On a lazy afternoon...

On a lazy sunny afternoon I deal with whatever questions I have received regarding recent posts. There are a couple of them asking about sights and accommodation away from the main chateaux route in the Loire Valley. I look outside and see the sun is going west. So, I look west from Saumur which I chose before for a focal point of my posts, and here is what I suggest you do if you go west.

You can drive either towards Doue-la-Fontaine (and I strongly recommend you rent a car if willing to explore the side roads) or towards Mountreil-Bellay. In both cases you will pass by Cave Grolleau where you can taste some really fine wines. Then, reaching Pace, you will have to choose either road.

If you decide to go to Doue-la-Fontaine, you can also explore the Rou-Marson area and dine at the cave restaurant http://www.cavesdemarson.com/cellars.html . Although I've heard people being unhappy with the service, I personally have never had any complaints. In the village there is also a nice small castle which is often overlooked. You will then reach Les Ulmes - a tiny village with interesting stories to tell. The official website is in French: http://www.lesulmes.mairie49.fr/ but this document will give you an idea: http://www.doneohostmaking.com/Miracle/LesUlmes.pdf . Never miss a place where miracles happened for yours may be on the way! :) On the other side of the road you will see the smallest "town" in the community - Montfort. There you can taste very good wines of Anjou and the rose trees are worth seeing. Typically French, the residents of Montfort and Cizay-la-Madeleine are arguing over the ownership of Chateau of Epinats built in the XVII century. The Madeleine's website is here: http://www.cizay.la.madeleine.mairie49.fr/ .
*Photo courtesy of www.farm-cottages-holidays.com

Doue-la-Fontaine is an ancient town which was identified as an inhabited spot as early as the 7th century. There are ruins uncovered which can be seen close to the springs. In the town was located one of the oldest habitable donjon (keeps) in France, built about the year 900. The castle is believed to be the first European castle built of stone around 950.There are also troglodyte dwellings and commercial mushroom-growing caves. The Zoo is partially built within the troglodyte dwellings. Doue is titled the rose capital of France and a "Festival of the Rose" is held annually in July. More than 800 varieties of roses can be seen during the event. The official site (in French) is: http://www.ville-douelafontaine.fr/ . The zoo website has an English version: http://www.zoodoue.fr/ . There is a good hotel at the edge of the town - Hôtel De La Saulaie with a huge park and a swimming pool. There are many others, of course, but this one is what I personally know.

From Doue you can drive straight to Mountreil-Bellay and thw only village on your way will be Brossay. While there is a winery which carries the name Chateau-de-Brossay it is not located in the Brossay village. :)) It is in Cléré-sur-Layon, further west. Therefore, don't look for the Chateau or the wines in this Brossay. There is a fine chateau in another Brossay, in Bretagne. Very confusing, I know. Basically, the Loire Brossay is as off the beaten path as one can imagine. If you're looking for a quiet place, this can be it.

On the other side of this triangle is Mountreil-Bellay with its serene beauty and very good wines: http://www.chateau-montreuil-bellay.fr/index.php?/montreuilbellay/EN . Among my personal favorite spots, the town is charming, much quieter than the popular toursit attraction on the Loire itself but still offering enough of history, nature, and typical French lifestyle to satisfy many. More about the beautiful chateau and the town can be found here: http://www.chateaux-france.com/montreuilbellay . Official website: http://www.chateau-de-montreuil-bellay.fr/ . There is a pretty good hotel in the town: http://www.hotelrelaisdubellay.fr/ and if you write to them in English, they tend to respond in the same language. :)

From there you can drive a bit more to the west and visit Le-Puy-Notre-Dame - official website: http://www.ville-lepuynotredame.fr/ . For such a small town, Le-Puy-Notre-Dame offers a lot - caves, mushroom growing, museums, retro cars show, and naturally - beautiful nature. Later the town has become quite popular among foreign home buyers, so if you're on the way to buy a vacation home, now is the time. :) A very nice blog of a bed and breakfast spot is this one: http://lagrandemaison.blogspot.com/ . Another sweet blog is this one and the couple live in the village plus own gites which you can rent: http://loiregites.wordpress.com/2007/08/28/a-morning-stroll-around-le-puy-notre-dame/ .

*Photo courtesy of www.anjou-tourisme.com

In the middle between Mountreil-Bellay and Le-Puy-Notre-Dame is located Vaudelnay which is another quiet spot and where you can find this very nice accommodation: http://en.likhom.com/bnb/La-Croix-Saint-Andre/vaudelnay . The official website is: http://www.communes-francaises.com/49/vaudelnay/ and even if you don't know French, you can click on the links to check out pretty good offers for bed and breakfast or rental cottages.

