PAGE12A
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
WEDNESDAY, MAY 1, 2013
CHENONCEAU
A side view of Chenonceau show
ing the river flowing under the
bridge turned castle gallery.
CHARTRES CATHEDRAL
Banks County High School stu
dents are shown in front of the
Chartres Cathedral.
AT TOWN SQUARE
Mr. and Mrs. Wisecup are shown in the picturesque town square of Tours, France
BCHS TRAVELS TO FRANCE
The Loi re Valley
BY PAMELA WISECUP
The second part of our journey through France consisted
of stops at several romantic sites in the Loire (pronounced:
lo wah’) Valley. As the bus moved through the valley, we saw
never-ending fields of potatoes and sugar beets, as well as ani
mals such as deer and rabbits standing in groups at the edge of
the woods. Occasionally, we would see a ring-necked pheasant
fly across the road to get to a field. There was an abundance of
wildlife on this stage of the trip, and some of us made it a game
to see what animals we could find, and compare their size and
color to the animals we see in Georgia. There were distinct dif
ferences between the animals of the two countries.
Along the way, we stopped at the town of Chartres to visit
the famous Chartres Cathedral. This cathedral was magnificent
with its fantastic architecture and beautiful stained glass. A few
of the more adventurous ones in the group climbed to the top
of the bell tower with Mr. Wisecup to see the view of the town
from above. There were so many steps to climb, that when they
came down, they were excited about the beautiful panorama
they saw, but their legs were shaking badly from the exertion.
Even the athletic ones were shaking after the trip to the top of
the cathedral. We were then able to spend about an hour of
free time, going to the shops. Several of us chose to explore the
candy and pastry shops to see what delicious items the stores
had to offer. We all seem to have tried a variety of chocolates
and pastries, which were quite good, eating them in the little
town square park in front of the cathedral.
When we met up with our tour director it was back to the
bus and off toward Amboise with a stop at the beautiful cha
teau (castle) of Chambord, the largest chateau in France. This
particular chateau was not typical of most castles in France. It
had some really interesting looking architecture, drawing many
gasps of delight from the crowd. As Chambord was simply a
stop for photos and lunch, we spent some time taking pictures,
and then popped into the gift shop, which was full of beautiful
items to buy. With purchases made, it was time to buy lunch.
There were several souvenir shops and an outdoor restaurant
where they prepared a variety of delights...most of them sand
wiches. Some of us ordered the steak sandwich, which basi
cally translated into a really good hamburger patty served on a
baguette, with fries on the side. All this was quite tasty, but the
establishment was pretty stingy with the catsup.
Back on the bus, it was apparent the students had figured out
they had better rest between stops, as there is generally a lot of
walking, and we didn’t stop for the evening before 7:30 pm each
day. Nearly every student fell asleep as soon as the bus started
rolling. We had a long drive before we would arrive at our hotel
for the next two nights, so the students were very willing to take
naps. We made a stop in the town of Tours for a walking tour, free
time, and dinner. Tours is the town where young Joan of Arc of
history book acclaim procured her armor when she was given
an army of soldiers to fight the English. Incidentally, they call her
Jeanne in France. It was all very interesting, and the buildings in
the town square were pretty. After a dinner of quiche (egg and
cheese pie), we continued on our journey. This turned out to be
the third quiche in two days for some of us, so some were not
so enthused when they saw the quiche. When we arrived at our
hotel and checked in, some of us wanted to walk to a nearby gro
cery store and pick up some snacks. On the bus ride into town,
we had searched out and spied a store that would be open until
8 pm. It was about a five minute walk to get to the store, so we
made it just as they admitted the last customers...we were safe!
The seven of us quickly scattered throughout the store, looking
for chips, drinks, and other snacks to keep us in comfort foods
during our evenings at the hotel or during bus rides. The store
was very similar to some of our American grocery stores, except
that certain foods were extremely inexpensive. We would have
expected to pay more for the snacks we bought. A package of
cookies, for example, was 1.72, which would translate to $2.24.
The same package in our stores would have cost nearly $3.00. A
package of candy bars that would have cost over $3.00 in the U.S.
also cost less than 2 Euros. Perhaps food in the grocery stores
costs less, but prices of other things may be higher. Back at the
hotel, we spent the evening in the lobby, talking and using the
computers to post our updates to Facebook.
