Chateau Cheverny

I finally got to visit a French Chateau in the Loire Valley, woohoo! There is a really massive amazing one called Chambord which I wouldn't have minded going to, but hey, this is a family holiday so we went to Cheverny, which was still beautiful, and even better, to ease the pain for the kids (and Alex probably) it had a TinTin exhibition on aswell;)



See how excited Benny was before we went in? Or maybe it was after we had finished...



More excited about Tintin I think!



And here is TinTin and his friend Captain and his little doggy Snowy. The author based the Chateau in his books on Cheverny Chateau, as you can see, they look the same, only without the two outer wings.

Benjamin got a TinTin book as a souvenir from the giftshop (it is just so hard to get out of those places with your wallet unopened) so we have been reading it for the last few nights, although Benny has already read it through twice by himself. I am shocked, is just so un-PC!!! Full of people smoking, shooting each other, firing squads, prisons and murder conspiracies. TinTin even got drunk last night, and we're only on page 16!!!

Needless to say, the kids are absolutely loving it! Oh dear, I guess it's a classic.

Love
Est xxx

Pretty Pants

Just wanted to show you Ben's new boxers! Aren't they fab? Every time he puts them on he does a 'look at my pants' dance. He loves them, and who can blame him?

Maybe he should be wearing them on the outside, Superman style? It does seem a shame to hide away such beautiful bloomers.

They could certainly be a look for Dan Carter, what do you think?

Love
Est xxx

Close to Nature

Went to ZooParc de Beauval, it boasts 4600 animals, in the heart of the Chateaux de la Loire (and I read that from the leaflet, my, I am getting good at French).

Here are a few pics, it was an amazing zoo, highly recommended!



















Oops, that last photo was the wrong way round!

Love
Est xxx

Sully sur Loire

After Rambouillet we headed for the Loire Valley and the small picturesque town of Sully Sur Loire, we camped by the side of the river Loire, the kids spent lots of time on the riverbed collecting stones and making fires, it was lovely.

Here is a picci of the lovely chateau there. However, I might just as well have posted a photograph of the laundry at the campsite for this trip as I didn't actually get to go inside the chateau, as poor Naomi was sick that night and I had to wash all her bedlinen, and mine, and all her clothes. Poor Naomi did not feel too good, and Ben and Naomi are so very rarely ill, it was such bad fortune.

...hang on, you don't think she would do all that just so she didn't have to go to another castle....do you?

Love
Est xxx

Camping Car

Here is a photo of our camping car. Yes, you may know it as a campervan or a motorhome, but in France it is a camping car and to be honest, after the first night of sleeping in it and not being able to work out how to put the heating on, it felt like just that, a car.......with beds in.

Honestly, just who's idea was it exactly to learn how to drive a big wide camping car in a foreign country where we don't speak the lingo and they drive on the other side of the road? Tell me that, Alex!

Ok, we have had a few small little issues (which are mostly covered in Alex's blog www.skinnersontour2.blogspot.com if you aren't already reading) and there is a reason why I took the photo from this side of the 'car' (as it is the side with the wing mirror still intact with no scratches) but all in all, we are enjoying it very much. The freedom of taking your home with you wherever you go is pretty unique, we even spent our sixth night not in an official campsite but freedom camping in the Zoo carpark. What rebels we are!

But, I have to say it, there must be a certain irony about leaving Christchurch and the earthquakes to live in a camping car, only to use a chemical toilet and have to worry about all your belongings falling over every time your house moves!

Oh dear!

Love
Est xxx

A Woodland Stroll

It's been a few days hasn't it? I do apologize, Wifi has been in very short supply. The campsites all claim to have it, but we have learned that just means that they have a computer in their office which they do their spreadsheets on.

Now, we left off in Rambouillet with the champers flowing in celebration of our Rugby victory. Wow, lots has happened since then!

In Rambouillet we went to a lovely wildlife sanctuary, and saw wild deer and eagles and vultures and climbed a treetop trail over the forest.
















The photo of the day award has to go to Alex for the eagle, but hey, I got Naomi smiling, and that was no mean feat after the misery of walking through a forest for an hour.

Love
Est xxx

PS. The very observant among you may have spotted my new blue leather jacket in the photo. 'Got it in Paris!' (which obviously automatically makes it cool). I love it. And it's blue. Cool eh?

Shopping en Francais

C'est tres jolie, oui?

Love
Est xxx

PS. Nice to be back online for the next day or two, will post more tomorrow. Bon nuit. xxx

New Zealand - Rugby World Cup champions!

The bar owner just came over with champagne and nibbles for us to celebrate our victory.

Feeling sad for France.

...but happy for us!!!

Woohooooooo!

Celebrate big time tonight NZ, wish we were there!

Love
Est xxx

PS. Speak to you again next time I find Wifi!

Images of Paris

Love
Est xxx

PS. The score is 8-7 to the AB's with 2 mins left to go!!!

RWC Final All Blacks v France - in France!

