An expensive weekend to Blois

Amy, Cody and I took a trip to Blois this weekend (it's in the Loire Valley). We got on a train Friday afternoon and had to switch trains in Paris. That gave us a lovely opportunity to figure out the metro system (although we later discovered that there's a bridge that you can go across; a much cheaper alternative). We arrived in Blois at 12:30am and took a taxi to our hotel, but the reception desk had closed at 11 so we couldn't get in. We weren't really sure what to do...sleep near the hotel or try to find another place. We hadn't realized that Blois was so large and our hotel was on the outskirts of town so there weren't a lot of available options. Luckily there was a guy closing up his restaurant next door and he suggested we go a few blocks away to another (more expensive) hotel. So we got a room there and went to sleep.

We woke up on Saturday morning and checked out of the hotel. Then we walked back to our other hotel (the Tour Hotel) and checked in there. The reception desk person was VERY nice and didn't charge us for the room. After dropping off our things we got a taxi (very expensive because he went to the wrong hotel and charged us for it) and headed to the tourism office. We got some information about a few different chateaux and bought tickets to see 3 of them. Then it was time for breakfast. We walked through the labyrinth that is Blois and found a boulangerie (bakery). It didn't have tables but there was a nice bench next to it. We bought our baguettes and coffee and enjoyed watching the French (who always provide a lot of entertainment).

After a while it was time to take the bus to Cheverny. After finding it, we walked around a little bit confused about what we should do. We had read about the hunting dogs that were supposed to be hunting on Saturday so we were hoping to see that. Instead we saw a man roll a HUGE wheelbarrow of dog food and raw meat into the dog kennels and then the dogs were released. It was so cool, although the housing seemed very inhumane. Then we toured the house and tried to learn more about French history and culture. We were trying to figure out what else to do when we saw a sign for a boat tour. So we paid for that and jumped right on. It was really cool to see all the trees. In Cannes they have a lot of palms and other tropical plants but in Cheverny they have deciduous trees (pines, birches, etc). After that we decided to call the taxi to come pick us up (because there was no return bus, another large cost).

When we got back to Blois we started looking for a good place to have dinner. We really wanted to do something authentic to the region and there are some really good menus (3 courses offered for one price) that are fairly inexpensive. Amy and Cody decided that I hadn't had enough practice with my French so it was my job to try and make reservations. That was an experience; one lady didn't like me and kept correcting my French, another guy was full and the third place had food that we normally eat in the cafeteria at the college. Finally I was able to get us a table in the smoking section of one restaurant (I didn't realize that there was a no smoking section because everywhere we go there are people smoking).

We had some time to kill before dinner so we headed out to tour a few churches. Then we decided to get beers because we'd had a long day. After that it was time for dinner. It was the most amazing dinner (and also the most expensive). We started with bread, fish pate, and aperitifs (I had kir, white wine with black currant syrup). Then for my entree I had mushrooms and escargot in a garlic butter sauce (delicious). My plat was duck with fried potatoes and for dessert I had a regional specialty, tarte tatin (like apple pie). We also got a bottle of wine to go with the meal (a red from Cheverny). When we finished dinner we were still having a good time talking and hanging out so we got another bottle of wine and a plate of cheese. All in all for 3 people to eat 4 courses we spent 115€! Well worth it in my opinion. We had the restaurant people call us a taxi and then we went to bed.

Sunday morning we woke up and took a taxi to church. After church we struggled to find a place to get breakfast and we ended up back at the same boulangerie. When we were finished we toured the Chateau de Blois, which was very over patterned, but it was built in 4 different architectural styles. We learned a little more about the history of France while we were there. Then we headed over to the train station to catch the bus to Chambord. This was an amazing chateau. There is a double helix staircase in the middle of the building so Amy took one and I took the other and we took pictures of each other through the openings. We learned a lot more about the history of France while we were there. We also took a ton of pictures, especially of the fall landscape. When we were done touring the inside we went into the gardens and enjoyed our afternoon croissants near some gorgeous changing trees. Then we caught the bus back to Blois.

We got on the train to Paris and arrived in Paris around 8 Sunday night. We had some time to kill so we ate our leftover baguette and croissants for dinner (which is why we could afford to pay so much for dinner...we only ate baguettes otherwise). We had a sleeper train on the way from Paris to Cannes which was really nice because we were able to get real sleep. Although there was a slightly creepy guy who kept looking at me. We got to Cannes at 7:30 Monday morning and headed back to the college for class.

It's so much fun to do those weekend trips although I probably won't do any for awhile until I decide what I'm going to be doing after the semester. At this point I'm hoping to spend a few days in Italy, but we'll have to see if I can afford it and if I can go with other people. Either way this has been an amazing experience and I'm so glad that I've been able to do everything I've wanted.