Two little Churches in France..-

 

 

This little church is in La Clusaz,

 right in the middle of the chalets

surrounded by fields and mountains.

Wish it had been open to see inside.

 

 

 

 

 

And this little church is a short drive away.

Wish I could remember the name.

This is also out in the middle of nowhere,

next to a play area and a restaurant .

 

 



A joy to see this one open. There are many little churches dotted all over France.

 

 

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

 

Beautiful Stained Glass windows ....La Clusaz , France.

La Clusaz is primarily a  ski resort  but also is a super place for all seasons, in the Alps near the Swiss border. The commune is part of the Haute-Savoie département. The town is in the Aravis mountain range. This fabulous town is 30 minutes from Annecy train station and 50 minutes from Geneva.

La Clusaz (originally from the word cluse - meaning a narrow path between two mountains) was once called Clusa Locus Dei meaning God's narrow place

There was so much to see and do.

 

Walks, play parks for the children, the Luge, plenty of places

to eat , also many supermarkets. And of course a fabulous market!!

 Lots of shopping to be done too!!

Very well catered for. 

 Easy reach to a fabulous place named Talloires

and of course Annecy.

 

In the middle of this town I found the

 

 EGLISE SAINTE FOY

 

The "Sainte Foy Church of La Clusaz was built in 1821 according to Camille Ruphy's plans, architect of Annecy. There has been a church in La Clusaz since 1285.

In 1974, the church was extensively rebuilt as it was in a state of disrepair. The bulb bell tower was built between 1751 and 1762. This characteristic is no doubt the alpine expression of baroque art, which was at this time, to be seen on various monuments in Europe.

 



 

Inside I discovered the beautiful stain glass windows.

 

 

 Holy Mary and a place to light a candle..

I loved this town , the weather was brilliant.

Walked through the chalets , listening to the Cow Bells and the forest,

went Luging and swimming in Lake Annecy.

 

Would love to go back.

Have you ever tried Luging?

I HAVE!

Not this type of Luging though..

Before our holiday Jacob, Gillie's youngest son,  was telling me all about

the Luge..

(A one- or two-person sled for coasting or racing down a slide , used especially in Europe) 

 He really wanted me to have a go, so I risked it all!!
I was very apprehensive about going down on a sled from a height
and me in control .   Also had to go up in a Bubble lift.
I am not a lover of lifts at the best of times.
I put all my fears to the side.

You start off here , climbing into your Bubble lift to take you 800 metres up ..

  
When you reach the top, you grab your sled and position it at the start of the metal slide
and then you are off !!!

You control it with a gear stick - Forward for fast and back to slow down or Stop..

I wasn't fast but I wasn't slow ,, I actually had FUN!!

 You cannot get off half way through , once on you are committed.
Here is the proof ..Yeah I did it.

To give you a better idea of how it is ,

I found a little video on YouTube..

Hope you watch it.!!

Then you will see what I braved.

The person on the Luge is in the fast lane, I was

in the lane to the right. For beginners and slow people.

It was GREAT!!!

Did you go anywhere different this year?

I did!

All thanks to Gillie.

My lovely friend

asked if I would like to go on holiday

with her and her sons and two of their friends.
 

( Her sons even decided which room I would have,
and they chose the Balcony room.  Loved it.)
 

Oh my word ....Of course I would.

How lovely of her and her sons.

Gillie has a fabulous  chalet in

La Clusaz.

View from my bedroom balcony..

View as we sat on the  side veranda ..

Etale is a mountain of Savoie and Haute-Savoie, France.
It lies in the Aravis Range of the French Prealps
 and has an elevation of 2,484 metres above sea level.

Every night we sat on the veranda and just took it all in..

 

It is absolutely fabulous. And even though it is well known as
a Ski resort , the Summer season is just as busy. So much
to do.  Plenty of shops (Chocolate shops too)   a super weekly market ,
supermarkets,restaurants and walks. It is not far from
Lake Annecy either. As you can see from the map below.
The nearest airport is Geneva which is about 27 miles.

