Loire Valley, France day 8, June 29

We have been getting to bed so late each night with our 2:30 to 3:00 dinners, which we love! We usually get home by about 11:00 but then still need to unwind. So, we are sleeping in a getting a pretty late start to the day, but we have enjoyed our mornings too.

We stopped at a boulangerie to get snacks for lunch- but they only survived a few minutes!

Today we went to see Chambord, one of the highlights to our Loire Valley visit. It was built by some king ( I can never remember) as a hunting lodge. It was 440 rooms and very opulent from the outside.  He must have had a lot of hunting buddies!

We walked the roof which was the most amazing part since you could see other areas of the castle.

In France, like most of Europe there is a decent amount of rain all year which is why it's it so green. It has been cloudy with occasional rain and in the 70's. But, when it rains, it really rains! Our first time getting caught in it, but we dove under a roof with lots of other people.

This was a downpour that lasted maybe 10 minutes, and look what it left behind!

There was a little market outside the castle where they sold cheese, fruit, etc. we bought the France version of pepperoni stick - or beef stick, you know those things you can buy at the gas station. But, here in France everything is so fresh!

Next we traveled to the town of Blois. It is a cute old town with a less impressive Chataux, but amazing views of the city.

Our host, Beatrice, is knowledgable in food and recommended another restaurant for us tonight. It is a shame I didn't ask her before we arrived because last night she finally found availability at her fourth phone call. At least today we asked her in the morning to find us a place, but I'd imagine a Sunday there will be fewer choices. She made a reservation at 8:00 at a place in the country, when I say country, I mean country! It was out in the middle of nowhere. It was only 15 minutes from our B & B, but the nearest village was two streets long and we drove back and forth trying to find it. There are no street addresses, just a village name and zip code. I have no idea how they address mail. Our GPS could get us to the town, but that was it. We couldn't even find a person to ask. Finally we found a sign that led us there, way out from the village itself.

We arrived 10 min late and we have been told French don't want you to arrive early, or late- better be right on time. But, they took us still.

OMG! This is the best meal we have ever had! We opted for the four course meal and everything was fabulous!  Again, Paige and I had wine, which she loved. I think she is becoming a lush!

It was just about 11:30 before we got home...ah, what a day!