Chinon is described in these terms in the Michelin green guidebook I have :
...le vieux Chinon serre ses toits pointus et ses ruelles tortueuses entre les quais de la Vienne et l'escarpement du château. Le quartier a conservé de nombreuses maisons médiévales : façades à pans de bois aux poutres sculptées, pignons de pierre flanqués de tourelles, fenêtres à meneaux, portes ciselées.
I know when I took these photos. It was in October 2000 on my first visit to Chinon ever. I can't remember, and wish I could, whether I took any of them from the top of the Tour de l'Horloge. I know I climbed up to the top of the tower once, but I can't remember when. My last visit to Chinon was in 2018. I think I feel another one coming on.
Let me know when you're revisiting Chinon so I can pack my bags and come along. I've really enjoyed this series of posts.
ReplyDeleteEvelyn, I will come too! Haven’t been there since 2009.
ReplyDeleteBettyAnn
Oh, boy, we'll look forward to seeing what you see, if you go!
ReplyDeleteSome interesting words in that post: tortueuses, pans de bois. And "poutres sculptées" I had to google that one and not at all sure if there's an English equivalent.
ReplyDeleteDiogenes - I think I looked that one up before: sculpted plaster (before the plaster was alongside the front door on each side! As I recall, there were heads or faces.
ReplyDeleteI ran that French text through Reverso to translate it into English. Here's what I got:
Delete...old Chinon squeezes its pointy roofs and winding alleys between the quays of the Vienne and the escarpment of the castle. The district has preserved many medieval houses: half-timbered facades with carved beams, stone gables flanked by turrets, mullioned windows, carved doors.
I don't know what portes ciselées (carved doors) are, exactly.
Thanks for that Mary and Ken! Interesting on all these.
Delete