okay, okay, merci” and they were both on their way. Since the written directions on the garbage machine are in English and French, he apparently did not read either language.
After breakfast we browsed through the many tables of goods for sale. This is a huge sidewalk sale where the majority of main street are full of goods for sale from individuals and the local businesses.
Intra-Muros braderie at the Place de la POISSONNERIE
We looked at many things but only made a purchase from the Bessec shoe store. Phil has had good luck shopping there the past two years. This year he needed better sandals to walk to the beach. He found a pair of Birkenstock sandals that are made of rubber. They had two bands across the foot and no backs. Perfect for wearing to the beach and easy to put back on after walking in the water.
After lunch we walked to the beach to go wading. There were so many people! The water had warmed up to 20C, 69F and felt wonderful! We walked a different route than usual to avoid the sidewalk sales and the main esplanade Saint-Vincent, where we catch the bus looked like a circus! Great for the local businesses.
a lot of people on the beach today
le mardi 7 août 2018 – Tuesday July 31, 2018
When Sandy walked to buy our breakfast the streets were fairly quiet. She only noticed one individual setting up her sidewalk sale next to the boulangerie. However, after buying fruit at our marché then shopping for non-perishables at Intermarché grocery store at 10h00 the streets were again crowded.
On the way back from the Intermarché we saw a Republique Française emblem on a building across from the park in Rocabey. This is the third one we have seen. We don’t have any idea why they are on certain buildings.
Republique Française emblem, we have seen 3 of these in town, not sure why they are on display
Apparently Saint-Malo is one of a few spots in Europe or at least France that hasn’t been seriously affected by the heat wave. Our predicted high temperature of 22C, 72F is much better than the predicted high of 37C, 98.6F, in Paris. Since we are less than a 2 1/2 hour train ride this is one of the closest places to get some relief from the heat and enjoy the sea and beach. Let’s hope our luck with temperatures continues through the remainder of August.
Around lunchtime we heard thunder, the skies darkened, and it rained off and on for about an hour and a half. Good! The streets need a wash and the flowers need a drink.
le mercredi 8 août 2018 – Wednesday August 8, 2018
Sandy dropped off recycling on her way to the boulangerie. She thought the streets, sidewalks, and air smelled fresher than yesterday after the rain. The flowers in the Place du Legume aux Marché looked revived. The streets were calm.
Very early in the morning, before sunrise, a large sailing ship arrived in the harbor. It was the Sea Cloud II. It left late that same evening.
the Sea Cloud II sailing ship
Today Sandy spent two hours tutoring with Christine and Phil did a little shopping at E.Leclerc Supermarché. On Sandy’s way from Christine’s house to the bus stop (about a 10 min. walk) a lady driving by pulled over and asked Sandy where the market was in Paramé. Sandy was able to give her simple directions, in French, that were almost correct. Big improvement in Français!
saw a dog in a window while walking through Paramé to Christine’s house
Alain and his wife came to our apartment for an aperitif. They brought a gift as is normal in France when invited to someone’s house. It was a nice visit and we discovered that he and his wife do not eat crackers, pretzels, or cashews. Good to know for the future.
le jeudi 9 août 2018 – Thursday August 9, 2018
Sandy shopped at Maison du Pain for our breakfast because it was raining when she woke up. The rain was predicted to come later in the morning, but arrived earlier. It was just a light mist, common for Saint-Malo. As the shop is only 80 steps from our front door it is close enough to avoid needing an umbrella.
It rained off and on until almost 15h00. The sun came out of the clouds and we were on the #8 bus to the Kennedy stop across from the north end of the Digue. Sandy wore a jacket, sneakers and socks since it was only 18C, 65F. We walked towards Intra-Muros straight into the wind. It was so strong that Sandy had to brace herself as she walked to avoid being knocked down. We felt completely wind-blown by the time we returned home. An invigorating walk for sure!
a few waves in the water today
three young gulls taking a nap on the beachr
le vendredi 10 août 2018 – Friday August 10, 2018
The temperature had fallen after the rain yesterday and Sandy again wore a jacket to the boulangerie. She took our garbage, glassware, and recycling bag of plastics, paper, and cans to the recycling center. However, it was completely overflowing and she had to leave all of our items outside the depository on the sidewalk, as other people had already left their refuse. What a mess!
Around 11 am we took a bus to the Rocabey stop, went into Intermarche for butter and stopped in the pharmacy for eye drops.
we saw a magpie (pie in french) in the park by Rocabey on the way to the Intermarché
We walked home, and while it was windy, it wasn’t as strong as yesterday. The high temperature for today was 21C, 70F. Great walking weather.
it was still windy and the gulls were gliding around
le samedi 11 août 2018 – Saturday August 11, 2018
One of the younger assistants helped Sandy at the boulangerie. She told Sandy that her order was “ une chanson dans ma tête”, like a song in her head. Two croissants and a baguette Festival. Funny how our language sounds to other people, especially in French.
We took a bus to the Paramé Mairie stop to look at the marché. When we were there for tutoring on Wednesday there were so many vendors that their stands were almost encroaching into the street. Big surprise on Saturday! They went someplace else. There were only 4 or 5 stands on Saturday, so nothing interesting to look at. We walked 6 blocks to the Digue and enjoyed a leisurely walk home. According to our “steps” counter in a health app, it was about a 3 mile walk.
In the afternoon we spent some time at the harbor watching boats come and go. The tide was on it’s way in. It was surprising to see how fast all of the anchored boats went from sitting on mud to floating in water.
the Commodore Goodwill, a cargo ship, always comes into port on Saturday
after the Commodore Goodwill left the harbor, the Condor Ferries ship came into the harbor
le dimanche 12 août 2018 – Sunday August 12, 2018
It was very quiet when Sandy walked to the boulangerie. This is a day of Grande Marée, exceptionally high tide with a co-efficient of 109. It was very cloudy with rain in the forecast in the morning. Strong winds could make the tide dramatic and disruptive.
Well the tide was high, but there was very little wind, so the waves were minimal.
the water was very close to the top of the wall in the harbor
the tide caused all of the Plage de Môle to disappear