France Day 6

We're on our way to Bourges!

Today started with a bus ride, which, as it turns out, makes me car sick too. Thank you Dramamine! In all reality though, our bus was very comfortable and our driver, Annie, was great. Her husband, Matt, traveled with us as well. Nick and I took over the back of the bus and that became our unofficial seat for the rest of the tour. (We ignored Arnaud's rule to move around the bus and sit in different seats to enjoy different views. The back of the bus was nice and quiet!)

We drove about four hours to a work-in-progress castle called Guédelon. Guédelon is a 13th century Phillips style castle that is being built by modern people using 13th century materials and techniques. It was started in 1997 and is slated to be finished by 2025.

Other than a bit of mud from some rain earlier in the day, this was a great experience. Our guide, Sarah, was so informative and amazing. She's English and the new accent was a welcome change.

We learned about the rope maker, who we got to watch weaving rope with a twisting machine. She also talked about the quarry men, the blacksmith, the carpenters, and the stone workers. Seeing them in action, and in partial period clothes, really brings it home as to how much time and effort it took to build these castles and chateaus.

It is also a far cry from luxury on the inside with dirt and rough wood floors. Here is the kitchen of castle:

I admire these workers so much for taking on this project. It seems like a very interesting, rewarding, and fulfilling job. There were quite a few buses of school kids who had come to learn about Guédelon and they were as excited as we ended up. Truthfully, I didn't think we were going to love this part of the trip, but it was one that stuck with both Nick and me and we're excited to go back one day when it's finished. Although, watching the stonemasons work a block of stone was one of the best parts. We just learned so much here, and all of it translated into other architectural details we saw throughout the trip. For example, here is a groin vault, used to hold the incredible weight of all those stones:

We had lunch at the castle, which consisted of baguettes with tuna, lettuce, and hard boiled eggs. Dessert was chocolate and coffee eclairs, which were little pieces of pastry heaven. Then we walked around the interior of the partially-completed castle. This is a medieval window seat:

And here's what happens to you when you make your wife angry!

When we got back on the bus, we started out for Bourges. We made a few stops along the way, but spent much of the bus ride enjoying the French countryside. I am so glad we opted to do Paris and the heart of France instead of just staying in Paris. The countryside was so beautiful and was an experience in and of itself. Imagine being able to live in a 300-year-old home in France! They are everywhere and so beautiful. You won't see a quadrant style home in France, let me tell you! Another beautiful sight in the French countryside: grapes!

Bourges
Bourges is a medieval city full of over 300 half-timbered houses that date back over 500 years. Joan of Arc spent time here, along with the Dauphin of the time, who eventually took the French throne with Joan's help. Before the French inhabited the town, there were Romans here and large chunks of their walls are still visible and in use in the town today. You can tell a Roman wall by the 3 rows of red brick at or near the bottom of the wall.

We went on a tour of Bourges with a tour guide who was originally from America (she met and married a Frenchman when she was in college and never left). Here is the town center in Bourges:

She pointed out some interesting places from a historical standpoint, such as the rock Calvin stood on to proclaim his views-very significant to Protestants:

The flutes carved in the the side of one of the stores on Rue de Joyous indicated that the place used to be a brothel:

The tour took about one and a half hours and ended at St. Etienne's Cathedral.

Unfortunately, it was closed for the night, but our guide explained some of the stories carved into the exterior walls, including the story of Noah's Ark.

She is going to take us inside the church before we leave for Chambord tomorrow afternoon.

That was it for a guided tour, so Nick and I walked around a little bit and took a lot of pictures, then walked to the center of town to get dinner.

We had gotten a few recommendations from our guide, but most of those menus looked a little daunting, so we walked up to a restaurant owned by some of her friends by our hotel. We had dinner with Marie and Marianne, our tour buddies. And what a dinner it was! A four course meal starting with an amuse-bouche of some kind of fried goat cheese deliciousness, then came a pancake-like crepe with cream cheese, chives, and smoked salmon. Nick ate his and Marie's as well. The main course was veal brisket, potatoes, and mushrooms and dessert was vanilla brioche French toast with a raspberry glaze.

Dinner was great, but it took 2 hours (the French see meals as an experience, so there is no rush whatsoever!), so by the time we got back to the hotel, we were exhausted. It was a very long day, but I'm so happy to be out in the French countryside and in these beautiful little towns. It was the right choice to do a tour that wasn't just Paris. Bourges has been lovely, and I'm so excited to learn more about the town tomorrow.

One sad thing I journaled about at this point in our trip:
I miss my mom a lot. I'm so used to talking to her every day. The sporadic emails just aren't cutting it!

Nick's quote of the day:
"Damn you pigeons, you're everywhere!"

Arnaud's quote of the day (at Guédelon, where he used his finger to "shoot" annoying people):
"These children are everywhere. I shoot so many of them, but they keep coming."