Having sampled most of Boulogne's charms by now, we ventured farther afield, on a local bus to Condette which is home to the grand-sounding Chateau Hardelot.
The bus, which cost a mere euro apiece, dropped us a kilometre from the castle. As we walked, Nic suffered a bout of dizziness probably allied to Menieres disease. At the same time the French heavens opened. It was a long and trying walk. We got to the castle with 40 minutes to look around before they closed for a 2 hour lunch.
So was it worth it? It was hardly your typical Chateau. It was very small. Bought by an American in 1898 it had been tarted up as a homage to the British royal family and the Enteinte Cordiale! It was positively stiff with photos of the Queen, busts of Victoria and Albert and fans used by princess Alexandra. The decor was William Morris and there was a cabinet of curiosities including a stuffed badger, axe heads and a spiny sea creature.
Our 40 minutes up, we wandered into the adjacent restaurant and ordered a beef and Guinness pie (the English connection). The waitress told us the building under construction nearby would be a British theatre. 'The Queen had seen a model' she confided ' and we hope she will come here for the grand opening'. Weird didn't begin to describe our chateau experience.
We took a 30 euro taxi back to Boulogne, did laundry and had large gins with Carl and Barbara, a Swedish couple who had also been storm bound in the port. They had done all the Boulogne things we had except for the chateau. We didn't recommend it.
Sent from Samsung Mobile on O2
No comments:
Post a Comment