A tour of Tours

I visited the town of Tours in the Loire Valley of France for the first week of my vacation. After Paris, Tours seems a little sleepy, but it was a wonderful place to recharge my batteries; if I were to live in France, I would probably choose a place like Tours, rather than a busy city like Paris. Tours was really accessible, we left the train station and everything we wanted was at our finger tips; tourist office, great food, and shops. We walked to the old part of the city, the vielle ville, which presented us with many cafes, restaurants, and pubs. The buildings looked like something you would find in Germany; quaint almost shed-looking structures, with the criss-crossing wood on every facade. There was a small square where only a few children were trick-or-treating on Halloween night (not the most popular holiday in France). The square was lively with all the chatter and music from each cafe and its guests. The walk home was almost like Comm Ave in Boston, a place to walk in the middle of the traffic lined with trees turning yellow. Tours felt like home, but more French.
The Loire Valley is famous for its many chateaux, and we were lucky to see four of them. We saw the largest first, Chambord, which used to be a hunting lodge. It was certainly grand enough to be inhabited full time, I thought, but of course, the Comte and Comtesses (count and countess) probably require more grandeur than I. Part of the spires that topped the chateau were designed by da Vinci himself, I was shocked to learn. I didn't know he dabbled in architecture in France. There were 365 fireplaces- one fire for every day of the year! And the views from the balconies were incredible. I got a healthy dose of fall foliage in France at last. The sloping grounds were surrounded by gorgeous reds, oranges, and yellows. It was like New England had come to France just for me.
Chenonceau was much smaller, but just as beautiful. The walk to the chateau was littered with leaves we could shuffle in all the way to the entrance. Chenonceau sits on its moat, which gives the smaller chateau a really elegant look. Inside there was less to see, but the draw of Chenonceau is really its exterior. It was more humble than Chambord, and perhaps more breathtaking.
We visited Villandry next, in which the family who owns it actually still lives there! It was the smallest of all the chateaux, but is famed for its gardens, and rightfully so. The inside of the chateau was gorgeous, the limestone walls and the large windows allowed light to consume each room, which was decorated with light, pastel furniture and paintings. Out of every window, you could see the massive, intricate gardens. There are seven in all, each with a different meaning- we didn't even have time to see them all! There is a water and sun garden, with plants to represent the sun itself. Another garden represented different aspects of love. There was sweet, head-over-heels love that contained several bushes shaped like large hearts, surrounded by other bushes and plants. Another garden was said to represent the dance that is love, with shapes that almost looked like hearts arranged almost like puzzle pieces that fit together. And then there was your average garden, you know, the one that takes about ten minutes to walk through (and that's if you're speeding, Gonzalez). There were plenty of pumpkins which I loved, it felt very festive. I saw purple cabbage for the first time, and dozens of other flowers and plants. It must be quite a job to maintain gardens like that. I would take a turn about those gardens all day if I could.
The last chateau we toured was Azay-le-Rideau. It wasn't noticeably larger than Villandry, but the interior was much darker. The wooden floors and walls in every room and the heavy curtains draped across the windows made me feel uninvited. Kings and counts only stopped there for a few nights on their journeys, but it seemed less welcoming than Villandry and the others. The moat outside, however, reflected the chateau which made it look picturesque, a perfect post card. The grounds were much more intimate and provided a little foliage as well. It was so interesting to see the different structures of each chateau and I think fall is the best time to see them. The gardens must be beautiful in the spring, but the views and the surrounding trees were the perfect touch.
Or maybe I'm just missing New England for a change.