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Jun 27

10 Comments

Shutdown

I knew I should have brought my own computer. Instead we agreed to bring one, the lighter, and thinner one. The one that doesn’t belong to me and is thick with firewalls. So my blog is locked out of cyberspace — for the foreseeable future. I will try my hand at posting from my phone, but not really my cup of tea to write on such a tiny device.

Rats. Makes me sad, ’cause I have some fun stories to tell and pictures to share.

But tonight I’m just crabby and cross, so I’m gonna hit the hay and wake up happy. We are leave Angers early morning for a 70+ km ride to Ancenis and hopefully lunch on Chalonnes Island in the middle of the Loire River.

Bye for now…

Jun 25

8 Comments

Azay-le-Rideau–Rigny-Ussé—Chinon

château_d'ussé_loire_valley-biking_France.jpgJust a quick post tonight as I am trying not to spend all these lovely evenings blogging. We had a more sensible biking day today: only 45 km. We biked from Azay-le-Rideau to Chinon, with a 2-hours stopover at Château d’Ussé. This truly fairytale château, standing tall above the landscape of the Loire Valley is said to have inspired Charles Perrault to write Sleeping Beauty. (At the vey least it must have inspired Walt Disney to build the princess a castle in California.) IMG_1715 The château is simply stunning, especially arriving by bike, just like it must have been for Prince Charmant arriving on horseback to save his beauty after a century of sleep. At the risk of using one too many superlatives, the castle is spectacular. The grounds and gardens are well kept, the chapel and its history spellbinding, and the caves and attics intriguing.

Sleeping Beauty's Tower

Sleeping Beauty’s Tower

However the way the rooms are staged is just a bit too cheesy, and oh, so French. I counted more than 40 mannequins, and I don’t mean the French kind that stroll down the haute couture runways. I’m talking old-time mannequins decked out in their finery, a few sultry glances and a few too many crazy grins. But in that French-way, it somehow manages to be just a little bit charming, and perfect for the under-10 set who are still hoping to grow up and be a princess.

chateau_ussé_mannequins_sleeping_beauty_france.jpg From Ussé we rode our final 22 km to Chinon and her fortress, which apparently was also an inspiration for some very fine writers; maybe you’ve heard of them: Monty Python? Chinon_fortress_chateau_France_loire_biking.jpg And now after a few too many wine dégustations, I’m sitting on my balcony watching the Vienne River settle as the frogs croak and riot and one discrete beaver surveys the bank. dégustation_wine_tasting_loire_valley_france_biking.jpg

Jun 24

18 Comments

Tours-Savonnières-Villandry-Azay-le-Rideau-Bréhémont

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With a little extra sleep and a homemade breakfast in our tummies, we headed out for an unhurried day of châteaux-ing. My plan was to spend an easy 39 km in our saddles, stopping wherever our wheels fancied. It took Superman a little time to adjust to this plan, as an American, he likes to set a goal, and go, go, go.

When I suggested we stop a mere 10 km into the ride in the charming village of Savonnières, he was less than enthusiastic. That’s when I decided that our motto of the day (the trip?) would be: “What would the French girls do?” Loire_Valley_biking_velo.jpg Savonnieres_loire_France.jpg Obviously we stopped…although not for a coffee, and looked around. And so the day unfolded with numerous stops and a slow meander through the stunning gardens of Villandry.

villandry_chateau_gardens_loire_france.jpg We meandered so slowly, that we almost missed lunch, which set Superman’s heart aflutter and resulted in a surprising stop at l’Etape Gourmande. From then, we were goners, and the day became all about lunch. l-etape_gourmande_restaurant_villandry_france_loire.jpg   l-etape_gourmande_restaurant_villandry_france_loire.jpg IMG_1613 l-etape_gourmande_restaurant_villandry_france_loire.jpg l-etape_gourmande_restaurant_villandry_france_loire.jpg l-etape_gourmande_restaurant_villandry_france_loire.jpg From lunch it was all downhill to Azay-le-Rideau, an attractive town with a handsome boutique hotel, but disappointingly, the château itself is under extensive renovation. azay-le-rideau_loire_a_velo_biking_France. jpg While it looked like this on our first visit years ago: Azay-le-rideau_château_douves It looks like this today, and will, until 2017. l-etape_gourmande_restaurant_azay-le-rideau_france_loire.jpg My advice: Château de l’Islette, A-l-R’s little sister, and just 3 km away… Chateau-de-l-Islette-8 We ended our day with a final 20 km ride and picnic on the riverbank of a picturesque hamlet called Bréhémont. loire_a_velo_biking_France_ brehemont.jpg

Jun 24

12 Comments

Blois-Amboise-Tours

loire_a_velo_amboise_Biking_in_France.jpgYesterdays we followed the ‘pays des châteaux’ cycling tracks from Blois to Chaumont-sur-Loire where the impressive château oversees the happenings of the tiny village, then continued on to Amboise and visited her marvelous majestic château, then crossed through the uniform vineyards of Montiouis, and 78 km later, arrived in Tours just in the nick-of-time to get Kitcat on her train back to Paris, and we hoped on to London. (Mais malheureusement, the Chunnel was closed due to a strike, so it appears she is stuck in Paris for the day…although there are certainly worst places one could be marooned.)

