Chateaux, Chartres Cathedral, and a Reunion with Sabine and Eric in Neuilly-sur-Seine

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Saturday, August 1- Chateau Chenonceau, Chateau Cheverny, and Chateau Chambord
Dean and I begin the day in the patisserie with café au lait and croissants. We bring one home for Jeff (Jackie has gf bread, cereal and fruit in her bag) and wake them up to go to the chateau. Rain is predicted, so we bring our jackets. It is a five-minute walk through the village, down a tree-lined path, and across a bridge to Chateau Chenonceau.
This chateau was begun in 1547, it is known as the chateau of the ladies. The owner’s wife supervised the building of the original tower house, and Henry II gave it as a gift to his mistress, who added an arched bridge to the other side of the Cher River so that she could hunt there. When Henry was killed in a joust, his wife, Catherine De Medici, evicted Dianne, moved in and added a 3-story structure onto the bridge, creating the image on today’s postcards. The English audio guides that we rent fill us in with information the tour brochure lacks- such as that the gallery across the river served as an infirmary during World War I, and the river was the dividing line between free and occupied France in World War II. During that war the resistance smuggled many refugees to safety across its bridge.
We stroll in the gardens after leaving the building, and we all sample a grape from the vines hanging on the river trellis- definitely wine grapes, not eating grapes. Back at the hotel, Dean swims in the pool, and Jeff and Jackie retire to their room for a nap. They spend the afternoon resting, swimming, and having dinner at the patisserie/market, and we tour 2 more chateaus.
Our original plan was to go to Amboise to see Leonardo Di Vinci’s home and wander the town. Laurent suggests that we see Chateau Cheverny and Chateau Chambord instead, so we take his advice. Cheverny is much different from Chenonceau. The owners still live in one wing. The Hurault family has lived in the chateau since its construction on 1604, except for two periods. (Once was when Henry II’s evicted mistress, Dianne of Chenonceau, bought it to live in while she redecorated her new home.) The entrance fees must be a nice source of income for them now! It’ s too bad Dianne didn’t do the landscaping though. The front of the chateau is an expanse of beige gravel- a few shrubs would add a lot. The family has always had hunting dogs, and we had read that we should be sure to stay for their 5:00 feeding. The kennel has an open upper deck, and when we arrive about 4:30, 25-30 dogs are lounging there, watching for their trainer. At 4:40, he opens the gate into the kennel courtyard, and wheels in a wheelbarrow of meat and 4 huge bags of dry food, which he spreads in a trench. Then he leans against the wall and makes them wait until 5 when he finally opens the gate. The dogs rush in, but he cracks his whip, and they back off and wait until he yells his permission to begin. Then they all dive in, climbing on top of one another, nosing under the dry food to grab a piece of meat and retreat to a corner to consume it un-harassed by the others. Definitely a sight, but not what we had imagined. There is a sign on the fence not to antagonize the dogs, but it seems the feeding process does just that.
From here, we drive to Chateau Chambord, the largest of the chateaus. To reach it, we drive through miles of forested parkland and protected game preserve. We have decided to walk the grounds, which are free, rather than go inside the 80 of 440 rooms, which are open to the public. The chateau, built over 15 years by Francois I, is an amazing sight, between its sheer size and the number of turrets. We sit with bowls of glace in a café with a view of the palace- no glass of wine because I have to drive home. On the way out, I add minutes to our cell phone at the Tabac Store, but when I type the code into the phone, all the directions are in fast French, so I HOPE I did it right!

