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L’Abbaye de Beauport, Paimpol

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…A serious house on serious earth it is,
In whose blent air all our compulsions meet,
Are recognised, and robed as destinies.
And that much never can be obsolete,
Since someone will forever be surprising
A hunger in himself to be more serious,
And gravitating with it to this ground,
Which, he once heard, was proper to grow wise in,
If only that so many dead lie round.

— Excerpted from “Church Going” ©Phiip Larkin

Here we are at the Beauport Abbey, in Paimpol. Founded in the XIIIth century by monks from Normandy, the Gothic abbey church now lies in ruins, albeit ruins with beautiful gardens that “lie round.” Visitors are often surprised to discover that Beauport is one of four official Breton starting points for pilgrims setting out for Santiago de Compostella. Centuries ago, Scandinavian, Irish, and British pilgrims landed in Brittany on their way to Spain. The other three Camino starting points in Brittany are…

  • Pointe Saint-Mathieu near Le Conquet : According to one tradition, Saint Matthew’s relics were brought there from Egypt in the IXth century, after which it became a shrine for Matthean pilgrims.

  • Moguériec near Saint-Pol-de-Léon

  • Locquirec near Morlaix

  • And then there’s a BONUS STARTING POINT: Many Bretons would include Mont Saint-Michel , which they insist rightly belongs to Brittany, not Normandy.

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July 2023 Expedition Update—Below Deck

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What are you do-ink? Making Dinner! (What does it look like? LOL) Guy—one of our QBE skippers)—shows off his beautifully accented English while capturing a few seconds of supper prep in Marie Claude's galley. It's our own "Below Deck!"

QBE European adventure sailing for teens—whipping up supper.

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July 2023 Expedition Update—Sailing again!

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Having been hunkered down in Lézardrieux for a couple of days because of torrential rain and gale-force winds, we’re sailing west again. Click or tap on the image below to see a sampling of some of the spectacular coastline waiting for us.

Image: Brittany Tourism

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Happy Bastille Day!

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Image: Joe Desousa

This is a trademark flyover by the French Air Force’s aerial acrobatics team, the Patrouille de France.

A few years ago, they performed a creative aerial display to celebrate the 50th anniversary of one of France’s most beloved comic book characters: Astérix the Gaul. The chatter is in French, but even if you don’t speak the language, you should watch the payoff (the video is just three minutes long). Very cool.

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July 2023 Expedition Update—Sailing West

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It’s Wednesday, 12 July, and we’re sailing along the spectacular coastline of the Côtes d’Armor (excuse the tautology). Here’s a nice three-minute video produced for the départment’s tourist board. The title in English is The Côtes d’Armor Seen From The Sky.

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June 2023 Expedition Update

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After stops in Binic, Saint-Quay, and Lézardrieux, we’re off to Roscoff on Saturday. The weather has been terrific, though we could use more wind in our sails.

The crew of Yseult at Binic-Étables-sur-mer

Learning how to steer a cutter! And though of course you can’t hear it, there’s always an expedition soundtrack; music is playing almost all the time. Playlist details later.

Binic Harbour

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Next June, the Olympic torch is coming to St-Malo!

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On 23 June, the Department of Ille-et-Vilaine, in Brittany, announced that the Olympic torch will pass through the “Corsair City” next June. And to mark the announcement they released a video. Here it is—alas, in French. The sailing competitions will be in the Mediterranean, so we’ll be able to sail next summer without disruptions.

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Did you know?...

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This one caught our eye(s). Loosely translated, it reads:
“Emperor Julian, who resided in Lutetia [the name of Paris in antiquity] between A.D. 357 and 360, left us a very nice description of the city:

Julian (d .363), the last non-Christian emperor of the Roman Empire, was elevated to the top job by his troops at Lutetia in A.D. 360.

I was in winter quarters in my beloved Lutetia. It is a very small island, protected by a surrounding rampart, that is only accessible by two wooden bridges. The river, in the middle of which it is situated, glides tranquilly along: its water is so clear that it is very pleasant to contemplate; it is also very good to drink, and so inhabitants of the area come to the river to draw it. Winters are not severe there, and the climate is so clement that you see high-quality [grape] vines growing in the surrounding countryside, as well as some fig trees, although it can get cold enough in the wintertime that those need to be cloaked in straw.”

So… the Seine was once known for its fine water. Wow! Can you imagine wandering over to the embankment these days, dipping your cupped hands in the river, and taking a sip? No thank you. Having said that, the organizers of next year’s Olympic Games in Paris intend to improve the Seine’s water quality enough that athletes will be able safely to swim in it. THAT…will be an environmental engineering achievement.

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Sail into the future!

