Sights to See

Chateau Villandry - I love to tour gardens so I was in heaven here.  We didn't tour the inside of the chateau which was completed in 1536.  One of Francois I's ministers, Jean le Breton, built the chateau on the sight of a castle.  Only the old tower remains.  In 1906 the chateau was purchased by Dr. Joachim Carvallo of Spain.  He abandoned a successful scientific career to restore the chateau and its gardens to their original Renaissance glory.  The main parts of the garden are the ornamental gardens, the water garden, the herb garden and the kitchen garden.  The gardens are beautifully maintained.  All of the weeding is done by hand since the 52 km of box hedge have delicate roots.  The 1,260 lime trees are also pruned by hand. This task takes four men four months to finish.

Royal Chateau d'Amboise - Built in the 15^th and 16^th century this chateau sits above the town of Amboise and the Loire River.  This site provided and excellent view over the valley and any approaching attackers.  Charles VIII lived here until he died after banging his head on a low door sill.  His wife, Anne de Bretagne, was forced to marry the next king, Louis XII.  This was to keep her dowry, Brittany, under French control.  Louis XII cousin, Francois I was raised and educated at the chateau.  The chateau saw the end of a Protestant uprising against Francois II when Catherine de Medici had the conspirators hung from the roof. 

Chateau de Chenonceau - The setting of this chateau is definitely the best of the ones we saw.  The building spans the Cher River.  The chateau was built by Thomas Bohier, a wealthy tax collector, on the site of a fortified mill in 1520.  Only the old keep (or donjon) was retained.  The piers of the mill support the main building.  After Bohier declared bankruptcy the chateau became the property of the state.  Henri II gave the chateau to his mistress Diane de Poiters.  She had a bridge constructed behind the chateau, across the river.  After Henri's death in 1559, his wife, Catherine de Medici "asked" Diane de Poiters to leave.  Catherine built a gallery on the bridge.  It was lit by 18 windows and was the site of many balls.  During World War II the chateau provided access from occupied France to the free zone on the south side. 

Cathedrale St. Etienne in Bourges - This city is in the Massif Central, which we drove through on our way to Burgundy.  We parked right outside the old city center and walked to the Cathedral St. Etienne.  This was the first BIG cathedral we had seen in France. This 13th century Gothic cathedral is just as impressive at the Notre Dame in Paris.  The soaring side aisles let light from the upper stained glass windows into the central nave. This makes the interior much brighter than the Notre Dame Cathedral.  There was a nice park behind the church and the visitor's center was just across the street.

Getting There

The train ride from Paris was kind of like driving through Nebraska or Kansas, all corn and sunflower fields once you cleared the city.  The TGV direct from the airport is definitely the way to go.  Besides being fast, the ride was quite smooth, the first class seats were comfortable and it was nice to just relax and watch the scenery roll by.  Eventually we entered a more wooded zone. What a great area!  No wonder the French kings decided to build "homes" here.  We arrived at the Chateau des Ormeaux around 4:30 after our plane, train and automobile rides

Getting Around

There is a regional train line but, it only serves the main towns.  To really see the region it's probably best to rent a car.    Photos

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Last modified: 03/29/05