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decorated with period pieces. We saw his bedroom where he could gaze out at the chateau and of which he made numerous sketches; it is said he had with him three of his favorite canvasses including the Mona Lisa, which he brought from Rome on the back of a mule in leather saddlebags.
That night we dined in Sache, a small town half-way between our hotel and the chateau of Azay-de* Rideau, at the Auberge du XHIe siecle. This is a pretty town built on sloping hills that shares fame with both Balzac, who lived here and set some of his novels here, and the artist Alexander C'alder, one of whose works dominates the town square.
On our second day in the Loire Valley, we headed west from our hotel for a larger circuit beginning with the 16th century chateau named Villandry, about 12 miles from our hotel on the Cher, and known for its beautiful formal gardens.
The most charming of the many "theme" gardens here is the boxwood garden comprised of four squares, each of w hich, when viewed from the chateau, clearly depicts one of four kinds of love. All clipped in boxwood, the first square is daggers and swords and is planted with red roses in the summertime (tragic love); the second is fans for flirting and butterflies (fickle love); and the theme of tender lov e is portrayed by hearts and masks worn during balls and finally crazed love, showing broken hearts.
The lavish kitchen garden is filled with designs formed by mixing different colored vegetables organically grown and sold. Other stops of interest include the rose garden and the plantings around the fountains located on the upper terraces.
We continued west along the Loire stopping for lunch at a spot where we could admire the Chateau Rigny-Usse on the Indre, the chateau which inspired Charles Perrault to write the fairy tale “Sleeping Beauty.” The many turrets and the backdrop of a lush, forest certainly did evoke the story for me.
This is the first of a two-part travelogue on the Schiffmans' journey through France. Part 2 will appear next week.
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