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| September 13, 2008 | to | September 14, 2008 |
At Montlouis-sur-Loire (37 Indre-et-Loire, Centre) the Chateau de la Bourdaisiere holds its 10th annual Festival of the Tomato on 13 & 14 September 2008. As the home of the French national collection it boasts more than 600 varieties in its vegetable garden.
The Festival de la Tomate provides an opportunity to celebrate the sheer biodiversity of the tomato and the you’ll have the chance to witness the tomato in many guises - sauces, chutneys, alcoholic concoctions, beauty creams, perfumes, medicines, painteing, sculpture, literature, recipes.
The Chateau is also a fancy hotel and was the setting for an American TV series “Joe Millionaire”
The Château de la Bourdaisière is a magnificent sixteenth-century castle offering spacious and refined bed and breakfast rooms and apartments. Château de la Bourdaisière is set in a 140-acre park located between Tours and Amboise France, just an hour from Paris on the TGV - France’s high-speed train.
The castle was built by François the First for his favourite and is the setting for the program ‘Joe Millionaire’ on Fox television in 2003. Relax by the large open-air heated swimming-pool, enjoy a game of tennis or simply enjoy the pleasure of staying at this most remarkable French castle in the heart of the Loire Valley.
For more info see www.chateaubourdaisiere.com
| July 26, 2008 |
There is such a wealth of fairs (foires) and festivals (fetes) across France on wildly different themes (but often involving food or wine or both) that you could probably visit a different one every day of the year.
In the medieval heart of old Tours (37 Indre-et-Loire, Centre) there is a celebration of local basic and garlic (Foire à l’Ail et du Basilic) on 26 July 2008.
This colourful fair cum market has its roots in the Middle Ages when Tours was a major commercial centre, and now offers an excuse to decorate the streets of Vieux Tours with over 150 producers and exhibitors offering fresh basic and pungent garlic and in many different gastronomic creations, including the traditional Andouillettes Grillées au Vouvray - grilled chitterling sausages in sweet Vouvray wine - a local speciality!
Even if you cannot make that date, Tours is famous for its markets with a traditional style market every day somewhere in the city. I stumbled across the Flower Market (Marché aux Fleurs) running along the middle of Boulevard Béranger one Saturday morning which was so bright. colourful and fragrant that the memory lingers - also on Wednesday mornings.
Then on the first Friday of each month there is a Food market (Marché Gourmand) in the Place de la Resistance.
For more info see www.ligeris.com
| June 7, 2008 | ||
| June 8, 2008 |
Loches (37 Indre-et-Loire, Centre) south of Tours in the Touraine holds its annual Jazz Festival the weekend of 7-8 June 2008. (see map)
Whilst some of the performances are ticket-only affairs, on Sunday there is an open air concert in the Parc de la Sous-Prefecture from midday where you can have a picnic and taste some of the local wines and cheeses (and listen to a Saxophone trio called “The New Ducks”!).
The local Touraine AC wines are predominently Sauvignon Blanc for the crisp dry whites, and Cabernet Franc or Gamay for the reds. Local cheese include Sainte Maure de Touraine - an aged Goats Milk Cheese.
There is likely to be a lot of music and festivities throughout the town.
For more info see www.petitfaucheux.fr (in French)
| June 7, 2008 | ||
| June 8, 2008 |
On the weekend if 7th & 8th June 2008 the village of Sainte Maure (37 Indre-et-Loire, Centre) celebrates the local goat’s cheese with a 2 day festival. with plenty of opportunit for eating, drinking, dancing and music - learn more about this cheese and about the “guest” Cheese Region which is the Basque country (Pays Basque).
The cheese is an aged Goats Cheese - quite different to the fresh goats milk cheeses you normally see. It is cylindrical in shape, often covered with ash and with a straw running through the middle, which helps it to mature. It has Appellation Controllee (AOC) status which means that only cheese from this areas can be so called, and there are strict rules on its content and making.
According to the Dorling Kindersley guide to French Cheeses (Eyewitness Companions)
For more info see www.sainte-maure-de-touraine.fr/
Another French icon, the Solex motorised bicycle used to be a common sight throughout France - although in earlier times it was powered by a noisy smelly little 2-stroke petrol engine. Something like 80 million Solexs were produced as a cheap form of transport after the Second World War.The original production line closed at the end of the 1980s, but now it has been re-invented as the E-Solex an environmentally-friendly way of getting around town using battery high efficeincy power to boost your pedalling.
You can now enjoy a one of these very French machines by hiring one for a day or half-day in St Omer (62 Pas-de-Calais, Nord Pas-de-Calais).
Les Belles Echappees also hire out Citroen 2CVs, tandems and trikes and offer a number of packages which can include route suggestions, restaurant and hotel combinations etc.
