Bonjour mes amis! I am the exotic greeter bird here at 15C Chateau Gaillard in Amboise. Come wiz me. Not shown is my looooooooooong tail, twice as long as my body.

This sympa chateau is a pitch-perfect take on tasteful representation of History. As noted before, it is a very Italianate chateau. Travelers could easily do a 2-fer, combining an earlier visit to the more crowded Clos de Luce. The northbound semi-rural walk joining the two is part of the charm.

Mrs Z and I had the place to ourselves for the first hour. What a view out to the peaceful 'King's Great Lawn', designed in parterre style by a 16C Neapolitan genius you are soon to read about: Dom Pacello. That is the l'Amasse stream seen here. We marveled at the myriad trees: plane, cypress and palm.

The master gardener Dom Pacello was lured away from his Naples home by the conquering French King Charles VIII. Pacello was a genius comparable to da Vinci who came to Gaillard bringing 60 different citrus samples (then known as 'golden apples') and then embarked on a remarkable career of agri-fruit invention. Pacello was the first to introduce citrus in the Loire. One additional invention of his was the Reine Claude greengage plum from Italy. He grafted many others, such as the 'Pomme d'Adam', a yellow and green-striped wonder. The tiny flowers of his 'Amer' species are still to this day very fragrant. So are his unique yellow 'Main de Buddha' carrots. The lumpy green lime shown below was his experiment with Ile de Reunion's 'Combava' fruit. Elsewhere berries, kumquat, 'Doyen du Comice' pears, Poire William, petite mandarins and many more. Pacello's wooden citrus-tree growing boxes were another successful innovation.

Pacello also invented heated citrus greenhouse nurseries. "Winter does not venture here," he is quoted as having said.

The terrace. Not so crowded as nearby Clos de Luce. Birdsong here comes from starlings, lovebirds and tits. Local medieval musician Luc Arbogast has performed a concert here.

The Pont Reine Claude bridge (one of four)leading to the stylish metallic picnic pavilion.

History has been remembered here in tasteful fashion.

Original owner Cardinal de Guise was one of the most powerful men of his era.

He probably would not have approved of the clothing-optional parties put on during King Charles' reign. Mary Stuart honeymooned here after her BIG DEAL royal wedding to Francis II. Francois I also was an early owner. Modern royalty from various nations still continue to visit here, sometimes arriving by helicopter. Before them all in 52 BC, Julius Caesar once encamped down by the stream with his army, en route to burning Orleans to the ground.






One might assume that this ancient press was for olives or perhaps grapes. But in fact it was for citrus. We highly recco the troglodyte-cave cafe here, with its delicious salads, orange cake and freshly-squeezed juices. The latter are made from the by-now 300 citrus trees on the property, including the juicy Jamaican orange, Ugli, Chinese pomelo, tangelo and red Eureka lemons from California.*Don't miss that lil cafe. S'il vous plait, tell cafe manager Emma that we sent you.

This painted ceramic statue was near the 1500 stone arch plus the pair of dauphin (dolphin) statues.




The Lelandais owner couple bought this semi-derelict chateau 15 years ago, then commenced on a massively-successful restoration. They imported 800,000 bees in addition to: hedgehogs, badgers, boars, fawn, hawks, hibou/chouette (big/little owls), carp, ducks, goats and foxes. Nature and calm surround Chateau Gaillard. It lived up to expectations, there among its roses and dahlias.

Au revoir Loire...

PARIS. Perhaps you've heard of it?

Paris street art as captured from a moving taxi.

Cloth strips for sale at an outdoor table.

Mrs Z and I just love the autumn. How about you?

Some say: 'Ah...Paris in the Spring.' Oui, bien sur. But we might add, 'Paris in the fall too.'

We finally collapsed into our hotel bed in le Marais. It was a far cry from the CDG Pullman one depicted here at the start when we two were 'dog-tired'.

Paris Nocturne. Merci tous for viewing this TR. *Our Coted'Azur/snowbirding in Antibes TR will appear later this summer.

I am done. The end.

Zebec, those soft light autumnal garden scenes are just so beautiful!

Great report! And nice to see Montresor mentioned. My husband and I went there with our English cocker Raisin. We thought we had to tour the chateau separately (sitting by the dog sculpture) but the owners are real dog lovers; they insisted we bring Raisin along with us. And because no one else was visiting at the time, they took us into a few rooms that aren't normally on the tour. We had a wonderful visit and just as we were leaving, a large bus filled with Polish tourists pulled up (Polish art features throughout the chateau). We had lucky timing! Such a lovely village.

So WT, you and KW have experience in Montresor too. Sounds like you had a howling good time, yeah?
If anyone else has visited the Loire, s'il vous plait do not be shy---we welcome your input.
**Correction**
The name of that Montresor restaurant owner (Ecole Gourmande) is Denis, NOT Frederic.
He just saw this TR and was quick to correct me. Apologies Denis.
Dunno how I made the error but probably it was incorrect info on the Interwank.

Terrible news. We always get back to those folks whose businesses we've given a shout-out ('bonne addresses' in French culture). In our effort today to inform masseuse Estelle Refray of 'Parenthese' in Tours, we learned that she had died of a ruptured aneurysm a month ago. She was only 51. Her portrait is pictured above @#27 and her ambient music compile is referenced in our 'Senses' section. Seen here is some of her lobby's interior decor. Carpe diem friends--life is too short.

Zebec, you did another master piece! A delight for the eyes in seeing those images - shades, reflections, towns, perfect portraits, art, food, beautiful landscapes and gardens.
Always enjoy reading the descriptions of history and culture. Thanks!

Tours in the fall. It made me sigh.

Going to Alsace and Provence in the fall.

Dedicated to all the travelers above, those who have 'really been around'! *Don't miss this brilliant fan-created bit of genius @the 20 second mark. It may be necessary to actually go in and press the arrow--simply look for the easy-to-find Bowie song 'Move On'.
I am done. the movers

Bravo, zebec! Photos with reflections were especially stunning; Mrs. z's early sketch whispered 'C�zanne'. Thanks for taking the time to share all this.

Merci beaucoup encore Lei'.
Where to in Provence and Alsace?
I am done. the fortunate

TDude, you too are more than welcome. We just again cleared out our home's art room so as to make Mrs Z's workspace more conducive.
Are you too into any kind of artistic self-expression?
I am done. the creative space

So many great photos plus elucidation. Can't ask for more. I will henceforth associate the Loire with citrus.

Zebec- Another great trip report. It’s terribly sad about Estelle. You are so right about life being short.

Zebec, thanks for another very entertaining TR - such a gorgeous part of France as unveiled by your photos. We're scheduled to travel to Norway later this month - fingers tightly crossed amidst all the ongoing geopolitical tensions, flight disruptions etc. etc.

Zebec, I�m joining the ride rather later, April has been somewhat busy, with a trip to Victoria Falls and Botswana. But better late than never, your TR is as delightful as ever and you photo absolutely drool worthy. Thanks! ☺️