It is now Thursday, March 16 just after lunch. Today, we have already been for a walk around the village, tried to feed the goats, but the bamboo must have been off as they refused to eat, spent time weeding the garden, working on the accounts and now doing some writing. The sun is shinning and it is about 20 degrees. We are even going to hang out the sheets on the line, once the washing machine is finished with them. While our upstairs deck doesn't get any spring sun, the lower garden by the shed is a sun trap at this time of year. Yesterday afternoon we enjoyed a few cold ones while we enjoyed the warm sunshine. I am sure we will make a return visit down there later today.
With Steve off to a friend's place, I still have some of the garden to weed. Even after 2 days now, there is still more to weed. I haven't even started the on the vegetable garden. It is in need of a major overhaul, and with this unseasonably warm weather, I will take advantage of it. Well I was still weeding and edging on Friday at 4:00 pm. It's still not finished, but with a bit of luck we will have at least one nice day next week to garden. We started our Saint Patrick's day weekend with a Kilkenny beer! Saturday we are off to Tours and the Loire valley.
Well I don't know where the time goes, it is now Tuesday morning. We had a great weekend away. Our trip took us due north to the Loire Valley and Tours. Our first stop was in a small town called La Blanc. We visited the market, wandered along the banks of La Creuse river and had a warming Grande Creme (cafe au lait) in a busy bar/barsserie. From there we continued up north to St. Aignan which is on the banks of Le Cher river. From here we headed west to Tours. The area is dotted with old châteaux and vineyards.
Our hotel was located in a shopping area of Tours Nord. It was easy to find and for the price, it was a great place to stay. Plenty of restaurants and shops within walking distance. Also, the tram into downtown Tours was just across the street. Since our trip was 2 fold, the shopping came in handy. Some linens, art supplies, clothes and house goods were on the list.
After a great breakfast at our hotel, we took the tram into Tours Centre. While Sunday is not always a great day to see a town, we enjoyed our wander. Three hours later, we had found our way from the train station, through the indoor market, the old parts of town, the walls, the famous churches, and a few gardens as well. It is a nice compact city, and if the weather had been a bit warmer, the walks along the Loire River looked great too. A quick stop back at the hotel to pick up the car, we headed east into the Loire Valley to check out a château. There are hundreds of them, so picking one was a big deal. We checked out various lists of the top 10 châteaux of the valley, and we had already been to the number one on some lists, Château de Chenonceau, and we didn't want to drive too far, so Amboise Château Royal was in the top five, so it was our destination of choice.
While a smaller château, only about 20% is still standing, it is where it is standing that makes the château so stunning. Perched on the cliffs overlooking the Loire Valley, you can see why this location has been inhabited since Neolithic times. The château is steeped in French Royal history. We discovered that it was the burial place of Leonardo de Vinci. The French royalty was intrigued by the Renaissance, and brought Leonardo to France. He loved it here so much, he wanted to buried at Amboise.
Monday was a shopping morning getting new sheets for two inflatable bed for up coming guests, a few things from Ikea, and some stylish French fashions for us. We hopped on the toll highway and were home from Tours in about 2 hours.
Today, Tuesday was our first full day of rain this trip. We spent the day doing some laundry, getting our user guide for the house up to date. There are sure a lot of special instructions for a 100 year old house. Our big task today was to go to the tax office and ask about our property taxes. I had written out several questions and statements to at least get them to understand our problem. We have been in the house for over a year, and have not had a tax bill. We knew the previous owners paid them for last year, but we were getting worried about this year. The nice receptionist read through the statements till the last one where I asked if anyone here spoke English. She directed us to the clerk on the second (third) floor who was able to help us. When he checked his computer, the previous owners were still listed. He said it takes a while to get the information from the notary so they can update their records. The good news is we are now able to wait until September before we get a tax notice.
We have posted pictures of the weekend away on the previous posting.
The rest of the week will be gardening if the weather improves, a trip into Limoges, a small dinner party, and then sadly preparing to head home. We will have to make the most of the remaining days. I really shouldn't have left my marking of an English essay until now. I think a good reason to drink some wine. By the way, we stocked up on 3 litre boxes of wine at our grocery store. The sale was buy 2 and get 1 free. You can't beat that!
A bientôt!
