Our scary chateau

Imagine this. . after a long day of driving my husband informs me that for the next four nights we will be staying in a french chateau. I was pretty excited but at the same time wondered what it will be like? Would we be the only ones there? How big will it be?

After driving on winding roads out in the middle of nowhere we finally arrive. It was amazing and at the same time spooky. The chateau was huge and located on a property with several other large buildings (stables, maids houses, outdoor kitchens etc). The nearest town was at least 15 minutes away.

We entered the main hall and was greeted by the caretaker who was checking in 4 other guests. wheww! There are other people and I quickly concluded that if anything happened to us, andy and I could run faster than they could. Lets just say this; it was like walking on the set of a scary movie. Mannequins all over the house, cobwebs in the corners, the caretaker was an older balding man smoking a pipe, stray straggly cats EVERYWHERE and a room full of antique dolls that just stared at you! The caretaker i

nsisted that we pay him at check in and then showed us to our room where we found dozens of flies buzzing in the windows. He said that this is typical because the flies were attracted to the warm house. I kept looking for the dead body.

The next morning the chateau was much more charming. I woke up to a beautiful sunrise and the sound of the gardener working outside below our window. After a delicious breakfast of fresh croissants and hot chocolate Reid and I explored the grounds. (Andy went to pick up Blake from the airport). We found a few ponies, and a beautiful old building that could have been used as a ball room. It was surreal as each building contained hidden treasures. . silver candle sconces covered in cobwebs, and oversized stone fireplaces. I kept imagining what it would have been like to live in such a place. I asked the caretaker who used to live in the house and he gave me a book on the history of the manner. It turns out that it was owned by a french family and then during the war was taken over by the Germans and used as a Nazi boy's camp. They used to train children here to become nazi soldiers! I could hardly believe it!

The next night Blake and I decided to explore the chateau at night during a thunderstorm (i promise we are that stupid). Lets just say we got so freaked out by all the hidden halls

blocked off rooms and those darn mannequins that we quickly ran back to our wing of the house like scared school girls. After 2 nights in that beautiful yet terrifying house we decided to find a hotel closer to Paris. When we explained our situation to the caretaker he said that this often happens and that he would not refund our money. We thought for a moment about all the wasted money and then quickly decided that it was still time to leave.

That is truly a memory I will NEVER forget.

France day 4 and 5

Today we traveled to Lyon. This city is known for teaching chefs and is a great place to have a cheap yet outstanding French dinner. We ate well, shopped well, and then moved on the next morning.

France Trip Day 3

Today we traveled to Nice and Antibe. Unfortunately it rained most of the day so I am not sure if we experienced the exotic "French Riviera" that everyone loves, but we tried to make lemonade. We shopped, went to art museums, ate lunch in a cozy cafe and shopped some more. In Antibe the clouds parted for a bit and we were able to go to the beach and take pictures. That was fun and I think I am starting to catch the photography bug. We are heading up north tomorrow and I am satisfied with all that we have seen in southern France. . . for now :)

France Trip day 2

So I finally had a fresh croissant and now I know what everyone was talking about. The french really know their pastries and it was so good that I didn't care that it had a million calories in it. After breakfast Claude (the owner of the B&B) serenaded us on the guitar and sang "Hotel California". It was a perfect start to the day.

On the way to Monaco we stopped off at a hill top town called Eze. The town was actually built into the side of a mountain so the views were amazing. We ate crepes in a cave that was converted into a restaurant. We then toured a French perfume factory and learned how it is made. And of course, I shopped :)

That afternoon we headed over to Monaco. We started by heading over to an aquarium. As we crossed a bridge leading to the aquarium we noticed that the waves were so big that they actually crashed up and over the bridge. It was pretty amazing but we did not stick around to long. The aquarium was located in the basement of a huge palace and was built by Prince Albert of Monaco.

We spent the rest of the afternoon touring around the city, playing at parks, and of course we checked out the infamous Monte Carlo. We ended up eating at a restaurant called "Stars and Bars" which is an American chain. The restaurant is like a "Hard Rock Cafe" except dealing with sports AND this restaurant had a kids room. The adults sit in a special section and the kids can run back and forth from a supervised kids room. It was like being on a date. This is one concept I hope the States picks up on really soon.

Trip France Day 1

Excited and ready to go we arrived at Nice airport relatively painlessly (much to our surprise). Once there we waited along with 100 other people to get our rental car. I am not sure why but our car rental agency was the only one with a line. They did upgrade our car which was great and off we went! The B & B we stayed at was so charming. Decorated in a shabby French country decor that seemed effortless. We stayed in the house with another Aussie couple who were very friendly and had lots of helpful hints on where to go. I don't think I have ever met an unfriendly Aussie.

That night we decided to explore the hilltop town of Vence. Like most towns I have seen it has a wall that surrounds the historic section, small narrow streets and charming little shops. But this town, unlike the others, was so clean!!

We had dinner at a restaurant called Lavender and I ate chateaubriand for the first time. Yes, it was amazing. We finished off the meal with a (very strong) Irish Coffee and violet ice cream. It is incredible how you can taste an aroma. I am not really sure how to explain it other than "delicious". And of course Reid was an angel during dinner.

After putting Reid to bed Andy and I gazed at the stairs while laying out on lounge chairs, finished a bottle of wine and discussed "young" vs "old" earth theories. All in all a great first day.

Civita di Bagnoregio

So today Blake, Reid and I ventured to a small town called Civita di Bagnoregio or better known as the "dying city". The city is 4,000 years old!! A few hundred years ago everyone abandoned ship after an earth quake struck and ever since the town has been slowly eroding . The population right now is on the rise at a whopping 30 people.It is completely different fromRome and I am absolutely in love. In order to enter the town you must walk 1 kilometer across a very narrow bridge. Inside there is one trattoria (restaurant) one bar (coffee/snack shop) and 1 shop (for tourists). It is so quiet and there are no cars (or people) you can just wander up down the narrow streets and imagine what life would be like here.The 30 people that do live here take great pride in their town. It is very clean with

flowers every where. It even appears that they hang curtains in the abandoned apartments. There is a strong sense of serenity and maybe sadness as you look around at all the buildings with chains and locks on their doors. I guess all good things must come to end but this place is hanging on with all its might.

My Karate Kid

Reid just had his first Karate class and loved it! He is the youngest one in there and does not have a clue what he is doing but had a big smile on his face the whole class. He says that he is like Skipper from the TV show Penguins of Madagascar. If you have not seen the show it is pretty cute. And yes I was THAT MOM waving at myson through the doorway and taking tons of pictures. Well, that is after I learned how to put the kimono on properly. (I am in VERY new territory here) I pray my little girl wants to be a ballerina.