27 September 2019

Blois dans le brouillard

The bridge that spans the wide, lazy Loire River at Blois, an old royal city, was built in the 18th century by the architect Jacques Gabriel. There had been a medieval bridge at Blois, mentioned in records as early as the year 1089, but it collapsed in 1716. I took this photo of the bridge on a foggy day a dozen years ago.


The Michelin Green Guide says that "a tri-color harmony is characteristic of Blois: white façades, blue slate roofs, and red brick chimneys." You can see that harmony in these photos, despite the fog. I took the one above from the south bank (the "left bank" in French) of the river, looking north. The church in the photo is the city's cathedral.


I also took the photo above from the south side, looking toward the old town, which is built on a bluff on the Loire river's right bank. The château isn't in these photos; it's farther west, and also on very high ground. The old town is very compact, and the climb from the end of the bridge up to the cathedral is steep, to say the least.


Walt and I were on our way to have lunch that day with a woman we had met in the Saint-Aignan area. She had sold her old farmhouse in the country and moved into an apartment in Blois, at the foot of the cathedral, with the view you see in this last photo from her living room windows. It was fairly impressive, I thought.

13 comments:

  1. Yes it is an impressive view! And Blois looks like a lovely city. I think the brouillard makes things look very atmospheric, for lack of a better phrase. Another word I've heard for this is "brume" or "brumeur." Decades ago we visited Vaux-le-Vicomte, perhaps in February or March, in heavy fog/mist. Couldn't see the chateau from the road. As we walked on the path it rose up out of the mist like an apparition.

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    1. D. I agree with you and what you say. A good word in French would be sort of fantasmagorique.

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    2. The count and countess de Voguë, the owners of Vaux-le-Vicomte, were held up in the chateau a few days ago and several million euros (?) were stolen from them!

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    3. I was in Los Angeles. Danny will vouch.

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    4. Seems they got emeralds and jewelry from the safe and tied the owners up with Hermes neckties. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/french-aristocrats-tied-up-in-2m-raid-on-ch-teau-de-vaux-le-vicomte-jqmmxkjjk

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  2. The name of the architect who built that bridge sounded familiar and, this time, before writing une ânerie I checked Google. The Gabriels are a family of architects and this one's son, Ange Gabriel, is best known to both Parisians and Americans. To the former because he built the Place de la Concorde and the École militaire and to the latter because the entrance to the American Embassy is on Avenue Gabriel!

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    1. I understand, from good source, that President Trump also asked the new Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to call President Macron right away and insist the latter makes sure the avenue Gabriel is renamed asap avenue du dictateur Donnie XLV.

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  3. I've been to Blois only once, with Jane and Aimée, when we took one of those student day trip by bus, to see three Loire Valley Châteaux (Chambord, Amboise, Blois). Our nice tour lunch was in Blois (it was very good, despite it being arranged by a tour).

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  4. What a nice view your friend had!

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    1. It's true. I wonder if she still lives there. We didn't stay in touch. Her life was tumultuous at the time.

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  5. Blois looks very interesting, even in, especially in, the fog.
    And chm, don't even joke about that. It's time to take out the trash.

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