Paris1972-Versailles2003

Here we are in back country Morbihan dept 56 of my Bretagne in my belle France. I have passed by here several times but never got in too inland me thought but trying to see it all and with my boys decided to go in into nature and see a wonderful site that in Summer should be awesome.

Let me introduce you Poul Fetan in the small town of Quistinic. Of course in winter it is closed but I got a special peek inside ::)

Poul-Fetan means the washhouse of the fountain in the Breton language. It was built in the 16C, Poul-Fetan is located on the top of a steep valley overlooking the Blavet valley. As in many villages, the modernization of agriculture has little by little made traditional agriculture disappear, the peasants left the countryside to gain the city, and Poul-Fetan fell into oblivion in the 1960s -1970.

Poul-Fetan was acquired by the town of Quistinic in 1977. Thanks to the tenacity of a team of volunteers, supported by the town, the village will escape the announced death and will be reborn from its ashes. The restoration of the buildings began in 1979 and as of 1985 the village opens to the public.   Today, the numerous activities offered on the site allow you to rediscover this rural life of yesteryear. A leap in time which is an enchantment for both young and old!

A journey between nature and traditions in Morbihan. With family or friends share a good time in a village that lives to the rhythm of the 19C. Take part in daily life activities such as washerwomen, pancakes, butter, etc. 17 Breton games such as stilts, skittles, pucks, etc. Discover the shops and the craftsmen of the village.

Welcoming and generous, the artisans perpetuate here ancestral gestures: making butter, spinning wool, feeding farm animals , so many unique moments in which you are warmly invited to participate. If the work is sometimes rough, you will laugh out loud at the tasty gossip of the washerwomen. After the effort, you will feast on good dishes at the Auberge Ti Fanch ‘ such as the soup cooked in the fireplace, farz with bacon or vegetables etc. Here, you can taste the specialties with a wooden spoon and the flavors are incomparable. At the edge of the village, typical Breton games to challenge yourself with family or friends, and the beautiful chestnut forest which invites young and old to have fun in the company of facetious korrigans. In Poul-Fetan, each house tells the soul of Brittany through the families who lived here over a hundred and fifty years ago!!

Some webpages in English to help you plan your trip here are

Official Poul Fetan village

City of Quistinic on Poul Fetan village in French

Tourist office of Morbihan 56 on Poul Fetan village

tourist office of Brittany on Poul Fetan village

In town, and around you have apart from the seven chapels scattered throughout the countryside, the town has the particularity of hosting two religious buildings side by side. The Saint Pierre Church dates from the 18C, its bell tower is wonderful. Next to it stands the Saint Mathurin Chapel, the current chapel dates from the 18C, but another chapel or an oratory stood in the same place from the 15C.

Some directions to get to his inland wonderful area full of nature of my beloved Morbihan. You go there on the expressway N165/E60 direction Lorient, get off at the expressway N24 direction Rennes, exit/sortie at La Gare de Baud. The old train station no longer in use of Baud! I go from Pluvigner on the road D102 direction Languidic past this town continue on the D102 and on the site of Kerantarf take the road D23 becoming same road the D327 and signs will take you up hilly road to Route de Kerfec to the Poul Fetan village. This is all country inland nature and narrow hilly roads ok.

Some info on public transport , of course , never taken it here just for info ok.You can go with a bit of effort by bus from Lorient Gare d’échange, CTRL network on line 42E until Kergonan, then bus line 46  until Quistinic , you walk about 1km to the village. Info on buses here: https://www.ctrl.fr/mes-lignes/ligne-42e

Bus Line 46 : Quistinic Centre <> Languidic- Kergonan. From Paris Montparnasse you can take the TGV to the Gare de Lorient and do the bus as above. Also, there is an airport in Lorient Aéroport de Lorient Bretagne Sud that regular flights from Paris and Lyon, and need to take a bus to the above Gare d’échange (bus terminal) and then as above. Info on the airport here: https://www.lorient.aeroport.fr/en

Here is the town of Quistinic on the heritage things to see there: Town of Quistinic on heritage

And there you go, another wonderful spot now bette known in my wonderful Morbihan 56 which never stops to amaze me on its beauty and diversion of things to see and do. Hope in family you can enjoy it too, the Poul Fetan village. 

And remember, happy travels, good health,and many cheers to all!!!

And back in my home , do make runs here and there to be able to see the wonderful treasures I have nearby.  This was the case this week when I took around into the town of Languidic about 30 minutes from home by car, and came upon some familiar monuments that needed to see more closely.

I like to tell you more on this picturesque town of the Morbihan dept 56 of my lovely Bretagne.  The town of Languidic by its surface, the most extensive town of the Morbihan in the county of Lorient. It is located 35 km from Vannes, department prefecture (capital city), 30 km from Pontivy and 18.5 km from Lorient, sub-prefectures , as well of 10 km from Hennebont, the capital of the canton. The road RN 24 expressway, linking Rennes to Lorient, crosses Languidic from north-east to south-west for approximately 15 km. north-west / south-east axis with a branch line joining the departmental D765; the departmental D 158, on a northeast / southwest axis; the departmental D 189, to the east, which joins the departmental D4; and the departmental D 724 which follows the axis of the expressway; and the departmental D 765 which serves the village of Tréauray in the extreme south. Languidic is served by bus line 17 of the TIM network (regional dept network). Half an hour by road from the town of Languidic, you will find the Lorient – Bretagne Sud airport with flights to Paris, Lyon etc on a limited basis, and there is no train station so connection is done in neary towns such as Lorient.

