Firstly thanks to all on these boards who earlier discussed with me the various merits (or otherwise) of hotels and destinations. V. useful to have first hand experience to go on and no doubt a contributing factor to a wonderful week's short break in France.

Mlle DoGood and I took the 8.30pm Portsmouth - St Malo ferry on a sunday evening. I strongly recommend an overnight crossing and, if doing so, upgrading to a Commodore Class cabin which we were delighted to find was spacious, comfortable and complete with (free!) mini-bar, t.v and pleasant bathroom. Furthermore these cabins (of which there are only about 20 onboard) are seperate (behind a private door) from the rest of the boat with a welcoming concierge desk far away from the madding crowds. As it was the sailing was practically empty but at a guess, in high season on a popular evening, this privacy and quiet would be worth it weight in gold.

Leaving Portsmouth is great fun as the ferry terminal is in the centre of the Royal Naval Dockyards - past HMS Liverpool and HMS Kent, The Ark Royal and Endurance, nosing out into the gathering gloom past HMS Victory and Warrior, their rigging lit in the evening sun and pulling past Portsmouth Old Town, the Gosport Ferry dashing across our bows as we headed for the forts at the mouth to The Solent with the Isle Of White ahead and the furthering lights glimmering on each side of us. There's nothing quite like the realisation that all those people you can see ashore face work in the morning to put you in the holiday mood!

We didn't need to eat on board as we'd dined with friends in Portsmouth earlier but the cocktail bar was actually rather pleasant and after a couple of long ones we headed back to the cabin, watched abit of tv before falling asleep whilst we sailed serenly across the calm sea.

Woken at 6am (Continental time) with a respectable continental breakfast and the last passable cups of tea for a week. Quick shower and up on deck to watch the boat approach St Malo through a sea of rocks and reefs until, with an expertly performed pirouette, the ferry slid into the harbour and we were back in the car on the cardeck waiting to disgorge into the welcoming promise of weak (if watery) morning sun. So... in France, fully refreshed, fed and washed and on the road south by 8am. What could be better?

Tbc...

The road South to Rennes is fast and convenient from the docks and soon we were skirting the city and heading on a new dual carriageway towards Angers.
A brief stop for fuel and then the first surprise of the trip - for the first time in my experience, Petrol is currently just as expensive in France, if not more so, than in the UK.
By now the sun had now powered up properly and was pleasantly warm. Another hour further and its 10am in Angers.
Finding somewhere to park we had a brief shufti around the Old Town and made another breakfast of Croissants, Hot Chocolate and a (rather rough!) Calvados in bar-tabac before taking in the exraordinary Apocalypse Tapestry. We gave that an hour or so and headed back to car and set of along the north bank of The Loire towards Saumur where we crossed to the southern side and were in Chinon and at our hotel - The Diderot - by 1.30pm.

With the briefest of formalities we were shown to our readied room and quickly shown around the hotel. It is quite simply marvellous, just what you'd want from a family run small hotel/B&B.

We wandered into town to have a late lunch of crepes on the main square. Bit of window shopping and checking out the restaurant choices for that evening's meal.
NB. Monday is Early closing day in Chinon. In fact many places don't even bother opening and so save themselves the bother of having to close early either. If you're in the area don't bother visiting Chinon on a monday! quite a few of the restaurants looked like they wouldn't be open either but we were confident that amongst the many in town we'd find a decent meal.

Anyway we ended up back in the hotel for a nap and freshen up before heading back out again.

Now - a few words about Chinon. I posted earlier querying the town as the description in my Rough Guide was pretty uninspiring. Thankfully posters here told me that it was great place and that the RG was way offline. Absolutely! Chinon is a delightful town, with enough shops to browse, plenty of bars and a goodly selection of restaurants. Whilst admidly we were there off season, it never felt swamped by tourists or their coaches, and I never sensed it was living off its Mediaeval past and historic buildings but was in fact an everyday French town with the usual suspects conducting their everyday business. Its clean, picturesque (though not cutesy) and friendly - ok so maybe it helps that Mlle DoGood is a native of France but in my experience the French have always been the epitome of bon hommie, despite my varying attemps to massacre la langue sacrée.

