Playing at the Chateau du Rivau

We had a marvelous time today at the Chateau du Rivau a mere 15 km away. We spent over 3 hours there and could have stayed longer. Luckily we think we will get to return with friends visiting soon!

In the courtyard of the castle is a little restaurant - serving salads made with produce from their own extensive gardens. My salad consisted of lettuce, roasted red and yellow peppers, their own goat cheese (which was a lot like a creamier version of feta), and this scrumptious honey-drenched, roasted almond with sesame loveliness. David and I also learned that 50cl of wine is WAY more than what two people need to accompany such a light lunch. Needless to say we grinned our way through the rest of the tour!

The Trophy Room

I just thought the fresco above this mantle was amazing. I should have taken a closer picture.

The music room (see photo below for a larger view) was FULL of instruments you could touch and play! We were the only one's in the castle for quite some time, so we had an outright jam session. It was a blast!

What I wouldn't give to take a bubble bath in this room! It was round - enclosed in a castle turret. Isn't it divine?

Yes, here we are sitting on the furniture in the Joan of Arc Room! How cool is that?! I just loved the way we had access to so much hands-on stuff.

The gardens were simply amazing and incredibly extensive. Here are some shots from the flora and fauna:

A Peahen and her young.

Bo & Vivi inside the labyrinthe

A view of the labyrinthe from the belvedere tower with me waving up from the center. The kids ran through this while we shouted out directions from the tower. They would have done this all afternoon had we let them!