From cars to castles.

In an effort to balance our chateaux viewing we set off this morning for Le Mans, the home of auto racing in France where the first 24 hour endurance race took place in 1923. During the 24 hours the cars will travel a distance of over 5000 kilometres with a rotation of three drivers. It is an enormous strain on the car to keep up that pace and they not only race specially made cars but also high performance cars that are available to the general public, though not in our budget! The race is about to start with the qualifying rounds taking place at the beginning of next week and the race itself on the following Saturday/Sunday so there was lots of action around the track as they are getting ready. Gord spent a wonderful hour in the museum, one of the few museums that he enjoyed more than me. We actually drove a portion of the track as the race is held both on the closed Bugattit track as well as the public roads. Actually we drove the Monte Carlo track just before the start of that race too - maybe there is something to this?!? but I think that the tours of the chateaux this week may prove to be a greater endurance for Gord than the Le Mans race!

Le Mans actually has a fascinating old centre complete with roman walls and a spa. There are dozens of half-timbered houses that date back to the 15th century and lovely cobbled streets and lanes, with the magnificent St. Julien's Cathedral in the centre of the town.

On the way home from Le Mans, we happened to drive past another chateau (remember who the navigator is!) Le Lude is on the banks of the Loire and is still the home of the Count and Countess of de Nicolay and has been owned and lived in by descendants of the Talhouet family for over 250 years. It was fun to go around this one as it is a real home and we were very much aware of the occupants. The principal rooms were the only ones on the tour but they were magnificent and rich in history and interest. The gardens were lovely and very extensive and I particularly enjoyed seeing the stables and some lovely old carriages. Everything felt very much as it would 100 years ago and it was easy to imagine visitors arriving through the cobblestone village streets, through the impressive gatehouse and up the gravel driveway to the chateau.

Another good day, and a balance of interesting things for both of us!