Loire & Order
On Wednesday Zak rented a car and we drove to the Loire Valley to tour some palaces. We spent the night in Amboise after seeing the chateau there, as well as Leonardo da Vinci's home and tomb. The next day we saw Chenonceau, which was my favorite palace to tour the inside of (even more so than Versailles) because you get to see the kitchens! It made me miss cooking and baking with Heidi. I miss that girl SO much! After Chenonceau we went to some place I can't remember the name of... we saw the outside of the chateau and had a picnic there, which was so pleasant and CHEAP. The last chateau was Villandry. We didn't go inside, but just explored the expansive gardens. Oh, they were so beautiful. They'll be even more beautiful in April when the flowers are in bloom, but then there will be tons of tourists, so I'd say we came at a good time! Another advantage of seeing the Loire in a relatively off-season time is that they keep some of the fires lit in the gigantic fireplaces. I could have read in front of them all day had time permitted!
Also, as a side note on pretty much all of the historic sites I've been to... it's disappointing to know how much has disintegrated over the years, and how things have been modernized for either practical or commercial purposes, but considering how old these castles and chateaus are, it's amazing that anything survives at all. Despite their gift shops the French are usually very good at maintaining the historic integrity of each castle, palace, or what have you. It's just so amazing to promenade around the same hallways that Leonardo da Vinci would have walked around or to think of the hands that built a cathedral. Some of the many reasons I love traveling and living in France!
We finished off our time together with a scrumptious French dinner at Carambole, my favorite creperie/galleterie/tea room in Caen. As predicted, Heidi and Zak fell in love with the kir normand, galettes, and dessert crepes! How could you not? Heidi and I will work hard this summer at recreating all of my favorite French foods.
One more little story:
Heidi, Zak, and I visited Bayeux on Monday. Here is an e-mail I sent to my family about part of our time there: Today Heidi, Zak, and I went to Bayeux. Part of that time was spent lounging in a little park. I spread my coat out on the ground, laid on my stomach, and took a nap. When I woke up, I saw in front of my eyes a little boy in the same position I was in, staring at me. We just stared at each other for a minute. He stood up, began to talk to me about the little flowers he was picking, and kept walking around, toward me, then away, toward me, then away. Finally, he came back and I just had a little conversation with him. He came closer, picked some of the daisies and the bright yellow flowers that were everywhere on the ground, gave them to me, then after a few minutes ran away to play with someone else. Heidi and Zak captured the moment I woke up and the moment he gave me flowers on camera.
Picture one was taken right after I woke up and discovered the boy lying in front of me, and the second is me accepting his gift of flowers! If you click on the pictures you can eventually get to the original size, so you can see the darling expression on the boy's face. I think his name was Anzou.
Part of the massive kitchens at Chenonceau
Heidi & Zak in the center of the labyrinth at Chenonceau, where we did not find David Bowie.
Villandry
It was such a wonderful week.
Also, as a side note on pretty much all of the historic sites I've been to... it's disappointing to know how much has disintegrated over the years, and how things have been modernized for either practical or commercial purposes, but considering how old these castles and chateaus are, it's amazing that anything survives at all. Despite their gift shops the French are usually very good at maintaining the historic integrity of each castle, palace, or what have you. It's just so amazing to promenade around the same hallways that Leonardo da Vinci would have walked around or to think of the hands that built a cathedral. Some of the many reasons I love traveling and living in France!
We finished off our time together with a scrumptious French dinner at Carambole, my favorite creperie/galleterie/tea room in Caen. As predicted, Heidi and Zak fell in love with the kir normand, galettes, and dessert crepes! How could you not? Heidi and I will work hard this summer at recreating all of my favorite French foods.
One more little story:
Heidi, Zak, and I visited Bayeux on Monday. Here is an e-mail I sent to my family about part of our time there: Today Heidi, Zak, and I went to Bayeux. Part of that time was spent lounging in a little park. I spread my coat out on the ground, laid on my stomach, and took a nap. When I woke up, I saw in front of my eyes a little boy in the same position I was in, staring at me. We just stared at each other for a minute. He stood up, began to talk to me about the little flowers he was picking, and kept walking around, toward me, then away, toward me, then away. Finally, he came back and I just had a little conversation with him. He came closer, picked some of the daisies and the bright yellow flowers that were everywhere on the ground, gave them to me, then after a few minutes ran away to play with someone else. Heidi and Zak captured the moment I woke up and the moment he gave me flowers on camera.
Picture one was taken right after I woke up and discovered the boy lying in front of me, and the second is me accepting his gift of flowers! If you click on the pictures you can eventually get to the original size, so you can see the darling expression on the boy's face. I think his name was Anzou.
Part of the massive kitchens at Chenonceau
Heidi & Zak in the center of the labyrinth at Chenonceau, where we did not find David Bowie.
Villandry
It was such a wonderful week.