Get some fresh air by TER: three getaways from Brest

THE MORNING LIST

The most populated city in Finistère, Brest of course opens onto the Iroise Sea and its beaches. But by TER, you can also quickly go inland and discover smaller cities with incredible charm.

In Landerneau, the bridge and the tides

In fifteen minutes by train, you barely get far from Brest to completely change the atmosphere. From Landerneau station, you can reach the Rohan bridge in ten minutes on foot, one of the last inhabited bridges in France. This architectural curiosity dates from 1510. Until 1957, the work, 70 meters long, was the obligatory crossing point for merchants and residents wishing to cross the River Elorn.

At this location, you are, according to the saying, exactly on the border between Léon, to the north, and Cornwall, to the south. To start the walking tour which runs along the magnificent watercourse and crosses the historic heart of Landerneau, you can choose to leave on the Quai de Léon or on the Quai de Cornouaille. From one bank or the other, as the tides change, we witness the changing spectacle of this arm of the sea which here joins the salt water of the Brest harbor.

Built in the 17th century^e and XVIII^e centuries, the quays of Landerneau and the port that we pass through were the departure point for large-tonnage boats to all of Europe. The city then lived on the trade in creations, the fine linen fabrics of Léon. Large shipowners’ residences, such as the Maison Mazurier, erected at 26, quai de Léon, in 1725, still bear witness to this rich pass ; a simple cloth merchant, Jean-Baptiste Mazurier would become one of the wealthiest merchants in Landerneau. The facade of the building gives pride of place to the stone of Logonna, a neighboring town.

The next quay, called Barthélémy-Kerros, pays homage to another figure of Landran trading. Behind, as the sea enters the countryside, the towpath takes shape. The Elorn is a preserved river, rich in biodiversity. And, even if its emblem, the salmon, is becoming increasingly rare, its discovery is worth the detour.

In Morlaix, from tobacco to fairy tales

In Morlaix, as soon as you get off the train after a thirty-five minute journey, you reach the Contes à rebours Museum, unique in France. Written fairy tales, which are part of our cultural heritage, until now had no reserved place. This original space, in a beautiful 18th century residence^e century, hosts a permanent exhibition on the history of these stories in Europe. This recalls the importance of great authors, such as the German Brothers Grimm, the Dane Hans Christian Andersen and, of course, the French Charles Perrault, who introduced the tale to the court of Versailles, in the 17th century.^e century.

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