An adventure in Tours

For those of you who are getting to know me through this blog, you could already figure out that I plan out details scrupulously for any particular event, project, etc. Needless to say, many times what we plan does not turn out the way we expected and that can be very difficult for a person who wants so much to be in control of everything that happens so that things happen seamlessly. Anyway, it doesn't matter. Even if things don't happen the way I expect, somehow everything turns out all right. I'm reminded of a Disney chick flick called "Ice Princess," where the friend of the main character (and ice skater) says that her friend "glides" when other people grind. That image seems to echo with my experiences and mishaps. Sometimes, I almost slip and fall on pavement that's slick, but somehow, I pick myself up and have a rapid reaction time (first violinists tend to have super fast reaction time) and somehow, I glide. Some would call it smooth, but I call it "falling with style!" In any case, here's my introduction. I did have an adventure in Tours. Here's the story.

It all started when I made one phone call the night before leaving for Tours to a hotel that I thought was the youth hostel (The number was in my tour book and I overlooked the mistake in the number.) I was making sure I had a reservation and ended up making another reservation in a hotel I didn't even know where it was in Tours. I left with ease after having watched "The Social Network" dubbed in French with a foule (crowd) of high schoolers. The trains were fine, no delays, and somehow I felt so relaxed when entering the beautiful Gare de Tours. From there, the falling action (la chute, as we call it in literary analysis). I wandered out trying to find the main road but it was completely dark, so I got out my map and continued to ponder where my hostel was. I ended up asking multiple people where it was to no avail. So I went exploring the main avenue, the Galeries Lafayette and Hotel de Ville, all closed. I wandered into the university district, called the hotel (where I had an unintended reservation). After multiple phone calls, I met the owner of the hotel and got a room at 36 euros. I had so much trouble sleeping after being somewhat stressed but internally, I was thrilled to have a hotel room in a strange European city at night. I was in the university district so people were out and about yelling and singing drunk at 5am. At that point, I decided to check out of the hotel and find the hostel in the morning.

The next morning, I checked out and explained to the owner the mistake (clumsy, blonde moment it was). I then found the youth hostel and checked in with my stuff. Afterwards, I took off... The city was beautiful during the day. I wandered the streets, went to the Basilique St. Martin (older Gothic church) and the Cathedrale Saint Gatien (a much more beautiful Gothic church). I discovered where things were such as the Office de Tourisme and the musee des Beaux Arts as well as the Chateau de Tours. I explored the university district and took a photo of the Hotel de Ville, which has architecture similar to buildings in Paris but has no access. (The blonde tourist in me thought that the hotel was open as a museum. However, apparently, they hold classical concerts and events there.) Brought myself back to the Gare de Tours and found a quaint brasserie, cafe, bar (all together in the same building), where I set my stuff down and enjoyed a nice, leisurely French lunch. I had une jambonnette (mini ham), pommes dauphines (potatoes in little pastry balls), French bread, and a nice dessert of meringue, strawberry, and bananas toasted. Yum and only for 12 euros. After lunch, I headed to the Gare to pick up Jane, my assistant friend, so that we could be on our way.

Together, Jane and I made a congenial travel pair. We saw some of the same churches I had seen in the morning. Jane is actually a Protestant Christian and has gone to a Pentecostal church as well. She has had similar feelings as I have about the experience, which is sometimes disorienting. Jane is somewhat disenchanted with Christianity in Europe and is having some difficulty connecting with the Christian community here. I will be praying for her that she finds a stable church or grows to feel more comfortable with her current worship community. Anyway, Jane and I explored the university district, saw the Chateau de Tours with an art exhibit from an American expat, Harold James. Afterwards, we got tea and pastries at a little patisserie, where we spent about 1h20 talking. We ended up finding the hostel at night after wandering about in the dark, probably walking 1 mile more than we had to. Had dinner in the university district at a French restaurant. To Bed in the Hostel after an exhausting time.

The next morning (yesterday), Jane and I did a chateau tour of the two castles: Azay le Rideau and Villandry. Beautiful gardens, beautiful castles, had a good time, even with the gray weather outside. I love Renaissance castles and am looking forward to seeing more famous ones in the near future with my host family. Jane and I went to lunch at a very cheap Greek restaurant in the university district and then went to the Musee des Compagnons and a wine museum, both of which were disappointing as they featured the most random relics and basically crap that you could put on display. I felt like I went to a yard sale to see things that were on display and had little or no historical significance at all. The Musee des Beaux Arts, however, was impressive with nice paintings including one by Monet and live music, including a xylophonist who played an original piece that hypnotized the entire audience. It was incredible. Jane and I then went to the Gare, grabbed a cappuccino and crepes with Nutella and ice cream. Soon thereafter, we grabbed a drink at a local bar near the gare, I got a glass of locally grown red wine (Chinon) and she a glass of girly fruity beer beverage. So we drank and waited on my train to arrive. Went back to the train station and off I went completely exhausted and drained, but happy to have spent a special and adventurous weekend in Tours.