A short stay in the Loire Valley

Today our major visit was to the gardens of Chateau de Villandry. This late renaissance castle is most famous for the gardens that have been restored by the now owners, the Carvallo family. We enjoyed the interior of the castle, but we were eager to explore the garden, and were soon walking outside, with wonderful views of the Garden of Love with its box hedges planted with flowering plants and across to the Ornamental Kitchen Garden.

 

 The route took us along the elevated promenade through woodland, to the water garden and the newly created Jardin du Soleil. Only then did we descend through the herb garden towards the kitchen garden to view the amazing beds. What a wonderful place.




Lunch was booked in the village of Azay-le-Rideau and we were a bit late so found it difficult to park. Eventually we left the car in a coach parking place, like several other drivers, and with fingers crossed headed off to the little restaurant. We had the set lunch with soft drinks, sitting in the shade of parasols, but it was a bit dangerous as the wind had got up and one of the brollies decided to try and take off.

Our next chateau was just through the gates ahead of us, and soon we were walking into the chateau grounds. The Chateau Azay-le-Rideau is famous for it's reflection in the lake, but as it has been so dry in this area, the lake was rather low and plenty of weed was flourishing in it. This is owned by the French National Trust equivalent, but they haven't quite got it as well furnished as some of the other Chateaux.

We didn't linger too long and returned to Amboise in time to stroll through the town and by some biscuits from the ' biscuiterie' to take home. It was very busy in the town as Ascension day is a public holiday in France. Back at Le Pavillon we started the packing. There was a phone call and when I answered the caller asked if we were having dinner-it was all in French, and I thought he meant at L' Epicerie where River Loire had booked us a table, so I said that we were. When Alan went down later there seemed to have been a huge misunderstanding: they thought we were having dinner at le Pavillon, although the restaurant had not been open in the evening while we had been staying. But tonight all the tables were set outside for dinner. After a strange conversation, eventually Alan got the message across that we were dining elsewhere. They kept asking for our voucher, but that was for L'Epicerie.

So we set off for the restaurant and were very glad to have a table booked as it was jammed in Amboise. We had a tasty if rather slow dinner, then strolled back to Le Pavillon for our last night in Amboise.

A short stay in the Loire Valley

After a delicious breakfast at Le Pavillon des Lys, we were whisked away by taxi to pick up our hire car for the next couple of days. A Renault Modus was prepared for us at the Ford Garage on the edge of town, which serves as the Europcar depot. Then we were off to Château de Chenonceau. 

This is an amazing castle, built in the 11th century in the middle of the River Cher on the site of an old mill but rebuilt in the mid sixteenth century, it has a long gallery built across the river which must be one of the most famous views of all the French châteaux. We had a wonderful time walking around - and having pre-booked tickets saved us time queuing to get into this popular destination. We collected our very posh audio guides - ipod multimedia - in the Guard room, and began the tour. We learned Chenonceau was gifted to Diane de Poitiers, Henry II's mistress, but she was evicted by Catherine de Medici, Henry's wife when he died. It was Diane who caused the Grande Galerie to be built, and Catherine who made the beautiful garden. Apparently, the Menier family, who is famous for making excellent chocolate, bought the castle in the early 20th century and set about restoring both the castle and the garden. They allowed the Grande Galerie to be used as a hospital during WWI. The main part of the castle was in the occupied zone during WWII, with free 'Vichy' France, just across the far bank of the Cher, the back door of the Grande Galerie. This family still owns the castle.

By now, it was getting round to lunch time and we had a booking at the Orangerie to honour. This is a fine dining restaurant in the Orangerie of the castle and our table was out in the covered patio. We had a superb lunch, but forwent the wine as we were now driving ourselves around. 

After this leisurely lunch, we wadndered around the lovely garden before driving back and parking at the hotel, from where we walked up to Château Royal d'Amboise. Originally a medieval fortress, Amboise became a royal residence in the late 15th/early 16th centuries, for Kings Charles VIII and Francis I. It was to Amboise that Francis I invited Leonardo da Vinci in December 1515.  He lived and worked at Clos Lucé and visited the castle via and underground passage. Leonardo da Vinci is buried in the little chapel in the castle grounds.

So the next place to visit after the Château Amboise was the Clos Lucé where we saw lots of models of Leonardo's inventions, which was great fun. There are also some working models in the grounds to play with. No photos inside the Clos, though.

All this took up what was left of the afternoon and we strolled back to our hotel to have a short rest before changing for dinner. Tonight we were being taken by taxi to Auberge de Launay, where another gastronomical feast awaited. It was a beautiful evening and we sat with a lovely view of the garden, sipping kir as we made choices from the menu and ordered a very unusual wine, Coteaux du Loir 'Les Mortiers', Dom le Briseau made by Christian Chaussard.

Château de Chenonceau

Château d'Amboise

Clos Lucé

Auberge de Launay

Coteaux du Loir 'Les Mortiers'