Silversea Water Cooler: Welcome! Part Five

[Grand Duchess]

7 hours ago, jpalbny said:

 

Wow. Those châteaux are so old, they have moss that's older than me!

Did you try out the staircase in Chambord? Fascinating, especially for people like me with hazy concept of 3 dimensions. My husband had a lot of fun explaining how it works, been there twice and this was his favourite Loire castle.

[drron29]

[jpalbny]

Saturday morning, December 23rd. 

 

We were stuffed from dinner so we just had a coffee in the room. We headed out, stopping here to view this statue of a lady engrossed by her cell phone.

 

 

Then we walked to Clos Lucé. Some pretty half-timbered buildings in Amboise. This restaurant looked really nice and had been our first choice for last night, but sadly it's closed for the season. 

 

 

We arrived at 9 but the door to the Château was locked. The staff arrived right behind us and opened up.

 

The Château sits slightly uphill from Amboise. Its claim to fame was that Leonardo DaVinci spent his final years here. So, there were many exhibits about him. Some workshops, etc.

 

 

 

The dining room, decorated for Christmas. 

 

 

Now the gardens. Lots more about Leonardo here.

 

 

The Château, from the gardens. 

 

 

We walked back into town for more old buildings. 

 

 

Then we went to Château d"Amboise. Nice view from the balcony.

 

 

And a painting of the death of DaVinci. His tomb is here, but the chapel is undergoing extensive renovations so you can't go in.

 

 

These châteaux are so pretty. And nicely situated. 

 

 

The gardens. Wish I had time to trim my hedges so precisely!

 

 

Chris found another sleigh to pose with. 

 

 

Now we were hungry. So, more crêpes for lunch!

 

 

Back to the hotel to plan this afternoon's activity. 

[highplanesdrifters]

20 hours ago, jpalbny said:

Our first stop was Château de Chambord.

What a fabulous jaunt!

 

Crepes everyday, yes please!

Edited December 30, 2023 by highplanesdrifters

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, highplanesdrifters said:

What a fabulous jaunt!

 

Crepes everyday, yes please!

I’m not really big on savoury crepes, but on cycling trips in France  I have had many an afternoon snack of a chocolate banana crepe. None of the nutella stuff that frequently gets served here, but real chocolate. Yummy

[jpalbny]

Saturday afternoon. 

 

After lunch we took a quick drive to Château de Chenonceau. It was less that 20 minutes. A nice approach! 

 

 

 

 

Beautiful interior. What a ballroom!

 

 

Louis XIV left his mark. I guess the recipients of this lovely "gift" were obligated to display it, whether they liked it or not? 

 

 

Loving the Christmas decorations. 

 

 

We walked in the gardens for a bit.

 

 

This castle was originally built at the water's edge, over the foundation of a mill. Then it was expanded completely across the river. Very unique. 

 

 

 

This would male a lovely wine cellar, but it was only the apothecary. 

 

 

Another Château, and another hedge labyrinth. This one was easy. Here's Chris proclaiming victory at the center of the labyrinth. 

 

 

Back to Amboise, where we did the completely atypical thing and went shopping for souvenirs, and a few gifts too. Then dinner at Lion d'Or. 

 

Starters were spaghetti squash topped with shrimp, and a scallop ceviche. 

 

 

 

For the main we both had veal medallions. 

 

 

And a chocolate dessert. Of course! 

 

 

Delicious food, but the restaurant was more than half empty. A shame!

 

Off to sleep. Tomorrow, Chartres. 

[highplanesdrifters]

39 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

This would male a lovely wine cellar, but it was only the apothecary

 

I thought they were the same thing.

[Host Jazzbeau]

6 hours ago, jpalbny said:

Lots more about Leonardo here.

 

A definite improvement!  

[QueSeraSera]

Love this spot, because of all of you.  Glad to see @Daveywavey70 is back.  Please don't close the door but feeling quite complete & happy heading into 2024.  Wine cellar is behind the apothecary if I remember right.  The pictures from France are a delight JP!

