In comes the New Year, and, regular as clockwork, out comes Belem's sailing programme for 2011... A quick survey of said programme (details in French all laid out on the website
www.fondationbelem.com ) gives a pretty precise idea of what to expect i.e. relatively longer sailing, from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 7 days, quite a few stopovers in foreign ports and a rather spectacular return to Mediterranean shores...
It all starts with several weeks spent in Nantes just before the season actually begins – this is becoming a regular feature since Nantes is Belem's home base which means warm greetings and a great deal of visitors. The first part of the season is dedicated to sailing trips between ports in Brittany (Concarneau, Saint Malo, Lorient, Roscoff) and Normandy (Le Havre, Granville), with a few days in July put aside for a quick return to the Irish Sea (another of Belem's favourites) for a visit to Cork – Irish sailors are most welcome!
After spending the 14th of July in Royan where they will also be celebrating the 400th anniversary of the Cordouan lighthouse – the oldest in Europe – Belem will then make for Vigo in Spain, sail down the coast of Portugal towards the Straights of Gibraltar and cross over to the Moroccan port of Tangiers on the Med. Belem had stopped there in 2009 and the Foundation is keeping the promise made at the time to come back as soon as possible.
From there, another crossover, to Mahón on the Isle of Minorca then back to France at Port-Vendres – another familiar and welcoming location for Belem. By then we will be in mid-August and Belem will be unfurling her sails again and on her way to Corsica and the lovely old seaside towns of Ajaccio and Bastia. Then back to Toulon and Marseille. The rest of the Mediterranean programme will be available at the end of January but if anything appeals to you right now, it is definitely advisable to be quick on the uptake in view of the very attractive opportunities.
So don't hesitate
to click here and get all the details on dates, prices, and destinations.
With the very best wishes of the Belem Foundation for a happy New Year!
Des stages plus longs, des destinations plus variées, une riche palette d'escales y compris à l'étranger, un retour en Méditerranée : pour la saison 2011 du Belem, les attentes exprimées par nombre de stagiaires ont été largement prises en compte. Revue de détail.
