Summary
Off to see another of the great Châteaux – Chambord. It’s quite the maze, four stories tall, remodeled and added to by each subsequent owner. We opted to pay for the “Histopad”, an electronic device that I found more annoying than helpful. Still, the chateau is beautiful and not terribly crowded. Back in Amboise we spent a long time making an unplanned pivot later in our trip from Turin to Asti, Italy. Good dinner at tiny La Fourchette and nice long walk along the Loire afterwards.
Details
Today’s another day and so another Loire Valley Château. We’re headed to Chambord, which we’ve been to before. On our last visit we don’t remember much. It was (as I recall) the middle of winter and it was bitterly cold. They had some of the big (8’ wide) fire places blazing. That’s pretty much all I remember. Maybe today I can take in more. We’re told they’ll again have the HistOPad on offer, as a part of our admission fee. Seemingly it’s the big new thing.
Downstairs we again have breakfast. Karen’s been a tad down about how consistent every hotel is with what is on offer for breakfast. Today she does something about it, she cooks. Well maybe not ‘chef-ing’ but she does make a big batch of egg salad at our small breakfast table. It’s really good, as I benefit from her work. One of the ingredients? A small peel-top tub-o-tartar sauce left over from some previous meal out.
In our room we get ready and do our normal daily computer work. It’s the blog, yes, but today we also make the downpayment for a trip next spring, to China (assuming by then the country is still letting Americans visit). We’re also fielding WhatsApp messages from our hotel in Paris. They’re seemingly very excited at the prospect of our visit. I hope we don’t disappoint them.
Bundled up and folded into our car we drive the hour to Chambord. It’s so pretty and green along the way. We get good gas mileage, in large part because you’re rarely able to drive any faster than 40 MPH. The fact that the car registers our speed in KPH makes it feel like we’re not going so slow. A good thing about going at that speed is that even the driver can take in the lovely scenery along the way.
You can’t miss when you get to Chambord, it’s so unique in look and layout. They thoughtfully have lockers for all of our crap. That way we don’t have to be schlepping it around as we tour all of the floors and rooms of the chateau. They’re free but you do need to give them a 2 euro coin (to ensure they get the key back). Not a credit card. Not two 1 euro coins. There’s no change machine. No one has a 2 euro coin. I find my way to the gift shop and get change.
We pick up our HistOPad and the battle begins. We do learn that they don’t know who designed this amazing chateau, but they think that Leonardo may have played a role. The place didn’t even get started being built until after Leonardo was dead, but they think they can see his talented finger prints all over it.
The central stairway is a very wide double helix. I guess on side can be for the regals and the other side can be for the support staff. Never the twain should have to mix. There’s a central column down the middle to provide light, even though it’s a (?) four story building made of huge stone blocks. Very light and airy for such a massive structure.
Many of the areas have furniture which is nice. The building was used way back when but also more recently. Many of the fireplaces are as they were back in the very early days, but some had since been ‘closed down’ with marble so you didn’t need so much wood to heat the room.
We are pleased that none of the structure has any scaffolding, which we’ve come to expect. That’s a nice change, but a key area is closed. It’s the king’s entertaining room (his equivalent of the White House Ballroom?) and here, as in Washington, it’s in need of rehabilitation. Won’t you give to help? They have big signs up showing a crying king asking you to donate. It hit a little close to home for us.
We continue on, wing by wing, floor by floor. So amazing but lots of repetition in the layout. That’s part of the point. It is mightily impressive. It’s supposed to be. It’s the king telling his subjects and foes: “Look at how amazing and powerful I am. I’m God’s appointed representative here, don’t mess with me.”
Much of what we see (including the remarkable kitchens) are from the early days of the chateau, but other parts are from more recent years, such as when the president of France came to hunt. Back in the day, they tell us, the king hunted pretty much every day. The grounds of the chateau are massive and are surrounded by walls to ensure only the king gets to hunt here.
They have a whole room devoted to the different animals that are on the grounds that the king hunted. Of course you have elk, deer, and wild boar, but also badger. We can’t help but thing “honey badger don’t give a shit”. Take that, king!
They have another room with display case after display case of all of the scouting badges, er, metal buttons you could get for accomplishing certain notable things. Get a deer above a certain size and get a particular button. Collect them all! Times never change, do they. On a similar note, they have a carriage with big wheels, but it’s also a boat with oars. We think we invented everything, but everything old is new again.
Eventually we hang up our HistOPads and go to lunch at the chateau cafeteria. It’s as good as you might think (mediocre). There are, as always, lots of school children. Don’t these children ever go to class?? I find brochures including one for a miniature chateaux park. It’s for kids, but come on, I believe that the kid in me would like it too, no?
Back at the room we again get on our computers to work on where we’re headed next, including Turin, Italy. It’s not a hotel but an apartment. We will have to pay for the apartment, and room tax, and and. It’s not a hotel so we have to pay online.
Apparently (they tell us) they’ve recently been hacked so we’re to be careful what links we do and don’t click on. Only click on the real ones (how do we know??). I click on one and I dutifully key in my card number/expiration date/secret code/first child’s name. DECLINED! They suggest I contact my credit card company to straighten this out. I do and learn that I almost paid $71.50 to a UK gaming company called Digital Golems (like the Lord of the Rings).
I complain to the company on WhatsApp and they give me another link. “Try this one…” Hell to the no! We cancel that reservation and look for another hotel. They’re all like $500 to $1000 per night. WTF? Ah, it’s the annual International Book Fair. We switch our hotel to Asti. We’ll see.
For dinner we go to La Fourchette where we have a reservation. It’s all Americans and it’s all very tasty. As we eat we see couple after couple come to eat but get turned away, sorry, no reservation, no room. We over order but it’s all good. We chitchat with the mother/daughter from Atlanta at the next table.
After dinner we walk off a bit of our dinner. We again see the mother/daughter duo, as we’re looking at real estate in a window. We offer to split one with them.
Photos
