Chateau de Sarzay

Totally off the touristy beaten track., yet apparently one of THE most visited historical sites in France, Chateau Sarzay is one of the most amazing and interesting historical buildings I have ever visited in my life outside of Newgrange in Ireland. Possibly because it is privately owned and is being renovated by one man and his family alone and has not been heavily advertised is it's charm all of itself.

Built in 1440, it was neglected for years and years until it was bought independently in 1982 by Richard Hurbain (who I had the privilege to meet) and has been slowstakingly and lovingly restored by him and his family. The amazing thing about this place is that you can go into every nook and cranny of this amazing structure and poke about and touch the artifacts...which totally appealed to the nosy head of me who loves to see how things work. You can get to every single floor of this amazing building (at your own risk of course because it IS a construction site in progress really) and if you have an imagination at all, you can totally revisit how it would have been to live here, to imagine how it would have been to carry up firewood and water to each floor, to envision how it would have been to peek out of the holes in the wall to see the enemy advancing.

The yard outside is absolutely chock a block with shed loads of salvaged artifacts and tools.

Words do not do this place justice. It is truly a sight to be seen with your own eyes and for the paltry entrance fee of EU6.00 per adult, it is absolutely worth every single penny, cent, or centime!

GO!!!

P.S. for those of you who are familiar with my Yelp reviews...the brevity of my review is enough to alert you to how much you should see this place (DIVE BAR ALERT - medieval style!)

P.P.S. there are grapes and pears and blackberries growing along the perimeter wall for you hungry foodies