Another terrible night's sleep and I was awake long before the 5:45 alarm. I do not like Le Meridian but I am too tired to turn that into a Sam I Am story! We did have breakfast this morning since we were under the Viking umbrella so-to-speak last night. It was quite good but none of the help beyond the Reception and Maitre D' spoke or understood English. Elva tried to order Eggs Benedict and got a ham and cheese omelette! No watermelon for the very first time this trip but the breads were delicious and the butters were rich and creamy.
Even in the dining room we could spot who would be the other 28 people on our tour. First of all, they were nicely dressed, tired looking and eating breakfast at 6:30 in the morning. We chatted with a couple from Knoxville and Ed from Seattle before we finished eating and then went to meet the whole group and wait for the bus.
Our new guide is Carmen from Spain. Seriously, she is. Her French and English are both fluent and she seems sweet but quickly lost control of the group The first stop was a 'technical stop' at the gas station an hour and a half into the trip to Tours. (Do not pronounce the 's'.) The second was a lunch break with a walking tour of Orleans. Quite a pretty little city with a beautiful palace and another amazing Cathedral. The stained glass is almost all St. Joan. Of course there are relics there even though her burned body was thrown into the river to prevent just such a thing. They were found years later.. But with the advent of DNA testing they turned out to be the femoral bone of an Egyptian Cat. No worry, they are still honored in a sort of round about way.
Bullet holes left from the War can still be seen.
Side alter dedicated to the Passion of Christ.
A nearby door to the courtyard of what is now an apartment building.
The top of the towers reminded me of a crown.
This is Jean D'Arc's home in Orleans. At least that is what the books say. The truth is that it is where she stayed when in Orleans. In othr words, Joan slept here! But that isn't even the fact. That hose was destroyed by the Germans and this over sized replica was built for the sake of less savvy tourists.
You know that Joan of Arc nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans is
considered a heroine of France for her role during the Lancastrian phase
of the Hundred Years' War." But it was never her 'home.'
Elva and I did not buy lunch but because at the end of the tour the sky began to clear and the sun began to warm me up a little, we walked about, took pictures and sat in the square at the edge of the fountain. These are the first fountains we have see working We are traveling south and spring is beginning to peep through. While driving the beautiful saffron yellow of the field of rapeseed were remarkable. Irrigation was being used on the farms and tiny lambs were in the fields.
Our next stop was a t Chambord. This Chateau Was begun to be built by Francis the I and much of the design is said to have been done by his good friend Leonardo DaVInci. They especially credit the double helix central staircase to him. You can read about this inspiration for the Beast's castle here.
Chateau Chambord . We climbed the stair playing hide and seek with the men on one side and the ladies on the other.
Carmen had lost control at the entrance as she had run ahead to get tickets but not everyone understood to go inside and meet her. They thought they needed the ticket at the first entrance but they were taken at the second doorway. granted the walk from the front of the castle to the rear entry was quite a distance. All the travelers except for Elva and I had been on trans-Atlantic and even trans-continental/trans-Atlantic flights just yesterday. Some had not traveled with Viking before and were not aware of how the Whisperers work. These allow the guide to speak to you while they are not even close by. And most of all - we're old!
So by the time we got to the stair it was all up for grabs. Some exited on the wrong level too soon, some too late, some couldn't climb the stairs at all. Carmen had only met us a few hours before so when she was looking for missing people she did not know the names to call out or for sure who was who. She had not given us name tags and she didn't carry a 'lollipop.' The lollipop is the ubiquitous sign tour guides hold high for hours on end so we distracted travelers can follow or find them.
It all worked out in the end and we had a lovely visit that was a total surprise to me. I had no advance idea that this would be our bus trip tour break today. We are on a trip called Chateaux, Rivers, and Wine so I guess I should be expecting more amazing residences. When I see these things it makes it easy to see why there was a French Revolution!
Inspiration for Beauty's Beast's Castle!
Double Helix Staircase.
Ceiling repeats the motif of the Salamander and the king's initial. Francis chose the salamander because people mistakenly thought it could not die by fire.
On the roof top terrace.
Original china furnace. The castle has 72 fireplaces and one furnace.
Original tower clock from the 15th century.
A view of the Loire River from the terrace.
The Moat
After about two hours we sampled some cookies at the Biscuiterie, boarded Susanna, our bus, and moved on to Tours where we will spend two nights. The hotel is a gated spa and this is the nicest room we have had. Large and decorated in a homey way, we have table and chairs that are actually functional as well as a fridge, sink, cook top, and microwave. I can't wait to see the pool and steam room.
No comments:
Post a Comment