Château de Chenonceau
We spent the afternoon wandering the Chenonceau estate, which is home to one of the most famous châteaux in Loire Valley. We walked through French forests, played chase and lost ourselves in the labyrinth maze, and enjoyed the freshly blooming tulips in the rose garden while being serenaded by local songbirds. It was very relaxing on a warm spring day.
The Château de Chenonceau is a mix of late gothic and early renaissance architecture. It is the most visited château in France likely because it spans across the river Cher with stunning manicured grounds to wander. When it was first constructed in the early 1500s, they cleverly started with the existing foundation of a mill. They then added spanning across the river and other structures over the course of the next 50 years.
And, of course, French nobility Castle Drama is stewed into the recorded history of ownership and occupancy, unforgettable kisses and undying love, untimely stabbing deaths, and deliciously bitter mistresses and vengeful wives.
We were surprised by the number of people visiting alongside us emphasizing how fortunate we have been during low season to see such wonderful places without summer crowds.
So many Châteaus, so little time.
The canopied walk to the chateau. Beautiful without the leaves and imagine how gorgeous it is in spring and summer.
Caryatides next to the labyrinth.
(Caryatids are sculpted figures that serve as architectural supports, replacing traditional columns and embodying both artistic and structural elements in classical architecture. Usually female but there is a man who appears to be helping the ladies in this one. The history of the building originally supported was not shared, but the one I told myself is a juicy one.)
Across the river Cher
A gigantic kitchen fills the entire first level with dining rooms.
Every room had fresh flowers and beautiful displays. We shared this particular room with an American man who named every item on the table to a patient woman who repeated after him, “I know, I see the carrots. And the garlic…. Yes, it’s an onion…..”
Every room had different ornate ceilings, some rooms hung tapestries, all had huge fireplaces with sitting areas and unique floors
Beautiful chapel (and the smallest one we’ve seen so far)
Ornate ceilings. This individual square above a doorway was unique and not repeated … there’s a story I tell myself about it….
This holy lion under the chapel alter table is similar to but more beautiful than the seven-headed lion on the Apocalypse Tapestry. This is how Aslan looks in my head. The floral arrangement smelled heavenly.