Enjoy! :)

More Loire Valley castles for lovers

I read today on someone's blog it took them ten minutes to write a post. I was struck and depressed. How do people do that? It takes me more than an hour to arrange all the info, pictures and links! I am daughter of the turtles apparently. Nevertheless, I enjoy putting together the pieces and continue today with my favorite castles in the beautiful valley of the river Loire in France. I wish you can get there this summer and send me photos later. :)

* Photo courtesy of www.linternaute.com

Here is a real treat for all of us fairy tale lovers - the chateau where the Sleeping beuty was born by her creator Charles Perrault. A stunning piece of architecture, Chateau d'Usse has been furnished and arranged to reflect the Sleeping beauty fairy tale. In all the rooms you will find replicas and wax figures of characters we all know - queen and king, princess and prince, witch and fairies. The governess is there, the kitchen is still full of food, the pots are on the fire oven... Only all are fast asleep for one hundred years.


When I first visited the place I was most surprised that such a remarkable building had such an unfortunate story. The castle has been demolished and rebuilt a number of times and has exchanged many owners. Initially built as a stronghold at the edge of the Chinon forest and fortified in the eleventh century by the Norman seigneur of Usse, Gueldin de Saumur, later it passed to the Comte de Blois, who rebuilt it in stone. In the fifteenth century the ruined castle of Usse was purchased by Jean V de Bueil, a captain-general of Charles VII who began rebuilding it in the 1460s. His son Antoine de Bueil, who married Jeanne de Valois, daughter of Charles VII (and of course very rich girl!), was heavily in debt and in 1485 sold the château to Jacques d’Espinay, son of a chamberlain to the Duke of Brittany and himself chamberlain to the king. The new owner built the chapel which was completed by his son Charles in 1538.

In the seventeenth century Louis I de Valentinay demolished the north range of buildings to open the spectacular view over the parterre terrace. His son-in-law - a military engineer Vauban, liked and visited Usse often. However, the castle was passed to a new owner again - Rohan. Then in 1807 Usse was purchased by the duc de Duras.

An interesting part of the chateau history is related to the secret meetings held in 1813 by a group of Bourbon loyalists who met there to discuss the possibilities of a Bourbon Restoration. Among them were men like Trémouille, duc de Fitzjames, the prince de Polignac, Ferrand, Montmorency and the duc de Rochefoucault - names we now know from the books and which carry the romantic patina of the time. Later François de Chateaubriand worked on his Mémoires d'Outre-Tombe as the guest of duchesse Claire de Duras in the castle.

Chateau d'Usse was the inspiration for many of Walt Disney's castles too (together with others of course) ans is a favorite spot for wedding and engagement photos. This is the official website: http://www.chateaudusse.fr/ which is in French but you can always use online translator like Google's. Or you may find a button for English which I may have missed. :) Alternatively, you may check for tips and hints here: http://www.france-for-visitors.com/loire/chateau-d-usse.html and here: http://www.lvo.com/GB/MAG/CHATEAUX/USSE.HTML . One thing I strongly disagree with many online reviews is the chateau is cheesy. It is not. It is romantic and beautiful, and the gardens are fantastic. Even only the view from the courtyard is sufficiently breathtaking. So, if you are in love with someone else, yourself, or the life in general - go celebrate it there! :)

* Photo courtesy of www.francethisway.com

Chateau de Valencay is an impressive piece of architecture with beautiful gardens. Its official webiste is http://www.chateau-valencay.fr/ - in French, of course! ;) One thing I like about French is they rarely care for those of us who have forgotten their language skills at home. Learning in motion, that is. The castle was a residence of the d'Estampes and Talleyrand-Périgord families in the commune of Valencay.
The chateau sits on the edge of a plateau overlooking the little Nahon river. It was built by the d'Estampes family over a period of 200 years. Construction started in 1540 in place of the demolished 12th-century castle and was not completed until the 18th century when the south tower was added.
A rapid succession of owners followed including the notorious Scottish banker John Law. In 1803 Napoleon ordered his foreign minister Charles Maurice de Talleyrand to acquire the property so the emperor could invite and impress foreign dignitaries there - such is the power of Valencay! Surely, Ferdinand VII of Spain, who spent six pleasant years in Napoleonic captivity at Valencay, must have been delighted. :)
When the Talleyrands became owners and occupied the castle, the golden age for the chateau started. Twenty three communes were reportedly administrated by the ruling prince. When Talleyrand died in 1838, he was buried in a small mortuary chapel in the park. His descendants retained the ownership until 1952 when the male line ended. The estate was sold to an association of historic chateaux in 1979.
The chateau was spared during the German occupation thanks to the German roots of its owners. At the time it was the safe place for treasures from the Louvre (the Winged Victory of Samothrace and the Venus de Milo) to be kept. Among its most impressive features are the formal gardens which cover about forty hectares, not counting the area of Talleyrand's vineyards. Llamas, peacocks, and other exotic animals inhabit the park.

Those of you who remember their French or don't mind using an online translation service may want to check this website as well: http://www.visite-au-chateau.com/ . It provides great info about many castles and tourist sites. I will write more about the remaining castles in my next post and will add some practical and not so practical info about the Loire Valley as well. :)