[Lirio]

Today we visit 2 out of 3 caves from the Cave Route. It was almost 10 years from last visit. An I always love it.

These caves have organized tracks and one can only visit in guided tours, no one is allowed to go inside the cave independently.

Before you go the cave there is an exhibition of replicas of cave painting from several caves alongside the route in Minas Gerais state.

 

 

 

1st cave – Rei do Mato (King of the forest). Narrow entrance leads to wide halls.

 

 

 

 

 

2nd – Lapinha – Wide entrance leads to narrow path but very high (number 10)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jpalbny]

Beautiful cave pictures @Lirio! Would love to visit some day!

[Host Jazzbeau]

Very delicate stalactites, like lace.  Beautiful!

[drron29]

We are on our last flight for the year on a cheap business class fare on Japan Airlines. The business class line was quite long at Haneda. A JAL employee pulled us and another couple out of the line and took us to the first class check in which was empty. Thought nothing more about it even though our boarding passes were for Row 2 and given a lounge pass for the first class lounge as many of their Asian flights don’t have a first class.

But on boarding we found we were in first class. Enjoyed a glass of Salon 2013 pre departure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lincslady]

I am in a whirl - just been to the Loire, Brazil and on a Japanese plane eating great food, after spending time with chinstrap penguins.  I am not too sure if I am actually awake - loving it.  Thank you everyone.

 

Lola

[drron29]

[highplanesdrifters]

13 hours ago, Lirio said:

Today we visit 2 out of 3 caves from the Cave Route. It was almost 10 years from last visit. An I always love it.

These caves have organized tracks and one can only visit in guided tours, no one is allowed to go inside the cave independently.

Before you go the cave there is an exhibition of replicas of cave painting from several caves alongside the route in Minas Gerais state.

 

Fascinating,  might have to put this on the agenda!

[spinnaker2]

A Happy New Year when it comes! It’s Hogmanay!

[highplanesdrifters]

[TLCOhio]

2 hours ago, spinnaker2 said:

A Happy New Year when it comes! It’s Hogmanay!

 

YES, Lois, Happy New Year.  It's already happening in other parts of the world.  Below is a visual from scenic and fun Sydney where they have welcomed in the New Year, 2024.  Below is that picture sample to illustrate their celebration earlier.   

 

Love the added visuals, etc., from J.P. for their wonderful adventure in the historic Loire Valley.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

[jpalbny]

Sunday morning. Christmas Eve Day.

 

We were up by 8AM and took our time getting ready. We planned to hit a coffee shop in town for breakfast then shove off. But nothing opens here until 9AM. 

 

The shop we were interested in was too crowded with people picking up their Christmas orders so we went with plan b. A nice pastry and a coffee and we were ready to go.

 

We checked out and we made it to Château de Chaumont a little after 10AM. Not too crowded yet.

 

 

And look at that blue sky!

 

 

Lots of levels to explore. No elevators.

 

 

The chapel, decorated in a winter theme.

 

 

And a carving of Dionysius. This is our kind of Château! He looks like he's eaten too much foie gras.

 

 

Here is some very interesting art. Apparently this library had been mostly destroyed by a fire. So the "books" now within the library were also artworks which had been made by fire.

 

They somehow cast a mold around an item then pour molten glass into the mold. The glass burns the object away, but leaves its replica behind. Ghostly. And a unique art medium for sure.

 

 

If you looked closely you could see little charred remnants of the original book within the glass mold.

 

 

After more Christmas decorations we finished up inside. 

 

 

The gardens were pretty and the weather was spectacular. So we went for a longer walk to see some more works of art. Some kind of golden globe hidden in the trees.

 

 

Nature is an artist too. The moss was thick and green.

 

 

Bird houses.

 

 

The Château in the distance, surrounded by trees.

 

 

A cave-like structure. 

