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Aubusson
Although seemingly uninspiring from the main N941 that runs through it, Aubusson is actually a beautiful medieval town, steeped in history and famous for its tapestries and carpets since the 6th century.
Just 20 minutes drive from us, Aubusson is situated in the valley of the Creuse River. The old town is charming with many architectural features from the Middle Ages including strange turrets, carved windows and doorways. The "Maison du Tapissier" (closed on Tuesdays) houses permanent and temporary exhibitions in its spacious halls, which depict the history of tapestry. Also worth a visit are the 'Vieux Tapissier', a 15th Century house with weavers workshops and tapestry making demonstrations, the ruined fortified chateau, the 13th Century church of Sainte Croix, the clock tower, and the old bridge 'Le Pont de la Terrade'.
Modern day Aubusson has restaurants, museums, theatre, sport, cinema and shops. It is also famous for the markets held every Saturday morning.
Chateau Villemonteix
Approximately 40 minutes drive and very near Chenerailles is this absolutely lovely fairytale chateau. Surrounded by patches of ancient woodland and empty meadows, le Chateau de Villemonteix is an striking set of mismatched fairytale towers and turrets which date back to the 15th century.
Its special for the combination of luck and care that have gone into preserving it, and the interior has been restored and presented to give visitors an idea of what life would have been like there half a millennium ago.
The tapestry collection is a particularly beautiful one and much of it is as old as the castle itself, since the Aubusson area has been celebrated for the quality of its tapestries since the 1300s.
Finely depicted hunting scenes, romantic tableaux, idyllic landscapes and images of village life make you realise that parts of the landscape near here really haven't changed much in hundreds of years.
Go in summer and take a picnic for an enchanted afternoon. It is open from Easter until the end of October.
Here is the link for their website
Lake Vassiviere
Lake Vassiviere is situated an hour's drive from us and is one of the largest lakes in France, covering nearly 2,500 acres with 45km of lakeside to explore. Cafes, bars, restaurants and picnic areas line the lakeside.
On this fresh water lake you can windsurf, canoe, water ski, sail, go on a boat excursion or fish. There are beaches for bathing, a number of which are patrolled, and paths for rambling, riding or cycling. Horses and bikes can be hired locally.
There is a sculpture park for cultural strolls through woods and the island in the middle of the lake is home to an ambitious Contemporary Art museum designed by the late Aldo Rossi.
The island was created following construction of a hydro-electric dam in 1949 which flooded the upper reaches of the Maulde River valley to form the lake as it is today.
The island itself covers 170 acres of land, formerly part of the vast estates once owned by the Vassiviere family whose stately home still stands on the original site.
Wolf Park... Les Loups de Chabrieres
Also about an hour's drive from us and very close to Gueret, is a great day out at the Wolf Park. There are 7 pens and the park accommodates about 30 wolves of different origins. You can discover European wolves in the 'pen of Rocs', black wolves from Alberta and also white wolves from Mackenzie in Canada.
The 'pen of Sources' which covers 20,000m2 of the forest, provides you with a scientific observation of the European wolf. There are also other smaller pens which let you see other species which are being introduced to the park.
You can also see a unique exhibition which helps you understand the history of wolves, their behaviour and their relation to humans.
You can compare the wolf of myths, tales and nightmares with the real thing!
Here is the link for the Wolf Park website
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