It is a ski resort in the Alps near the Swiss border. The commune of La Clusaz is part of the Haute-Savoie department  La Clusaz has been hosting winter sports since 1907. It is the birthplace of famous French skiers Guy Périllat and Vincent Vittoz and sailor Philippe Monnet. Based in the Aravis mountain range La Clusaz (originally from the word cluse - meaning a narrow path between two mountains) was once called Clusa Locus Dei meaning God's narrow place.

A walk through the forest..

Getting ready for winter with their log stack..

Mountains all around...so beautiful and invigorating.
The change in air certainly knocks you out , slept so well.

Still went to France but a totally different holiday and area.

Big thank you to my friend and boys.
♥♥♥♥♥

 I actually went to a few different places this year. I was very lucky indeed.
I have been trying to do a blog post continuing with Austria but having problems
exporting my photos from my phone .. I will get it sorted.

Ooops Forgot this lovely postcard ....

from my lovely friends

Diane and Nigel.

 

Sorry it slipped my blog ... ♥

 

Diane and Nigel

have been doing a bit of travelling

this year , which is fabulous.

 

 

 

 

 So wonderful to just get in the car and drive to these fabulous places.

 

 Hello from the Bay of d'Arcachon

 

The Bay of Arcachon is  a bay of 1500 hectares fed both by the ocean and a large number of waterways, producing an inland sea with the colours of a lagoon, bordered on one side by a blond crown of fine sand culminating at 104 metres: the Dune du Pilat. From its summit you can also see the beautiful Landes forest.

 

 

The town of Arcachon is only 150 years old. Not long before 2 May 1857, when Emperor Napoleon III signed its official "birth certificate", it was just a forest of pine trees, oaks and strawberry trees  with no road links.  Home - mostly when the weather was expected to be warm, and more in wood huts than in real houses - to fewer than 400 people, mostly fishermen and peasants. In earlier years, when some hygienists began to recommend sea bathing, three sea establishments were laid out by some entrepreneurs especially for the Bordeaux bourgeoisie and other wealthy people. This was the beginning of a new lifestyle, and some of the locals got the opportunity to claim their independence from La Teste-de-Buch, which owned their properties, in order to found a "free" new town, Arcachon

 

Certainly seems like a very interesting place to visit.

 

Big Thank you Diane and Nigel ..

My collection is certainly growing and with lots of FIRSTS!!!!

 

Dreaming of France , you might want to put this place on your list ♥

Why not share your love of France
over on Paulita's blog ..
and join her meme of
Dreaming of France..



A trip to Bourdeilles - France .. Dreaming of France

This was a difficult post as for a start I had no idea where it was. I knew it was in France , I knew I was with Diane and Nigel but because my computer decided to rearrange all my photos out of their folders I had to sort them out.

It was this little plaque that helped me!!

After a long time researching I found out that he or she was an author.

I have searched and searched and unlike me I cannot find out any info except
that whoever he/she was they wrote books about Bourdeilles.

Must be in the name -- VERY SECRET!!!

JEAN SECRET

 

The castle of Bourdeilles was firstly a medieval castle, in the end of the 13th, then a Renaissance palace of XVI century, housing an impressive collection of nearly 700 items of antique furnishings. The fortress remained French until 1360 when the treaty of Brétigny ceded the Périgord to the English. - See more at: http://en.infotourisme.net/monument/bourdeilles/4936/chateau-de-bourdeilles#sthash.v8wfAQjE.dpuf

Chateau de Bourdeilles...





 

I think this Chateau is two different designs or there are two!

 

I am sure Nigel will be able to help me out on this one . 

Le Jardin du Presbytere

 



 

I hope you all have a super week . I am off on a trip to Austria

with my Formula 1 friends. I still have to blog about my last trip ..

Italy in September 2014.  Lots to keep me going .

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥



 



Le Jardin du Presbytere