A bit of history I like , briefly is

The War of Brittany’s Succession. The town was first supporters of Jeanne de Penthièvre, Henry de Spinefort, captain of the city of Rennes, and his brother Olivier, captain of the city of Hennebont, soon joined Jean de Montfort (to take duchy against king of France). They notably defend the city of Hennebont during the siege of Charles de Blois (for the king of France); the Languidian campaigns are then plundered by the Breton and French soldiers.

Languidic’s first city council, made up of the mayor and eight municipal officers, met in 1790 in the church sacristy. However, revolutionary fever does not take. In 1791, the members of the assembly gave up their function, no longer recognizing themselves in the ideas of the new regime. As in the rest of France, the priests are hunted down. From 1794, the presence of troops was essential to protect the Republicans (revolutionaries) entrenched in the town; the Chouans (rebels against the revolution) are becoming more and more daring; in late 1794, they venture into the town and cut down the tree of Liberty, and in the night of March 4 to 5, 1795, they kill the mayor. When the Quiberon Breton immigrants (from England) landed in 1795, hundreds of Languidicians went into battle; 87 are taken prisoner and released after paying a ransom. In Languidic, in 1799, the Chouans found themselves facing a republican troop. The fight was over, the former dispersed the latter. Royalists take over the territory: a cache of weapons and clothing is set up in the Kérallan wood. Fierce opposing the French revolution in this area of my Bretagne.

At the fall of the First Empire,(Napoléon I) the municipal council affirmed its attachment to the Royalist regime: in 1820, Languidic participated in the national subscription of the Château de Chambord; in 1822, it voted subsidies for the erection of a war memorial for the Quiberon expedition and a monument to Georges Cadoudal (General hero of the Chouans native of Auray) During his official trip to Bretagne in 1960, the President of the French Republic Charles de Gaulle stopped in the town to greet the people gathered on the Place de l’Église. Upon his death, it is decided that this square will bear his name; Place Général de Gaulle.

The city page presentation ,location is here: City of Languidic on location and presentation of the town

The things to see here are:

The église St Pierre or St. Peter’s Church was built between 1876 and 1879 and replaces two older buildings. The first was erected around 1329, in roughly the same location. The second was built in the 15C, perhaps in 1453 or 1433. This date is inscribed, in Gothic letters, on one of the beams and outside of the building The church was built at different times, that is why we found inside Romanesque capitals when the whole was in ogival style. Today, the church shelters one of the rare bells of the region prior to the French revolution. “Kolas” or Nicolas dates from 1783 and was not melted because it was used for civil sounding of the bell. The silver chalice and the tin ciborium, respectively from the 17C and 18C. In 1933, a martyrdom was built on Place Général-de-Gaulle.

Between 1980 and 1990, several renovations marked the 100th anniversary, including, among other things, the installation of two huge stained glass windows in the transepts and the installation of gas heating.  The huge stained glass windows were done in 1982 , one the creation of the world and the other the Jerusalem celebration. In 2000, a roof repair was undertaken. An unfortunate incident destroyed part of the bell tower, which will be rebuilt and consolidated, regaining its supremacy in March 2001. At the beginning of 2002, a complete cleaning of the exterior was carried out, restoring their shine to the original stones.

The uniqueness of this Chapel is the following. The Association of Parishioners of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Morbihan of the Ukrainian Diocese of the Patriarchate of Constantinople was newly created to serve the spiritual needs of their community, which is also joined by the faithful of Russian, Georgian and French Orthodox origin. The Chapelle Notre Dame des Fleurs is lent to them once a month by the rector of the parish of Languidic, so that his Christian brothers in the other lung of the universal Church can find a place of prayer and this with the blessing of the bishop, once a month. Here, worship is practiced in their original language and traditions. The readings are read by members of the parish, in Ukrainian and French What you know in my little corner of the world as it is only 30 minutes from my house by car!

The regional tourist office of Lorient: Tourist office of Lorient Bretagne south on Languidic things to see

Other things worth seeing here are the Castle of Kerrous (19C), Castle of Quellenec (15C to 18C) and the Castle de la Fôret (17C to 19C). In the cemetery, you will find the tomb of Marie-Thérèse-Perrine-Joséphine Hersart de la Villemarqué, daughter of the philologist Théodore Hersart de La Villemarqué and the recumbent figure of Pierre Guillozo, former parish priest of Languidic. To cure a shy child or a child with speech difficulties, legend has it that parents place a sachet of seeds or stones there after a prayer. And see my post on the Chapelle Notre Dame des Fleurs.

Finally, as in my wonderful Morbihan, the Languidic territory is integrated into the production areas of 3 products benefiting from a protected geographical indication (IGP): Cider of Bretagne or Breton cider, black wheat flour from Bretagne (in Breton; Gwinizh du Breizh) and poultry from Bretagne; simply the best of my lovely Bretagne and my belle France.

And there you go ,now I feel redeemed to show you this part of my lovely Morbihan dept 56, so much to see and we will keep coming back for more step by step in a never ending search for beauty, architecture, history,and just wonderful fields. Hope you enjoy my Languidic.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!