Ten months in Tours: April 2014

Last week was less eventful as it's nearly the end of term and deadlines are looming. I made another presentation, (which we got good feedback for so fingers crossed!) and had two exams, and then I had another exam today. However, as we have a three day weekend this term, Eilish and I decided we could spare a day to visit the château in Villandry on Saturday.

Villandry is known for it's immaculate gardens, and luckily it was a gorgeous sunny day so we really got to make the most of them. The hedges are grown in square and triangular formations around pretty flowers and herb gardens, and extremely well maintained. There was also a maze, or 'labyrinthe' in French, which was slightly too short for us but we did regardless!

After we'd looked round the château, which is fairly small but nicely decorated with some more modern touches, we walked up the hill behind it for a nice view of the gardens. Two swans were circling around the pond together all day which just added to the elegance of the place.

We spent a long time looking round the gardens as we'd taken the bus there and there wasn't a bus back until 18h31- or so we thought. Although the filbleu website had given us this bus time, it turned out that buses back from Villandry only start in May, which we discovered after waiting there a good half an hour. Villandry's not too far from Tours so we decided to try and walk back along the 'Tours a Velo' path, which was very scenic and pleasant but also, it turns out, about 3 and a half hours long! By the time we reached a village called Berthenay (accidental detour) it was almost 10pm so we had a change of plan and went into the village's one restaurant to ask them for a taxi number, and had a drink there while we waited. En route we saw donkeys, rabbits, sheep, lizards, lots and lots of cats, and lots of pretty views of the Loire. But we also saw aggressive dogs, aggressive men (even in the countryside - that's one thing I won't miss about France!), and confusing signs. So all in all we were quite pleased when we finally made it home at 11h30, 12 hours after we set out for Villandry, even if the taxi price was painful.

Here's Villandry from an unnecessary number of angles:

View from up the hill

The Loire

Savonnières

It's only two weeks until the Easter holidays, and I've not got long left in Tours now. Luckily there's still just about time to fit in cultural activities in between end of term revision and presentations. I can't even remember how many presentations I've made in French now. The first couple were terrifying, and they're still nerve-racking but I've got more used to them now. I'm hoping that making presentations in English will seem a lot less daunting after this year.

Monday was jam-packed as usual and on Tuesday I went out for drinks with Erasmus friends as Marie-Luise was back visiting from Germany. On Wednesday Chloe, Eilish and I went out for a Japanese meal in Tours as an almost-end-of-term-really-there's-no-excuse-for-this treat. I've never tried Japanese food before and it was great, although my favourite parts were definitely the tea and the desserts. It was a good pick-me-up for all of us, and it's nice to try something a little different. Thursday we had a film night, and then Friday morning we started work on our next presentation and in the afternoon I met up with Pauline and went to the Château de Tours.

I've been meaning to go to the Château de Tours for ages as there is a free art exhibition showcasing the photography of Vivian Maier, a French-American photographer. Maier seems to have lived a very interesting and rich life, which is reflected in the variety of people and places that she photographed. I particularly liked her street photography in Chicago as it seems to capture America in the 50s and 60s. The château originates from the 11th century, although most of it is a lot more modern. It's really nice that it's being maintained and put to good use. France seems to be quite good for museums and galleries, Tours isn't an enormous place but there's lots of choice, and there are always lots of cultural events arranged through the uni or local groups.

On Saturday a group of us went to Poitiers, which is a small but historic city about an hour away from Tours by train. The main draw is the beautiful architecture and old churches but we also walked around the Parc de Blossac and and stopped for mid-afternoon patisserie. As well as the Early Gothic 12th century Cathedral, we also saw the 11th century Romanesque Église Notre-Dame la Grande, and the oldest church in France- Bapistère Saint-Jean (4th century). Notre-Dame la Grande was probably my favourite, as it was so different from others that I've seen and the ceilings and inside walls were painted. The Baptistère was tiny, but almost unimaginably old. Definitely a city worth visiting for history/architecture enthusiasts!
In the afternoon we went for a drink in the square by the Hôtel de Ville (similar to the one in Tours, but more subtle). I think this must have been when I showcased by incredible British sun-burning talents and burned on a 15 degree cloudy day. There was a local music event which was nice for a bit but turned into a French rap-battle of dubious quality so we headed off to the Parc at that point.

In other news- Me and Chloe have just booked flights to Porto, Portugal for after the end of exams in May. I'm so excited! And it should be great motivation during the exam period. Flights from Tours airport to Porto are so cheap at the moment- come with us!