Sunday market

We just had a four day weekend in France as a result of a holiday on Thursday.  As a result the regular Sunday market was slammed with locals and tourists.

Rose Fest 2017

The annual Rose Festival is this weekend at Chédigny, not far from Amboise.  The village is famous for its homes that are swaddled in roses.  The festival draws visitors from all over France and even the world.  It's a great way to spend an afternoon admiring the homes and taking pictures of them, lounging in the shaded refreshment areas, pouring over the local arts and crafts, and listening to all kinds of live music.  I was stunned to hear this fellow playing "The City of New Orleans" (made famous by Arlo Guthrie in the '70s).

the fair at Amboise

Every May there is what I would call a "home" fair in Amboise.  It's an opportunity for vendors of home products  and services that are in and around Amboise to display their wares.  As a photographer, I really love the white tents and in this case, the shadows on them.

the dovecote at Clos Lucé

Yesterday I (digitally) posted a shot of the interior of this clever building.  I say clever because the following is a description that is (physically) posted outside:

"The dovecote or "fuye" of the Château du Clos Lucé was built in 1480 by Etienne le Loup ....  The dovecote, unique of its kind in the Touraine, consists of a square exterior and an octagonal interior, and is built of brick, tuta limestone and mortar.  The angles between the outer and inner walls allow for a constant circulation of air essential for the successful hatching and rearing of young birds.  Two thirds of the way up the outside wall is the "larmier", a flat outcrop of projecting stones, convex on the lower side, to which slates were nailed to prevent predators, rats, ferrets, weasels, from climbing into the dovecote to steal eggs, drink the blood of young pigeons and drive away the parent birds.  A gap at the base of the roof timers allowed the birds to enter and leave the dovecote.  The roof is covered in flat tiles and topped by a finial in the form of a phallus, symbolizing fertility."

inside the dovecote at Clos Lucé

This amazing dovecote (shelter for raising pigeons) at Clos Lucé was built in 1480, about 30 years before the arrival of Leonardo da Vinci there.

the Renaissance juggler

This juggler put on quite a show at a recent special event at Clos Lucé.

a little bit of Giverny in Amboise

This charming bridge and pond can be found on the grounds of Clos Lucé.

May flowers

first sunset

The first Saturday sunset of the season (on ADP anyway).

view from Place Debré

It's election day in France and everyone is praying.

asparagus season

Our area is famous for its white asparagus and the markets are brimming with them.

Theme Day - "let's eat!"

The first of every month is Theme Day for the worldwide bloggers of City Daily Photo.  To see how the others interpreted today's theme click here.

I had to do a little digging for a decent photo for today's theme and so this shot of tomatoes was actually taken in September at a nearby Tomato Festival.