My Legs Are Wet

Broken record moment... It was hot today.  BUT... much cooler than yesterday.  I think we topped out at 95 degrees today.  The girls had three ice creams (obviously required in this weather), and a 2 hour swim this evening.  Stefani and I also went for a swim to cool off.  We (the adults) had some chilled wine (obviously).

We opted for a pretty low key day today and decided to visit Vendôme.  The Abbaye de la Trinité de Vendôme was beautiful.  It was founded in the 11th century.  Stunning.

We were the only visitors this afternoon so enjoyed a peaceful and contemplative walk through the nave.

 

 

 

After our walk, we stopped by the museum which was closed during the lunch hour, so we headed to lunch ourselves at a delicious Turkish restaurant.  Stella captured it very well:

 

The girls were hot and tired, but are always up for a smile!

I will be honest, it was around this time that the day turned from hot to HOT.  As we sat waiting for our food, Stella observed that her legs were wet.  I laughed and said I assumed it was from sweat.  The man next to us (who appeared to be a native English speaker) burst out laughing.  Yes, all our legs were wet due to the EXTREME HEAT.

We wandered through the village after lunch.  THERE IS A STORE CALLED ALL A CHEESE! 

We walked through the Vendôme museum (highly recommended) and then headed home.

After our "busy" day, we hit the pool.  It was fun and cool (and we met some nice Canadians who arrived today):

 

Stefani and I were so excited to find Pamplemousse bubbly water today!

And we found some Apero Cracks for the kids (I ate them too): 

 

Dinner (at home) was very good and allowed the girls to swim right up until our meal.

And now... Goodnight!

This Château Would Be The Best Place To Play Sardines

Today was... Hot.  We are experiencing a heat wave in the Loire Valley (see previous blog post).  Notwithstanding the heat, we visited one of the most iconic châteaux in the area today --

Château de Chenonceau.  Stefani and I took many many pictures!

Due to the extreme heat, we decided to start the day by seeing everything we could see outdoors (we knew by 1pm it would be unbearable outside).  The Château has a beautiful park.

 

Complete with a maze:

Any many picturesque spots to hide/peek/pose:

The immense flower and vegetable garden has its own beehive.

 

The donkey park is not pictured -- the donkeys were hiding in their barn to avoid the sun and heat.  Smart donkeys. 

When touring the carriages, we found a name plate for Stella!

Then we took some pictures of the Château.  This 16th century château has a fascinating history.  The girls were particularly taken by the story of Diane de Poiters (Henri II's mistress) and her eviction by Catherine de' Medici (not exactly an eviction since Catherine traded the Château de Chenonceau for the Château Chaumont).

 

 

 

 

 

The kitchens were particularly fun and interesting. 

 

 

After our visit to the kitchens, the girls began discussing how PERFECT this château would be for a game of Sardines.  They thought of many excellent hiding places.  For those readers unfamiliar with Sardines, it is like reverse hide-and-seek.

http://www.wikihow.com/Play-Sardines

Stefani and I agreed, this château (really ANY château) would be an excellent location for a game of Sardines.

We next visited the wine cellar.  The girls have done an excellent job speaking for us in France.  Here, Stella asked this very nice (and very French) man how long they had been making wine at the château and how many bottles they made.  He joked with Ellie when she ordered a bottle of Jus de Raisin and several bottles of wine for us.

Stefani discretely snapped this picture of him while we were tasting the wine. 

It was around this time that the girls decided to create new travel related Instagram accounts (Stella already had an anonymous Instagram but it was primarily devoted to lemons).  They spent a considerable amount of time discussing how to take good photos and how to post good photos using their secret Instagram identities.

After the Château, we found the Domaine Merieau, recommended to us by a wine importer/distributor from France 44.  The caves were blissfully cool (it was at least 99 degrees by this point in the afternoon) and everyone there was very nice. 

 

There was even a children's play area:

We dropped the girls off at home (they were droopy) and went to get groceries at the Intermarche to make dinner:

Then we took a few process shots while Stefani cooked and I assisted:

 

 

We made a little (a lot) too much food, and generally had a lovely evening.  As we were finishing our meal, we spotted this cheerful hot air balloon:

 

Goodnight!

Armadillos Love Sitting In Walls

Hot. Hot. Hot. It was 40ish degrees today (104 Fahrenheit).  HOT.  HOT.  HOT.

We didn't let the heat stop us (much).

First, Stefani and Stella went to the grocery store and came home with this yummy breakfast:

We ate al fresco on our patio.  We were not in a rush today.  As a result, we left our apartment a little before noon and headed to the Château du Clos Lucé where Leonardo Da Vinci spent his last three years.  The Chateau is decorated with Leo themes, but as one guide told us, any artifacts that were ACTUALLY here when Leo was in residence are far too valuable to display...  Still, the Chateau was interesting.

The gardens were particularly nice.

 

We had lunch in the rose garden (despite the heat).

 

We ate our meals quickly.  I am not sure if we liked the food:

Dessert was, as always, fantastic:

 

 

I have discovered a love of "Speculoos" which seems to be a biscuit served with afternoon coffee. 

 

Then the girls walked through the gardens.

Where we discovered huge replicas of Da Vinci's creations.  Some were quite fun/interesting:

 

The photos do not quite capture the heat.  We were all melting.

 

 

There were many bridges:

We went into Amboise and the other ladies went for a walk while I took a conference call from a quiet street.  Here was my view:

 

We stopped at the grocery store on our way out of town and found food for the night.  Then we headed to the pool to cool off!

The place we are staying (La Restrie) is very quiet and quite lovely.  Here is one of the rooms (yes, it is built into the side of a cave). 

 

 

Our room is in the main building (built in the 17th century).  I guess they used to use candles for lighting which means there are great spots for Armadillos.  Armadillos love sitting in walls.

At the end of a long and HOT day, I worked on my blog and Stella braided my hair.  Tomorrow --

Château de Chenonceau and a weather forecast predicting 99 degrees or more.