Dawn came late this morning. Oh, there was nothing wrong with celetial mechanics, just the famous Breton weather doing its best to keep the sky from being open. The fog was so thick that even with the shutters and drapes open in my room, it didn't get light until almost eight o'clock. Things started to look better after breakfast, and by 9:30, the sun had finally broken through. Fougeres is one of the fortified sites built by the Duke of Brittany back in the twelfth century, so after settling my bill, I rode through town to look at the castle.
The castle is in very good shape, but was not open for visits at this hour of the morning.
The twin powers of Duke and Church are shown here, with the cathedral taking the high ground. Walls extend from the castle to encircle the hill on which the cathedral sits.
I surprised myself by finding the road I wanted to follow with absolutely no difficulty, something that often eludes me on my way out of a largish town. There's not much to say about the ride to Vitré, except that it was sunny, the wind was almost nonexistant, and the countryside just gently rolling, with nothing that could be called a real hill to raise a sweat. I wanted to visit Vitré after reading Léo Woodland's description of it, and, frankly, I don't think I could do better. The place is georgeous! I entered the town from the north, winding up a river valley and then circling the hill on which the castle sat.
I circled the city wall to reach the gates of the old town. The state of preservation makes the place sing with medieval history.
Once inside the walls, the center of the city is dominated by the castle, which has been converted into the city hall (mairie).The kids were just getting out of school for lunch. I'll bet that they have a good history teacher.....
I had lunch in a bistro, the type of restaurant that has a fixed price menu for lunch with only one choice on it, in this case cotelet Breton, salade, et tarte aux fruits. Not too bad for 10€. Then I was off for Chateaubriant. The cycling conditions remained excellent, and the scenery was much the same as in the morning. When I got to Chateaubriant, I scouted out a room, which I found in the Hotel Chateaubriant. The owners are in the process of renovating the hotel, and I got one of the renovated rooms. Very classy. I took a shower and went off to explore the city.
The castle was not as well kept in Chateaubriant, but you could see that efforts were being made.
