Western
Europe continued
Tour of France continued
Fri 9/28 Day 7 Mont Saint-Michel
- Tours. 310
km, 4 hrs driving time
Short drive to Tours, in the Loire River valley. This section
of the valley is full of castles along the Loire to visit. Some
of the highlights will include: Chenonceaux, Chambord (the biggest
and the best in the valley) Azay-Le-Rideau, & Cheverny.
Chateau de Montgouverne
37210 Rochecorbon
Tel. 02-47-52-84-59
info@montgouverne.com
www.montgouverne.com
900FF each. Both rooms inside castle, one downstairs & one
is suite. Includes large buffet breakfast.
Today we went to Mont Saint-Michel, but the real joy were all the little towns we drove through on the way! We had a quick French breakfast, sigh, and went to Mont Saint-Michel, which was very cool. The tide was out, so we saw how the sand stretched about on all sides. It would be cool to visit it when the tide was in, now, just to see what it looks like. We went up into the church, around where the monks had lived, and then we got some treats and hit the road. On they way to Tours, Laura had another episode, and this one was bad. Really bad! We stopped at a little restaurant and Laura ran inside to use it. The woman who was running the place then typified everything that people say that the French are. Here's Laura, doubled up on the ground, after using her toilet, and she's yelling at us, saying that she wants her ten francs. We paid off the woman, cursed her children, and got Laura back in the car.
We then drove to Tours and to a hospital's emergency room. That first hospital we tried didn't think it could do surgery on Laura, and they suggested another hospital. They called us a cab, and then my father and I followed the cab which carried my mother and Laura to this other hospital. She was admitted and then we waited and waited. I thought for sure that I wouldn't see Laura alive again. At nine, I finally got in to see her. They were doing tests, but again, the pain was subsiding. My parents and I then went to McDonald's to eat, mainly because I wanted familiar food, dammit. My father relented only because I was so distressed. After giving more money to the clown, [Editor's note: Incase you didn't get it either, Aaron means the Ronald MacDonald clown] we then went back to the hospital, but the front doors were locked, and then we met the second meanest person in France. He wouldn't let us in, and we had no idea where to go. A very pretty Cardiologist then saved us. She drove us around to the back entrance and got us all taken care of. My father is a heart patient, and now in Colorado, when he has a problem, he is going to insist on going to Tours, France for treatment.
They ran the same slew of tests, x-rays & exams and found nothing wrong with her. She was discharged with some new medication and we knew we weren't in the USA because when we went to pay, the receptionists at the Emergency Room had no idea how much it would be, how we could pay, or any of that. They told us to wait for our bill in the mail, back in the States. Weird. Unlike our Chateau the previous night, the host of the Chateau de Montgouverne was cordial, concerned, and told us to come at any time. We showed up and it was wonderful. The house was in the middle of its own vineyard, and we ended up buying some of the Chateau's wine. Still worried about Laura, we turned in for the night.
A beautiful house along the way
A view of Mont Saint-Michel, complete with sheep, tour buses & renovation. It was wonderful!
Us looking out onto the beach at low tide from Mont Saint-Michel
A video of the rebels storming Mont Saint-Michel
Chateau de Montgouverne, we ended up staying longer here cause we liked it so much
