Friday Fun: Time for Some Chateaux Again!

I know you’ve all missed my ever-so-useful posts about acquiring the chateau of your dreams in France or thereabouts. Fear not: I’ve continued avidly collecting information and pictures (my future as an estate agent seems secure!).

Chateau in Figeac, right about in the middle of nowhere. Sorry, I mean France.

Same property as above. I’d be content with this little outhouse!

Chateau in Rochechouart, Limousin, near a famous crater. No, it won’t fall in!

Inside the Rochechouart castle, you can find all the medieval comforts you might expect…

… and a few modern ones you might not. I would die for that library!

Price available on request – need not apply if you have less than 21 million euros at your disposal!

And, finally, one that is not for sale. It’s been converted into a hotel and restaurant, it’s not that far away from where I currently live… so I still dream of having a civilised supper with friends on the terrace at some point…

Chateau de Divonne, divonnelesbains.com

Credits for all of the pictures above, excepting Divonne, is from the property website http://www.avendrelouer.fr.

 

 

Is It Time for Castles Yet?

Not for me a timid manor-house, a larger-than-average barn:

Towers, sculptures, crenellations are things I yearn.

A place where my imagination and I can gallop unfettered,

where no one has tethered my quiver so impatient.

Castles in Spain? Pah! I scorn!

It’s the chateaux in France that I adore!

 

It’s Friday, it’s been a crazy week, so I felt like having a silly little ditty to accompany the pictures below. I am also responding to the prompt over at dVerse Poets, where we are asked to experiment with slant rhymes: the ones that sound nearly but not quite right, and are so much more interesting than perfection!

Chateau in Angers, http://www.affinityprestige.ch

Chateau in Angouleme, avendrealouer.fr

Chateau near Blois, http://www.maisons-et-chateaux.com

Chateau near Limousin, bellesdemeures.com

They probably have libraries already, but just in case you are looking for the perfect one… (I may have posted this picture before, but it’s just the most romantic chateau library I have ever seen).

Chateau de Groussay, from bookmania.me

 

Friday Fun: Chateaux in France

Castles in Spain, chateaux in France, what’s the difference? Somewhere to dream, explore, write – and never mind the renovation work required.  Happy Bank Holiday, for those who are in the UK, and hope the weather will be better than our soaked holidays to date…

Chateau near Vichy, maisons-et-chateaux.com

Chateau in Lyon, http://www.affinityprestige.ch

Chateau in Charente, exploreimmo.com

Chateau near Dijon, Capifrance.fr

Chateau du Signal near Lausanne, photo: Sabine Papillaud, 24heures.ch

I’ve included the last picture although the image is less clear because this one is quite a special house (and it is more of a modest manor house than a chateau): it was David Bowie’s house on the hills above Lausanne for 10 years and it has appeared in the Claude Chabrol film ‘Merci pour le chocolat’.

Atmospheric Settings: Castles

Following on from my previous post, speaking of great settings…

Some of the crucial scenes of my crime novel in progress (3rd draft, thank you for asking) are set in a mountain chalet [of the public rather than the posh type]. However, seeing these pictures of French castles, I couldn’t help wondering if I could set my next novel in one of those places!

Chateau near Clermont-Ferrand.

Some have Versailles-type fountains…

…And some have pools.

The more towers, the merrier…

Chateau with gite (B&B).

For medievalists.

And for those who prefer Neo-Classical style…

Incidentally, all of these castles are for sale, if you have a spare few million euros to invest in buying and renovating. More pictures and estate-agenty type details are available from websites such as http://www.bellesdemeures.com, http://www.avendrealouer.fr  and http://www.maisons-et-chateaux.com.