We're going to backtrack here a bit, since we were so busy having fun that we didn't get to post pictures for some of our trip.
Our tour of the Loire Valley started with a castle that was mostly just ruins, but it has a very special place in history- it was where King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table (yes, they existed) had their home. The castle is mostly gone and just the outside walls and a few rooms remained. It had a wonderful view of the Loire river and we got a great history lesson on the English and French and how that particular area changed hands many times over the course of history. We didn't spend a lot of time there, but the time we did spend was full of many interesting tidbits on life during the middle ages.
The second castle we visited was frequented by King Richard (yes, think Robin Hood and the crusades- didn't know all of this took place in France) and the castle was in great condition and had been restored by a wealthy millionaire who wanted to preserve this piece of history. He spent more that 20 years restoring and acquiring period pieces to furnish the castle with. When he died, he left the castle and a sizeable inheritance to the country of France to continue the restoration and upkeep of the castle.
After visiting the castle, we went to a local winery and had lunch- a wine, cheese and charcuterie affair with salads and bread and plenty of the local wine to drink. This was in the chateau that the winery operates out of. The first portion of the chateau was built in the 16-1700's and was added onto until present day. I of course bought a couple of bottles (they're really good!).
We then went to the chateau Villandry. While the chateau itself was lovely (it's a chateau in France, for crying out loud) the garden was simply spectacular. The owners had bought the chateau at the turn of the 20th century and had spent many years and untold millions of dollars to restore the gardens to their former glory. Pictures attached. It was spectacular.
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