St. Malo, a beautiful walled city on France's northwestern Brittany coast, wins 'Favorite Place Visited' this trip, even more so than the Mount Saint Michel (more on that another day). It's a real city, with shops and restaurants and a beach to catch some rays (not just a tourist trap). The city's modern origins date back to the 6th century, but it's best known for its pirate connections. In the 17th and 18th centuries French corsairs (a type of state sponsored pirate) made their home here, controlling shipping on the channel, and exploring further afield (as far as the Americas). In August 1944 the historic center of St. Malo was almost completely destroyed by a fire that followed allied bombing, but it has been authentically, lovingly restored. The photo above is the land side view as you approach the city.
That's a reproduction corsair ship there to the right. We thought €6 a piece was a tad expensive to tour it, we just admired it from a distance.
This is the main entrance to the city.
Inside restaurants and shops line the walls; you won't be starved for choice. I read that St. Malo has one of the highest concentrations of restaurants in Europe, whether that's true or not I can't say, but there were indeed quite a few.
There was some nice shopping to be done (not just touristy tack).
You can work off your lunch with a wall walk.
And if eating, shopping and culture are not your thing there's always the beach.
Stay tuned for the Mount St. Michel!
Looks like a great place to visit.
ReplyDeleteUne très belle ville! A voir avec un temps aussi splendide et faire des photos comme des cartes postales... Chapeau!!
ReplyDeleteWow - with that rave review I will put this on my must see list! I have seen quite a few beautiful places in France and I have still only scratched the surface. It's impressive to have such drastic changes in landscape in a relatively small country. Love the history about the corsairs too and that St Malo was a more authentic experience.
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