The church in Bourron Marlotte.
We started our day with a visit to our local chateau. We had a beautiful chateau right in our village but had not had the opportunity to visit it. We were worried that we would have to leave without even being able to see it. It is a private castle and so they do not have tours, but we read that in the summer months you can visit for a small fee. We went and rang the bell and were escorted onto the beautiful grounds.
The "American" outfits had nothing to do with me-the kids did it all on their own. I had to laugh because most people probably had no idea it was a holiday in the US, they must have figured that we were just crazy American tourists.
We were the only ones on the grounds so they told us to take as long as we needed and then to call on our cell phone to the office and they would open the gate to let us out.
Jesse has always wondered what it would feel like to be a giant.
The princess and her castle.
We had to make one last stop at the marche in Fontainebleau, we didn't need anything in particular-it's just so much fun!
This was the center of a round about we drove through - The kids loved it and made us drive around it several times to make sure we got a good photo of it.
Our second stop was Vaux le Vicomte. This is a very famous chateau and used in many movies. It is near our home and was now open for the summer. (Check out the website for an overview of the grounds-pretty amazing www.vaux-le-vicomte.com)
Dallas was attempting to be as tall as Mark, he was for a minute, then Mark stepped up.
Once we entered the chateau we discovered we could not do some of the things we wanted to until the weekend, and so after some American negotiating we got our money back and plan to return on the weekend.
We didn't want the day to go without a great adventure so we quickly drove to Provins, a medieval town with jousting and bird shows with actors in costuming from the period.
Provins from on top of the city wall.
Waiting for the bird show to start, the kids of course took on the role of bird and bird trainer, the tree was the perfect perch.
The kids on the way up to the city wall.
Waiting for the bird show to begin. We were happy that they sill put the show on since there were only 12 people in the stands and we made up 7 of the 12.
They wowed us with lots of live animals, including this camel.
We got up close and personal with some of the animals. The trainer let each of the kids hold one of the birds on their arm-they were a little frightened at first, but each one didn't want to pass up the chance to hold the big bird.
We had owls, eagles, hawks, and vultures come swooping right over our heads.
The kids loved the show! If you are ever in Provins I would highly recommend the bird show-it was really worth the trip.
Another great door to add to the collection. The best part is I saw a little old man come out of this door with his bike and go on his merry way. People really do live behind all these cool doors.
The day came to an end as we celebrated with our American friends the Randall's and the Gregerson's at their home. Hal and Suzi have been living in France for a little over a year and will be here for for about 10 years. Hal is a professor at Insead.
They have a really neat home and have been through not only the nightmare of remodeling but the nightmare of remodeling in France. They have got some great stories. They have done a beautiful job and it will be an amazing home when it is complete.
The kids loved getting lost in the back yard.
Suzi did a nice job making it seem like a real 4th of July-she even made homemade potato salad.
It was a great way to end our day-thanks Suzi and Hal!
1 comment:
I got to see a bird show at a chateau near Bordeaux, it was really cool. I am still loving these pictures, I guess I hadn't checked here in a while. Do you have a different blog for home? Some day I'll get to hear you all speak french, you're probably way beyond my level now!
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