 

 

Burned logs. Fire must have been a common theme here.

 

 

One last stop at the stables. In the practice ring they had a collection of poppies.

 

 

With that we bid Chaumont au revoir, and set course for Chartres. We have a dinner reservation to get to!

 

[mysty]

Happy New Year Coolers! 🥰

[jpalbny]

Sunday afternoon and evening. La Réveillon de Noël. 

 

We got to Chartres by 2PM and parked underground near our hotel. We immediately went to the old part of the city near the cathedral for a late lunch. 

 

Then we went in for a look. A beautiful place.

 

 

 

Cool astronomical clock.

 

 

Intricate carvings surrounding the choir.

 

 

And beautiful stained glass.

 

 

The exterior facade was spectacularly lit by the last rays of the evening sun. Lucky us!

 

 

We got our luggage from the car and checked in. The hotel receptionist had told us about a light show in town so we figured that we'd check it out on our way to dinner.

 

There was a Christmas market across from the hotel. Not much, just food, and we didn't need any of that.

 

 

The bear on the left is sitting with a drum set. Just before I took this picture, a kid was standing there beating the drums and cymbals, until his mother made him stop. I told the boy, "tu es un très bon batteur!" But I don't think that his mom was very happy about that! 

 

 

Back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. Then out to the show. We found a small church, nicely lit up.

 

 

And another. 

 

 

We walked down to the river. Bridges and houses were in on the show too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We made it to our restaurant but were still 15 minutes early. So we found more decorations. 

 

 

Then we went to dinner. Tasty food. After an apéritif and a few amuses-bouches, we had duck cannette with foie gras sauce, then salmon gravlax, and the main course was veal filet. Everything was great except the veal, which was cooked too much. But after dessert, coffee, and mignardaises, we were happy and stuffed.

 

We walked back by way of the main cathedral, which also had a spectacular light show. There was one show at the side,

 

 

And another on the front facade.

 

 

Another peek inside for the concert. Beautiful acoustics and singing. And a nice crèche. 

 

 

The finale of the light show, as we left.

 

 

And to all a good night! 

 

Christmas Day.

 

We woke up around 7:30 and had one last look at the lights of the Christmas market from our window. The sunrise is so late here.

 

 

Then we hit the road back to CDG. Light traffic, and we were back at Hertz right at 10AM. Drop-off was a snap then we checked in. I couldn't check in online so of course it was because I'd been "randomly" selected for the SSSS treatment. Merry Christmas to you too, TSA.

 

Regardless it was a pleasant time in the AF lounge and a very nice flight home to Newark. Global Entry was incredibly fast and we were back at our car and on the road within minutes. Only one wrong turn on the way home but easily corrected. Home around 5PM. 

 

The cats were delighted to see us... (well, happy to be fed).

 

 

A very enjoyable time! Glad we did it, even through work was a challenge the next few days.

Edited December 31, 2023 by jpalbny

[Emtbsam]

I have been so impressed by all the wonderful photos posted of safaris, chateaux, churches in Brazil among others.  On this last day of 2023, I found myself down on the dock of the bay at my house in North Florida in a very melancholy mood.   Although this is far from an exciting part of the world, I was struck by the sheer beauty of the wildlife and solitude I am privileged to enjoy.  I hope all Coolers have a very happy, safe and healthy new year.  

[Lois R]

39 minutes ago, Emtbsam said:

I have been so impressed by all the wonderful photos posted of safaris, chateaux, churches in Brazil among others.  On this last day of 2023, I found myself down on the dock of the bay at my house in North Florida in a very melancholy mood.   Although this is far from an exciting part of the world, I was struck by the sheer beauty of the wildlife and solitude I am privileged to enjoy.  I hope all Coolers have a very happy, safe and healthy new year.  

Where in North Florida do you live? Nice photo! And Happy New Year to you as well.

[Emtbsam]

Lois - We are on Alligator Point.