The next morning, we thought we were off to spend a day at
the prettiest of the several chateaus we were to see. However,
before we could even pull out of the driveway of the hotel,
several cars had to be towed away. They were illegally parked
along either side of the narrow street, blocking the bus from
leaving the hotel. After about an hour wait, we were headed to
Amboise, the final home of Leonardo da Vinci. He spent his
last three years of life in this town, with a beautiful view of the
chapel at the Amboise chateau that would be his final resting
place. This town was really neat, with many tiny shops where
one could buy any number of souvenir items. A lot of the stu
dents shopped here, and bought handbags and any number of
items to take back home. Tapestry making is a local industry,
so several stores offered tapestries in all sizes at a reasonable
cost. I bought several small ones as gifts and craft projects. The
restaurants were varied in what they offered, too, so one could
get any sort of meal here from. The day was windy and rainy,
and after some free time for lunch, we went to visit the most
beautiful chateau-Chenonceau. This chateau, nicknamed the
Ladies Castle, was once part of French royal properties, and the
home of the mistress of King Henry II. Later, upon the king’s
death, the breathtaking chateau was taken from the mistress to
become the favorite home of his widowed queen, Catherine de’
Medici. Under these two women, and those who later followed,
the chateau was developed and remodeled more and still today
retains the grandeur befitting a proper castle. This is the second
most popular chateau in France, second only to the palace of
Versailles. With an extensive garden, castle motes, and a garden
maze, Chenonceau was, by far, the prettiest chateau of the trip.
After the visit to Chenonceau, we returned to the nearby town
of Amboise for a guided tour of the chateau, which is situated
on a hill overlooking the river and surrounding town. The tour
included a visit to the chapel to see Leonardo da Vinci’s grave,
and some of the rooms of the chateau. This chateau was not
nearly as beautiful and interesting as the previous two. The day
was quite windy and rainy, so our group cut the tour short and
skipped out on the tour guide to go get a cup of coffee, some hot
cocoa, or a pastry. We were quite a large group to be eating in
the small pastry shop we chose, so the conversation got boister
ous at times. Later, however, the owner of the shop came to me
and complimented me on the good manners of “my children.”
Compliments are always nice to hear—that we have nice kids is
even better to hear—especially in a foreign country.
The final dinner in the Loire Valley was one of the highlights
of the trip. We had dinner in a Troglodyte dwelling. Troglodyte is
another name for “cave dweller,” so basically, we ate in a cave.
When we arrived, we saw a restaurant sign, a hill, and a tall
chimney rising from the hill. We walked down the driveway, and
entered through a heavy, wooden door set into the side of the
hill. The scene when we entered was delightful—only to be read
about in fairy tales and fiction books. At any time, I was expect
ing the family of beavers from the Narnia Books to appear. It was
unbelievable cool! We actually ate dinner in a cave! The meal
was one of the best meals we ate while in France. The foods
served were locally grown and prepared, even the spices used
in cooking were locally grown. We were served sausages with
herbed mashed potatoes, flatbread cooked in the fireplace, and
an interesting pork spread similar to potted meat for the bread.
Dessert was a delicious pear tart that nearly everybody enjoyed,
bringing the evening to a perfect close. The atmosphere during
this meal was relaxed and the students were animated as they
ate and talked with each other. These two days in the Loire
Valley were so enjoyable!
Next week’s article will take us to St. Malo and the island mon
astery of Mont St. Michel. Be sure to read about our journeys
through France as we learn the history and culture of each area
we visit. We are currently enrolling for next year’s trip which will
take us to Germany and the Swiss Alps. There are only ten slots
remaining. The trip is open to current 8th-llth grade students.
For more information, contact Mrs. Wisecup at Banks County
High School at 706-677-2221, or pwisecup@banks.kl2.ga.us.
I
'••I I I:
BURIAL SITE OF LEONARDO DA VINCI
The chapel in Chateau Amboise where Leonardo da Vinci
is buried.
DINNER IN CAVE
Asa Hubbard, Shayla Enman, Jeffrey Nicholson, Victoria
Taylor and Emily Gailey are shown enjoying dinner in a
Troglodyte dwelling restaurant.
AT OVERLOOK
Emily Gailey, Emily Coker, and McKenna Rylee at the
overlook from Chateau Amboise- the river and town can
be seen below.
