The Loire Valley and especially Blois
The roofs in Chambord are full of wonderful details. Here putti and a Pegasus decorate intricate ornemental urns surmounted by the famous slate incrustations in the local tufa stone that are typical of Chambord. Les toits à Chambord recèlent de détails merveilleux. Ici des angelots et un pégase se trouvent au-dessus de vasques richement décorés …
Continue reading “Putti on the roof at Chambord – Angelots sur le toit à Chambord”
I always love the view of Blois when we reach the last bend in the Loire particularly on a sunny day. La vue sur Blois lorsque nous arrivons à la dernière courbe de la Loire est toujours aussi belle surtout sous le soleil
Not many stalls at the first market of the year, but a bright blue sky. You can see the Robert Houdin House of Magic behind. Note the colour of the coats – black, brown beige and red! Peu de stands au premier marché de l’année, mais un beau ciel bleu. On voit la Maison de …
Continue reading “First Saturday Market of the Year – Premier marché de samedi de l'année”
These prehistoric antlers from a cervus megaceros, ancestor of the elk, are at the top of the Grand Staircase in Château de Cheverny. Found in the icy regions of Siberia two centuries ago, the antlers are more than 6000 years old. They were a gift to the collector, Paul, Marquis of Vibraye, in the 19th …
There is a golf course along the Loire between Blois and Amboise. From the road, we could see trees where the mistletoe was low enough to pick easily. When we got there, we found three freshly cut branches on the ground. Someone else must have had the same idea as us! In the Middle Ages …
Continue reading “Mistletoe for New Year – Au gui l'an neuf”
We were delighted to discover that we could buy our favourite Italian delicacies on the market in Blois on Thursday and Saturday. The most senior of these three lovely ladies had come to buy goodies from her daughter and grand-daughter. She is the president of the Loir et Cher Franco-Italian cultural association, http://www.acfida41.com. Nous qui aimons …
Continue reading “Three Generations on the Market – Trois générations au marché”
This is my favourite view of Blois: the Loire from Vienne, with the traditional flat-bottom boats in the foreground, Gabriel Bridge, the Royal Castle of Blois and Saint Nicolas Church in background. Today is theme day in the City Daily Photo community, where City Daily Photo blogs all over the world can post a January …
Continue reading “Photo of the Year to welcome 2014 – Photo de l'année pour accueillir 2014”
I thought these little cherubs inChambord looked very seasonal. Je trouvais que ces petits angelots arrivaient bien au point en fin d’année.
These beautiful painted shutters are to be found in the Arms Room in Château de Cheverny. Just 20 km south-east of Blois, the domain has been in the same family for six centuries and open to the public since 1922. The château as it stands today was built between 1624 and 1640 by Count Henri …
Continue reading “Painted shutters at Cheverny – Volets peints à Cheverny”
I shouldn’t have been surprised to see Molière in Chambord because he was a favourite of Louis XIV. In 1670, the Sun King invited France’s most popular playright of all times to stay in Chambord with his troup where he wrote the ballet comedy, Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme known in English as The Bourgeois Gentleman). Je n’aurais pas …