le moto

The owner of the cycle parked it right over a "street light" and I thought it made for an unusual look.  Too bad I didn't have my tripod with me.

opera on the street

I had not heard opera being sung on the streets of Amboise before this but I hope it will not be the last time.

it's good to be the king

At last the king arrives.

lovin' the sunset

Another Saturday sunset on the levee.

dancing light

On the day of the music festival, even the sunlight's reflection onto the wall from a neighbor's parked car seemed to be dancing.  (The white is from the windows and the red from a tail light.)

fooling around

Here's another shot from the costumed parade on Saturday.  I think this costume is exquisite.  And the gentleman has the perfect demeanor for it.

plus de la fête de la musique

Here are two members of another jazz ensemble at the music fest last Sunday.  These guys were fantastic.  I should be doing Amboise Daily Video for times like this.

la joyeuse entrée continue

A courtly couple in the costumed procession on Saturday.  All of the costumes were impeccable. Stay tuned for more.

Un couple de cour dans le procession costumé le samedi. Tous les costumes étaient impeccable. Restez à l'écoute pour plus.

la fête de la musique

Yesterday the annual music festival was celebrated throughout France.  This idea of taking music to the streets, and thus the people, was invented in France in 1982 and has since spread all over the world.  It is normally held on or around the solstice.  Yesterday was the perfect storm of events.  Not only was there the music festival, the actual summer solstice, but also Father's Day.  Plus the weather was perfect.

All kinds of music was presented throughout the day and I'll be showing some other examples in days to come.  Here we have a jazz ensemble on rue Nationale.  Way cool.

la joyeuse entrée de François 1er dans Amboise

A street festival on Friday and Saturday was part of a celebration of the ascendancy to the throne of France 500 years ago by King Francis I (roi François 1er).  Last night there was a procession in costume of the volunteer association (Animation Renaissance Amboise) that recreates (in 90 minutes) a performance depicting this King's Renaissance court on the grounds of the château itself.  The procession was led by these court servants over the bridge to central Amboise.  I will show you more photos in coming days.

Un festival de rue le vendredi et le samedi faisait partie d'une célébration de l'accession au trône de France, il ya 500 ans par le roi François 1er. La nuit dernière, il y avait une procession en costume de l'association bénévole (Animation Renaissance Amboise) qui recrée (en 90 minutes) une performance illustrant la cour de ce roi de la Renaissance sur les terrains du château lui-même. La procession était conduite par ces domestiques de la cour sur le pont d'Amboise central. Je vais vous montrer plus de photos dans les prochains jours.

it's beach season

Amboise doesn't really have a beach, but when the water level of the Loire drops very low, it exposes these stretches of fine stones and sand.  Bon weekend.

enjoying the sunset

I'm not the only one in the neighborhood that appreciates a good sunset.  But he has a better perch.

the wine merchant

Here is one of the local wine merchants selling his goods at the Sunday market. And of course you can taste it first before buying.  Yet another reason to go to the markets.

the buskers

Here are two of the street musicians that entertained during the recent "Day of the artists".

enfin!

La fontaine conçue par Max Ernst en 1967 a été restauré et une nouvelle place autour d'elle a été construite. Il n'a pas encore été officiellement dédié et ainsi les eaux de la fontaine ont pas encore été renouvelées. Donc, rester en attente. Mais la rénovation est magnifique. Voici un "avant et après" de l'une des sculptures:

At last!  The fountain designed by Max Ernst in 1967 has been restored and a new plaza around it has been constructed.  It has not yet been formally dedicated and so the fountain waters have not yet been restarted.  So stand by.  But the renovation is magnificent.  Here is a "before and after" of one of the sculptures:

the first balloon

Well, it's certainly not the first balloon (la montgolfière) of the season in Amboise, but it's the first one I've managed to catch flying directly over our house.  One day I hope to shoot the inverse (our house from the balloon).

la rive gauche

Paris is not the only town with a left bank.  Every town on a river has one and Amboise has its own on the Loire.  Here it is in June being overrun with wildflowers (Paris is jealous).  The way they are growing at these angles, they do look to me like they're in a hurry.

la Journée des artistes

I'm posting a little later than usual today because this is one of those rare occasions where I am actually posting a photo on the same day I took it.  All around town, 100 artists and artisans have setup their sidewalk booths to show and sell their handiwork.  It seems even more festive to me this year because of the colorful banners that have been installed overhead on rue Nationale.  Then, throw in some street musicians, the regular boutiques, the usual Saturday wedding groups and you have a town-sized street party.  And thankfully the weather is perfect for it.

le château de Bondésir

The château de Bondésir is a chambre d'Hôtes (bed and breakfast) that has a wonderful view over the Loire. This day, my view was from the banks of the Loire looking up to the château.

the tumbling tree

This cedar sits atop a steep hillside.  In addition to growing straight up, it's branches have followed the hillside downwards creating this wonderful "tumbling down the hill" effect.

Le pavillon du Concierge

This pavilion is at the entrance to the area where you'll find the pagoda on the grounds of the Château de Chanteloup.

shadow play

A pair of Amboise classics in one shot.

it must be 10 am

While this looks to be a giant sundial, it's actually the pagoda in Amboise... as seen from the top.  Here is a more traditional view of it.

water under the bridge

The piers of bridge Leclerc produce these swirls and eddies as the water rushes underneath.  And on this day the bright sun produced just the strong contrasts I wanted for this shot.

lights, camera, ....

...action!  That's your queue to start your weekend activities.  These lights were for sale at a local outdoor brocante which is where you can buy second-hand goods.  Often you would call these goods antiques due to their age and quality.  Bon weekend!

blazing wings

This fellow was out sunning himself on this beautiful day and stayed still just long enough for me to quickly get a shot before he fluttered off.  Thanks, Susan, for identifying it as a Knapweed Fritillary butterfly.

bon courage

This beautiful statue is one of four that represent the cardinal virtues and surround the tomb of  French King François II (son of Catherine de Medici and married to Mary Queen of Scots),  The pictured statue represents the virtue Courage.  It reminds me of the many strong women of this time who had profound political influence even though they were never permitted to rule alone without a king.  Thus, I say bon courage* to all you women struggling to make a difference.


*This expression can sometimes mean "good luck" but in cases like this I would translate it to "have courage!",

wildflowers on the levee

Just to the west of Amboise, the levee follows the Loire to this wonderful nature reserve.

hoppy and poppy

I am not looking forward to translating and explaining this title to my French friends.

CDP theme day for June - "stylish"

Today is Theme Day for the bloggers of City Daily Photo, and today's theme is "stylish".  I found that this statue of Anne de Bretagne (2002 bronze by Jean Fréour) reflected the style of her times and of the Queen herself.  She lived in the Château d'Amboise during her marriage to King Charles VIII.

See how the other CDP bloggers interpreted today's theme here.