Sunday 15 November 2009

Chenonceau

There is a grand chateau at Chenonceau in the Loire valley (actually it's built on the river Cher) and the wife has been itching to visit for ages. So this Sunday morning with nothing on the agenda and a sunny start to the day, we decided to go. This being a famous tourist attraction, you can find out most of what you want to know from their website. (Click here) So, some impressions just for you, my avid reader, and perhaps some pictures you won't find in the guide books.

I am always intrigued by the effects of time and wear in old buildings like these, so I was pleased to spot some floor tiles in unfrequented corners that showed their original patterns.






















This gallery is the part of the chateau that spans the river - not nearly as broad as you might think but quite long. The black and white floor tiles are of different stone (slate and tuffeau respectively), and the white is less durable than the black. So the white ones are worn concave, and the black ones convex. Walking on them feels odd.












The chateau has an extensive and well-kept garden and plant nursery, and they use these to provide spectacular "daily" flower displays in the chateau rooms. Here are some.







































And, well, you've just got to have some views of the gardens, haven't you?






















Finally, this cheeky chappie was looking down on us in the gift shop. I thought it was a beaver but the label told me it is a ragondin, or coypu. Farmers where I live hate coypus because they are big (shaped like a rat, about 2ft long in the body and with a tail equally long) and they eat crops. I came across a cage on one of my walks by the river not so long ago, and as I was inspecting it, a guy appeared from in the bushes and told me it was a ragondin trap. Why the long chain I asked, attaching it to a metal spike driven into the ground? That's so that once you've caught the ragondin and drowned it, you can pull the trap back out of the river.

5 comments:

Tim Trent said...

The tiles are the most interesting part for me. Thank you.

@eloh said...

I'll let you know in a week or two... when I leave this post....until then, I'll be right here!

Oh Oh those blue tiles are so beautiful. It appears that they have just been worn away.

This is such an unusual and beautiful place.

ReedBunting said...

Great story about the tiles... I wish my garden was that immaculate, and produced such an amazing crop of flowers!

Jonathan said...

Coypu were a problem in Norfolk until the last one was despatched in 1987. Apparently what finally did for them, after a long campaign, was a change in policy. Instead of employing permanent coypu hunters the authorities switched to paying a set sum per coypu.

Now there is a campaign to reintroduce them but as sculptures only. They caused a great deal of damage while they were here.

Beautiful chateau you have there, by the way. I wouldn't want a formal garden myself but it appears to suit the context.

Mark In Mayenne said...

Thanks for your comments guys, I'm glad you liked the tiles. They were a bit of an afterthought, so, great.

Interesting point Jon. A coypu hunter who kills all the coypus has done himself out of a job, no?

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