Our booking at the chateau included breakfast which was served in the old chapel on the same floor as our 'apartment' (I am using that word very loosely). A beautiful room that has not been sullied by any ghastly 1970s furniture - only antique furniture in this room so it was a perfect setting for a chateau breakfast. The croissants were extremely fresh as they had just been fetched from the village boulangerie. Claude sat with us for a little while - he really was a delightful chap and wasn't at all offended about us leaving after only one night as he "understood perfectly why two young ladies would want to go to a place with more nightlife" - and chatted to us about the grand chateaux in the Loire Valley. He had books we could look at so that was a great help in planning our next few days. There are so many chateaux that you couldn't possibly visit them all.
We decided to visit Chateau d'Usse on our way to Tours as it would only add about another half an hour of driving to our trip. This chateau was the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty's Castle and it was extremely pretty with glorious gardens. The chapel (separate from the chateau) was finished in 1535 and was a wonderful building in its own right. We climbed up to the top of Sleeping Beauty's tower - the views over the River Indre were magnificent - but alas no Prince Charming came along even though I pretended to be asleep.
We spent nearly three hours exploring Chateau d'Usse and its gardens before driving on to Tours. We're staying in Le Grand Hotel, decorated in a 1930s style but recently refurbished. It's also close (easy walking distance) to numerous restaurants meaning we could both have a couple of drinks with dinner.
