Candes Saint-Martin, my favourite spot in La Touraine.

Thursday 26 September 2013

Village scenes

By half past eleven we were back at the car, after exploring the Pile and the plateau on which it stands. Next on our to-see list was the Château de Cinq-Mars. Over the years I had often seen its name on the Michelin map, but the castle itself is well hidden behind a tree-covered slope. If you drive slowly and know where to look, you can just make out the top of the two donjon-like towers. 

We drove the five or so kilometres that separate the Pile from the village and the castle. The parking lot in front of the castle's gate isn't very big ... and yet it was very empty. I glanced at my watch and saw that it was almost noon. Having made luncheon reservations for 1 p.m. in a restaurant in Luynes called 'Le XII', we decided it would be better to have a drink and lunch first, and come back in the afternoon. That way we wouldn't have to rush through the visit.

Driving into Luynes from the main road, J.L. stopped to shoot a photo of the castle. However, due to the angle and the trees lining the road, it was impossible to get a good shot without being run over by the passing traffic. So after a while, he gave up and we drove into the village where he parked the car at the foot of the castle at a spot offering this view.

Not the best view, but nice enough to post it here, after some photo-shopping,
 removing a satellite dish and several electric wires.

We then roamed the streets of Luynes, looking for a sunny sidewalk terrace to have our aperitif. We found one in a pedestrian street, right across the village medieval market hall. Unfortunately the 'Hall' was being restored and not worth a picture. After a very long wait, I decided to go inside to order our drinks a the bar. The place was very busy with three scores of people waiting to be served their three course lunch at 12.50 euro p.p. 


A 'maison à colombages' in Luynes.

The young waitress was obviously very stressed and not very willing to serve us. When I asked for three glasses of white wine, she sneered: "Later, I'm busy now." I returned to my friends on the terrace and told them what had happened. We decided to wait for another 5 minutes after which we would leave. Just when we were about to get up another, slightly older woman came out to take our order. I told her that I had already given it to the young woman behind the bar. She had obviously witnessed the scene at the bar and apologized for the long wait. A few seconds later she came back carrying our wine and a small dish of peanuts. 

Luynes' village hall.


A flower shop. 


Why does anyone put a shark over his door?
Unless this used to be the house of a fish monger.


We watched the village life while savouring our drinks and munching some nuts. Half an hour later we were at the restaurant, having a hard time deciding what to order as everything looked delicious ... Can you feel another food post coming up?

5 comments:

The Broad said...

Martine, my tummy is rumbling!;-) Charming pictures and I'm looking forward to reading about the food and the castle...

Carolyn said...

Nice photos. I'm ready for lunch now.

Niall & Antoinette said...

love the half timbered & brick house. Looking forward to your lunch post... :-)

VirginiaC said...

I have no idea why someone would have a shark above their doorway except for decoration, but I love it.
Looking forward to the food post.

ladybird said...

Kathy, The food photos and the castle of Cinq-Mars will have to wait for a while :)

Carolyn, First another post to work up your appetite.

N&A, The house was really beautiful. It occupied a prominent place near the village's main cross-roads.

Virginia, The shark was 'cute', especially as one could tell that it was handmade by a handy craftsman.