We have been reading reports on Chateau Chalucet for several years. These were articles about its renovation and readiness for the public. So this Sunday we decided to take Delia’s mum to visit it. It was about an hours drive away but well signposted and easy to find. There was a reception centre that I went to look at and got a guide leaflet in English. This centre also had models of the site that showed the main castle on its isolated hill and the associated small settlement at its foot. It was quite a large site with several walking routes marked out. These routes were not just around the ruins of the chateau and its surroundings but also along the bank of the River Ligure.
We chose a route to take us around the ruins. Although mostly consisting of low walls there were some higher walls with arched windows. There were also some inside walls showing the remains of hearths. At the foot of the castle hill there was a tower. We climbed the solid metal framework of stairs inside the tower. This led us to the top with a view and almost at level with the chateau.
We set about climbing up to the castle. The paths were well made though showing wear and the weed control fabric in places. Clearly we had been reading the reports of the renovation for a long time. When we returned to the car, we noticed many more cars than when we had arrived. This place seems to be popular for locals taking advantage of the cooler and later evenings for picnics by the river.
Delia and I were working during the week with Frances spending much of her time on crosswords (as well as doing our laundry 🙂 ). On Thursday, since her hair had been coming out in clumps, Delia had booked the hairdresser to shave her head completely. I was surprised how it affected me. Her bald head said “cancer” to me in a way that the operations before had not. The surprise was brief and I quickly came to see Delia’s bravery and beauty shining through.
The next day I had a two client visits – at about 100km away it made sense to do two together. The first was an interesting rural location set amongst huge wind turbines. I stopped and listened to them and their soft whirring was quieter than the rustling leaves in the surrounding trees. My second client was a cattle farm set on an 18th century estate. The main building was a three storied house with 7 bedroom and many more rooms as well as an attic divided into two 100 sq m. rooms. Much had been renovated but more remains to be done. I will be building an interesting website, in three parts; their farm, their meat and their gite.