Exploring Dinan, A Walk to Lehon, and Another Deviation

A picture perfect morning here in Dinan. Greg was slow to start and it still fighting this cold, so I took a walk around town trying to get my bearings. Evidently part of the wall surrounding this ancient city crumbled recently and that is why we had the detour (the French call it a deviation) yesterday coming into town. I wanted to see how we can drive out of town without getting lost. I also walked around the wall and this is what is on the other side. It's the Port de Dinan and le Rance that flows up to St. Malo.

Later Greg and I walked down the steep steps to get to this port area. There are lots of nice restaurants and cafes down there which might be fun for lunch one day, but I don't think I'd want to venture up the stairs and trails to get back after dinner. We climbed up, did some shopping including buying some Camembert cheese that has managed to stink up the entire kitchen (I sure hope it tastes better than it smells!).  Had some Conque Monseur here in the house for lunch.

I'd read that there's a nice walk from Dinan to Lehon, a pretty little town about a mile south of here. The walk goes along the river, and I thought it would be perfect for today since the sun was out and Greg didn't want to do too much. So we walked down again to the river, found the trail, and headed south. Soon, however, we were faced with another deviation.

This meant that we had to climb up a very long, steep hill, walk a few blocks down a white road, and then follow the trail back down a very long, steep hill. (The white roads are the ones on the map that are just local and usually not very busy.) All I could think of was that I hoped again that I was working off some of the calories I've been consuming in bread, pastries, and wine.

Just as we arrived in Lehon, the sky opened up and the rain came down. It seems these sudden rainstorms are normal here where one minute the skies are blue with big puffy clouds, and the next minute there is driving rain. We huddled in a doorway and hoped that the owners didn't open the door. But Lehon is another lovely little town, and I'm glad we saw it. I'd read somewhere that it is like Rochefort-en-Terre without the shops and restaurants (and tourists). We walked home a different way but it too was uphill the entire way. How does that happen?

We stopped in a wine shop, and the owner was so charming. We must have spent close to 30 minutes talking with him about wine, Paris, wine, Brittany, the US. The people here are very friendly and all try to speak English. We stopped by this amazing shop, JF Cormerais, where we've been buying wonderful prepared foods. They have a display of salads in the window that makes everyone stop and stare, plus roast chickens, quiches, tortes, and so much more. We're having dinner at home tonight and this place makes it easy to do. And no cooking!

Update on the Camembert: Maybe it's an acquired taste. I think we may have to throw it out just to get rid of the smell.

Tomorrow (if Greg is feeling better) we hope to make to Mont Saint Michel! And we may go to Cancale and I'll try to work up the nerve to eat oysters!

And One More Thing

After all my whining about the weather, here's something positive about the off-and-on rain.

A fabulous double rainbow over the river!

Greg had to take one more shot in the evening light. So much nicer than the one I took with my cell phone this morning!