Geography of France – Pinchon’s Bretagne

Pinchon’s illustrated map of Brittany offers many paths of enrichment and exploration.

1. Learn more about breton pardons, or pilgrimages on a fixed date and to a fixed place comprising a mass and a procession.  The French wikipedia article is informative and includes many paintings and prints, including a slideshow at its bottom.  Both sites are in French, but Chrome’s in-browser translation tool renders that less of an obstacle.

Anatole LeBraz, breton folklorist and poet wrote a book, Au pays des pardons, about the practice.

2. Listen to breton music.  You will hear the binou and the bombarde in this video.

3. Explore the seven Calvaries of Bretagne, outdoor, monumental stone sculptures of Christ’s nativity and passion.

5. Learn how to make a savory galette breton and what makes it not a crepe.

6. Learn about the butter from Ille-et-Vilaine.

9. Read this account of the Ransom of Bertrand du Guesclin (d. 1380) by 14th century historian Froissart. A modern account of his life in French. And in English (free to borrow with registration).

Select according to your taste and time and language from among several videos about Bertrand du Guesclin on Youtube.

12. Peruse the table of contents of The Genius of Christianity by Francois-Rene de Chateaubriand, born in St-Malo.

Or of his Memories from Beyond the Grave.

15. Learn about Becassine (Pinchon’s own creation). See if you can get your hands on the 2018 live action movie.

18. Peruse this long list of megalithic sites in Morbihan. You may find videos about some of them (another and another).

21. Learn about the salt of Guerande.

Geography of France – Pinchon’s Normandie

Pinchon’s illustrated map of Normandy offers many paths of enrichment and exploration.

3. A couple of steps beyond cider, learn about how Calvados is made and see some views of Normandy, its countryside, and its food in this promotional video for a Calvados distiller.

5. Research what a caloge is.  The best I can find is a description and multiple references in the Souvenirs of the valet de chambre of Guy de Maupassant (from Normandy).

8. Explore Rouen Cathedral through Monet’s series of paintings of the facade.

9. Learn about the 17th-century French playwright Pierre Corneille, of such literary and philosophical import that the Ayn Rand Institute has published this analysis of his play Le Cid.

Enjoy this radio production of his play, Polyeukte, about an Armenian martyr. Follow along with the text. Or the translation into English. Learn more about Corneille at the French Youtube channel, Eclair brut, which has several videos about Corneille. Or listen to this radio show on Corneille from Europe 1.

13. Read the poem “Le roi d’Yvetot” by Pierre-Jean de Beranger.  Then listen to the song.

15. Explore the Chateau Gaillard at Les Andelys, here reconstructed.

16. Watch or listen to some or all of the operetta, Les cloches de Corneville by Planquette. Listen here with the score or watch this production.

17. Take your pick of recipes for Tripe a la mode de Caen.

18. Visit this Fromagerie that produces Livarot and Pont-L’Eveque.

19. Learn about the andouilles of Vire.

21. Look at a small slideshow of Alencon lace from The Museum of Fine Arts and of Lace in Alencon.

24. Explore Normandy’s most famous medieval site, the abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel (more information here).

25. Learn the secrets of buerre d’Isigny.

Finally, although Lisieux is on the map, Saint Thérèse is not.  Enjoy this drone tour of Lisieux.