My Royal Birthday Weekend Along the Loire

 

I wanted to spend my birthday in a pretty setting not far from Paris. I could have chosen the beach, but since I am heading back to Greece soon, the Loire came to mind, when memories of lovely Blois blossomed in my thoughts.

Last year, my birthday celebration was on the Seine, so why not the Loire, the longest river in France, seen below with my pretty daughter Aimée.

After all, I like to look at the natural world as often being a microcosm that can reflect or convey aspects of human life.

Rivers, for example, can offer an analogy of our lives. Unlike oceans, rivers generally have a distinct source and an ending in the sea, symbolic of our physical lives as we are born of flesh and will end in the cosmic sea of the heavens.

The waters of major rivers are curvaceous in nature, with their rushing waters exerting such force as to carve out twists and turns, changing direction over time, much like our lives.

River waters, mimicking daily life at times, can be slow and tranquil and at other times become turbulent, rustling over rocks and obstacles that most of us experience in our lifetimes.

Birthdays are a time to celebrate your earthly life and especially to be Grateful for your blessings!  They are not just for one day, either!

Blois is less than two hours by car from Paris, that is, if you don’t get caught in weekend traffic of returning August vacationers.

I found a wonderful historic hotel just across the Château de Blois with lovely views of it and the beautiful church from my windows.

With period furnishing, a grand winding staircase, and a glittering breakfast room where wonderful breakfasts were served, one could easily think you are back a hundred years or so.

Hearing the clip-clop of horses’ hooves outside the windows made it seem a surreal drift back in time.

As usual, I had carefully chosen where I wanted to celebrate my birthday dinner, an annual affair where lovely views and gastronomy come into play. This time, I did not have to choose one or the other.

 

 

 

 

Christophe Hays’ Amour Blanc restaurant offered a spectacular view of the Loire, the old city and bridge, making for a nice walk from the hotel.

The August sun was still high in the sky when Aimée and I  arrived, and so were my expectations.  The whole affair turned out to be splendid in food, presentation, and impeccable service that one expects in restaurants of good chefs.

Vegetables, flowers and herbs are harvested from his own garden, along with locally sourced choices on a multi-course original menu that offered a few surprises.

An amuse-bouche turned out to be surprising for me, and probably shocking for the French. It was a pretty glistening dome composed of silure, (catfish) and a mousse of grapefruit.

The French refer to silure as a trash fish they would never eat, much less find in a restaurant, so it was really a daring thing for the chef to serve.

For me, it was a reminder of my natal upbringing in the alluvial Mississippi valley of Louisiana, where river catfish is very popular, fried of course.

As the sun started to set, an array of tiny apéritif tarts appeared perched on river rocks.

 

The pretty mosaic was a gravlax of sandre,(Loire perch pike ) on a bed of figs, fig leaves, walnuts and goat cheese.   Yes, fig leaves are edible!

Local filet of trout was perfectly offset with a jus of beets and raspberries.

The red wines of Amboise- Cheverny wines are lighter than the rich wines of Chinon,  but made for a perfect choice for my main course of veal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then came a lovely tray of pre dessert little pastries, followed by raspberries from Chambord nestled in a meringue hazelnut cake.

To gild the lily, there was an assortment of chocolates to enjoy as the finale of this monumental feast.

It was close to midnight when we finally left all of this gourmandise.

The last treat, while walking back on the bridge, was a deafening celebration of migrating ducks settling in for the night, quacking up a storm, obviously happy to have found a good stopover.

The next day was devoted to seeing the Château de Blois again and taking in the wonderful village marché.  Splendid mounds of colourful vegetables and fruits were tempting to buy, if I could have kept all of them fresh.

Ditto for the fresh escargots, rarely seen sold in Parisian marchés these days. I settled on some strawberries and very fresh-looking unshucked corn, which is hard to find in Paris.

I visited the château this time with more intense interest than before, as I have written a lot about Catherine de Medicis, who spent much time there.

It was King Louis XII who began the château, with his porcupine logo, then King Francis Ier, who adopted the salamander for his.  Catherine de Medicis preferred the symbol of a C intertwined with an H.

It was Catherine and her sons who became kings of France, who filled the Château du Blois with so much turbulence, violence and perplexing intrigue that historians still ponder today.

This is her bedroom where she died, and supposedly was resting with knowledge of the assassination of the Duke du Guise taking place a floor below, which her son Charles III had organised.

It was Catherine’s obsession with a reading from her astrologer that led her back to Blois towards the end of her life. She was told that she would take her last breath next to Saint Germain.

Interpreting this as a referral to her parish church of Saint Germain l’Auxerrois, still directly across the Louvre, she decided to retreat to her château de Blois.

Suffering from pneumonia, a priest was called to deliver the last rites, who introduced himself as Father Saint Germain!  She died the following day.

One of the most interesting rooms was her secret studio, where she kept poisonous potions hidden behind drawers that opened when wooden pedals were pressed by foot.

The beautiful exterior winding staircase was inspired by Italian Renaissance architecture admired by François Ier.

He also constructed the monumental château de Chambord nearby and the Clos du Luce in Amboise, where Leonardo da Vinci lived and died.

The Loire is full of impressive royal châteaux, each one full of history and intrigue, which I hope you have a chance to visit.

The life you are living now is history in the making and worthy of your own storytelling.  

Make your own birthday each year a royal affair, wherever you are, with those you love, creating special moments to remember and share!