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.

Relax then Rave

According to the original itinerary, the group was supposed to travel on the TGV, France’s high speed train. But, as is common in France, the transit workers had announced a strike the day before. So instead, we woke up much earlier than planned and braced ourselves for a nine hour bus ride into the Loire Valley. The unexpected travel time was certainly long and tedious, but we were all able to catch up on some much needed sleep. And as Mrs. Campbell noted, we were afforded a beautiful view of the French countryside that we wouldn’t have been able to observe on the TGV: the scenery would have been nothing but a blur! (She always seems to find the silver lining in a difficult moment.) Even so, I have to admit that I did not see very much of it.

We arrived at our hotel in Ambois and were given some time to freshen up before dinner. Out of the many experiences I had during the last CCVA tour of France, this evening’s meal was one of my favorites. You may be wondering what is so special about a group dinner, but this was no ordinary experience.

The restaurant itself is inside of a cave, and the establishment does nothing to disguise its location and does its best to highlight the ambiance.

The ceilings and walls are rock and it is cold and slightly damp, but the staff there creates such a warm and welcoming atmosphere that you quickly forget that you are eating underground.

The best kept secret of this small restaurant, however, is its discothèque. None of us had known about it the last time we ate there, and we were shocked when a door on the back wall of restaurant opened into a dancehall complete with disco balls and strobe lights.

I rode the bus to the dinner hoping that my fellow travelers would have the same wonderful experience I had five years ago. The food, especially the bread that they make fresh in their brick ovens, was fabulous. And as I hoped, the owner opened the discothèque to us again!

It was a good thing we had gotten plenty of rest on the bus, because we all got a serious workout, dancing for about an hour. It was so nice just to spend time with everyone on the trip and have fun. Definitely worth the long travel day!