Castle and a Concert

This morning we visited Chenonceau, one of my favorite castles. Just as exciting as the prospect of visiting Chenonceau is the history behind it. We learned of the inner conflict of Henry II, who found himself torn between two women after falling in love with one and then the other. He had given Chenonceau to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers, but after his death the Queen, Catherine de’ Medici, had her expelled and took the castle for her own. Henry’s conflict is evidenced throughout the castle. The “logo” Henry II had created can be seen frequently in Chenonceau. It looks like an intricately designed H intertwined with a C, for Henry and Catherine, but if one looks closer, a D can be seen as well. Talk about royal intrigue!

Unfortunately, when we arrived, scaffolding was covering much of the castle’s front façade. Since it is so large,however, there is almost always a good shot from some angle.

The best features of this leisure castle are on the inside. I always find going through all the chambers and rooms to be fascinating and certainly wouldn’t mind living in a house with Chenonceau’s style of décor!

I have always been particularly drawn to the bed designs in such castles, and remember my own childhood canopy bed with fondness. The extensive kitchens were beautiful, and seeing as we just renovated the kitchen in our own house, I took some pictures for my parents. (I still like our new kitchen better!)

One of the new things I discovered on this trip to the castle was a room filled with sketches and other artist renditions of Chenonceau and its grounds. Since I traditionally collect sketches of my favorite places to visit in Europe, I was impressed by the number of charcoal pieces in the room. I enjoy a full color painting as well as the next person, but I think that there’s something to be said for the way the stark contrast of black and white brings out the architectural details of a building.

After we finished touring the castle and its extensive gardens, we visited the home of Leonardo da Vinci, which featured models of many of his inventions. At the Academy of Notre Dame I took an AP Art History, during which I had an opportunity study to his work as an artist. It was refreshing to get a glimpse into a different part of his life. The house and gardens were beautiful by themselves as well, and we enjoyed some extra time taking in the scenery.

After that evening’s dinner, we got ready for our debut concert in France! I was already excited for it since we had such a wonderful experience during out small village concert last year in Italy, and Vendôme, host town of our first French concert, was just that sort of venue. From what I could tell, the church was almost full, and the audience was very receptive to the choir, smiling and nodding after each song. Because the program ran a little long, we left several selections out, but as soon as we exited the church, we heard a steady, rhythmic clapping.

When we asked our tour guides what was going on, we were informed that it was the French way of asking for an encore! So, for the first time in my five years with CCVA, the choir re-entered the church and sang an encore. It was a fabulous way to end the first concert of the 2010 tour and a moment that I won’t soon forget.