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The road trip that we took was to get to my Tonton and Tantine’s house in time for the family celebration that was taking place on Saturday, July 27th. Nicolas and Francoise planned the road trip very well, we stopped midway at Tours to have lunch at a wonderful little restaurant making the trip feel just 3 hours long of sitting at any one time. Rouen to Tours 3 hours and Tours to Bordeaux 3 hours, very doable from both a driver and a passenger point of view.
The views of the sunflower field are my favorite, I spent most of the car ride with my neck angled to the right and then to the left, just gazing at rapidly approaching streams of yellow. It is one of my strongest memories of France from way back when, those long stretches of yellow. Next spring, I am going to plant my own little patch of sunflowers somewhere in my garden to remind me of France.
The place where we stopped for lunch had signs that showed paths to walk along the river and picnic, we opted for the restaurant. I wanted to treat Nicolas and Francoise to show them my appreciation for all of their hospitality. There were also signs indicating chateau visits along the Loire. One of these days I am going to plan a trip down the Loire Valley for my hubby and I because I have heard rave reviews from many different people, French and American alike. Can’t go wrong when you have such a diverse bunch of critics.
The famous bottle of red at my Tonton’s house in Bordeaux is a Chateau Petrus, back when I used to drink wine, my Tonton opened a bottle of Petrus for my hubby and myself and the rest of the family and it was an exceptional wine, I do remember that. That was eons ago and another bottle of fine wine that my Tonton opened for me, way back when, was a bottle of Chateau Yquiem, a Sauternes, and that was in exchange for a lovely dessert that I had made for my Tonton. That wine, I will remember forever, because it tasted like the nectar of the gods.
I thought that the old chateau carved out from the surrounding cliffs needed to be photographed. I really love the engineering and the economy of thought that entails constructing buildings such as the chateau and its surrounding units from within the land around them. I find that it captures the essence of the people of its era, they were a hearty people and they worked their land very hard to maximize as much as they could from the land and their labors.
There is so much more to be seen in that region and I am looking forward to exploring it in the future with my hubby.