The Good Life France Magazine brings you the best of France - inspirational and exclusive features, fabulous photos, mouth-watering recipes, tips, guides, ideas and much more...
Full of fabulous features, fantastic photos - inspiring, entertaining and informative. Culture and history, destination guides including Paris, Brittany, Toulouse, Troyes, Alsace-Lorraine, Champagne and more. Discover brilliant city, country, seaside and gourmet breaks. Truly scrumptious recipes to make at home. And much, much more. Bringing France to you - wherever you are.
Golfe de Morbihan
Golfe de Morbihan Magical MORBIHAN Gillian Thornton explores the Golfe du Morbihan, Brittany’s enchanting ‘inland sea’ Think of a sea that’s almost entirely surrounded by land and chances are that your thoughts will go to the Mediterranean. But deep in the south-east corner of Brittany lies a surprising alternative that packages outdoor activities, heritage sites and seaside scenery into one neat bundle. The Golfe du Morbihan – from the Breton word for ‘little sea’ – is a tidal basin created 2,000 years ago when the Atlantic Ocean surged into low-lying land through a gap in the coastline. Today, this unique area of saltwater covers 12,000 hectares, its tidal flow reaching inland as far as Auray in the west and the walled city of Vannes at the head of the Gulf. Dotted with islands of varying sizes, the Gulf is fringed with rocky headlands, quiet beaches and inlets. A stunner, whichever way you look at it. I start my exploration in Vannes, founded by the Romans in 56BC as Darioritum after their victory over the Veneti. In the 5th century AD, the town was renamed Venetis and the old hilltop site – today’s district of St Patern – was abandoned as a new town grew up inside fortifications. But it was in the Middle Ages that Vannes began to take on its present aspect, and today it is one of Brittany’s most 68 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 69
