It had been at least 20 years since Bruno Blanchet had been in Bas-Saint-Laurent when he had the idea of running there to join his good friend Guy.
• Read also: Bruno Blanchet: dreaming of being Tintin… and becoming one!
A glance at the map was enough to convince him that the 279 km of road to travel to get to Parc du Bic, where the team of The beautiful tour settled for its Bas-Saint-Laurent special, weren’t that huge. “I looked at the distance between Guy and me and I was like ‘ok! it would be fun to join him”, said Bruno Blanchet from his home in Thailand. He was also joined by around forty runners during his journey.
For him, the Bas-Saint-Laurent, where Highway 20 ends and meets the river, is associated with his first travel memories. “When I was very young, my parents woke us up in the middle of the night and they put us to bed in our big car from the era where they made beds for us with cushions. And when we saw the river, they woke us up saying: “Children, wake up, it’s the sea”. We could see the estuary at sunrise. It was fantastic.”
Originally from Montreal, Bruno traveled through the Bas-Saint-Laurent almost every summer with his family to visit his father’s relatives, originally from Gaspésie. “We went to see the family in Matane, in Rivière-du-Loup, in Cap-Chat.”
Outsmart life with simplicity
Having visited more than a hundred countries in the world, the animator, author and actor, now established in Thailand, savors all the moments that life has in store for him as they are and without hope. “I chose to have time instead of money and I’m enjoying it. Life offers us nothing and has nothing to promise us. It is up to us to go ahead and create our destiny,” he said in an interview.
“I don’t collect [de pays visités]. Me, I stay as long as it takes where it takes. There are plenty of places that I love so much that I go back there all the time. I have never been to Italy, Portugal or Scandinavia. Me, I’m a little more Uganda, Rwanda, Africa, India: places that are touristic in another way, “said the globetrotter.
Monsieur Bruno back for eat the world
Bruno and his team are currently planning the next season of the show Mr. Bruno’s vacationwhich is set to travel to Africa, India and Asia this year.
Parallel to this show should also emerge a new season of eat the worldthis spin-off series focusing on the cuisine of the different countries visited in Mr. Bruno’s vacation.
“It’s the show that I had the greatest instant happiness to create because I don’t know anything about it and because I’m at the mercy of all the people I meet and who prepare me [quelque chose] like food. Of course, if we do Mr. Bruno’s vacation and that we don’t do eat the worldthere will be some eat the world in Mr. Bruno’s vacation“, he assured.
Bruno Blanchet is planning a return to Quebec by the end of the summer, in particular to participate in the Granby marathon and visit the Belle Province to run. He is always amazed to see the kindness of the Quebecers he meets on the road or during his shopping. “Spontaneity, the joy of meeting others; really, our happiness to share is very difficult to reach. We are really, but really good at home, ”he said.
The Bas-Saint-Laurent special from The beautiful tour is broadcast this Monday, at 8 p.m., on TVA.