I GET the impression that nobody rushes to do anything in Brittany. I can't remember seeing anyone do much work. I did see a mechanic with oil-covered hands, but it was lunchtime and he was sharing a glass of wine with friends outside his garage.

This relaxed approach to life extends to car parking. Park anywhere without fear of ticket seems to be the norm, but I did meet one person waiting by the car on my return.

Wearing no shoes and glugging out of a wine bottle (cheap white stuff at that!) a drunk but surprisingly articulate teenager blurted at me in his best English having worked out my nationality from the gleaming white GB sticker freshly applied to our car.

We chatted, me in my best French (pas tres bon), until my partner, Sue, and our two boys finished in the supermarket. "Your English is very good," he quipped as we left.

The coastline of Brittany has always been a popular destination, but much less so the rural interior. We picked a gite in the shape of a 17th century cottage belonging to Peter Adams at the Manoir de Kerayet in the sleepy hamlet of Carnoet, which is close to precisely nowhere you've ever heard of and all the better for it.

Peter lets three sections of his historic Bretagne dwelling. Ours, the smallest, was well-equipped and slept the four of us (two adults and two children) with the use of a sofa bed in the spacious dining room/living room.

A heated indoor swimming pool complete with Jacuzzi was a great bonus as were the resident duck duo who would visit every morning to feast on leftover croissant and baguette.

We had reached the port of St Malo from Poole, using the quick and highly efficient Condor ferries service. An eight-hour crossing did not appeal with a three-year-old and eight-year-old in tow, but the high-speed Vitesse, and her sister ship, travel twice as fast as a conventional ferry giving a crossing time of around four hours, including a stop-off in the Channel Islands.

On the Monday I celebrated (or should I say tried to forget) my birthday. First one ever abroad, and the most enjoyable for some time.

Not only was the day finished off wonderfully feasting on chocolate-filled crepes and sipping a rather nice red wine, but it had started off quite well too.

We had followed local recommendation and headed to the Lac De Guerledan - a large man-made lake surrounded by forest. Along one section of the lake is a sandy beach where we had a picnic and spent the rest of the afternoon.

It was clean and quiet and the mid-September sunshine made for ideal temperatures.

One of the highlights of our eight-day stay was a visit to Huelgoat, which was about half an hour's drive from our accommodation.

It draws many visitors interested in walking among the spectacular rock formations or perhaps hoping to find King Arthur's treasure which is said to be buried in the Foret d'Huelgoat.

Stop at the nearby tourist information building and buy a map of the trails (my outdated guidebook said these were free). The trees, caves and boulders have a mystical atmosphere, with signposts few and far between. It would be a shame to miss any nook or cranny. Stop off in the marketplace afterwards and treat yourself to a coffee.

Gloomy overhead conditions on Thursday prompted a trip to the market in the city of Lannion. We had romantic notions of traders touting sea food and local produce, but felt let down to find a large but uninspiring collection of stalls selling cheap clothes, china and CDs.

We were saved by the aforementioned overhead conditions which had now changed from gloomy to something bright behind the clouds.

This prompted a move to the beach at Beg Legeur on the nearby pink granite coast. The sun was now sans cloud and we were all glad to have packed beachwear as we explored rock pools, relaxed on the sand and ventured into the sea. So impressed were we by our location, that we made the same trip next day (by-passing Lannion).

It was hard to leave foreign shores and return to Blighty. We brought back memories of coffee, wine and good, fresh, local food. Barbecues, midnight swims and impromptu games of cricket against Surrey (James, of Guildford in the cottage next door). And an elderly 'gent' who lived near the beach and shouted "Vive l'Angleterre" then spoke of his college education in Hampshire and of his daughter in London.

I think I'll raise a glass to those memories and shout back across the Channel "Vive la France!"

Fact file

Condor Ferries: reservations on 0845 345 2000. E-mail: Condor@weyquay.demon.co.uk

Manoir de Kerayet: Peter Adams on 00 33 (0)2 96 215975.

E-mail: Kerayet@libertysurf.fr

Updated: 10:06 Saturday, November 02, 2002