So.... we ended up enjoying a wonderful meal at La Boule D'Or (Monkfish for Mlle, Lamb pour moi). I know alot of Americans on these boards care about such things so I noted that the restaurant has a/c and, despite a largish dutch party several of whom were smoking it was not in the least smokey. Excellent service and popular with locals and vistors alike. Stupendous wine list - we made short shrift of an excellent Pouilly-Fuisse, and also a bottle of Cotes de Nuit

Finally... arm in arm we leisurely strolled home to the hotel feeling replete, a little drunk and really very, very happy.

Tbc...

I can just tell this is going to be really good!

Hurry back with more!

Love Chinon and the Chinon wines (though Saumur wines are wonderful as well). Can't wait to hear more.

Verrry Interesting, Doc.

Look forward to more.

BTW was the young lady your niece?

What wines?

And, all the usual Fodor's rush rush rushing... I think the idea of the ferry ride... ohmyohmyohmy...VERY civilized...and well, romantic!

Now where was I?

Before I continue with these ramblings let me just put Ira's mind at rest that no the young lady is not my niece rather she is my fiancée (in exactly one year and four days she will be making me the happiest and most fortunate man alive). And, Suzie, as for the wines? Just wait patiently...

OK so, tuesday morning and down to breakfast at the Hotel Diderot in Chinon. I think I should remark upon les petits déjeuners remarquables. A fantastic old breakfst room with enormous beams and a huge fireplace with several tables of differing sizes... some smaller, round and intimate, some long refrectory style for a more sociable start to the day. A bookcase on one wall full of books, guides, maps and strategies for gathering mushrooms. But the point is the jam. Sorry - les confitures. An extraordinary and abundant array of homemade jams everyone delicious (apple, quince & lemon zest; pear & rhubarb; pineapple & raisin; lemon & mandarin etc etc etc....) and everyone sporting a different jam spoon, one sticking from the open neck of each jar looking for all the world like a cheery, welcoming salute.
The other great thing about breakfast is the rather civilised hour to which it extends - 10.30am, a more appropriate hour at which to greet the day don't you agree?

Anyway, after breakfast into the car and a v. pleasant drive to Amboise sticking to local roads (erm.... and forest tracks but that's another tale and I'll not cast aspertions on anyone's ability to read a road atlas) to arrive in time for a slow perambulation, a bit of window shopping and admire the Chateau (exterior only, to be honest couldn't be buggered with inside though I have it on good authority its v. worthwhile - just felt I was likely to suffer a surfeit of Ch. before the end of the week and a day off to start might well be in order). For those driving I recommend heading towards the river as you come into town and parking on Quay Gén. de Gaulle because its free and very close to the centre of town.

Amboise may have many qualities but none of them proved a sufficient draw and so, after, a quick espresso and gossip in a cafe-tabac("what exactly is an attractive young frenchwoman doing with that englishman?" - I fancy my command of the language took some a little aback at that point)we departed for the brief drive into Tours.

I don't wish to damn Amboise with faint praise (nor did I come to bury it) but whilst pleasant and picturesque it did seem rather un-prepossessing, at least to our eyes but then ,maybe, Chinon had already turned our heads.

Tbc...

(Bet you can't wait now can you? - sorry if this is overly long, rambling and not snappy - I hope some may find within a few diamonds in the rough).

You are so right about getting a cabin when crossing to St. Malo. We didn't have a cabin when we went from St. Malo to Portsmouth one July. Crowded with tons of kids running amok all night, going in and out the door that slammed like an old screen door!

It's a lovely ramble, Dr. I'm enjoying it immensely even though you weren't taken with Amboise.

I'm enjoying your trip report. It is bringing back memories of a great week we spent in the Loire Valley a few years ago.

We, too, stayed near Chinon and quite enjoyed the town -- along with a number of the others we visited.

Looking forward to more...

Dr_DoGood, I'm glad you and the future Mrs_DoGood enjoyed Chinon as much as I did. Not only did I stay at the Hotel Diderot, I also enjoyed a very nice meal at La Boule d'Or.

I too am looking forward to reading more.

congratulations, Doc, loving your report. Wishing you many years of wedded bliss and great wines.

Oh no - you don't get off that easily! There's more of this you know...

