Thursday 25th – Week 2 – more of those bloody chateaus

We seem to lack a few of the true essentials that are required for camping. Sure we have the bare essentials, but looking around, it is obvious that we are not like these people and that we are really just pretenders to the title of “a true camper”.

First comes the attitude. I always thought that camping was about “getting away from it all, roughing it a bit”, but looking around me, that is obviously not the case. Real campers go out of there way to gather around them every little gadget that makes it possible to replicate as closely as possible the comfortable life they have at home, while doing so in such a way that enables you to up sticks and move to a new location every couple of days. This involves two things and they are divided very strictly along gender lines.

For the man, it's the gadgets – sky dish, multi-burner barbeque, fishing rod, a wide range of fully collapsable table, chairs and loungers, even a collapsable clothes line for her-indoors. Which brings me on to her indoors – an englishman's home may be his castle, but his caravan is the showroom where he displays to the world, like a peacock displaying it's feathers, the domestic heaven within which he resides. And this is where the wives seem to spend an inordinate amount of time sweeping, arranging, straightening anything and everything to do with their domain. Anne and I with our “this is where I lays ma head at night and I'l be gone for a days sightseeing first thing in the morning”, just don't fit. We haven't camped in New Zealand for over 20 years, so will be interested to see what things are like in NZ when we go camping next summer.

Today's sightseeing is to what is widely considered to be THE jewel in the Loire crown – Chenonceau (the town has an 'x' on the end, the chateau doesn't).

Chenonceau also has a great history. When Charles II came to the throne, he gave it to his mistress, Diane De Poitiers, who was 20-years his senior and a widow. Diane DP dressed in black and white, as was befitting a widow in mourning and such was her persuasive powers of C2, that she convinced him to do the same, much to the despair of the rejected and humiliated queen – Catherine de Medici. When C2 was unfortunately killed in tournament, Catherine de M took over as Queen and, you got it, Diane DP was given her marching orders. Now depending on which version of the story you read, DDP (mistress) was either sent to live in another chateau, or ended up living in abject poverty for the rest of her miserable days.

Anyway, once she got her hands on it, Catherine went on an extensive renovation program, which basically got the castle up to the spec that we see it in today. The chateau is by the river Cher, and DDP (Mistress) had built an arched bridge from the Chateau to the other side. CDM (new queen) upgraded the bridge to put a massive two story gallery above the bridge.

During WWII, free France and occupied France we divided at the Cher river and Chenonceau was the conduit by which many refugees were able to escape into free France. The Chateau was under constant threat of being blown up by the Germans, because of this.

Anne and I walked around the gardens and toured through the chateau for a good couple of hours enjoying the sites and the history of the place.

A quick baguette for lunch and we were off to Chaumont Sur Loire, where DDP (mistress) was said to have been sent by CDM (new queen) after C2 got bumped off (accidentally) in a tournament. By this stage Anne and I were completely chateau'd out (we were c(s)hattered), so we wizzed round the chateau and then headed back to the campground.

There you go, I am now completely up to date. Tomorrow, we are off to Amboise, which has a chateau, but more importantly has a market which we are hoping will be a good'un and a museum to Leonardo Da Vinci who lived in the town. We are here until Sunday morning, so we think we'll hire some bikes on Saturday and go for a quiet ride up the Cher, past Chenonceau.