Castles, Cycling, Hiking on the Loire & Boule de Fort

Today we had a picnic with Alex & Florise near where they work on their lunch hour (they get 1 &  1/2 hours for lunch but no breaks during the day).   We sat in the sand on the banks of the Loire, watched the river roll by & enjoyed a very peaceful time.  After they headed back to work, we took a short hike on a trail that followed the river.

Picnicking on the Loire

Kate, do you see those birds?

Resting in the shade before turning around

Yesterday  we drove up river to Saumur where we rented bikes for a second time.  We rented them from Detours a la Loire, a bicycle rental company with multiple locations along the Loire (20 Euros for 2 bikes for 1/2 day including helmets, bike lock, & repair kit).  We road for an hour downstream, then stopped for a picnic lunch next to the river, before returning to Saumur.  The bike trail is clearly marked with signs & green arrows on the pavement.  It followed very low traffic roads or recreation trails open only to bikes & pedestrians.

Crossing pedestrian/cyclist bridge on the Loire a Velo bike trail

Kate coasting down a country lane west of Saumur

The Loire at Saumur

The castle above the town of Saumur

 On the way home, we drove through the village of Gee & noticed the door to a local Boule de Fort sporting club was open, so we stopped to have a look.  This sport is extremely popular in this region & club members invited us to give it a try.  The sport involves rolling a ball down a curved alley & trying to be the player who gets their boule closest to the white ball at the other end.  It doesn't look too hard, but it is!  One member offered to take photos of our attempts, then they asked us to join them for a glass of wine before we said "Au Revoir."  All this without any of them speaking English or us speaking French!

Notice the curved surface of the court in the Boule de Fort club house

Now let me catch you up on the end of last week.  We were in Amboise on the Loire.  On Thursday afternoon, we visited Le Clos Luce, the manor house where Leonardo Da Vinci spent the last years of his life.  The house was interesting but I was fascinated with the scale models of some of his inventions displayed in the basement museum & larger-size versions in the park surrounding the manor home.

Le Clos Luce, last home of Leonard Da Vinci, Amboise, France

 Afterwards, we checked into Hotel Le Blason in the old section of town.  Lonely Planet's France described the hotel as "quirky, creaky...with 25 rooms higgledy-piggledy...wedged around corridors:  most of tichy, flowery, timber-beamed."  This was an apt description.  When I took a shower in the morning in our tiny bathroom, it felt like I was taking a shower in a closet!  But our room was clean, comfortable, quiet & the windows opened to provide fresh air at night.  And the price was very reasonable.

Hotel Le Blason, Amboise

Heavy timbered ceiling in our room

Then Thursday evening, we visited Chenonceaux, a castle that spans the Cher River from one bank to the other.  Rick Steves suggests in his travel books to go early or late to popular tourist spots to avoid the crowds.  Well, we didn't arrive until 6 PM, and there were so few other tourists, we felt like we had the castle to ourselves!   I remember visiting this castle on my first trip to France in 1972 but I'd forgotten many of the details, so it was great to see it again & I was glad I had a good digital camera this time.   After visiting the castle, we wandered the formal gardens surrounding it; when we left, we were nearly the last persons to leave before the castle & grounds closed for the night.

Chateau Chenonceaux & Gardens

Chateau Chenonceaux spans the Cher River

On Friday in Amboise, we rented bicycles for the first time.  This was for a 2-hour, 18 km ride along the Loire (15 Euros for 2 bikes for 2 hours).  The highlight for Kate was cycling along a quiet village road past homes, hillside gardens & one home with a fabulous collection of colorful coffee pots on the garden wall.

Garden wall with teapots in village west of Amboise

The Loire a Velo cycle route is clearly marked all along the way

We enjoyed the Farmer's Market in Amboise at the end of our ride

Oh, and did I mention eating?  How could I forget?  Last night Florise's parents took us to dinner in Angers to a restaurant that specializes in souffles.  I had a triple cheese souffle while Kate had the vegetarian souffle.  For dessert we split a crepe covered with chocolate sauce & slivered almonds. Tonight we're invited to Florise's aunt & uncle's home for dinner.  I'm sure something special awaits.   Ahhh...French cooking...tres bien.

James & Kate with Alex, Florise, her parents & brother

James triple-cheese souffle

Our dessert crepe with chocolate sauce & almonds.  Voila!