Monday, August 9, 2010

Chateau Chenonceau

Did I mention there are a lot of chateaus in The Loire Valley? There are tons! The Loire Valley used to be where all the kings governed France from. I saw Chateau Chenonceau last Friday. It's a hotspot for the tourists. It was crowded but, of course, gorgeous.



The chateau and some of the girls from school

The chateau is built on the River Cher.

It was originally built by a super rich guy and his wife (Thomas Bohier and Katherine Briconnet) and then confiscated by King Henri II apparently just because he didn't like that Thomas was so rich. King Henri II gave the chateau to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. After he died, the king's wife, Catherine de' Medici took the chateau for herself and forced Diane to move into a less glamorous chateau. Choquant!


Diane de Poitiers' Garden

There is also Catherine de' Medici's garden as well as a vegetable garden, a maze, forests, stables, a farm, an orangerie...beaucoup.


Judith (Mexican), Davide (Italian), moi (the lone American), Sayumi (Japanese)

No comments:

Post a Comment