Sunday morning, August 2- Chartres Cathedral, and Neuilly-sur-Seine
Dean and I, now regulars, have café au lait and pain du chocolate at the patisserie, and pick up some bread and day-old croissants for later. Dean and Jackie go swimming, though the air is a bit cool, and I finalize our packing. We say good-bye to Laurent and head for Chartres. On the way, we try to buy gas near Amboise, but the streets are crowded due to market day, and the stations only have machines that refuse to accept our card, not clerks. Luckily, once we are on the motorway (highway), it has Aires (rest stops like the Mass Pike), and we are able to fill up.
The GPS brings us to Chartres Cathedral, with a quick stop at McDonald’s. We are hungry, and Jeff has been craving American food. Eric had told Jeff he had to try Coke and a Big Mac and compare them to those in the States. I order a petit herbe wrap, which I think is vegetarian, but turns out to be herb dressing on chicken fillet. My frappe is about 4 ounces. Jeff’s Coke is sweeter and his Big Mac is definitely a smaller version than in the States.
At the cathedral, Dean stays with the car since it is packed, while Jeff, Jackie and I go to climb the 300 steps of the North bell tower. When we see the Eiffel tower, it will be the elevator for me! Fortunately, there were 3 landings/rooms/rooftop terraces on the way to the top where I could pause and breathe. The view was worth the climb to see the gargoyles, buttresses, and towers at eye level, and to be able to look down into the cathedral interior from above. As in Chenonceau and Chambord, there are areas of scaffolding where renovation is going on, so one of the Rose windows is covered. The reds and blues are especially brilliant, and there is a chapel with a veil carbon-dated to the first century that is venerated as having belonged to the Virgin Mary.
In 1194, a fire destroyed much of the original cathedral, but the veil survived. I remained to look more closely at the carvings, windows, and statues while Jackie and Jeff returned to the car to switch places with Dean. The two of us spent another 30-40 minutes inside. We found the labyrinth inlaid in the floor, but it was mostly obscured by chairs set up for worship, so we could not follow it well. We did get to hear the organ being tuned, though. Walking back down the entrance stairs to the circular underground garage, we could not find a place to pay, so assumed it would be at the gate. It was, but turned out to be a kiosk. I had to get out while the car blocked the exit- luckily it was an understanding young French driver who helped me find the payment kiosk, and waited patiently while I validated my ticket.
On the road again, it did not take long to reach Neuilly-sur-Seine, a suburb of Paris. I found a parking place near the apartment on Avenue Victor Hugo, and we called Eric and Sabine. Eric came down to meet us, and had us drive into the underground garage to park and finish unloading. It was so good to see Sabine and Eric again. Sixtine had remained in the south, and Sabine will return there tomorrow. Eric’s vacation begins Thursday, so he and Jackie will leave Paris on the same day. Eric’s mother is in Deauville for August, so Eric is staying at her home until Thursday, and leaving us their apartment. They show us our rooms, the appliances, and go over maps and things we need to know, like the door code and who to contact for help. Sabine has put together all sorts of maps for us so we can find the grocery store, pool, metros, etc. They have made special gluten-free dishes for Jackie and us so that we do not have to cook this evening. After some last lessons on how to use the door keys, they are off, and we sit to enjoy the feast. We do not stay up late tonight, but put a few things away and head to bed.

Monday. August 3-Paris
We are all tired and sleep until after 9, so it is close to 11 by the time we leave. Since the pool does not open until noon today, Dean will go later. We leave for the Metro to purchase Carte Orange passes for Dean, Jeff and I which entitle us to unlimited rides from today through next Sunday. Jackie buys 2 carnets of 10 passes each- that way, whatever she does not use today or tomorrow we can use next week. The line is long, and it is 11:30 by the time we board a train. Jackie would like to see two things while she is here- L’Orangerie, the art museum with Monet’s full- size water lily paintings, and Les Invalides, the Army Museum, which she had seen last year, but was unable to go through the entire museum.
I have to go now, but will tell you about the rest of our Monday on the next upload.

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Comments

[Barbara Terp]

out of this world.
You certainly are seeing another part of the world. How fortunate you all are to get all this in. I am tired just reading about the sightseeing you are doing. What a wonderful vacation. Have a safe trip home. See you in Cape Cod.