In any case, the day was filled with blue skies, beautiful scenery, tranquil moments, unexpected hills, friendly packs of cyclists, and a wonderfully warm reception from our delightful host at la Maison aux couleurs—who smiled and laughed with us, despite our rusty, basic French.

The highlights for me were:

  • cycling with my free-wheeling, happy daughter who is always up for a challenge and even a few steep hills,
  • a lunch of crêpes and cidre,
  • a quick mother-daughter stroll through the château Royal d’Amboise,
  • a golden, thirst quenching beer in Tours,
  • a surprise meeting with Amy L. from Paris,
  • and watching the late afternoon sun light up the vineyards and sparkle on the water.

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And now after eating too much ‘vrai’ pain perdu loving whipped up by our host, we are off to Azay le Rideau in the Indre Valley via Villandry.

Bye for now…à tout à l’heure!

Jun 23

12 Comments

Orléans to Blois: une histoire d’amitié

Our first day on the Loire à vélo was incroyable in so many ways.

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However, as it is late and I’m exhausted, I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

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The real story of the day lies in not what we saw, but with whom we saw it. It was a day to remember the value of friendship and importance of making time in our busy lives to spend with friends and family; because in the end those relationships make the ride worthwhile.

I was so touched that the French girls and my flexible and optimistic daughter, Kitcat found the time to ride 65 km with us along the wild riverbanks to the shuttered village of Baule, to the flower-filled city of Beaugency, to the country churches and finally to our friendly hotel in the shadow of the stately château in Blois.

The great thing about traveling with the French girls is, well,  they are French. And the French understand how to do a cross-country bike trip. They are really good at finding the beauty in the small things, and have no problem making a lot of stops along the way to make sure we see, smell and taste that beauty.

Bistros and cafés are key. They like their coffee (grand and with crème) and they like it in a sympa setting, preferably with some homemade crumble.

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They also will go up some pretty steep village hills (even if they have to walk their bikes) in search of the one fantastic restaurant open on a Monday afternoon. Plus, when they are on vacation, they insist on having wine with lunch, and are quick to remind you that, “No, no, it’s good for you (as) we need a little sugar.” And that they “never drink at lunch, but (they) catch up when they can.”

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And after a hearty, relaxing meal, they hop back on their bikes (“Oh! Mes fesses!”) and ride for another 3 hours, all without having trained a single day for the ride.

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Marie-Françoise and Hélène are nothing if not optimistic. They are total goofballs, and full of smiles and beans. Nothing like the awful French we Americans are so scared we will encounter as we travel through France.

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So, I am feeling like my Tour de la Loire is off to an awfully good start. And feeling very blessed to have such wonderful friends.

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Jun 22

5 Comments

Orléans, the French Girls Arrive

Orléans_France_train_station_gare.jpg After a series of mishaps (lost track of time and a lost, but found, phone), we made a mad dash to Paris Austerlitz, and hopped a train to Orléans. After a quick check-in with our hotel, an attempted visit to the tourist office for maps, a hasty peek into Jeanne d’Arc’s house, a one-stop-short-ticket mistakenly purchased for Kitcat, and a scenic, albeit hot, 4 km walk to the bike rental shop, and a valiant attempt to resurrect our rusty French, I wish we could say that we are packed and ready to hit the bike path.

The bad news: a mix-up with our bike reservations. I incorrectly entered my first name as my last and my last name as my first when I made the reservation online, which apparently was too much for the system to handle (?!), means that we are still waiting for our bikes to be delivered. The good news (actually fantastic news): the French girls arrived! My very favorite French girlfriends Hélène and Marie-Françoise have gamely made the trip down from Paris to ride the first stage of the Tour de la Loire, and I couldn’t be more pleased. IMG_1361 61 kilometers…allez!!

Jun 21

23 Comments

On y va!

orleans_france_bike_velo.jpgAfter many months of silence and lots of interesting happenings in Colorado and beyond, I am back home in France and back online. We have spent several days in Paris and London and are now on our way to Orléans to start our Tour de la Loire. We arrive late this afternoon and pick up our bikes this evening, in hopes of an early start tomorrow morning.

All in all, our route from Orléans to Saint Nazaire is just a little shy of 500 km (310 miles).

Along the way, friends and family will be popping in to ride with us and follow the river past: a château built for a kings, a church as old as Charlemagne, a bridge inspired by Eiffel, an inland lighthouse, extraordinary cave dwellings, an open-air art gallery, and of course gourmet restaurants, gorgeous vineyards and artisanal fare.

I am planning on posting daily (fingers crossed for consistent WIFI), and share our adventure with you. Donc, jump on your virtual bike and follow along on what is sure to be a memorable journey…

À toute à l’heure!

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