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So, like everybody else it seems, we couldn’t resist asking a generative AI chatbox to write some advertising copy for us. And here it is, headline and copy (with some of our own observations and comments in brackets):

Are you looking for a unique and exciting adventure for your teen this summer? Look no further than QBE Sailing Adventures For Teens… Our program offers teens the opportunity to fully immerse [AI apparently doesn’t mind split infinitives] themselves in the exciting world of sailing, while also experiencing [parallel construction alert!] the stunning beauty of the sea. With experienced and knowledgeable instructors, your teen will learn the ins and outs of sailing, from navigation and safety, to captaincy [Now there’s a word you don’t see very often] and teamwork. But that's not all. Our program also includes a variety of fun and engaging activities, such as snorkeling [✅], fishing [Well, we do troll for mackerel sometimes—why not?—but we don’t tout it as a selling point. The bot just made that up.], and even beach volleyball! [Whoa! We have NO IDEA where that came from. That’s never been a QBE thing. And once again it’s not mentioned in our advertising copy. Maybe the bot has a side hustle doing consulting?] Teens will have the chance to explore new environments, make new friends, and create unforgettable memories. And safety is always our top priority. Our staff are trained and certified in all necessary safety procedures, ensuring that your teen is always in good hands. So why choose QBE? …Because we believe in providing the best possible experience for our participants. We go above and beyond to make sure that every aspect of our program is top-notch, from the instructors to the boat equipment to the accommodations [Whoa, whoa, whoa! We don’t claim to be a luxury cruise line; in fact, that would be defeating the purpose.]. Give your teen the adventure of a lifetime and enroll them in QBE’S European Leadership School (ELS). References on request.

Hmmm. Very interesting. Still, J. Peterman probably isn’t shaking in his boots yet. Or maybe he is…

Suffice it to say, AI is impressive technology, but it doesn’t appear quite ready for prime time. So if you’re a non-native speaker of English who’s hoping generative AI can help you nail an English text, use caution. You still might want an Anglophone editor to check your work before you publish it, just to be safe. And as an aside, we wonder who owns the copyright to an AI-generated text?

BTW: As for ChatGBT’s beach volleyball idea, we’re going to think about that. After all, you spot a beautiful beach every time you look up when sailing along the Breton coast.

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Brittany: check out our neighborhood!

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Not only is Brittany one of France’s best sailing areas, it’s spectacularly beautiful and unforgettably charming. images: ©Océane Le Gall. https://oceanelegall.fr

 
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“Third cities” and “Fourth towns”

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“Everybody goes to the same handful of sites. If you just go to those sites, you’re going to have a trip that is shaped by crowds. Or you can break free from that and realize that you can study the options and choose sites that are best for you. You can go to alternative places that have that edge and that joy and that creative kind of love of life. ‘Second cities,’ I call them.”
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— Rick Steves, Travel Guide Writer & TV Host, excerpted from The Atlantic

If you’re a parent or guardian of a teen for whom a trip to France would mean a first trip overseas, chances are good that that trip will be a seminal experience. So that prompts a question: what sort of experience should that ideally be? Nobody would suggest that first-time visitors to France shouldn’t try to see such must-see landmarks as the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, or Versailles. But during the summer, Paris is invaded by throngs of tourists. Visitors spend hours waiting in long lines and often have to jostle their way through the hoards, trying to keep from getting pickpocketed. It can be just as exhausting and frustrating as enriching. Many tourists can’t wait to get home.

A QBE expedition makes for a different type of European exposure. Most of our destinations are the “alternative places” Steves talks about—small ports where a traditional way of life still survives: folkways, local cuisine, architecture, even traditional languages: e.g., Breton in Brittany, Jèrriais (Jersey French) in Jersey, and Guernésiais (Guernsey French) in Guernsey. And that’s part of what makes a QBE expedition such a unique—even once-in-a-lifetime—adventure. Still, as we’ve suggested before, there’s no reason you can’t have your gâteau and eat it, too. Just tack on a few extra days to visit a cultural capital as well the provinces.

The “Myth of Talent”—Kurt Vonnegut’s take:

 
 
 

WHEN I WAS 15 I spent a month working on an archeological dig. I was talking to one of the archeologists one day during our lunch break and he asked those kinds of “getting to know you” questions you ask young people: Do you play sports? What’s your favorite subject? And I told him, no I don’t play any sports. I do theater, I’m in choir, I play the violin and piano, I used to take art classes.

And he went WOW. That’s amazing! And I said, “Oh no, but I’m not any good at ANY of them.”

And he said something then that I will never forget and which absolutely blew my mind because no one had ever said anything like it to me before: “I don’t think being good at things is the point of doing them. I think you’ve got all these wonderful experiences with different skills, and that all teaches you things and makes you an interesting person, no matter how well you do them.”

And that honestly changed my life. Because I went from a failure, someone who hadn’t been talented enough at anything to excel, to someone who did things because I enjoyed them. I had been raised in such an achievement-oriented environment, so inundated with the myth of Talent, that I thought it was only worth doing things if you could “Win” at them.

—Kurt Vonnegut

Vonnegut, one of the most influential (and popular) American writers and novelists of the 20th century, is best known for his novels Slaughterhouse-Five (1969—film adaptation 1972), Cat’s Cradle (1963), and Breakfast of Champions (1973). His works combine science, black comedy, and satire.

Living an interesting life

In the “For-What-It’s-Worth-Department.” Excerpted from the The Week.

Seven ways to be the most interesting person in any room

Welcome to charm school

7. Live an interesting life.

Remember the theme of Don Quixote: If you want to be a knight, act like a knight. If you don't read, watch, and think about generic things, generic things are less likely to come out of your mouth. This doesn't need to be expensive or difficult. Hang out more often with the most interesting people you know. The friends you spend time with dramatically affect your behavior — whether you like it or not. The Longevity Project, which studied over 1000 people from youth to death had this to say: The groups you associate with often determine the type of person you become. In The Start-up of You, Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha talk about how the best way to improve particular qualities in yourself is to spend time with people who are already like that. The best and most reliable way to appear interesting is to live an interesting life [emphasis ours]. And to pursue that ends up being far more rewarding than merely making a good impression on others.

You can read the entire article here.

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