Licking windows, troglydytes, and doo-ta-doo

window shopping
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Friday, September14:

I wake up around 10am. I make my own coffee and drink it while sitting on my balcony overlooking the square. I have a shower with lots of hot water and great water pressure. The sun is out. Life is good.

guess who I ended up sitting next to? Frankie and Joanne from NOO Joisey

The tourist information center sits between Rue Charles De Gaulle and the banks of the Loire. The girl behind the counter says this is the best weather they have had all summer, it rained all of july and August. I am so lucky that way....either I arrive for the good weather or I bring it with me! Either way, I am happy. I have slept through the friday market, which is also along the river, but I have Sunday to look forward to. I walk around town to get my bearings, up and down the narrow little streets, dodging tiny cars, motorcycles and baby strollers.

more window licking
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Rue de Nationale is right around the corner from my apartment, lined with shops, boulangeries (delis), patisseries (bakeries), cafes and hotels.  I find a small handbag and luggage shop, and buy a backpack to replace the one I gave away. Otherwise, I window shop, "faire du leche vitrine", which is translated as "I lick the windows"! Observation: french women wear great shoes. OK, so I lick some windows and make my way over to the Chateau D'Amboise. Castles are so cool!

This castle was originally a fortification, and it rises up out of smooth limestone. It was built in about 503 (yeah, like where were YOU in 503!), and there are rooms and tunnels carved into the soft stone. Houses are built right up to and against the limestone base, and there are wine caves and houses carved into it, as well. In fact, there are whole cities of "trogolydytes" built in the limestone in the Loire Valley. I always thought of the word "trogolydyte" as being similar to "troll" or some other derogatory term, but fictional, you know? People have houses here, like hobbits, with doors and chimneys in the stone, and little address number plates, like it is perfectly normal to live in a cave with a porch.

the inside of the palace cathedral where Leonardo is supposedly buried
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So, as castles go, this is not the most ornate palace, but it was a favorite royal residence. My mom always said our family was descended from Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, and SHE was married to Francoise I and spent alot of time here. It's hard for Americans to understand the european aristocracy, because the rulers of France were not just from "France" as we know it...they were from Flanders, England, Scotland...And everyone was trying to make an alliance by marrying off their daughters, from different countries AND different religions. From 1337-1453 , the "hundred year war" was really about religion, and that's why most castles before that time are just fortresses. But in the late 1400's the Royals returned from hanging out in Italy, where sumptuousness, ostentation and culture were what royal power was all about, and that's when the fancy castles of France started being built. Chambord, Chenonceau, Valencay...They were totally meant to dazzle europe, be over the top, and tax the peasants to death. Oops, got a little side tracked by history!

the palace cathedral
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The Chateau D'Amboise sits high on a promontory overlooking the Loire. You could see an enemy coming for miles. But it was also a hunting lodge, royal residence, and had many guests. One of the round towers had a spiraling ramp so horse drawn carriages could pull the people up to the top and unload them into the gardens, no walking! Francoise I talked Leonardo Da Vinci into coming here to help build a canal and make additions to the castle. The man was a genius, more than just an artist as we know him. More on that tomorrow, when I visit his house, Clos luce (house of light). It's said he is buried in the chapel on the castle grounds, and there's a grave there,  but the rumor is, nobody really knows where his body is. (he's probably partying with Elvis).

the bridge over the loire
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I finished my evening at a bistro across the street. I had escargot, so mild I could dip my bread in the leftover butter, a green salad with warm toasts and melted goat cheese, and a tiny leg of duck (ramboulette) that was so tender it fell off the bone, served on a bed of potatoes and ham/bacon. Absolutely delicious. And guess who I ended up sitting next to? Frankie and Joanne from NOO Joisey. Well, she was the only woman in the restaurant who outlined her lips in brown. They were nice, but had a few things to complain about, and then had everyone laughing at their version of "toute a l'heure" (see you later) which they claimed sounded like someone singing to them, and eventually came out as "Doo-Ta-Doo" in a high pitched voice...I tried to ignore the fact that Joanne was on her cell phone during most of the conversation. I wish I had pretended I didn't speak English! I went for a walk, and slept with all my windows flung open.