Walkway on Baie de Somme, in the north of France

For a week-end, I went to the Baie de Somme. That’s not far from Paris, and the change is guaranteed. Weather forecast was not good, but when I arrived the sky was brightened. It was the opportunity to walk around and see Somme’s bay under a wonderful sky. This place was wonderful, full of birds, migrated one or usual ones. This walkway worth a visit!

Last stop in Brittany, Vannes. I arrived there one Saturday morning; tourists were present and buying local products, fruits, vegetable in the city center market. The harbor was full of boats and the cafés were full. The atmosphere was festive on this summer ending, yet the crowd oppressed me. Few meters away, a beautiful park appeared in front of me, with all the serenity attached to its atmosphere. A great moment of happiness that made me appreciates this town in all its richness.

A little bit farther than Concarneau, Pont-Aven is worth a visit. With its quiet atmosphere, this place gives an incredible charm. That’s why so many artists, especially painters, came and painted streams, or houses.

You can also come to Pont-Aven for its gastronomy.  Brittany flat cakes are made here, full of good butter, and with a delicious taste. A chocolate maker also came and settled down in Pont-Aven, he creates and offers delicious delicacies.

Everybody can find its happiness, whether for a food halt, or to take advantage of Pont-Aven charm!

I was walking to the car when I saw a bench, alone. There was nothing special about it, but I imagined all it could have seen and would see. The sunrises and sunsets, the storms, a radius of sun on its wood…. Sometimes, the view was blocked, because of the people who were sitting on it. When I took this picture, it was taking advantage of the last summer sunshine, the sea was calm, and the instant was quiet.

After having stayed in some peaceful places in Finistère, a city outgoing was improvised. Concarneau was the nearest city from Beg Meil with an historical interest. First, I discovered the marvelous view of the Atlantic Ocean, and the “Ville Close” was in front of me. I first saw the bridge connecting the old part of the city with the new one.  Walking there means discovering the shops on the main street, covering the ancient walls.

Fortunately, it was possible to breathe some fresh air in the gardens outside the main street. There was also a shuttle offering the shortest cruise in France from one bank of the city to the other.

After a walk around the ramparts it was time to leave. When I walked back, across the recent architecture, I saw after a while the Ocean in the front of me, in its most important immensity…

While I was coming to Concarneau, the view of the sea was sparkling, yet grey clouds were reflecting on water, and gave a melancholic aspect to the atmosphere.  It was the end of this Brittany trip, and with this picture and boat, I wanted to go on the road again. But this photo talked to me, and said every good things had an end, so I had to take advantage of each moment.

Close to the campsite where I slept, there was a path which took me up to the beach “la roche perçée”. It was not the biggest beach around, but its interests lay in the paths all around and its rocks with a hole inside.

At first, I saw it above, it didn’t seem to be of great interest, but when I walked down one morning before leaving, with this light sideways, the rock looked beautiful. Leaving without seeing it and taking this picture would have made me feel missing something.

At the Guilvinec harbor, I had the opportunity to do a guided tour in a marine museum which showed us the life of a fisherman and how the job had evolved. By this way, I could see how hard the life of a fisherman was. They can leave up to 14 days with no day off to catch fish in the ocean. During that tour, I was allowed to see an auction sale as well. When fish and selfish arrive at the harbor, they are immediately sold by auction, and then they are sent all around the country. In the fish shop just close to the harbor, you could find fresh fish and shellfish, it was an opportunity to buy fresh products with a marvelous taste.

When I arrived to the Glenan archipelago, I saw one cross on the main island. While I was walking around the island, I could see marvelous landscape, with different smaller islands around. As the weather was fine sailboats were out.  I followed the only path available, and I saw a cross again. I was first surprised to see so many cross on this island, but then I realized it was the same cross I had seen at the beginning of the trip.

Another thing about this picture is interesting to see : one side is composed of dark clouds, and the other with a blue sky. It gives a feeling to see the beginning of a tornado. Of course, it was never cataclysmic; yet, one great shower arrived a few moments later.

When you spend one holiday week in South Finistere, you hear and see ads about the Glénan archipelago. People told me about paradise beaches, and water with an unforgettable blue color. It looked like the dream of every people who can’t go to Polynesian island.

So, I was intrigued, and decided to go there. As it was low season, departure only was from Benodet, a few kilometers from where I stayed. After 18kms travelled by boat, the islands unveiled themselves under my eyes. Luckily, it was a sunny day, so every part of the land shined most beautifully. On this picture, which I took from the main island, you can see a way of sand, which was visible at low tide, and allowed to visit the other island. Alas, I didn’t stay enough time to wait for the next low tide, but the experience must be surprising.

Britanny is well known for its wonderful landscapes on the sea side, but another aspect is important when seeing these landscapes. The wind is very important there, and climate is changing all the time. That’s why the light is so special and interesting. You can stay one hour in the same place and have different feelings.

Here, in Cap Coz, near Fouesnant, clouds were going in the same direction and gave a feeling of immensity. As I was using a wide angle, it emphasized this feeling of immensity and the clouds  looked magnificent while we looked tiny.

For a long time, friends told me about Brittany, with its landscapes, its forests, and its atmosphere, but I had never been there. Each time, they told me I should go there, because I like great spaces. My next notes will concern this part of France.

One opportunity to discover this region occured, and I decided to go in South Finistere, near Beg Meil. It’s one of the most touristic places of Brittany. Fortunately, it was the low season, and there were less people.

