Chateau #3
Today we started biking along the Loire! Yay!
We started the day with our third flat tire of the trip. In the middle of fixing it, this small old lady came along with her big, strong, 45-kilo boxer dog. The dog ran over to meet Daddy as he was trying to fix the tire and jumped up. Daddy staggered under the force of the dog.
The lady said she had no control over the slobbering beast, which was true. She knew Italian, had been an English teacher, and had taken five years of Spanish. Despite her crazy dog, Daddy managed to change the tire.
Just as we were finishing the tire, another person walking a dog appeared around the corner. The lady turned pale and yelled over at the guy to ask if his dog was a female. Luckily the dog was, and the lady let her dog off the leash despite Mommy’s saying, “Not here, not here!” It wasn’t too rough, and they eventually left.
We kept biking along the Loire.
We came to a sign that said, “Ferme” and had to backtrack up and around the countryside for a small detour. Eventually we made it to Oudon (the dog lady had said that there was an amazing chateau in Oudon). I saw it first. It looked like it came from a Disney movie — a stone tower with turrets on top.
We went to a campground and pitched our tents and headed out for the market and chateau. We eventually found the market, got what we needed, and went to the chateau. We were sort of in a bad mood so Mommy broke out the chocolate. Daddy reported that there was a movie and the tour took an hour, which kind of discouraged us. But he went back in to learn more and discovered that the movie could be in English and it was only 10-15 minutes long and that the tour was self-guided! Yes! Self-guided!
It was a great chateau — the best yet. It had an amazing view from the top!
Each floor told a little bit about the history of the Loire.
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— Lyle
A great Loire day, despite a flat tire and some big, rambunctious dogs! Good job spotting the chateau first, Lyle. And great photos. Chocolate and self-guided tours are the best. Go, Mom. : )
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the post, Lyle! So many good details. Loved hearing about the big dog and your daddy.
ReplyDeleteCould you tell what caused the flat tire? I'm pretty sure you're going to enjoy the rest of the ride up the Loire. Some incredible towns and castles and chateaux!! Thanks for writing, Lyle!
That is so cool, Lyle!! What an amazing chateau. Looks like a castle. Imagine how much fun Clara and Tashi would have had exploring that place with you. Jeez, that 45-kilo dog sounded scary. Only your daddy could manage to change a tire while being leapt upon by an enormous dog. Go, Daddy! And thank goodness for Mommy's chocolate supply.
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool castle!! I think I could play there all day too. Thankfully the dogs were not like Jamie and didn't pee on your foot. Where are the baguettes and fruity pastries? We are so accustomed to gluten envy!
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