We are currently in 'Le Napoleon' bar in a small town called Rambouillet about 45 mins west of Paris with a lot of French rugby supporters, watching the Rugby World Cup final 2011. Well, who would have thought it would all work out like this? Really want NZ to win, but I do hope the locals are friendly. Some of them are drinking beers with their morning baguettes, and it's only 10.45am, but I guess it's a special occasion, it's not every day that France get into the final of the RWC.

We are now in our camper van. Our home for the next cinquante jours!

Up to now, we have had a few teething troubles:
a. 10 mins after we picked the van up, we crashed into another van and broke the wing mirror and made a bit of a mess of the paintwork (we are using pampers baby wipes to scrape off the grey paint off our white van) thank heavens we got insurance to reduce the excess!
b. The kitchen sink pipes are blocked
c. The petrol cap cover has broken off

Our van is coming to resemble the rattletrap car, soon we will be using chocolate marshmallow fudge delight to stick it all together, but, we are still going;) Going to the Loire Valley today which is a couple of hours away. Great place for Chateaus (that will please 'I DO NOT want to go to another castle' Naomi) and of course, wine. Perfect!

Love
Est xxx

Mummies

Ok, one more. We saw some mummies at the Louvre.

Benjamin - 'Mum, if a Daddy is mummified, will he still be a Daddy?'

Good question Benny!

Love
Est xxx

Spending a penny?

It looks like some high fashion establishment, maybe socks, maybe ties, lined up to peruse and try...

But, no, do not be fooled. What you see before you are toilet rolls! In a toilet roll boutique! And what better target market for your high class toilet roll business but directly to the consumers who need you most, right at the coal face, in the public loo!

Yes, Naomi and I paid the princely sum of 1.50 euros (it was supposed to be 3 euros for the two of us, but I claimed that I was just going in to help Naomi and sneaked in to her cubicle, cunning eh?) to spend a penny today. We had to wait to be seated (as it were) and were kindly showed to our room by the beautiful toilet assistants.

What blissful bath, the poshest of powder rooms, a who's who of loos!

Was it worth 1.50 euros? Defintely, to get these photos to you;)

Love
Est xxx

PS. We are picking up our campervan tomorrow and poor Alex will be navigating to destinations as yet unknown - what an adventure! I strongly suspect that the campsite will not have WiFi (or 'wiffy', as I heard one elderly lady refer to it recently) so may be offline for a little while. Gutted, as I have loads more to share, but I am nearly asleep now, so better away to bed. Night night xxx

The Mona Lisa

Spot the enigmatic smile;)

Love
Est xxx

PS. The funny thing (apart from the face!) is that Naomi said, without any prompting, 'when you move, the picture follows you'. I couldn't believe that she noticed that. Amazing!

Dizzy Heights

Well, dear friends, since we last spoke the Skinner family have been busy. Mainly getting ever so slightly lost, ever so slightly wet (we now have our obligatory 5 euro 'I love Paris' umbrellas, which I managed, in my soggy distress to pay 6 euros for) spending far too long on buses and climbing lots and lots of spiral staircases.

Started off on Sunday with the Notre Dame towers (400 steps). Then Monday was the Eiffel Tower (thankfully there was a lift) and then Arc de Triomphe (284 steps, lift broken) were I bought a very cool 'I was in Paris' t- shirt from the gift shop. Would you believe that there is a gift shop INSIDE the Arc de Triomphe? It hardly seems patriotic! Anyway, the size small fit in the shop, and when I bought and took home the t-shirt in the wrapped package and excitedly tried it on, it is too small. But, the only way I can exchange it is to pay 8 euros and climb another 284 steps. Best go on a diet.







Yesterday we tired to go the Louvre, but it was shut. Closed on Tuesdays. Should have known. Should have read guidebook more thoroughly. But, we took a few photos outside whilst we were there anyway.




Think Naomi must have been annoying Benny again. You can go to a different country, but ***Warning*** your children will still be the same.




Fab, so fantastic to see the pyramids in person after The Da Vinci Code. Wow!!!

Then today we went to see Basilica de Sacre Couer (The Basilica of the Sacred Heart- but it doesn't sound so thrilling with that name does it really?) We did see it at Miniland in Legoland, but let's face it, that was never going to be as good as the real thing...as that was made of lego.




Just look how excited Benjamin and Naomi are at the propect of looking around another church!!!

I walked up to the top of the dome (another 500+ steps, maybe my Arc de Triomphe t-shirt will fit now?) by myself whilst Alex took the kids on the carousel.

View from the top. Ahhh, it was so peaceful, I almost didn't come down again!




You aren't allowed to take photographs inside the Sacre Couer, but I wanted to show you the ceiling, which is magnificent, and just found a cheeky 'smuggled' photograph on Google, from a fellow, more daring travel blogger. Very naughty, but thanks;)




I think I can speak for the whole family when I say we are all feeling well and truly knackered.

My feet are screaming ' Esther, what the blimmin' 'eck is going on? If we never see another windy staircase again, that would be fine by us;)'

And I agree with them.

Love
Est xxx

Le Tour Eiffel

Naomi - 'Now that's what I call an Eiffel Tower!'

Excellent!

Love



xxx

Found this on the top of the Eiffel Tower, it means east of course!

Location:Quai d'Orléans,Paris,France