This city in northwest France has been transformed by public art – everywhere you look something wonderful enriches your view
There’s a waft of Nantes hanging on the warm evening air and, I have to confess, it’s coming from me. We are in theand delicate ciders go down easily at pavement cafes in shady squares. Cobbled streets wind enchantingly through quarters stuffed full of enticing shops, marvellous museums hold treasures, and there is art everywhere including, currently, on my wrist.
I’m not ready to let Bridget Jones go just yet. She has been a constant comfort to me and so many women I knowIt helps that the curation is good, and the ideas are all-embracing. In Nantes, public art can come in the guise of the design of children’s play parks, hotel rooms, and sporting and recreational facilities, including a somewhat surreal set of table-tennis tables and a creatively shaped football pitch.
Walking along the riverbank, small etched glass plaques appear in the pavement bearing the names of ships. Saints’ names and those of the aristocracy recur. There is an overwhelming number, 1,710 in total. All were slave ships: the port of Nantes was, during the 18th century, responsible for 43 per cent of the French slave trade.
One of the city’s most famous sons is Jules Verne, author of the Voyages Extraordinaires novels and stories, which include Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty Days. His legacy is celebrated in a statue above the city, but most fascinatingly at Les Machines de l‘Île de Nantes.
Saint-Nazaire is a fascinating place to spend the day, and as its charm catches up with us, we want to linger longer. There is a lovely coastal walking and cycle path, and a fun vibe that is instantly relaxing. Inland,is a huge natural park, while on the shore, the beaches are gorgeous.
Saint-Nazaire Le Voyage À Nantes
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