The local economy

Across the river in Noyers-sur-Cher there's a roundabout a.k.a. traffic circle (carrefour giratoire) on the old highway that runs from Tours to Vierzon and on to Bourges. It has been "redecorated" over the past few years and now features some live grapevines, a replica of a grape workers' hut typical of the region, and a metal sculpture of a man with a horse plowing a field.

Where we live is in the Touraine wine district, and it's now called Touraine-Chenonceaux after the town with the famous Renaissance château 15 miles downriver. Grape-growing and wine-making are the mainstays of the local economy, along with tourism. Centuries-old châteaux including Chambord, Cheverny, Chenonceau, Chaumont, Amboise, Le Moulin, Le Gué-Péan, Blois, Saint-Aignan, Chémery, Montrichard, and Montrésor are within a 30-minute drive of Saint-Aignan and Noyers. Not to mention the nationally renowned Zooparc de Beauval, where there are two giant pandas from China and important collections of birds and animals from North America, Africa, and Australia, including gorillas, orangutans, manatees, kangaroos, koalas, and white tigers.