What a magical place Brittany is.
Childhood comic heroes pop up here. Stories and legends entwine through nature.
To brush up on French, “Asterix and Obelix” are viewed in their original language. Metropolitan Pocahontas meets the Gauls. Well, if that’s not a comic in itself. Who or what embodies the danger of the Romans in a story like this can be thought up individually by everyone.
In French and with a few additional explanations, the characters in “Asterix and Obelix” take on a completely new meaning. And suddenly everything makes so much more sense. Suddenly a joke comes out that got lost in the translation into German. And suddenly I find myself in a fairy tale forest.
Huelgoat. A fabulous forest. Fresh green. The scent of moss and moist earth. All sorts of trees that stretch into the sky. Or maybe not. Rotten trees that are about to fall. And those who have already fallen and will return to earth. The healthy trees tend to compete with their roots. Deep into the earth. Or like a mesh on the surface. And even on rocks. The trees grow here in the most incredible places. Chirping of birds. Something rustles in the bush. And there again this rippling. A stream that is always changing its shape. Sometimes wide and slowly. Then a small waterfall. At another point, nimble and divided by countless currents. Hiking trails that, like the stream, take on the most varied of shapes.
Large rocks are scattered around wildly. The giant stones that are partly piled on top of each other resemble a building block kit that has been poured out. Or there was an architect at work. Either he had thrown the plan angrily over the heap, or everything fell apart over time. If the architect in this story is a giant, or even a group of trolls, the scenery is understandable. So we wander through the forest and through the realm of fantasy.
Just had the druid from “Asterix and Obelix” in mind, who is looking for herbs. And Asterix, who probably hunted one or the other wild boar in such a forest. And there the grotto of Arthur appears. To agree this legend with the comic heroes is too absurd.
Let’s stay with a topic that reason can grasp: a giant stone that can be made to shake (French: la roche tremblante). Weighing over 100 tons. About 7m long and 3m in diameter. And a person should be able to move this stone. With all the fairy tales going on in this forest, this one is within your grasp. So let’s try it. At this moment a hiking group comes by. The stone becomes a spectacle. From distant observation, it is a pleasure to see the people who accept this challenge. And at that moment the story of King Arthur creeps into memory. The legend of the Excalibur sword. Who has the strength to make the seemingly impossible possible? Observing from a distance pays off: there is actually a method so that a single person moves a gigantic stone. Although minimal, a rise and fall is visible. Your own test also works. Magical!
And it all started just watching cartoons. From one moment to the next, the comics from my childhood are now tangible and literally before my eyes. After a menhir, which occasionally adorns the landscape, was admired, it was clear that the next destination is the Huelgoat forest. And this fairy tale trip was worth it.
With not too much imagination, the village of the Gauls can be anchored in the Breton region. In the “Asterix and Obelix” comic, the magnifying glass shows the place where I am right now. The inventors of these characters simply walked through the region with open eyes, interwoven history, legends and fairy tales and created typical characters.
I now understand the meaning of Asterix* and that Obelix means “Obelisk”. Oh, that’s why he always carries menhirs around with him. And now I can explain to myself how a single menhir stands in the middle of nature. Even on a hill. That must have been the work of Obelix, who leisurely deposited a menhir there as instructed.
What a magical place Brittany is.
I am happy that I can enjoy it and that the sky has not fallen on my head yet. Fortunately, the menhirs are standing vertically in the ground here. So if the sky should lower, I’m safe here. Thank you, Obelix.
*Asterisk is the French term for the little star that indicates a note in the text.
