Monday, February 08, 2010

More Columns

These are in Valençay, quite a way east of Chinon. Valençay is a much newer château than the one at Chinon. The current building dates from the sixteenth century, is well maintained and includes furnishings from the time of its most famous inhabitant, Talleyrand. The columns pictured here are not part of the château itself, but on some out-buildings that currently house the ticket office, museum store, rest rooms, and a small café.

A small café on the grounds of the Château de Valençay.

Valençay is another of the big châteaux in the Loire Valley region that attracts a large number of tourists each year. It's a great place to visit and even spend a day, what with the the castle itself, the gardens, and the little population of deer, peacocks, and a collection of various types of domesticated fowl, not to mention the little town of Valençay right next door.

18 comments:

  1. Ahh, yes I remember but then we went to the car museum. Well, I like cars!!!

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  2. Oh, how I would love to visit this area of France some day...your photos are just lovely.

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  4. And, hokey as it is, I enjoyed the little play they put on in the courtyard. I can never get too much Valencay... the chateau and the town. Have memories of taking pictures of signs of owls, buying owls in the various gift shops, eating great meals there.

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  5. I was thinking of you at 2 am; I knew the ???????? had won and you were going to watch the game an hour later. I hope you are happy with the results.
    I am enjoying your past photos (all taken in spring or summer).
    Another month and spring will be here.

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  6. LOVE the goslings in the sidebar. Am trying to get back into the swing of following blogs a bit...hope you are well!

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  7. I likew columns. I don't care what building they're part of.

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  8. I was attacked by peacocks at the Château de Valençay as a child in the 1950s. The peacocks were after the buttons on my jacket. My family would go there from time to time. We lived in Levroux just down the road.

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  9. leon, I forgot to mention the car museum! Thanks!

    suzanne, thanks. Yes, you should!

    cheryl, and they do nightime illuminations, too, apparently. I've never been to one of those.

    nadege, yes, I enjoyed the game! Can't wait for spring.

    betty, thanks. All fine here, just a bit tired of winter now. ;)

    starman, they can be very photogenic!

    judy, lots of fun!

    jerry, sounds traumatic! Especially for a kid... I really like Levroux. Have you seen my posts about it?

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  10. Walt.
    i just took the time to wizz thru Callie's pic. She is gorgeous. Will she remember us when we return?
    We are taking you to lunch when we return and I won't hear of any excuses!!!!
    40 days to go, but who is counting??
    Leon

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  11. Ooops. I forgot to mention, don't you pick on Roger and Pete. One day you will be a gerry!!!
    I saw the Who in 1967 in Melbourne. OK, I'm a gerry.
    Leon

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  12. Love the term "gerry"- I'm there already, but there are plenty of older gerry around still luckily!

    More people watched this year's super bowl than the last episode of Mash. There's something kind of sad about that, but it was a great game. I was happy for the city of New Orleans.

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  13. yes, The Who, looked ridiculous...lol
    who dat indeed...we dont need dat

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  14. Walt, Love your posts on Levroux. The attacking peacocks were a bit traumatic for an eight year old. We had also made a trip to Venice where I was encompassed by a flock of pigeons...too many! Eight was a great year for me. I broke my leg riding my bike to the Levroux cemetery and missed school for the rest of the year. That part was excellent. I have some photos of days gone by in Levroux and at Chateau De Foltertre SE of Levroux. Not much has changed except us. LOL!

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  16. Okay, sorry to "hate" on The Who, but we found it hilarious that Pete Townshend's soft, flabby belly kept being exposed everytime he did the big arm swing while playing. :)) Once I pointed it out, everyone would crack up every time his shirt moved. He did look rather a mess, I think.

    Other years, when I've enjoyed the half-time show (like when they had a classic Motown R&B show, or when Springsteen was on last year, for example), I'd ask my students what they thought of the show, and they'd always say, "Why do they always have old guys on!?!?" So, I thought for sure I'd be greeted with that cry when I asked about it on Monday, but, instead, I got, "But, Ms Chabot, it was THE WHO!!" I guess it's all in the retro-marketing :)))

    Judy

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  17. leon & sue, it will be great to see you in March! I'm very nearly a gerry... but I don't play guitar or sing on worldwide television. Although, with YouTube, I could start...

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