Castles of the Loire Valley

So it's been a little while since my last blog.  I've had a cold for over two weeks and that with school and language keeps me pretty tired and just wanting to watch tv when I have free time.  The cold was gone I think, but then there was bit of a heat wave the last week of September, so I went to the beach!  That evening, the cold came back and much worse...and it's lingering.  Now it's cold here!  Amazing that the temperature went from 29 degrees C to what feels like 10!  (The reports say 15, but it's that damp cold I detest, so it feels colder to me I guess.)

Anyway, there have been lots of happenings and photos and such and I wasn't too sure where to start, so I thought I'd go with the castles!  Tours is located in the Loire Valley, a region that is known for its  wine and castles! 

 

I have yet to go to the most famous châteaux, but I imagine the opportunities will come.  I'm feeling pretty excited about the road trip some visiting Canadian friends and I are planning for the end of this month (I have a week off of school)!  We will certainly be checking lots of places around France and even a little in Spain!  (At least, that is the plan.)

artsy shot of tower of Château de Tours

But so far, I have visited three châteaux.  The Château de Tours inside the city, which really wasn't that exciting.  The inside has been made into an art gallery which I did get to see on a free day, but...picture me trying to feign interest in an art gallery at the end of an afternoon, after taking part in a two-hour walking tour that visited main points of interest of WWII of which I understood very little of what was being said...mostly cuz it was hard to focus in.  (That was during the European Heritage Days in September.)

Next, I've visited the Château de la Bourdaisière around whose grounds I wandered with a couple of friends while we waiting for the jazz fest to start in the nearby village of Montlouis (see previous post).  

assuming that used to be a moat

in the forest around the Château de la Bourdaisière

Finally, I went to Château du Grand-Pressigny a week ago.  It was the hot weekend and I really wanted to get out of Tours and to, as you say in French, "profit" from the sun and warmth at a beach.

So I was able to convince four friends to split the cost of a car rental, gas and hotel to do a weekend trip to La Rochelle and on our way home, we decided to jump off the Autoroute (save some money and actually see something nicer) in search of a château by just following signs.  Well, we found this one...about 50 km off our route!

Apparently it is now a Museum of Prehistory, but since it was Sunday evening, it was closed.  We could only just wander around and take pictures.  The village itself was very quaint and definitely worth the little jaunt out of the way.