Centre-Val de Loire
The Loire, French river
The Loire. France’s longest and undoubtedly most beautiful river, whose source is known to all schoolchildren : Mont Gerbier des Joncs. Nonchalant, it marks a symbolic border between the south and north of France. Thunderstorms turn away from it, rains cling to it, but beware of those who wish to venture there without caution: it bubbles up and speeds off towards the ocean. The banks of the Loire have always been a favorite destination for rulers and artists, and today they remain a haven for lovers of the French way of life and good taste.
The Loire River and Château d'Amboise, ©iStock
Rabelais, critic of his time
Ecclesiastic and anticlerical, Christian and humanist, physician and bon vivant, Rabelais’ personality had many contradictory facets. Caught up in the religious and political turmoil of the Reformation, he was a sensitive critic of the major issues of his time. His major works, Pantagruel and Gargantua, published between 1532 and 1564, prefigured the advent of the modern novel. "Vivez joyeux!" he wrote...
A French postage stamp, ©iStock
This is not a museum
Driven by artist Ben and the Fluxus spirit, the Fondation du doute is not a museum. It’s an idea, an experience and emotions. A departmental place of learning, the Fondation places importance on the unimportant, on the details of life, on humor and manifestos. A self-proclaimed World Center for Questioning, this space questions art, its limits and boundaries. Welcome to "Benland"...
The museum entrance in Blois, ©D. Jolivet
Les Compagnons du Tour de France: mind and hand
The building of cathedrals required expert and skilful "œuvriers". Since the Middle Ages, to learn a trade and become accustomed to the techniques, apprentices have traveled the country from master to master, forging an incomparable know-how. Together, they become "companions". In Tours, a museum presents the finest works of these stonecutters, carpenters and ironworkers. Between dedication to fine work and moral perfection.
A stonecutter, ©iStock
Touraine wines
From Cheverny to Bourgueil, Chinon to Vendôme, Touraine has been a wine-growing region since the Romanization of the Gallic countryside. Wines are made from a variety of grape varieties, including Sauvignon and Chardonnay for whites, and Cabernet and Pinot Noir for reds and rosés. These grape varieties enable the Touraine AOC to offer a wide variety of aromas, with characters that change according to vintage and terroir. The vineyards of the Loire Valley are a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Saumur-Champigny vineyard, ©iStock
