Les Machines de l’île of Nantes : Le Grand Éléphant !!!

Posted in Bretagne, France

We have come quite often to Nantes, a City that needs to be visited more by all. A wonderful historical city with many monuments to see, many wonderful properties. I was again on my local road warrior mode and as bit not back, decided to give it a refresher to this must to visit City of Nantes, Loire-Atlantique dept 44 of the Pays de la Loire region,in my belle France ; even if old Bretagne! Do read my previous posts on the city as well, This was to be the last post of this trip and our favorite over the years, therefore, let me tell about the Les Machines de l’île of Nantes : Le Grand Éléphant !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

Nantes Les Machines de l'Île elephant front mar24

Les Machines de l’îleor The Machines of the island are a space of exhibition and animation located in Nantes on theïle de Nantes (island of Nantes), in the parc des Chantiers (boat yards), at the site of an abandoned shipyards on Bd Léon Bureau, They were inaugurated in 2007. The Machines of the island are located at the crossroads of the Worlds inventions of Jules Verne, the mechanical universe of Leonardo da Vinci and the industrial history of Nantes. There are wonderful things here, and one of the best is the Le Grand Éléphant !!!

Nantes Les Machines de l'Île elephant walking front mar24

The Machines of the island initially include the Great Elephant, (my fav) a prototype branch of the Heron Tree, the Carousel of the Marine worlds, and a children’s carousel, the Andrea’s merry-go-round. The number of machines is intended to increase as the creations progress.  The Machines of the island are built in the former shipyards of the Dubigeon located in the yards park. In one of the naves, the workshop is the place of creation of the Machine, Association of Manufacturers and creators of living spectacle. On more than 3 000 m2, engineers, technicians, boilers, welders, sculptors and carpenters work on structures and materials.   From two terraces at 7.5 meters in height, the public can observe the creators of machines in full activity in their world of wood and steel.

Nantes Les Machines de l'Île elephant walking side mar24

The Grand Éléphant is located in the naves and was inaugurated in 2007. It is made of wood (carved) and steel and weighs 48.4 tons. Measuring 12 meters in height for 8 meters in width, it can accommodate 52 passengers per trip. running at 1-3 kph! and ride all over the park and into the galerie des machines On board, the visitor discovers a panorama of Trentemoult in the place de Commerce. It has a vision of the mechanism and every vibration of the elephant is felt. To the elephant is associated an aerial footbridge installed near the naves that allows the descent of the passengers “go” and the ascent of the passengers “return”. Since the opening of the Carousel of the Marine Worlds in 2012, the descent of the Great Elephant, to the go, is done on a special platform on this carousel, as well as the ascent for the return to the gallery of machines.

Nantes Les Machines de l'Île elephant back mar24

The official Les Machines de l’Île on the Grand Éléphant: https://www.lesmachines-nantes.fr/en/discover/the-grand-elephant/

The Nantes tourist office on the Grand Éléphant : https://www.levoyageanantes.fr/en/places/jardin-des-plantes/

There you go folks, do visit Nantes ,and its wonderful monuments.  A must to visit while in the city ; see the Les Machines de l’île of Nantes : Le Grand Éléphant  !!! Again, hope you enjoy this post as I.

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

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

8 thoughts on “Les Machines de l’île of Nantes : Le Grand Éléphant !!!”

  1. I visited Nantes several years ago, but sadly, I didn’t have much time to check out les machines de l’ile (although I really wanted to)! Looks like an imposing, but fun sight, and I hope to return soon to see it!

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  3. The press reported that there was an job opening for the position of Elephant driver, a cool job! I love it when the kids play with the beast’s water and steam jets. Well, it’s better in summer.

    Liked by 1 person

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