I am here in Quimper, Brittany through a hosting programme called Workaway.

Workaway is “a platform that facilitates cultural exchange and volunteer opportunities for travellers by connecting them with hosts around the world.”  Yep, that’s straight from their website.

Every host has different requirements of their guests.  But the basic idea is that accommodation and food are provided in exchange for several hours of work a day.  Often the jobs will include gardening, caring for farm animals or work on building projects of some sort.

A good friend suggested Workaway to me when Clive and I returned from our first trip to France.  It took me quite a while to work up the courage to apply, but here I am! 

Madame Julia has been a wonderful host.  Not only is she a superb cook and conversationalist, but she has also been my personal tour guide.  The fact that she speaks both English and French fluently is such a bonus!  I arrived here thinking I knew a little French.  I have spent many hours online learning “French with Alexa” and practising how to talk about my cat and the dog that I don’t have with Duolingo.  Well, I can tell you right now that it is one thing to be able to read a few phrases in French and know the days of the week, but quite another thing to attempt a conversation with an actual French speaker.  For example, someone might ask me where I am from, but if they ask me in a way that differs from the phrase I have learnt, I can be completely thrown!  And everyone seems to speak so quickly here.  They don’t of course, but to me it’s as though all the words run together.  Added to the difficulty is the stress factor of it all.  Sometimes the simplest French words seem to fall out of my head if I’m feeling a little on the nervy side and I can come out with the most ridiculous things, like saying hello when I’ve meant to say goodbye.  Duh!  The most embarrassing situation so far was when Madame Julia had someone drop by from a garage door company (her garage door being in need of an upgrade).  The woman arrived while I was in the front garden spraying some weeds (using a no-chemical mixture, I might add).  She addressed me with the courteous “Bonjour Madame”, which I was able to comfortably answer.  However, she then proceeded to ask me a question, to which I replied “I’m so sorry, I don’t speak English” in English.  Yep.  That’s what I said.  Sigh.

All that aside, I do think I’m improving a bit, at least in my understanding anyway.  If I concentrate hard when Madame is having conversations with her friends, I can usually pick up enough to have a vague idea of what they are talking about.  I figure if I keep working on it, I can’t get any worse!

But enough about that.  Let me show you some of the things I have seen since I arrived here in Brittany two weeks ago.

On my first morning here, Madame Julia took me along to a crafts market in Ile Trudy that she set up a few years ago. The market is held right next to the beach.  It’s not big but the quality of crafts on display was impressive.

We also spent a fabulous morning at the Festival des Brodeuses (Embroiderers’ Festival) at Pont l’Abbé. 

Embroidery is a big part of Breton culture and both men and women are involved in the craft.  The traditional fabric can often be quite thick, so guys have the advantage here when it comes to pushing the needle through the hardy material.

The Festival des Brodeuses started back in 1909 when the owner of several embroidery workshops, a Monsieur Pichavant, had the idea of choosing a queen and her bridesmaids from among his workers. Together, they would participate in a parade in Pont l’Abbé to honour the embroiderers’ guild.

Nowadays, the parade is made up of groups from different areas around Brittany, each displaying their own traditional Breton costumes. There are also bands playing a variety of Celtic music, traditional dancers, actors and some extremely cute children.

We had a prime spot on the edge of the road, but also thankfully in the shade.  My heart went out to those involved in the parade.  It was a very hot day and many of the costumes were made from wool or similarly heavy fabric.  There was a team giving out water to the participants but I saw many a brow wiped and I marvelled at how well the wee ones behaved throughout it all, bless them.

It was such a rich cultural experience and truly moving to be so close to it all. I actually found myself getting a bit teary at one point!

I also spent a couple of hours by myself in the centre of Quimper, visiting la Cathédrale Saint-Corentin and le Musée Départemental Breton (the Breton Departmental Museum).

There is something quite special about visiting places like this by yourself. Being able to spend a good amount of time examining a painting or stained glass window, without having to hurry to catch up with others – well, it’s not something I’ve really done before. I spent around an hour at each place but I could have easily stayed for longer. C’était bien.

And a wee bit from Le Musée Départemental Breton

There was so much to see and I decided to try and be in the moment rather than photograph everything. So much history. It was wonderful.

Another remarkable thing is that I managed to find my way back to the bar which Madame Julia had suggested she collect me from. It wasn’t hard really. In Quimper there is always the Odet River and the spires of the Cathedral of Saint-Corentin to guide you (okay maybe we can add Google Maps in there too, just in case.)

Fortunately the man serving me at Bar St Andrew’s understood my “Vin blanc s’il vous plaît”. Although he did switch to English as he answered me. Ah well. C’est la vie!

Santé!