Showing posts with label Lake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lake. Show all posts

Sunday, June 25, 2017

France, Loire Valley - Château de Villandry III (The Water Garden)









Above the Ornamental Garden, at the far south of the estate, is the Water Garden. 
This boulingrin, or sunken garden, bordered with grassy banks known as glacis, 
consists of an ornamental pond at the centre in the form of a Louis XV mirror, 
embellished here and there with square parterres of lawn, 
a network of perpendicular avenues and four secondary ornamental ponds.
It's then surrounded by cloister of linden trees.

The present-day Water Garden dates from the early 20th century. 
The original ornamental pond was built when the gardens of Villandry were transformed into a jardin à la française (formal garden) 
in the 18th century. 
The redevelopment of the grounds in the 19th century in the romantic English style, 
led to the classical ornamental pond being replaced by one with more natural lines.
Drawing on 18th-century designs, Joachim Carvallo recreated the ornamental pond 
and gave this area the clear, regular appearance it has today.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

France, Loire Valley - Château de Serrant IV
















The Serrant Castle is representative for the Renaissance-style architecture, and it's known for it's architectural unity. 
The austere and desolate exterior boasts a schist and tufa façade, two towers crowned with domes and an imposing moat. 

This study in schist and tuffeau stone emerged from its medieval foundations to a Renaissance palace in the 16th century. 

France, Loire Valley - Château de Serrant III (The Lake View)








"The castle grounds were gleaming in the sunlight as though freshly painted; 
the cloudless sky smiled at itself in the smoothly sparkling lake, 
the satin-green lawns rippled occasionally in a gentle breeze: 
June had arrived."


J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Saturday, May 7, 2016

MySpot: Autumn Glory such as This













"Soon the leaves will all be turning,
From their many shades of green,
Into colors bright and gorgeous...
Reds and yellows, browns and orange,
Underneath the smiling sun,
Each leaf vying with the other
In the change they've now begun.
Giving up their Summer wardrobes,
Gladly; joyfully, with glee,
Putting on their Autumn trousseau,
As they leave their mother tree..."

Gertrude Tooley Buckingham - The Wedding of the Leaves

Friday, November 6, 2015

MySpot: Seated Here...









"Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for. 
Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us. 
We need hours of aimless wandering or spates of time sitting on park benches, 
observing the mysterious world of ants and the canopy of treetops."

Maya Angelou