Angles-sur-Anglin
The ruins sit on top of a bluff, with beneath it a large watermill. A weeping willow tree adds a dramatic effect to the whole scene. We couldn’t resist shooting several photos from different 'angles'.
The village is also known for ‘Les Jours d'Angles’ (openwork or appliqué embroidery). I wanted to visit the little museum displaying the techniques and some of the intricate creations. Usually my friend is a good sport when it comes to visiting castles, gardens and other unusual places, such as little soap factories, mushroom caves and wineries. This time, however, he couldn’t bring himself to go and look at ‘decorated pieces of textile’ as he disrespectfully called the openwork embroidery. In spite of my insistence, he hustled me into the car and drove straight on to our next destination, the
Chauvigny
On a hill overlooking the new town of Chauvigny, five castles and a beautiful Roman church, la Collégiale St. Pierre, will keep sightseers happy for several hours. The castles were all built and/or upgraded between the 12th and the 15th century, while the oldest parts of the church date from the first quarter of the 11th century. We only saw them from a distance, as by the time we got to Chauvigny lunch hour was almost over. Ever since the French government voted a law introducing the 35 hours working week in 1998, restaurants and shops have drastically reduced opening hours to avoid that their staff works overtime. This means that they open up for lunch from
We only just managed to get a table at
Instead of taking the motorway for our return trip, we decided on the ‘Route Départementale’ and followed the
Château de Touffou near the village of Bonnes
Angles-sur-Anglin, Chauvigny and Le Château de Touffou are sheer picture postcard material and they definitely made up for our disappointing visit to La Roche-Posay earlier that day.
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4 comments:
When in Chauvigny did you have a chance to see the "Spectacle d'oiseaux en vol libre?" Very impressive. Here is a link:
http://www.geantsduciel.com/
On your way back to the Loire Valley, I hope you didn't miss the abbey church at Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, so-called the French Sistine Chapel.
chm, I have to disappoint you on both accounts ... sorry!
I had read about the eagles but we were too late for the afternoon show and unfortunately didn't have time to wait for the next one.
Thanks for telling me about the abbey church as I didn't know about it. I'll certainly put it on our next to-to-see list. Martine
You had a very busy day !!
I will put the Château de Touffou on my must-see list. It looks wonderful.
Even though we have been visiting the Loire region for years, there is still such a lot we haven't seen yet. Then there are the places we want to go and see for a second, third or fourth time. And even then there are the places that "disappear" - châteaux and other things that are open to the public for a year or two and then are closed. We've seen a few of those.
There's just so much to do and so little time !!
Jean, My friends don't seem to understand what there is still to see after going to the same place for 11 years. If only they knew :) Martine
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