This panorama has been taken with a few pictures mixed together with the help of a software. The place is called Beg Meil's end and it's wonderful to see the intense blue sea . Some walkways are available with more or less long way, with different looks : savage, natural, touristic... the marsh and the dune. So, you can stay a few days in Beg Meil without annoying. 

I like this picture, because it gives magnificent size to the landscape. Rocks, sea ah holidays!

This is the last note about Iceland; next one will talk about France.

The blue lagoon is one of the most important sites visited by tourist. Its close from the airport and you can go there when you arrive or leave.

The natural aspect is false, but anyway, when you walk in the middle of this strange color water, you feel rest.  More than take advantage of hot water spot (warm by natural hot water source) and sun, you can have a jambes close from water,  special skin care etc. It’s the right place to feel good, relax. And even with its important tourist and its price, it’s one place to visit.

With the wish to do a summary of my trips, I realized a virtual magazine, with places I saw. In January, the first notebook will be released about Iceland, and see on http://www.newzealandpictures.net/indexen.php web site.

At Landmannalaugar, everything seems supernatural. When you want to get there, you have to find the right way, because, there is no clear road. You walk across a field made of cold lava as, not far away from there, a volcano is regularly in eruption and makes the earth inhospitable. The black color of the lava produces a sinister effect.

Once having got over the lunar landscape, I arrived in the middle of the mountains, and in the center appeared a camp-site with two or three houses where people could sleep. Seeing all these people crawled in the middle of nowhere was surprising, all the more than a natural hot water source sprung close to the camp-site. Tourists were happy about these Iceland facilities.

Landmannalaugar is also a place of interest interesting as it is the starting point of one of the best walkway of the country, a 4 days’ walk. Although I didn’t have the time to go on this walk, I could see beautiful landscapes just around the site.

The bus departure was 11a.m, so it gave enough time to walk around Höfn city. The day before, the weather had been grey, and cloudy, but that morning, a very blue sky was above our heads. When I walked around the harbour, I arrived on the outskirts of the city where the point of view of Vatnajokull glacier was wonderful.

When I was close to the water, I didn’t pay attention to the Vatnajokull glacier but to that line constructed with water element. It gave an interessant rhythm to the picture and made an atypical landscape.

Iceland is a country where you can see many different landscapes during one day. One of the landscapes I wanted to see the most was Jokulsarlon. About 45 minutes from Hofn by bus Jokulsarlon is a very strange place. Along the path all you can see is a deserted land, you only see earth without trees, shrubs etc …, everything look lifeless. And suddenly you come across a lagoon. So many water, so many ice whereas elsewhere, there is only dry earth!

Vatnajokull is the biggest glacier of Iceland, and one of the most important in the world. Its size is quite the same as the Corsica Island. The glacier is going to remove back to the center of the country and it lets iceberg on the lagoon. Vatnajokull used to be close to the sea, and now the iceberg which melt and flow to the salt water. In one century, this place has considerably changed. Sometimes, you can hear a “plouf”, and you can see a piece of ice breaking off an iceberg. It’s a magnificent place and yet it’s disappointing to see right in front of you the consequences of the changing climate.

There are lot things to see around Reykjahild city.  There are volcanoes around the lake Mytvan, smoke coming out from the earth. Everything is moving, and everything is impressive. When you are coming out from the city, you quickly arrive in an arid land.  Cracks are visible from the road, it reminds us that we are not allowed to go everywhere, we have to follow the indicated paths.

This zigzag road in the middle of nowhere shows that humans have come across this desert landscape. Yet, you feel all alone there, as there is hardly any car on this road.

This road brings you to a place with a thousand colours. Smokes are coming out from the earth, the ground is crackled, and there are bubbles of mud.

The next pictures in the blog will show more of this colourful and surrealistic place.

To go up to the waterfall, you have to cross by car a land without any vegetation for nearly one hour. The road is large enough for only one car, and you can’t drive fast. Thus, the 22 kilometers from Krafla to the waterfall are really chaotic. When I arrived at the car park, I saw nothing. So, I followed the only visible path. Before I could see this special place, I heard loud noises. It gave me a hint of the size of the waterfall, which is actually one of the biggest in Europe.

Even at a large distance, you can receive droplets in your face. All that movement, all that noise! It was really impressive.  After each picture, I had to clean the lens!  

Two people were making a movie. I took them in the foreground so that one could realize the strength of the waterfall.

Fairy landscape

Close to Reykjahild, the earth is quite unstable. On the road up to Viki lake (old volcano full of water), you can one strange scenery after another. It was 8 in the morning when I arrived there. The car left me and was to come back and take me at 11 a.m. On my book guide, they wrote many things about this place, but I saw nothing except the lake. I only saw a lunar landscape and a factory pouring so many tubes all around.

What could I do for the next 3 hours? The cold wind blew and chilled me to the bones. I continued to walk and suddenly I saw a camping-car site. I was about to do some hitch-hiking and come back to the city when a woman said to go to the toilets to get warm. And in fact, in the middle of nowhere, there was a heater in the toilets! Iceland is an incredible country!

I had begun to feel better when the woman came back to me and told me about a beautiful walk to do, just close to the park site. I took my courage with two hands and walked. I met a senior band, and we walked for a while together. Then, the wind stopped blowing, the weather was fine, and the landscape marvellous. After some 30 minutes walk, I discovered a lagoon, with a thousand colours. The cloudy weather adds to the strength of this picture. It was an incredibly beautiful place. Smoke was going out from earth; water was of an a hypnotic blue colour. You can stay there for a while, just admiring the beauty of nature.

In the next note, I will show pictures from the same place.