The old castle of Menthon Saint Bernard. High Savoy, France
Castle Menthon:
The medieval castle stands on a hill, a Menthon Saint Bernard, with a view on the shores of Lake Annecy, reachable by car or shuttle bus.
Restored, in excellent condition, with furnishings and furniture, is a castle much frequented by tourists.
Inhabited since the eleventh century by the same family, the castle from lean and high architecture, overlooking Lake Annecy. The castle houses a library, very rich and important, guided tours are made only in the afternoon and are guided tours with entertainment by artists in the form of the time. It comes on top of the hill where there is a small parking lot and a small cottage for tickets, you enter the castle alone and you can 'walk in the small park, once inside begins visit that lasts all 'approximately one hour. The castle houses a large lounge renovated, complete with all furniture dating from the very well kept, the rooms that you visit are about 8. Exit you can 'stay on the viewpoint that overlooks the lake.
Inside the courtyard there are toilets for tourists and visitors, there is also, before leaving, a small souvenir shop.
Address: Nant Ruisseau des charnières
74290 Menthon St-Bernard
The castle is magnificent, both internally and externally, refurbished, well-preserved, handsome and imposing, a fortress on the rock, where it has a magnificent view of Lac d'Annecy.
Missing the opening half hour when we arrive (afternoon only), parking and distract us with a pony in a paddock. Meanwhile, tourists arrive.
At two we do business, we are a large enough, the French, Germans and Italians (us). We are told that the visit will be special, with entertainment by actors in masks because of the time .... Well good no? NO.
We enter the courtyard that runs around the castle and do some pictures, from below the castle is really great, tall, narrow, with clear colors and architectural reminders of the medieval period. The roof is sloping, very sloping roofs and tall narrow, traditional buildings Nordic. From the outside we see some very beautiful picturesque features that capture our attention, from the lookout (where we await the entry), we enjoy the beautiful view over the lake, the whole valley and the green mountains that surround us. We all remember the Ireland.
When we go and have access to the small inner courtyard we find ourselves with a little boy dressed as a guard of the castle, the sympathetic and wants to shoot in bursts in French jokes, laughs (only him), asking questions around ...... I do not I understand very well the French spoken so fast I had to trust to the mercy of my friend who served as simultaneous translator.
I understand from the face of Luke that the boy that there is also a brief introduction before entering the castle, which the child is not nice, is not professional and they do not get comfortable. I kept looking around taking some photos, then we will be prohibited inside.
We pass the castle chapel, a small and narrow, very beautiful, stucco, statues, altar, frescoes, truly remarkable.
Here appears another infant, 20 years more or less and a Franciscan friar costume or Executioner, something similar to the clothing of satanic cults ..... Again we are at the mercy of a person who is unable to give reliable information, it attracts much attention of the group and certainly do not understand where my half of his speech.
Then login to the kitchen where the servants of the master lived here two girls give life to some scenes of everyday life, nice but nothing special. Proceed in a library that leaves me open-mouthed, a place of pure culture, a large room with many books, Illuminated, books on all the walls, ancient texts and original, some kept in a glass case opened, owned and written by illustrious history and the past, in this room a lady welcomes us and tells us the story that fortunately is rather interesting.
Rooms where the men dined almost unimportant, anonymous, some furniture, some furniture, but nothing special, nothing after the library has much more visibility.
We arrive in a hall with a nearly equal importance of the library, a spacious seat with a large fireplace, tapestries, furniture of the period, a grand piano and a violin played by two pretty Frenchman who tell us much of that hall and its inhabitants . The furniture is really beautiful and curious observations. Vases, chairs, paintings ...... chairs, antiques, here I find that despite the ban on photographing a few clicks to all flat and no one says anything, so Luca unleashes around taking pictures ...... d ' Moreover, because only I must keep the rules?
After the stop in the great hall calling at an odd place, the last before the bare room where a girl dressed as a boatman, a servant or gardener, I do not know, makes us sharers in his long monologue, pointing here and there and doing his piece of art very exaggerated and very little serious ........
We go out a little 'not unhappy with the castle but from a tour in masks ..... there was nothing done to fully enjoy the beauty of the place.
So given that we still have some 'time .... gone to caves Seythenex.