After leaving the Bordeaux region they traveled northward again back to the Châteaux region as the attempt to drive there from St. Emilion proved to be a longer distance than they had anticipated. 

They stayed at the Château D'Artigny (which was owned by the Coty perfume family at one time).  A beautiful château and gardens.

 They enjoyed exploring the beautiful rooms and outside pathways.

   There are lots of famous Châteaux in this area but Tania only wanted to see her two favorites (that she missed when touring in 1983)  Chenonceau and Chambord.  Chenonceau was the smaller of the two but had the most lovely gardens, forests, and natural mazes...Château des Dames as recorded in the French history books, Chenonceau owes a large part of its charm to women: it was built in 1513 by Katherine Briçonnet, then made even more attractive by Diane de Poitiers and Catherine de Médicis, and saved from the rigours of the French Revolution by Mrs Dupin.

Chenonceau is not only remarkable for its architecture and history but also for the fine quality of its collections as can be seen from the inside visit: Renaissance furniture, a vast ensemble of XVI th and XVII th centuries tapestries and a great number of masterpieces.

The main ballroom at Château D'Artigny.  Tania on top of the roof at Chambord (looks like a small village street).  More of the beautiful spires of Chambord from a roof-top view.

After leaving the Château Region Bob and Tania headed south towards Spain.  They spent a fitful night at the Sofitel in Biarritz because of a large storm out in the Bay of Biscay.  The building literally shook at 3 a.m. when the first wind gusts hit.  Quite Spooky!