Our last day in Tours, we took a half-day excursion out to the surrounding areas and visited Chenonceau and Amboise. In Chenonceau, we went into the grounds to look around the “Chateau des Dames”, built in 1513. It received this nickname because its decor and construction was highly influenced by its numerous female tenants.
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We then moved on to Leonardo da Vinci’s home in Amboise, which was our favorite part of the afternoon. We both enjoyed his house far more than the large chateau in Chenonceau. Leonard da Vinci had moved to France after King François I had extended an invite to the artist. The king offered da Vinci the house (Château duClos) that he himself grew up in with his sister Marguerite de Navarre. The house and grounds have now been transformed into a huge museum and tribute to the artist/inventor and had a lot of interactive exhibits for the children (and children at heart). We probably could have spent an entire day roaming the surrounding property, but because we were part of a tour group, we had to limit our ‘playtime’. This was one of the main reasons why we’ve kept tours down to a minimum during most of our travel. The secondary reason was the CROWD. While it was great to walk through the rooms and grounds, it was very difficult to take a photo without someone walking straight into your shot.
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Our last stop was in the main town of Amboise and took some shots of Chateau d’Amboise (from outside, so that we didn’t have to pay the entrance fee) and of the chapel where Leonardo da Vinci was laid to rest. We ended our day with some wine tasting and we came out with a cheap (5.50 Euro), but delicious bottle of white wine. I am looking forward to more wine tasting – onwards to Bordeaux!
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Never knew Da Vinci’s final resting place is in Amboise, France!
a few years ago we spent a full day at a diVinci exhibit in Victoria and were amazed at the creativity and genius of the man.