Local Château

Odette and Sophie at the Château du Touvet.

The Château du Touvet.

Yesterday afternoon I took Sophie and Odette to visit the Château du Touvet, which is only a few kilometres from Saint Marie d'Alloix. During Sophie's last week of school she had walked there with her class for a school excursion, so it is not far at all, even though it is in the next village.
The gardens gave me plenty of ideas for upgrading when I get home... If only there was a mountain stream to supply the water. The water features are the highlight of the garden, and the sound of running water was ever present in the garden.

The magnificent stairway waterfall in the garden.

And the tour inside gave me an idea of how much work and expense there is in maintaining an old château like this, although only some of the rooms on the ground floor where included in the guided tour. The family who live there obviously have their private rooms on the upper floors. The guided tour was very informative, and with only one other couple there at the same time as us it was easy to ask questions. If you want to find out more about the chateau you can look at their website.