Extra Photos
Daily #Hashtag
#PausePipi: One crucial part of any tour involving busses? The bathroom break, of course! As a bonus, many of the rest stops we paused at were far nicer than rest stops in the US, with chocolate, wine, and goodies galore.
Day 4: We hit the road, leaving Paris and heading into the heart of France!
One of the most unique sites I've ever visited has to be Guédelon. The premise is simple: a group of stonemasons, quarrymen, carpenters, woodcutters, blacksmiths, and more are working together to build a castle using only medieval methods. Visitors like ourselves are welcome to tour the castle in progress as it all comes together. While a castle in medieval times would have taken 8-10 years to build, Guédelon will take 25 years. Why so long? Unfortunately, there was no one around to blog about medieval techniques back in the day, so we have to figure it all out from scratch now!
Though I certainly adore Paris, I was excited to get out and explore areas of France that I had not yet visited. On day 4, we did just that, boarding our trusty tour bus, driven by the excellent team of Annie and Matt. Our destination? Guédelon Castle. But first, we paused at a road stop with an incredible selection of goodies, and I did a lot of admiring the fields of yellow rapeseed out the window of our bus. So beautiful!
After touring the castle, we headed over to the picnic area, where Virginie had prepared a small feast for us: strawberries, sandwiches, and - because this is France! - good pastries. This certainly beats the hot dog I might have gotten at an amusement park back home!
After lunch, we had more free time to explore the grounds at Guédelon. Besides the castle itself, there is plenty to see: farm animals and a variety of other medieval arts and crafts.
Upon arrival in Bourges, we dropped off our bags at Hôtel Angleterre and set out for a walk with Helene, our local guide. The town of Bourges is lovely - and full of history. We learned that over 400 houses in Bourges date back to the 14th century; unlike many cities across Europe, Bourges was spared bombing during World War II.
After Guédelon, we paused for quick stop among the vineyards of Sancerre before heading on to Bourges.
Helpful Hyperlinks
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Guédelon's website is full of information on the project's history and construction.
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For wine aficionados, Sancerre just might be worth a visit.
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The town of Bourges is just lovely, and also well worth a visit.
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In Bourges, we stayed at Hôtel Angleterre, a Best Western property. When I heard our hotel was a Best Western, I was a bit ... skeptical, shall we say. However, I needn't have worried: it was lovely!
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In Bourges, we enjoyed a hearty dinner at Au Senat, a nice restaurant in the heart of town.
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What's that vibrant yellow I see out my bus window? Why, it's rapeseed, of course.
We ended our walking tour at the beautiful Bourges Cathedral. Built from 1195 to 1250 in the Gothic style, the church has five doors, five naves, five levels, and clocks in at 37 meters high. By way of comparison, Notre-Dame is a downright puny 33 meters tall!
After our walk, we paused near the cathedral to complete an essential part of any Rick Steves tour: the name game! As we went around the circle, each person had to say his or her name plus all the names of those who went before. Pity the person at the very end!
After acing the name game (no easy feat given all the repeated names in our group!), we headed to Au Senat for a group dinner. It was truly a feast! Goat cheese salad, boeuf bourguignon, a cheese course, and a platter of desserts (a pear tart, a chestnut creme brûlée, apples with calvados, and custard caramel), all washed down with Sancerre.
Daily 'Gram
The grounds at Guédelon are filled with interesting things to look at, including tons of live animals, like pigs, goats, and these horses, which I thought were so beautiful.
Daily Snap
On the drive from Guédelon to Bourges, we stopped briefly in Sancerre for a photo op. The rolling hills, fields of yellow flowers, and vineyards were just gorgeous!
