My first week in France (on my own)

One of the Chateau's that I visited in the Loire had hunting dogs. Here they are having their afternoon nap. I was told that if you are there at dinner time you can see a feeding frenzy as they devour their raw dinner.
This staircase was designed by Leonardo da Vinci. It is two spiral staircases that spiral around each other. You cannot see one staircase from the other. It is rumored that if the King had a mistress over and the Queen came home, the mistress would have a 50-50 chance of sneaking down the stairs without being seen by the Queen.

I spent a week on a tour through Dordogne. It was a cycling/hiking/"canoeing" trip. If you scroll down and see the pictures of the canoes, you'll understand why I've put canoeing in quotes.