宣佳寧

如果你去法國(guó)旅游只到過(guò)巴黎，那你還沒(méi)體驗(yàn)到完整的法國(guó)。盧瓦爾河谷，它展現(xiàn)著法蘭西風(fēng)情的另一面。法蘭西文化在這里沉淀，自然的和人文的景觀在這里完美地結(jié)合，從舊石器時(shí)代的洞穴到世界上最美麗的城堡群，歷史在一座座石灰?guī)r建筑內(nèi)留下了不同的故事。盧瓦爾河谷處處體現(xiàn)著一種風(fēng)格各異，卻又和諧統(tǒng)一的美。盧瓦爾河流域氣候溫和、風(fēng)光秀麗，河兩岸有眾多城堡和公園，徜徉其中可以感受到這里曾經(jīng)的富庶和繁華。

2000年11月，盧瓦爾河谷正式被聯(lián)合國(guó)教科文組織確認(rèn)為世界文化遺產(chǎn)，就像金字塔、吳哥窟和巴黎圣母院一樣，她以其獨(dú)特的人文氣息與古典的城堡建筑吸引了世界的目光。對(duì)法國(guó)的了解多數(shù)人也許僅限于巴黎，記得美國(guó)著名小說(shuō)家海明威是這樣形容他對(duì)巴黎的感受的：“如果你夠幸運(yùn)，在年輕的時(shí)候呆過(guò)巴黎，那么巴黎將永遠(yuǎn)跟著你，因?yàn)榘屠枋且幌鲃?dòng)的筵席?！辈还苁堑皆L過(guò)法國(guó)的人，還是無(wú)緣親見(jiàn)這座國(guó)際大都市的人，巴黎可能就是法國(guó)的代名詞，凱旋門、凡爾賽宮、巴黎圣母院、香榭麗舍大街、埃菲爾鐵塔便是人們用來(lái)詮釋這個(gè)浪漫之都的長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的注腳。但是，極少人知道這個(gè)多元文化匯聚的浮華都市背后，還存有一道未經(jīng)世人觸碰的美麗風(fēng)景，這就是盧瓦爾河谷—這個(gè)被稱作“法國(guó)后花園”的地方，一處極具法蘭西風(fēng)情的角落。難怪有人這樣說(shuō)，要完整領(lǐng)略法國(guó)風(fēng)情，只需去兩個(gè)地方—巴黎和盧瓦爾河谷。

盧瓦爾河是歐洲最后的一條原始河流，千百年來(lái)，她在這片大地上獨(dú)舞，創(chuàng)造出了河谷中的小島、沙灘以及原始人類居住的洞穴。盧瓦爾河是法國(guó)第一大河，也被稱為法國(guó)的母親河。河流兩岸有許多精致的小山丘，遍布著郁郁蔥蔥的葡萄樹(shù)，古老的城堡掩映在綠樹(shù)叢中。因?yàn)榉▏?guó)王室曾經(jīng)到此避難，盧瓦爾河谷也有“帝王谷”之稱。蒼苔掩映下的古堡宅院如遲暮美人般向人們?cè)V說(shuō)著她曾經(jīng)的風(fēng)光與輝煌，也毫不留情地展示著她的滄桑。王孫貴族，賦予她們高雅的氣質(zhì)；璀璨如繁星的城堡，更使她們濃縮最浪漫的風(fēng)情。走進(jìn)這些或靜謐、或活潑、或香艷、或樸素的古堡，你就仿佛駐足在法蘭西的歷史剪影中。

盧瓦爾河谷中的“鉆石”—香波堡

香波堡（Chambore）是盧瓦爾河谷地區(qū)最有氣勢(shì)的一座古堡，被法國(guó)人視為國(guó)寶。在眼睛與這龐然大物接觸的一瞬間，我就被它的威儀徹底震撼：365個(gè)高聳的尖頂塔直沖天際！城堡內(nèi)共有440個(gè)房間，84部樓梯，365個(gè)煙囪——僅從這些數(shù)字便可看出它的宏偉規(guī)模。它的第一任主人，是法國(guó)歷史上頗有作為的國(guó)王弗朗西斯一世。當(dāng)時(shí)年僅25歲但已打過(guò)無(wú)數(shù)勝仗的國(guó)王，在狩獵時(shí)被這塊自由、廣闊、淹沒(méi)在森林中的地方激發(fā)出靈感：在這里建一所皇家城堡供打獵使用，用宏大規(guī)模以示自己至高無(wú)上的皇權(quán)以及國(guó)力強(qiáng)盛！

