Blogs from Centre, France, Europe - page 27

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Europe » France » Centre » Chenonceaux September 9th 2009

Geo: 47.3333, 1.06667A bad sleep ... this place has the thinnest walls .... of course, my constant hacking probably disturbed my neighbours as much as they disturbed me! The problem is that I've essentially gone from a castle to ... shall we say ... something less regal? This hostel is actually great value - under 13-14 euros a night, for a private room. Off to the chateau of Chenonceau - the audio tour is done on iPod; I need to stop getting audio guides. It's not often that I bother but when I do, I get sucked into listening boring things like "Look how exquisite the coffee table's legs are ..." ... zzzzz .... I was short on time, so I figured the audio guide would be a good way of organizing everything so that I ... read more
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Europe » France » Centre » Chartres September 8th 2009

The Wedding As everyone knows there was a lot of preparation for this wedding … dress, shoes, bag and … a hat in hatbox that met Airbus overhead cabin storage requirements! The wedding was in Brou - not far from Chartres and a 1 ½ hour drive from Paris. I was to get a lift with a member of the family - Patrick - who was also picking up 2 high-school students who had to go to school on Saturday!! (Bet you’re glad that’s not you Doug?) We found each other easily enough and set off - about 1.45pm for a 3pm wedding! I still had to press my dress … do all the other bits … and most passengers in the car had yet to tog-up for the occasion … in fact one guy was ... read more
Yes!  A conquest
The happy couple
Les parents arrivent

Europe » France » Centre » Chartres September 8th 2009

The trip home was a much more moderate affair with speed limits observed. Patrick took some time to show me a couple of sites on the return journey. We stopped off at Chateaudun to look at this impressive building and surrounding town. The photos are more expansive than I can be. Next stop was Chartres where there seemed to be a festival on in the streets. The cathedral was in a paved pedestrian zone and backed on to the Seine. The buildings themselves absolutely reeking of history. Grounds are manicured with beautiful garden beds and well tended gravel pathways. Inside the church people mill about talking in hushed tones. The stained glass windows are very impressive. They cover an enormous expanse and seem to have a lot of details contained in them. I am told that ... read more
Gateway Chateaudun
Chateaudun courtyard
Chateaudun detail

Europe » France » Centre » Amboise September 8th 2009

Geo: 47.4104, 0.981122Some weird dreams last night, but a very good sleep, if you forget about the odd coughing fit. Up early with a quick run over to Sarlat's indoor market - the Dordogne is famous for outdoor markets, but bad timing meant that I was unable to catch any of them. Nothing special, but the indoor one was a suitable alternative, given that there really were no alternatives!Back to the castle for breakfast - the place has a beautiful garden, and seems to make things taste even better. Chatting with Pierre-Henri, I mentioned that normally I don't bother with breakfast back home, maybe some yogurt or a muffin on the run. Pierre-Henri's response was "Non! You must take the time and enjoy your breakfast, this is very important!" I like how the French view life, ... read more
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Europe » France » Centre » Amboise September 3rd 2009

Day 7 continued (Thursday, September 3, 2009) From Fougeres, we began the very long drive towards the Loire Valley. Throughout the nearly three hour journey, the sun was in a constant battle with the clouds, but it appeared as though the sun was going to win, or at least I hoped so. Seeing blue skies while in the Loire Valley was extremely important to me as visiting and photographing the many château was one of the things I was most looking forward to during our visit to France. Our first stop within the Loire Valley was Château de Langeais , which was rebuilt in 1465 on the ruins of a 10th century fortress. This chateau is most famous for a well-known incident that occurred within its walls. In 1491, King Charles VIII secretly married the ... read more
Exterior of Chateau de Langeais
View from the drawbridge of Chateau de Langeais
Interior room at Chateau de Langeais

Europe » France » Centre » Tours August 4th 2009

After a brief visit to England to pick up our camper van we are now working in France. It occurred to me that our journey was similar to an old time voyage and that is where the idea of "The ship without a sail" was born. A SHIP WITHOUT A SAIL Gather round me hearties while a story i'll regale Bout a daring voyage a motley crew and a ship without a sail Twas the end of last September when Jack and Jill set to Gordon the Grey a pirate and his first mate Saucy Sue In the garb of simple travellers cross the continents they strove to the lands of silks and spices, foreign faces, treasure trove After countless leagues they rested on a beach in fair Siam spending time carousing with corsairs from celtic ... read more

Europe » France » Centre » Blois July 30th 2009

We started our day by visiting Leonard De Vinci’s house. The house located in Amboise, is where he passed away. The house has been turned into a museum; IBM funds the house and also created models of all of his inventions from his drawings. From Amboise we headed toward Chateau De Chenonceau. Lori read all about this chateau and recalls it from her French classes at UCF. It was a short drive, we were there in 15-20 minutes. Lori was surprised it was such a short drive. I told her Francis I didn’t want to be too far from Amboise because this is where his mistress lived. It’s always good to be King. We thought we’d eat lunch but it was early and we decided to head on over to France’s hunting lodge Chateau de Chambord. ... read more
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Europe » France » Centre July 14th 2009

Ahh the Loire Valley! Finally here we are amongst the vines! That makes us sound a bit like raging alcoholics but we were both looking forward to relaxing for a few days in the valley. The Loire Valley is absolutely lovely, certainly my favourite area in France so far. There are miles of vineyards, fruit trees, sunflowers and beautiful little villages all lining the Loire River. Surprisingly enough, very few tourists. The traffic hasn't been a problem, even moving at Brian speed. French roads are amazing - traveling through rural France in a van is just so easy. We stayed the first night in a little vineyard overlooking the vines in Souzay-Champigny. The vineyard is a member of the French Passion organization, so campers are allowed to stay overnight in their properties for free. Of course, ... read more
Sun rise - as seen from our bed overlooking the vineyard
Found
Endless fields of gold...

Europe » France » Centre » Chartres March 8th 2009

I have always been sort of a sucker for a conspiracy. I have always loved to read books that would indicate that perhaps things are not are they seem. This type of attitude is exactly what brought me and I am sure many other people to the French Cathedral city of Chartres. The train ride to Chartres is a very pleasant one. Although, I did leave Strasbourg a littel later than I had originally planned. Seems that everyone in Strasbourg was going to Paris and got their ticket right before me. Oh well. When I got to Paris, I arrived at Gare d' l'est. I needed to get to Montparnesse which is clear across town. SInce I have never ridden the Metro in Paris, I was afraid I might get a bit confused. But, when I ... read more
Remains of a forgotten Church
Chartres Cathedral
Symbol for Pilgrimage Route

Europe » France » Centre March 7th 2009

Boa parte da história da realeza francesa se passou no Vale do Loire. Para começar a falar da região a partir dos chateaux, que são mais de 1.000 (grandes, pequenos, suntuosos, extravagantes, conservados ou em ruínas), eles foram construídos a partir do Séc. X como fortificações de pedra (fortalezas de proteção), até o esplendor daqueles edificados 500 anos depois. Quando os reis franceses iniciaram a construir seus castelos naquela zona, a nobreza, sem querer se afastar do poder, os seguiram sem pestanejar. E nem precisava, é uma região de clima agradável, fértil, naturalmente rica, estrategicamente plana, perto de Paris. Por isso, não é de se estranhar que neste lugar se encontrem centenas de exuberantes castelos e residências de conto de fadas. Aterrizando no Aeroporto de Orly, a melhor coisa a fazer, é alugar um carro com ... read more
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