Ambling around Ambiose

Today (Thursday), was spent in Ambiose, all within a 10 minute walk of our hotel. Our guide for today, Letitia, picked us up in the morning (Manon had another commitment today), for the short walk to Clos Luce castle, given to Leonardo da Vinci by his great friend King Francois (who lived in Ambiose castle). He gave da Vinci the castle and grounds plus a mega salary, just for the pleasure of his conversation, and da Vinci lived here until his death. Many of his inventions were designed here, and they are not only illustrated throughout the castle, but demonstrated with large working models throughout the park, for children to play with and explore. So Clos Luce is both an ancient castle worth visiting in its own right, and an interactive memorial park dedicated to the genius of da Vinci.
We then strolled to Ambiose chateau (castle), 5 minutes away, to explore inside the chateau (we had visited the grounds for the reenactment last night) and admire the beautiful (and strategic) view over the Loire river. Again, lots of reference to Francois and da Vinci, who is really revered here, and who is buried in the chapel at the chateau. Lunch was in a delightful local patisserie, with a refreshingly light meal, before a free afternoon.
Dinner was the complete opposite:) we headed off n foot with map and pre-paid voucher in hand, expecting a mid-range restaurant, but got inside an amazing gastronomic experience! Our voucher entitled us to 3 courses from a semi-set menu, plus a bottle of wine, but we were instead offered 4 courses when we explained we didn't want the wine. What they didn't tell us was that we actually got 6 courses, with an unexpected tasting plate for starters, and another tasting plate (5 items each) of sweets as a pre-dessert course. Add the generous plate of chocolates with coffee, and unlimited bread, and it's fair to say we are currently lying down in front of the tv to recover. All of it was exquisite, both in taste and presentation, and made more fun by a gorgeous little waitress with a great sense of humour who was happy to explain everything to us.