A city called Rennes

I am re writing this blog again after having lost everything I wrote when I was halfway through, because I am an idiot who doesn’t know how to save things before you write them, so that when mishaps happen you don’t lose your shit and cry about spilled milk. Anyway, I'm going to try and make it sound as good as the previous draft was and hopefully you all will still like it. So continuing the Europe travel logs, let’s go to another lesser known city called Rennes. Also I didn’t go into full on photography mode while I was in the city, so I might not be able to give you much of a visual treat, but there will be some selfies here and there and a few shots of the city if I find some after digging up my albums. So here we go again.

1.      Walk

I love walking. There are people out there who also dearly love to walk.  As I was making the layout of this blog and the walk thing came up again, I thought that I should write a song about all the walking that I talk about and the chorus could go something like this,

Walk walk walk walk walk walk

You gotta do some walking walking walking

To get some sightseeing seeing seeing

Air air air air air air

Get some of that fresh air air air air air air

Feel that nice wind blowing up your hair

I know it sounds weird, but hey, WALK. Walk that city like you were meant to walk its streets. You never know what you’ll find walking around town. But one thing that  I can be certain of is that graffiti is always going to be one of the top things on that list of things you’ll find while walking around the streets.

2.      Les Champs Libre

If you translate it, you’ll get "The Free Fields". This is a gigantic library with a dedicated section for space science and a planetarium, which is within walking distance of the city’s railway station. So if you are put up in one of the hotels around the station, then make this the first stop of the day. The good news is that there is a bakery shop just down the street from the library that has the softest croissants I’ve ever had and you can shop all you want there. So all you are doing is basically just treating yourself to a sugary bliss and going on a shopping spree after a refreshing time at the library.

3.      Saint Helier

I somehow have a special connection with this church. The few days that I was there in the city, there wasn’t a single day I didn’t go to this church to just sit there all alone in the calming silence for hours thinking nothing but just being there. One afternoon got me walking in on a funeral service that was going on there and got me in a fix. I couldn’t just leave after walking in and my presence felt like an intrusion to their last moments with the departed. Somehow I made myself scarce and sat at the very end of the church seating and heard the members give their eulogies. Though they were all in French, I could feel their somber undertone. By the end of it I was asked to do something that I didn’t understand and didn’t feel like being a part of since I wasn’t family and not being a Catholic had no idea what it was and had a fear of doing something wrong which I didn't want happening. So I had to somehow very respectfully decline and give my condolence to the two men who came up to me. After the ceremony was over and they took the casket away, I sat there for another hour or so just taking in the flowers right in the center and the sunlight coming through the windows. It had a transcending glow that I didn’t find any other day. Maybe it was just my imagination playing with me, but it sure was a beautiful sight to behold. I'll let you be the judge of that.

4.      Chocolate and wine shopping

I don’t need to explain why you should not think and just do this. I’ll even tell you the place you can get some awesome mouth watering Belgian chocolates freshly made and you can get them wrapped as well. While you walk out of the Sainte Anne metro and walk around you’ll find Rue le Bastard with having Nicolas wine store along the way. And moving along the same street you’ll find Rue de l’Hermine by taking a right turn, where you’ll find the good old famous delicious Belgian chocolate makers, Leonidas. They are both within walking distance from each other and you can get some exploring done as well while on the way.

5.      Japanim

For all you manga and anime fans like me, Japanim is an absolute no questions asked stop. And the good news is that it is again within walking distance from Leonidas. It’ll barely take you ten minutes to walk there and then go nuts! I sure did. If anyone were to ask my friend who sadly had to company through my freak out of finding the shop will tell you how I became an eight year old and swooped through the entire shop like a kid on a treasure hunt. Sadly being on a student budget I had to curb my hunger by just feeling the mangas in my hand and looking at the prints on the t-shirts with price tags starting €24. But I sure got some photos where you see my elation showing very clearly and making me look weird. And yes I am a huge Naruto fan among other mangas but they didn't have them all and I didn't want to trouble my friend anymore than I was by taking a photo of everything that they had in the store so Naruto was all that I took a photo of.

6.      L’atelier de L’artiste

For all you wine lovers and who love a rustic and artistic interior, make sure you go to this bar to enjoy a glass of fine red wine with some good company and great vibes inside the place. It’s right next to Sainte Anne metro with not even a 1 minute walk from there. Just walk up the stairs, keep walking straight and you’ll find the place.

Rennes had more for me to explore but with no time left to do the exploring. I hope you people out there find more places to go and things to do than I did in my limited time there. Next time I’ll be back with another travel blog of one of my favorite of places and my hometown, Nainital. Au revoir et bonne soiree.