After a two-month break, our postcrossers are back
with a postcard of Ourense’s Main Square sent to a village in the French Loire
Valley, Dadonville. ESO 3 students have been in charge of exploring Dadonville
and sending this postcard written in French.
Dadonville is a
village located in the Loire Valley region (now part of the Centre-Loire Valley
region), in the western-central part of France, 39 km from Orleans, the
department capital and 78 km from Paris.
DADONVILLE IS FAMOUS FOR…
…the impressive number of plants and flowers to be
enjoyed throughout the village; indeed, its wonderful planting is one of
Dadonville’s key attractions.The streets contain several traditional stone
houses making it very pleasant to explore, made more interesting by the small
river and bridge and, during the spring and summer, by its flowers and plants.
PLACES TO VISIT
Église Saint Denis
Yébre le Chatel Castle and Fortress
This Medieval castle dates from the first quarter of
the 13th century and is located in the hamlet of Yèvre-le-Châtel, 5 km from
Dadonville. Its design like many others of the time was heavily influenced by the
knowledge gained by the developments in military defensive architecture
witnessed during the 'Crusades'
By the 15th century however, the castle became
redundant with the advent of canon-power and although the castle was occupied
by the Huguenots In 1562, during the Wars of Religion, the collapse of its
interior vaults made it uninhabitable.
It was then left to crumble during the following century.The property of
the commune, it has been listed since 1862 as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.
Arboretum des Grandes Bruyeres
The Arboretum des Grandes Bruyeres is a lovely
arboretum whose main features include a North American woodland garden, an
Asiatic woodland garden and of course lots of heather - bruyeres is the French
name for heather.The
arboretum was created in 1972 and is now a mature and well established
arboretum with more than 6500 trees and shrubs of 1400 species. The gardens are
beautifully laid out and there is something to see for every season (though
they close in the winter). The arboretum des Grandes Bruyeres has a national
collection of 1000 old roses and many are centred in this part of the garden.
In June the scent and sight of all these roses is magnificent.
To know more about the Loire Valley, the region where
Dadonville is located, watch this video:
