Memories Of France

I have visited France with my family several times in the last 8 years but we have always stayed by the coast. This year we thought we would like a change so we decided to venture into the Loire Valley. I must admit I didn’t do a lot of research before I made the booking so I opted for an area that looked easy to get too and then opted for a caravan site that looked promising. The Loire Valley is in fact separated into several departments and we were actually staying in the Anjou region, very close to Touraine, the closest large town was Saumur.

We sailed overnight to St Malo and then found we had an easy drive down to our destination of about 5 hours. Due to the fact we tow a caravan we tend to stick to the A road and pay tolls ( about 25 euro) when necessary because it makes our journey easy even if a little longer, if you are using the ordinary roads there is a very direct route.

Our first impression of the area was that it was very flat. We had decided not to take our bikes this year as we had not got around to buying new roof bars after changing our car. We were immediately disappointed as we discovered that there is a well sign-posted cycle route that runs along the Loire. It follows the river and also takes you into the towns and other places of interest. The route follows quiet roads (although we tend to find all the roads are quiet compared to England!) and off-road cycleways. Maps of the route are available at the local Office du Tourisme and the route is also shown on the ordinary road maps that we had. We did plan on hiring some bikes but to be honest when we were there the weather was so hot that I didn’t have the energy!

Wherever we drove we noticed signs for the Wine Route (Route Touristique du Vignoble). This directs people through the vineyards of the area and also to local producers and small wine specialists. I know a lot of people visit the area for its wine but as a virtual tee-totalled I am not very interested. However the views of the vineyards were delightful and there were certainly a lot of places to visit if that is something you are keen on, unfortunately I do not know very much!

Although we had never expected to find an inland holiday as restful as a beach resort we were wrong. The area is so beautiful and tranquil that it has now become our favourite french holiday spot and hopefully we will be returning very soon. Perhaps next time it wont be so hot and we can try out the cycle routes and see even more of the lovely Loire!

This Abbey is situated quite close to Saumur. It is easy to find place to park in Fontevraud but we did find it a little tricky to actually find the Abbey! The signs are not very useful and we realised that we were not the only people wondering aimlessly up the High street when actually you needed to head down the hill slightly. The entrance area is all newly built and guided tours are sometimes avavilable in English but there is a good English information sheet available.

Once you spot the Abbey you can not believe you didn’t notice it before as it looms very obviously over the shops in the small town. The building was an Abbey from about 1100 until 1792, in 1804 it became a state prison and remained so until 1963, it is currently being restored but the work is very unobtrusive. It is possible to see where doors were cut into the walls of the chapel high up as several floors were built in when it was used as a prison. These floors have now been removed and the doors blocked up. Unfortunately some of the windows were also damaged by the insertion of the floors.

Fifteen members of the family of Henry II are buried here and there are impressive painted effigies of four of them. The site is huge with delightful cloisters, a very unusual Romanesque smokehouse and wall paintings from the 16th century. A lot of work was done by two very wealthy nuns in the 16th century who have their initials everywhere and even had themselves painted into the pictures of the last supper and the crucifixion etc. Obviously I think they were on a bit of an ego trip! My husband is very interested in history so was fascintaed to find that this is the resting place of Eleanor of Aquitaine.

The Abbey has small grounds that are a pleasure to walk around and afford some lovely photo opportunities of the Abbey from a higher vantage point. Overall this was a lovely place to visit and even my children (aged 12 and 15) found it quite interesting and didn’t moan at all!

I was brought up in a household that loved cycling and every year we avidly watched the Tour de France on the television (once it started to be shown on Channel 4). I spent my 20s lusting after Miguel Indurain who had the best legs I had ever seen. I could not believe my luck when a few years ago I found that we were visiting France at the same time as the tour was on and it would be in an area not far from where we were staying.

Le Tour runs for three weeks and is possibly the most gruelling race in the world and the cyclists are amazing. We checked where the tour would be and made a point of planning it into our holiday. If ever you are around where the tour will be, even if you are not a cycling fan, then it is still worth seeing as it is an amazing spectacle but you will have to plan ahead.

Using a local road map have a good look for an accessible place to view. If you can view on the upward part of a hill then you get to see the cyclists for longer. If you stand near a corner it can be exciting but there is a danger of crashes so ensure you don’t stand in the firing line as you can get injured. Long straight roads give you a great feeling of speed so really the choice is yours.

Once you have chosen your spot plan to arrive very early. The roads in the area can be closed four hours before the Tour is due to arrive so you will have to make sure that your route will not cross the Tour routes or you may not be able to go the way you have planned.

Take plenty of food and drink with you and folding chairs are also a good idea. You will be able to "stake out" your plot and people seem less inclined to encroach on your space if you have seats and they don’t tend to stand in front of you either. It is worth taking a book or magazine to pass the time and children will need something to keep them occupied.

You will soon find that you are surrounded by cycling fans and it is great to chat and meet people from literally all over the globe. We ended up chatting to a French journalist and had our photograph in the online account of the day.

About an hour before the race is due to arrive you will see Le Caravan. This is the parade of all the sponsors vehicles of the Tour. There are giant Lions and Cows, people throwing sweets and momentos of the day and all sorts of sponsors items. The atmosphere is brilliant and there is lots of cheering and music. The caravan can take 20 minutes or so to go past and then there is a real buzz of excitement as everyone waits for the race. A radio announcement is broadcast by one of the leading cars to let everyone know what is happening.

Before you know it the race is approaching. We watched it on a sunny day and the bright colours of the team shirts seemed to glow as they whizzed past us. The noise of over one hundred bikes en masse was staggering and the cheering from the crowd was deafening. As soon as the race has passed there is a collective sigh as everyone felt like they had been holding their breath!

We have now been lucky enough to see le Tour twice in England as well and my ambition is to get to a mountain stage but for those you really need to be prepared to camp out on your spot for several days.

If you ever get the chance to see the tour then, with the cry of the seasoned cycling fan, Allez,Allez Allez!

We have travelled to France several times and we had heard about The Grand Parc at Puy du Fou but it is billed as a Medieval Theme Park and it really didn't appeal to me! However having "done" many of the attractions in the area and faced with another day of dodgy weather we decided to give it a go.

The tickets were about 25 euro for adults and 15 for children. However when I enquired about directions at our campsite office they told me that we could buy tickets from them with a 5 euro discount each. This seems to be common practice in the area so either book online or through your accommodation if possible to bag a bargain! They also informed me that it was a simple journey and would be well signposted off the A87. They mentioned that the road to The Grand Parc gets busy--they were not kidding! The journey from Jean De Monts probably took about one and a half hours with at least the last half an hour crawling along a single carriageway road to the entrance.

The car park on arrival was huge and was free. There appeared to be disabled spaces closer to the gates. At this point I will say that my French is not very impressive but it is better than the rest of my family (my children both study German at school). I failed my O-level over 20 years ago and have done a couple of night school classes since. However I have always managed to read written French reasonably easily. Due to these limitations on our language skills I was a bit worried about how the day would work out.

When we arrived we were given a map of the park which had lots of information in English. We immediately headed to the customer service point as I read that they had Interpretation Headphone available. We purchased two sets with double earphones. These proved invaluable during the day, I was able to follow most of the shows (sometimes a little vaguely!) without them as I am not a fan of earphones but everybody else loved them. When you got to a show you chose your language and it was a radio to get your translation of the action.

The park is built on a huge scale and it is very difficult to explain the impressiveness or the splendor of the shows. I have been to Disneyland several times but the shows here were much more awe-inspiring. It is important after you arrive to plan your day. Each spectacle runs several times a day but they are quite long- about 40minutes or so. It is not possible to see them all in one day unless you are supremely organized and have great stamina. I believe the park sells two day tickets as well if you want to take it more slowly. There is a hotel on site.

The park is set amidst a tranquil woodland setting. There are various "walk-around" historical settings which have buildings, shops and craftsmen working. There are many people around dressed in appropriate clothing and each area is very atmospheric. There was a Medieval City, an 18th century village and also a Market Town of around 1900. There are various restaurants and snack areas dotted around these sites. We bought some drinks which seemed a reasonable price and we also took our own picnic. There were plenty of picnic areas. There were toilets throughout the park but I was informed by my son that some of the urinals were pretty much on public display so you have been warned!

Now we come on to the "Spectacles" as they are called. You needed to queue up to get a seat on the day we were there but it was the height of the season so I don't know if that is always necessary as the seating areas are very large.

----Gladiators-----

My favorite was definitely the Gladiators. This takes place in an enormous rebuild of the coliseum. There are lots of fight scenes with plenty of "blood-bags" so is quite gory. They even have tigers that come out but I think they are so well fed they just want to lie down and watch the action! The finale is a fantastic chariot race with bits of chariot flying off whilst we are all cheering for our hero. Of course good triumphs over evil (not quite like the real Romans then!) but it is still very exciting to watch. When you take your seat be careful not to sit on those marked restrictive viewing (sorry - can't remember what that was in French but I'm sure it was something obvious), I think for some parts there would be no view at all from these ones.

----Vikings----
The setting for the Viking spectacular has a large tower with a lake in front. The action involves lots and lots of fire and Viking longboats. The final scene involves people being underwater for a long time-very impressive. I found the story to this one a bit dull but the effects were very good.

---Birds of Prey----
I am not usually that taken with bird displays. I think I have just seen too many and find them dull. I found this one a bit contrived but it was impressive for the sheer number of birds that they have flying. Many of the handlers are walking around the audience so the birds brush past your hair regularly which is quite exciting! The story did seem to go on but I was having trouble following it (should have used the earphones!) so that is probably why. Everyone else thought it was very good.

----Richelius Musketeer----
We chose this as our last show as it was indoors in quite an impressive looking theatre. I thought there would be lots of swash-buckling type action which my son would enjoy but we were wrong. I had to resort to the translator here as I could not make head nor tale of what was going on! There was little fighting but there was fantastic horse-riding. The stage was flooded with water and the combination of the horses and the light effects was absolutely stunning!

We were not able to see The Battle of the Keep as we ran out of time. Also the park is very famous for Cinescenie which is their Son et Lumiere, this involves lots of local residents. It was not showing on the day we visited but I think it adds about 15 Euros onto the ticket price. It would be very tiring after a day at the park and may be better seen on its own. The seating areas of most of the shows are quite exposed and lots of sun cream is recommended. The photographic opportunities are countless so take an extra memory card or roll of film for your camera!

Overall I was very impressed with this park. The children thoroughly enjoyed it and learnt a little history along the way. Obviously the historical facts are certainly bent a little in the French favor but that would be the same in any country!

The town of Azay-le Rideau is small and the chateau is well-sign-posted for the visitor. There is free parking available and then it is just a short walk to the chateau. The original gateway is just to the right of the official entrance so it is possible to peek through the wrought iron gates to see the chateau as the visitors in the 1500s would have first seen it. Children are admitted free with paying adults and audio-guides in several languages were available to hire very cheaply (1euro each).

The chateau was commissioned by Gilles Berthelot in 1515 and took about 12 years to complete. There was originally a small fortification on the site but he used his wife’s inheritance to add an impressive structure on the site to produce one of the first Renaissance Chateau. Gilles was an employee of King Francois I and decorated the chateau with the salamander emblem to encourage favour with the king, this was unsuccessful and in 1528 Gilles was accused of embezzlement and the chateau was seized by the crown, Gilles had to flee.

Azay-le-Rideau is situated on the River Indre. The chateau is not as large or as ostentatious as some others in the area. The approach is across a small bridge where the full beauty of the building can be appreciated. The architecture is typical of the renaissance period; there is a decorated facade of local limestone and a traditional grey slate roof. The chateau has pretty suspended turrets and an impressive number of windows and dormers.

The most impressive part of the chateau is the central staircase. The wide stone stairs were built at the front of the building with large openings giving expansive views over the surrounding town. It is possible to stand on the landings and look down the driveway to the meandering streets and then the beautiful Loire countryside beyond. The staircase, visible from the outside gives the chateau a distinctive look.

The chateau sits on a small island in the river which produces the most magnificent reflections of the chateau. The rear of the building can be viewed from the "English Garden" which was designed with many Cypress and Sequoia trees. There are meandering walks through the grounds. Photographic opportunities are plentiful and the calm water allows the capture of reflected turrets which are most pleasing.

The interior of the chateau is quite sparse although the rooms are impressive in sixe. The grand hall is lined with magnificent tapestries. There is a small amount of furniture but there is a genuine lack of period furniture as lots was destroyed during the revolution of the early 1800s. There are several attractive stained glass windows. In the kitchen area it is possible to see the original floor and appreciate how the newer parts were built around it.

During our visit there was an exhibition in several of the rooms relating to a French ballet, we found this hard to follow but it didn’t detract from the enjoyment.

The chateau is now controlled by the Centre des Monuments Nationaux and the internal refurbishment is continuing.

Although this is a small chateau its unusual appearance and delightful setting make it a perfect place to spend an afternoon. After battling through the gift shop it is worth having a walk through the charming town.

Saumur is an impressive traditional town set on the banks of the Loire river.The toursit information centre is located near the river and there is plenty of free parking down by the river banks. Maps are available from the office with markes routes for walking. It is possible to take river cruises from Saumur but we did not get to try those.

The chateau is set above the old quarter and can be seen from a fair distance away. This part of the town offers the chance for a charming walk with many interesting buildings. There are some timbered properties that date back to the 15th century which reminded me very much of the market town I live in. However most of the property had a more traditional French look. Most of the roofs were of grey slate with small shuttered windows. The streets were narrow and shady with little alleys dotted around crying out for exploration.

The town is mainly closed on a Monday which we did not realise when we went to visit. This meant that really only the very main part of the High Street was open. However we found there were many small shops and cafes down the side streets that would certainly provide some interesting shopping (must return one day when it is open!).

The walk through the old town up to the chateau is steep so I suggest you take a drink of water as there was nowhere obvious to buy any refreshment (but it was Monday). Around the chateau there is a little vineyard. The view from the top, along the river to the bridges was very pretty. We didn’t venture in the Chateau as there is only so much history we can inflict on our children before we start to suffer a backlash!

We have been taking a touring caravan to France for several years and we have to travel during the school holidays. This has led us to some very busy and noisy sites in the past so I always feel more than a little apprehensive when I book a new site.
This trip saw us opt for Camping l’Etang de la Breche near Saumur in the Loire Valley. The site is part of the Les Castels chain. Things did not start well when we had difficulty finding the campsite. The directions that we had been given by the agency we booked with were incorrect and if we hadn’t happened to have seen a small sign we would have started the holiday trying to reverse our caravan back up a very narrow road.

As we turned into the site we were greeted with the most gorgeous display of flowers all over the walls which added a picturesque air. I ventured into reception to find that it was empty with a small note saying they would be back soon. Considering we had arrived at the correct time to check in and we had already been driving for 5 hours I was not too impressed. Eventually someone arrived to deal with quite a large queue that had formed. The campsite does say that English is spoken at reception. I did find the English was quite weak, not dissimilar to my level of French so we managed in a combination of both to sort out the booking and get our pitch allocation.

The pitch we were given was on the very edge of the site and was very large. It was, however, lacking in grass as there had obviously been a lot of usage that season and the earth was bare. Luckily we had nice weather during our stay but if it had rained I imagine it would have been muddy very quickly. Large trees gave much needed shade and a nice degree of privacy without making us feel cut-off from the world.

The toilets and showers on our side of the campsite were unisex. I have never come across this before at a campsite. The blocks on the other side of the site were male and female. The toilet blocks, showers and dish-washing areas were kept exceptionally clean at all times and they were never particularly busy although the site was full when we visited.

The site has a small shop selling groceries, fresh croissants, bread and gift items. This seemed reasonably priced although we used a supermarket near Saumur to stock up on other essentials.
The site has a restaurant which did have an exceedingly good reputation and we were looking forward to a special meal. Unfortunately the chef had recently left so the standard was nothing special but perfectly acceptable. There is seating inside and out but if you want an outside table you must pre-book it. We didn’t know this so were disappointed when we arrived on my daughters birthday and found that there were no tables available. The takeaway menu is exactly the same as the restaurant menu so we ordered from that (several euro cheaper) and sat at the tables outside the bar and enjoyed our meal there instead!

There is a small bar which also houses the ice-cream kiosk and there is internet access outside.

The swimming pool area is lovely. There is a good-sized outside pool, another pool with a retractable roof and then a smaller pool with various slides going into it. There are a large number of sun beds around the pool and some are set behind a plastic screen. I liked that idea as you didn’t keep getting splashed if you just wanted to relax and read a book whilst the children were swimming. There are no life guards so if you or your family are not confident in the water you may wish to take extra care. My children loved the slides and spent many hours there. Occasionally it got a bit rowdy with older teenagers taking over the slide area but generally there was a nice friendly atmosphere.

The site is medium sized with a fishing lake, tennis courts and a BMX track. The children hired Go-Carts and it was also possible to hire bikes. We enjoyed walking around the site in the evening as there was always lots of wildlife to spot. We even saw a red squirrel one night which fascinated me as I had never seen one in the wild before. The children loved spotting the ducklings and a water-creature that I have not found out the name of yet!

Evenings were fairly quiet on the campsite which suits us perfectly. I hate disco music pumping out when I am trying to relax. Some evenings the campsite organised entertainment but this usually finished between 9 and 10. The acts were very unusual and one night we watched men playing music on dustbins and sinks but it was surprisingly good!

The location of the site was perfect, it was in a very attractive area with good access to lots of attractions and the general Loire valley beauty.

Even in the height of the summer this was a lovely site to be on, most of the pitches were a good size (although avoid row L if possible-very cramped) and the atmosphere was calm and relaxing. Certainly somewhere we would return to.