Apremont-sur-Allier (one of the most beautiful villages in France), Luthenay-Uxeloup, and Jaugenay France

 Apremont-sur-Allier is one of the “most beautiful villages in France” (an official distinction). It derives its name from its location on the edge of the Allier river.   In 1722 Louis de Bethune bought Apremont and since then the chateau and the estate have remained in the same family by inheritances through the female line.  In 1894 Eugene Schneider (the iron master from Le Creusot) fell in love with Apremont and purchased all the shares owned by the family to become the sole owner.  Over the following 50 years he transformed and embellished the chateau and village.  He had a vision, deciding to renovate the village so that all the buildings were in the same local medieval style.

Looking over the rooftops at the Chateau

The Chateau sits on a hill above the village.  It is still lived in by the owners.

It is up to the individual visitor to decide whether this is more Disneyland or a real village.  It is charming, well maintained, and designed for tourists to spend a peaceful day wandering the streets, strolling through the park, having lunch, going to the little museums, and of course checking out the antique shop.  To my amazement Tom actually purchased crystal wine glasses for Rabelo.  

A stream flows under the Chinese bridge to a pond.

The Pagoda Bridge has a fish scale roof.

The Parc Floral opened in 1976 and brings to you the feelings of China, Japan, Turkey, Russian and more. The gardens and buildings create for you the feelings of different parts of the world through the flowers, landscape, architecture and follies.  We also visited the stables and Carriage museum.  

Turkish Pavilion

The gardens with its ponds, waterfalls and follies is a relaxing way to spend the afternoon.

There are magnificent homes inside the park.

These buildings face a public park along the river.

One of the homes.

An old wash house

While we enjoy just hanging out on our boat and taking long walks, it’s also nice exploring the area.  Tom read about an old Chateau and we decided to check it out.  We drove to Lutheran-Uxeloup which has the imposing 13h century fortress Chataeu de Rosemont.  We were disappointed that we couldn’t go inside this chateau, but it was impressive and the area around it was lovely.

Chateau de Rosemont, the fort of Lutheran Uxeloup

The fort’s entrance…no visitors allowed.

Parts of the fort are overgrown.

The pasture lands and stream below the chateau.

On our way back to Rabelo we saw a sign pointing to an Ancient church in Jaugenay.  We did a U turn and drove off the main road in search of a Roman ruin.  We found this Romanesque chapel dating from the second half of the 12th century.

Chappellet de Jaugenay - Chappellet Saint Etienne de Chevenon

We walked by this wooden structure one day.

A farm house we saw on our walk.

Sancerre, Nevers and a tiny bit of Digoin France

Our goal this year was to cruise to Sancerre, a Medieval hilltop town overlooking the Loire River.  We have such fond memories of our last visit.  Sancerre wine is one of my favorites, and the area is also known for its fabulous goat cheese. There is a wonderful Michelin starred restaurant in the center of town we looked forward to dining at again. Unfortunately Sancerre was too far for us with our limited time in France this year.  Instead we cruised to Nevers and drove to Sancerre.  We were not disappointed.

The town of Nevers is filled with architecture, history and art.

We crossed the bridge to enter the town of Nevers.   The Cathedral of Saint-Cyr-et-Sainte-Juliette dominates the town.  

 The Loire Bridge in Nevers was designed in 1767 but not completed until 1832.  

 Back corner of the Cathedral

As you can see from this photo the Cathedral was heavily damaged during WWII.  It was built in the 10th century and modified in the 16th century.

Interior of the Cathedral.  The new modern stained glass windows cast a warm glow.

 This watch tower was built in the XV century.

13th century windows characteristic of the Gothic period.

Throughout the town we found old timbered homes.

We loved seeing the kids canoeing in the Port de Plaisance (marina) in Nevers.  

La Tour restaurant in Sancerre.  A fabulous meal with a delicious bottle of Sancerre (red) wine.  While Sancerre is famous for their white wine, they do produce excellent reds as well.


Squash and plum, smoked herring caviar cream


Beef fillet, candied figs, baby carrots and scallion juice

They put together a gluten free dessert for me.


Walking around the town of Sancerre.  The streets have maintained their medieval layout.  Sancerre has been classified as a tourist town, hence there are no factories or industry.

A charming side street in Sancerre. There are still homes standing from the 15th Century.

Views everywhere


 Fields surrounding Sancerre.

One day we had lunch outside at a restaurant, and this was our view.  The meal wasn’t great but the location made up for it plus a bottle of wine didn’t hurt.

During a walk in Digoin we found a clever artist.


A detail of this artist’s work using junk they have acquired.

Cruising the Canal Lateral a la Loire one never knows what we will find around the next bend.

On one of our daily walks we saw this restaurant on the other side of the canal.  We had a delicious dinner there on a cold rainy evening.
 

Chateau de Dree, Burgundy France

Our lovely Rabelo

Chateau de Dree is completely furnished and decorated in the style of the 18th century.  Since 1995 this chateau has belonged to Mr. Prouvost whose family used to be famous textile manufacturers.  He has restored and furnished the interior with authentic pieces bringing Dree to museum quality.  While open to the public for tours this is a home, and Mr. Prouvost resides there during the holidays.  

In front of the chateau is the lower courtyard.  There are two buildings on each side.  One of the buildings used to house servants, but also contained workplaces essential to the running of the chateau (such as a bakery, dairy, and a woodwork shop). The other side was the stables that used to accommodate a stud farm from Cluny until 1980.

The Honor Courtyard

Graceful sculpture in the Honor courtyard

One section of the kitchen.

Dining table.  The plates are made in Belgium (19th century). silver cutlery and Baccarat crystal glasses (one for each beverage:  water, red and white wines and champagne).

Reminds me of the bells from the show Downton Abbey.  The bells are connected to every room in the chateau. Each bell had a different tone, and by recognizing them a servant would know exactly where he was summoned.  

Mr Prouvost is fond of 18th century furniture and has personally collected (or had made) everything in the chateau including chandeliers and the curtains (made in the north of France, 3 km of curtains!)

Hunting trophies in the North Corridor.

Beautifully decorated room.

Dual purpose seating.  All the rugs are custom hand made and spectacular in color and design.

The First Sitting Room (Salon Louis XV). This room represents the style of King Louis XVI.  Against the wall is a roll-top desk with a Sun King clock above.  The rugs are hand made wool and a copy of the Savonnerie (celebrated weavers of the 17t and 18th centuries) hand made in China.

In the past every chateau was expected to have a special room for the king just in case he chose to visit.  However the King never came to the Chateau de Dree.  It is now Mr. Prouvost’s bedroom.

From the garden looking towards the back of the chateau

Looking at the back of the chateau

From the chateau looking out at the back gardens

Another view of the gardens

Graceful fountain

Wandering around the gardens we found a little house.  It’s an elegant “folie” called “the young ladies’ tower).

A well kept lock house 

Rabelo at the end of the day, tied up for the evening.

One of our walks along the canal.  It’s always peaceful.