21 July 2003
The Gardens of L’Oise
As I sit in my garden eating the warm bread I just brought
back from the center of town I can hear the church bells announcing the quarter
hour. Today is the Day of Ascension
and for most everyone there is a holiday.
This will be the third day in a row that we have taken a
picnic lunch of bread and cheese to a local garden. The last two days we visited the park on the edge of downtown
where the main road runs right through the middle of it.
The part of the park to the left of the road has a beautiful reflecting
pond that was once the lower part of a chateau that sits on top of the hill
overlooking the water and willow trees that surround it.
The real surprise though rests to the right of the road.
The best way to get to this part of the park called “Parc Ecologique”
is to walk through the park on the left, and under the road through a giant
tunnel. On the other side of the
tunnel the path climbs quickly to another tree lined pond.
After a short walk the trees open up to reveal a beautiful park full of
swans and different types of ducks and geese enjoying a lake created just for
them.
On the days that we visited we fed geese and their new
hatchlings. We walked the boardwalk
that leads through the marsh on the other side of the pond.
There are two areas with duck blinds where it is possible to watch all
kinds of birds without them knowing they are on view.
There are areas away from the birds that have plantings of
several varieties of begonias. The
right hand side of the path by the pond has flowers planted around the rock
formations. There are benches
scattered along the different walking paths so that it is possible to just sit
down and watch the wildlife or enjoy the warm sunshine.
A few weeks ago we had the good fortune to stumble upon the
booklet “Picardie Parcs & Jardins” (www.oisetourisme.com) put out by the
local government that tells about gardens all over this region.
The booklet is in French and English with a rating system to give
information on the originality and history of each garden.
So far we have managed to visit several of these fabulous places
including:
·
Parc du Chateau de Compeigne, a house and gardens in the heart of
this lovely small city
·
Abbay Royale de Chaalis, a house, chapel and church ruin with a
fabulous rose garden
·
Parc Jean-Jacques Rousseau, part of a huge chateau and lake in a
lovely small town
·
Parc du Chateau de Chantilly, a stunning chateau with a huge
park-like garden established during the 16th century
·
Le Potager des Princes, the kitchen garden for the Chateau de
Chantilly is a 10 minute walk from the chateau to a place filled with beautiful
birds, trees and plants of every description
·
St. Jean aux Bois, a town built around an 11th century
abbey where every corner is filled with beautiful flowers and little stone
houses.
My favorite spot so far is Troissereax (www.chateau-troissereax.com)
near Beauvais. The Tranie/Trois
family is what makes this place so special.
The chateau is an ancient brick structure filled with antiques of every
description. The family still live
in this place that has seen French history first hand, and Pierre and Marie are
marvelous guides who can spin the stories of France into life.
The grounds are filled with ancient trees from Louisiana and the Great
Plains of the USA. There is lots of wildlife.
Of course my own garden can’t compare to these special
places, but I am filled with pride when the neighbors come over to see the
latest blooms on the dahlias or the size of the pumpkins.
Our landlord even took some pictures so that when we leave he can
“sell” the house to the rental agencies through the garden we have created.
This morning Sarah the rabbit and Christopher the cat ran
and played together in the garden. As
I watched them chase through the flowers and the lush green grass I was thinking
about how much joy this little spot of earth has given to me.
I sure will miss this place.
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