Enough with the wine ... bring on the hot chateau action! After being thoroughly wined out down south, Jacqui and I jumped on the bus and headed for Tours; gateway to the Loire Valley - home to assorted nobility from times gone by and, inevitably, much over-consumption and corseted shenanigans across the board. Highlights included, of course, our visits to a couple of the chateaux themselves. First stop was Amboise - a quick hop on the train and pretty much a whole world away from the hustle and bustle of Tours. Approaching from across the river gave a great perspective on the fanastic stone buildings and while we forewent the chateau proper, we did manage to check out Leonardo da Vinci's last abode ... a fairly modest affair, but lovingly restored and with a huge collection of scale models of his inventions in the basement. Fascinating stuff. After a public transport nightmare, we swallowed our pride and taxied across the French countryside to Chenonceau for the real castle deal. Built on arches spanning the river, it pretty much felt like walking straight into Dangerous Liaisons: all orange trees and turrets and renaissance gardens and sumptuousness of the highest order. After a visit there it was fairly easy to see why many a French peasant got so pissed off with their designated lords and masters! Lifestyles of the rich and vacant indeed.
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