Les Belles Echappées invite you to a journey off the beaten track in search of simple pleasures connected with emotion and collective memory.
You can find a video showing the 2CVs in action on You Tube Les Belles Echappees translates as a good time or break!
Les Belles Echappees, Chemin des murs, Ferme de l’Abbaye - 62500 CLAIRMARAIS
Tél : 03.21.98.11.72
There are other options for raking to the road “a la francaise” - e.g. the 2CV tours of Paris with 4 roues sous un Parapluie (4 wheels under 1 umbrella); Or hire a classic Citroen TA in the Loire Valley with Quart de Tours (37 Indre-et-Loire, Centre)
Further south Joffreny Tours offer classic and modern British cars (and others) for touring the French countryside from their base near Chalus (87 Haut Vienne, Limousin) - although helpfully they have an office in the UK
Lots to do and see - Hire a classic standard MGB Roadster, a V8 MGB Roadster, a BMW Z3 Roadster or a Triumph Stag (soft-top or hard-top) and take off on a sightseeing tour of the Limousin, Charente and Dordogne, in west central France, with all of its historic towns and picturesque chateaux, and sample some of the fine food and wine along the way. This is beautiful touring country and there are very few cars on the road…
What could be more French than driving a classic black Citroen TA in the Loire Valley? The Citroen TA is another of those iconic French cars which are so quirly and original in design they could only be French! TA stands for Traction Avant - front wheel drive introduced in 1934, and so often associated with black and white films and Maigret.
A car & minibus hire company in Port Vallières (37 Indre-et-Loire, Centre) just west of Tours on the Loire offers self-drive hire of the Citroen TA which could offer a great way to explore the vineyards and chateaux of Touraine (Touraine AC, Vouvray AC, Cheverny, Cour-Cheverny AC etc).
Quart de Tours, 184 Quai des Bateliers, Port Vallières, 37320 Fondettes
Most French autoroutes between major towns and cities are toll motorways, which whilst often offering fast and uncrowded dual-carriageways, can nevertheless add significantly to the cost of a trip through France - e.g over €90 (over £60) on a one-way trip from Calais to Nice (1226km of motorway driving about 760 miles).
However there are significant sections of autoroute which are toll free - most often these are around major towns and Cities (Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon etc).
In the North, the A16 is toll-free from Boulogne (J29) to the Belgian border (J36) via Calais and Dunkerque. The A25 from Dunkerque (J20) to Lille is free, so you can reach Lille from the main Channel ports without paying a toll!. Also all routes from Lille to the Belgian border.
The following autoroutes are toll free (as at September 2007)
A16 (part of the Autoroute des Estuaires (estuaries)) from Boulogne-sur-Mer (J29) to the Belgian border(J36)
A20 (L’Occitane) from Vierzon (J6 junction with A71) to Brive-la-Gaillarde (J53) via Chateauroux, Argenton and Limoges
A25 from Dunkerque (J20 with A16) to Lille
A28 from Abbeville (J1) to Rouen (J14)
A30/A31 (Autoroute de la Vallée de la Fensch) from Thionville (J1) to Toul (J12) via Metz and Nancy
A38 from Dijon (J33) to Pouilly-sur-Auxois (J24 and the junction with the A6)
A63 (Autoroute de la Cote Basque) from Bordeaux to Bellin-Bellet (J20)
A64 (la Pyreneenne) from St Martory (J20) to Muret (J25)
A68 (la Tarnaise) from Monastruc (J3 NE of Toulouse) to Albi (J11) via Gaillac
A75 (la Meridienne) from Clermont-Ferrand (J15) to Pezenas (J59) (except for the Millau Bridge) via Issoire
A77 (Autoroute de l’Arbre (trees)) from Pouilly (J26) to Nevers (J37)
A84 from Caen (J46) to Rennes (J25) via Avranches
2000 candles will illuminate the magnificent Renaissance chateau and gardens at Villandry (37, Indre-et-Loire, Centre) west of Tours in the Loire Valley - culminating with a magnificent firework display.
The number of budget airline routes to France from the UK is continuing to grow, as is the number of French destinations - no longer restricted to the major cities. This really does open up some of the less well-known parts of France.
The list below shows the extent of the coverage - and this excludes flights to Paris which are available from most local airports. Some flights are seasonal, so please check with the airline for timetables and availability.
| Destination | From | airline |
Amboise (37, Indre et Loire, Loire Valley) in the Touraine celebrates in annual wine festival in the imposing surroundings of the Chateau d’Amboise 15-17 April 2006.
The relevant appellation is Touraine Amboise AC, situated between Tours and Blois on the Loire, and includes still and sparkling whites made from Chenin blanc, rose and red wines made from Cabernet Franc and Gamay.
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