Passing Through - Blois

After a long, lazy breakfast in Ghent, we were back on a train for our next transit leg.

Destination: Blois

During the Renaissance, Blois was the official residence of the King of France. The older parts of the city reflect the wealth and power that used to reside here.

Joan of Arc also passed through here and made Blois her base of operations. She stayed at the Royal Chateau to be blessed by the Archbishop of Reims before heading out with her army to drive out the English.

And Jean-Eugene Robert-Houdin was born here. He was a magician and illusionist ... Erik Weisz, aka "Harry Houdini", adopted the surname when he became a professional magician in the 1890s.

Things slowed down in Blois when the Royal court left town and headed to Fountainebleau in the 16th century, but picked up again when the railway and industrialisation arrived in the 19th century.

We visited the Tourist Information Centre and picked up a walking tour map of the old town, then spent a few hours roaming from point to point, reading interesting stuff about each site or area as we went.Read more