Footnotes to a Conversation, February 5, 2024

“If people never did silly things nothing intelligent would ever get done.” – Ludwig Wittgenstein

Vannes’ port (above) more closely resembles a canal nowadays and is only used by pleasure boats.

Housesitting means I have the luxury of getting to know a place gradually. In Vannes, I’m spending a couple of hours a day wandering around a specific area. It gives me some sense of how people live there.

In Vannes, there’s a massive market area with two indoor halls as well as outdoor squares. This is also where you find food shops. Further uphill, there’s a shopping area with clothing stores, a Monoprix department store, and a huge bookstore.

There is also a large organic/health food store. Bio stores are so common in France (even more so in Brittany, I’ve been told). I wish the same could be said for Canada.

Visiting a city this way ensures plenty of surprises. I stumbled across this tiny alleyway in the shopping district.

February Celebrations

Christmas is over and it feels like winter will never end. But never fear! There are two February events worth celebrating. I’m a bit late reporting on them, but never mind. Save the idea for next year or simply switch the dates for your own convenience.

Imbolc, also known as St. Brigid’s Day, is celebrated on February 1. It marks the beginning of spring as it’s halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox and would have been a time when people prepared for spring sowing and lambing. Crosses are traditionally woven from reeds and hung above a door to protect the household from fire, lightning, illness, and evil spirits. We tend to view the cross as representing the crucifixion, but the four arms are also believed to represent the four seasons and the four elements. St. Brigid is the patron saint of beer so feel free to raise a glass in her honour. [Wikipedia, The Guardian]

I celebrated Le Chandeleur on February 2 with a crêpe fresh from the griddle and topped with butter and sugar in front of Vannes’ downtown bio store. Le Chandeleur (Candlemas) celebrates light in all its forms and it’s customary to eat crêpes that are round like the sun, symbolizing the lengthening of days as spring approaches. Traditionally, the first crêpe was “folded over a coin on top of the house cupboard to attract good fortune and abundant harvests to the house. The previous year's pancake was then thrown away and the coin given to a beggar or a needy person.” [Accent Français]

Slow Travel

One of the joys of extended trips to Europe is the ability to travel by bus and train. But train travel isn’t restricted to Europe. Here is an article about the six most adventurous train trips in North America. I’d like to take the one from Los Angeles to Seattle and the one from Chicago to Seattle that crosses the Mississippi and passes through Glacier National Park. [Outside Online]

Early Roman Medical Clinic

1,800 years ago, patients at what appears to have been a group medical practice were having cataract surgery, wounds sutured, and hemorrhoids removed. The large collection of Roman medical instruments indicates that a dozen or more medical practitioners operated at the site at any one time. [Live Science]

Footnotes to a Conversation is a weekly Monday feature covering an assortment of topics that I’ve come across in the preceding week – books, art, travel, food, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I also post occasional articles on other dates, including frequent book reviews and travel tales.

If you share my love of nature, check out EcoFriendly West, an online publication encouraging environmental initiatives in Western Canada, and Nature Companion, a free nature app for Canada’s four western provinces.