Tours is a great place, really enjoyed our afternoon there. There's an underground carpark by the river just west of the main Pont Wilson which is probably the handiest for the old town and the shops.
The Old town is centred around Place Plumereau which is a lovely square surrounded by half-timbered buildings housing restaurants, cafés and pubs (what's with all the fake Oirish Pubs in Tours?) with chairs and tables spilling out and attracting a fairly lively set.
Tours is a ig university town which has a couple of real advantages... 1) its lively and full of bars, clubs etc (if you're after a night out or simply young-at-heart) and, 2) it is blessed with a welter of cafes and restaurants serving from an obscenely low base price: you can eat heartily (if, I suspect, not exactly to the grandest of epicurean standards) for a minimal outlay.
We ate very well at an Italian restaurant on Rue du Grd Marché (Goats' cheese salad for Mlle, Spaghetti Carbonara pour moi, a pichet vin rose, water and a coke for less than 25&euro.
The Old Town is full of little shops (you know the usual "artisan" places selling the same old tired stuff so they didn't detain us long after lunch.
The Basilique St-Martin is worth a look - it fell into disrepair during those Godless Revolutionary times and soon after the turn of the 19th C the nave was pulled down (having partly collapsed already) to make way for a new road. All that's left is the Tour Charlemagne (which itself fell down in 1928 but was repaired) and the Tour de l'Horlage which mark either end of the original Bascillica.
The Tomb of St.Martin lies beneath in a new bascillica built in the crypt of the old.
At the East end of town is the Cathedral but I was all "churched out" by this time and obviously a bit addled in the brain because against my beter judgement (and years of bitter experience) I allowed myself to be talked into a quick whirl throuh the Musée des Beaux-Artes (well...Mlle can be most persuasive when she chooses to ). Why are these places all chocabloc with room after room of French 18 & 19C realists/modernists. I could choke if I see another Delacroix or Ingres. Granted there were a couple of decent Italian 14 & 15C paintings on first entering but i very soon gave up the will to live and sloped off for quick swift one and some football/rugby/manly-sport-stuff related chat in a bar down the road with a couple of wizened and nicotine stained octogenarians (actually they could have been in their 30's but they do tend to smoke a fair bit).
Having been duly collected by my better half we headed for Rue Marceau which runs through the centre of the city perpendicular to the river for a spot of shopping (nothing too exciting but some decent men's-wear (P.Cardin, Givenchy etc) and a plethora of baby/toddler clothes (which, incidentally, I think the French do so very well so picked up a few items for my infant god-son).
Galleries Lafayette had seen better days at a guess and it was getting v. warm so we decided to seek sanctuary back in the underground carpark, and wend our way over the river and a few miles back east again to Vouvray.

Tbc...

The Village of Vouvray itself needn't detain you but travelling west back towards Tours take a right turn in the hamlet of Les Patys and you'll be well sign posted to the Cave of the local co-operative "La Cave des Producteurs de Vouvray."
Excellent dégustation and amiable chat, no hard sell and trully some excellent wines - so one case of Vintage Sparkling Vouvray (in the moelleux style, for those interested in such things) and one of standard Vouvray Chenin Blanc.
So at last! 2 cases down... and more to come I hope!

By the time we got back to Chinon we were just about good enough for emptying the car and freshening up before walking into Place Mirabeau and the bar there-on to sit outside in the late afternoon sun drinking cold beers, reading sundry books, newspapers etc and watching the world go by. I also took the opportunity to impress above Mlle. never, ever to drag me into a Musée des Beaux Artes again. And in return she requested that I cease and desist from toturing her native tongue, particularly here in the Val du Loire where the best French is spoken.
I was cut to the quick.

Actually - a word about the language might be apposite here. It is meant to be the best spoken French in the country and I have to say I found it far easier to follow and keep up with conversation than I have on other occasions in the deep south or in the Alps. And they were all (to a man and woman) so very welcoming of and forgiving towards my french. Its a question of confidence.. so grasp the bull by the horns and go for it!

We ended up eating that night in the Brasserie in Place de la Fontaine (we both had Steak Tartare which was superb, washed down with a red Chinon) and again it was very, very reasonable. Question: if you can eat this well, this easily and this reasonably in France why can't you do the same in the UK?? It beats me!

Any way.. home to bed and we wanted an early (ish) start the following morning for market day in Loches...

Tbc... (exciting isn't it; don't you just love the little teasers/cliff hangers at the end of each episode? No? Oh well....)

At least the Beaux Arts Musee in Tours is small, it could have been the Louvre.