Loire valley (Grandpa's visit Part II)

We left Monday morning for a trip to the Loire valley. It was only 4 days long, but we saw so much I have already forgotten half of it! The first day we drove from Paris to Blois. Blois is a charming little town right on the Loire river. Because of the holiday (Toussaint) a lot of things were closed and we had to wait a while for lunch at the wood oven pizza place (the only place we could find open!) It was worth it though. Afterwards we explored the old city of Blois. It has been cleverly laid out with 4 different symbols embedded into the sidewalks (a fleur de lis, a porcupine, etc) each of which leads you on a path through a particular part of the history of the town. The kids loved the treasure hunt of finding the next symbol to guide our path, while the grown ups enjoyed seeing the half-timbered store fronts, medieval houses, and other sights. Late in the afternoon we drove to Amboise where we were staying at Le Clos D'Amboise (a fantastic little hotel with a quiet courtyard just a couple of blocks from the heart of Amboise. Surprisingly good breakfast buffet too!).

The next day, we saw two outstanding attractions. The first was the chateau at Chenonceaux. The chateau straddles the Cher river like a bridge. During the French Revolution, when many chateaux were destroyed, Chenonceau was spared because it was not only a castle, but also a useful bridge. During the second World War when many bridges were destroyed, Chenonceau was spared because it was also a beautiful chateau. Later in the day we visited Le Clos Luce. This was the modest chateau given to Leonardo Da Vinci by Francois I (King of France at the time). Da Vinci spent the last years of his life here under Francois I's patronage. It was really inspiring to see the place where this genius lived and worked. In the garden surrounding the chateau, recent constructions of Da Vinci's inventions are available to explore. The kids had a great time flying Da Vinci's helicopter, drawing water with the pump, and turning the giant gerbil wheel.

Wednesday, we started out in Tours. Tours is a very lively city with a huge student population and lots of ethnic restaurants (we ate a great lunch at a Lebanese place). It also has a fascinating historic area (more half timbered houses, etc) that we enjoyed wandering around. In the afternoon, we drove to the long awaited Chateau of Usse. This chateau was the one that inspired Perrault's story of Sleeping Beauty. The chateau is much less visited than some of the others, but was clearly at the top of both Ella and Jonah's must-see list. It exceeded even their high expectations. One tower is given over to wax replicas of vignettes from the Sleeping Beauty story (complete with Disney music playing in the background). The kids were enchanted. A second part of the chateau displays various things that the families who lived there have acquired over the ages (from China, Egypt, etc). A third part of the chateau is still privately occupied and can't be visited.

On the last day, we drove back to Paris stopping in Chartres. The 12th - 13th century cathedral and stained glass windows there impressed all of us, and we took some time to wander around the less visited areas of Chartes. Crossed several times by the Eure river, Chartes has some lovely quiet spots with beautiful views.

After a wonderful trip, we were happy to get home to take out Chinese food, our own beds, and the good news that Papa was heading home from the hospital (to an apartment with newly restored electricity) on Saturday.