翻過(guò)數(shù)百級(jí)臺(tái)階之后來(lái)到臺(tái)地的頂端，來(lái)到一個(gè)村莊的廣場(chǎng)，這是文藝復(fù)興時(shí)期的村莊，一個(gè)意大利村莊，一個(gè)奇特的村莊。它的清真寺的尖塔使它具有東方色彩。這是弗朗西斯一世夢(mèng)想的景觀之一。他想在這座城堡里給參觀者一個(gè)迷惑。當(dāng)初建造這個(gè)城堡的時(shí)候并沒(méi)有想讓它永久存在下去，所以它能完好地保存至今實(shí)在是一個(gè)奇跡。建造它的目的是為了給人留下深刻的印象，從這一點(diǎn)上說(shuō)它非常成功。你站在這里，處于天和地之間，在文藝復(fù)興時(shí)期的村莊和盧瓦爾河谷城堡之間，可以說(shuō)集中體現(xiàn)了瓦羅亞王朝的天才創(chuàng)造力。

而城堡總設(shè)計(jì)師的名聲甚至超越了這位國(guó)王，他就是世界名畫(huà)家達(dá)·芬奇。這位頑童性格至死不渝的大師，甚至在城堡內(nèi)創(chuàng)造性地設(shè)計(jì)了一個(gè)雙螺旋樓梯，這種樓梯有兩組獨(dú)立而又相互交錯(cuò)的欄桿，據(jù)說(shuō)這樣的設(shè)計(jì)可以讓國(guó)王的情人和妻子同時(shí)沿著它上下行走，她們可以看見(jiàn)對(duì)方卻不必相遇。如今，這精妙而滑稽的樓梯成為城堡內(nèi)最具人氣的地方，我也和大家一起在這里上上下下體驗(yàn)了一回。法國(guó)宮廷式的尷尬被大師明目張膽地幽了一默，如今的建筑，還能找到多少這樣富有情趣的細(xì)節(jié)呢？

最富浪漫情調(diào)的神農(nóng)索城堡

神農(nóng)索（Chenonceau）是這一帶最著名的城堡，跨越盧瓦爾河支流—謝爾河而建，即使在世界范圍內(nèi)，這樣的跨河城堡也極為少見(jiàn)。亨利二世時(shí)期，國(guó)王將城堡送給深受其寵愛(ài)的情婦戴安娜。她使得神農(nóng)索最終成為法國(guó)當(dāng)時(shí)最瑰麗、最現(xiàn)代的城堡。后來(lái)遺孀卡特琳娜便從戴安娜手中重新奪回城堡。她擴(kuò)建了城堡，一條60米長(zhǎng)廊若干年后躍然挺立于盧瓦爾河支流謝爾河之上，成為了神農(nóng)索城堡的點(diǎn)睛之筆。后來(lái)，卡特琳娜將城堡給了她的兒媳婦路易絲。18世紀(jì)時(shí)，神農(nóng)索城堡迎來(lái)了第5位女主人—路易絲·杜賓。杜賓夫人在這里接待了法國(guó)大革命的思想啟蒙者伏爾泰、盧梭、孟德斯鳩、狄德羅。年輕的哲學(xué)家盧梭來(lái)到神農(nóng)索城堡后便愛(ài)上了城堡女主人，雖然他的愛(ài)慕并未被接受，但對(duì)路易絲的愛(ài)促使他在此創(chuàng)作、完成了名著《愛(ài)彌兒》。

跟所有的古堡一樣，神農(nóng)索也因?yàn)榛适业钠媛勢(shì)W事和傳說(shuō)而變得更加神秘起來(lái)。城堡建筑極具文藝復(fù)興時(shí)期的奢華優(yōu)雅風(fēng)格，曾經(jīng)居住過(guò)多位國(guó)王的愛(ài)妃和貴婦人。經(jīng)過(guò)歷代女主人的細(xì)心打理，城堡的擺設(shè)盡顯法國(guó)王室的奢華與典雅，徜徉在古堡中，看著布置奢華的房間，可以想見(jiàn)當(dāng)年王公貴族浮華奢靡的日子。在數(shù)百處城堡中間，法國(guó)情侶獨(dú)愛(ài)到這里來(lái)舉辦自己的終身大事。在這里，我遇到了幾對(duì)結(jié)婚的新人。據(jù)當(dāng)?shù)厝苏f(shuō)，許多新人都選擇在這里舉行婚禮，或許是因?yàn)樗臍v任主人都是法國(guó)歷史上有名的貴婦，因此也讓神農(nóng)索城堡獨(dú)具浪漫風(fēng)情吧。

走在60米的長(zhǎng)廊上，那些法蘭西大人物高談闊論的聲響似乎還在回蕩，而我的腳下，謝爾河水在悄悄流淌。歷史的虛幻，嘩嘩的流水，這一靜一動(dòng)間，我就從過(guò)往走回到現(xiàn)實(shí)，再?gòu)倪@里走向下一個(gè)迷人的城堡。夕陽(yáng)西下的時(shí)候，暮色為盧瓦爾河谷的這座城堡平添了幾分神秘的色彩，如果有一點(diǎn)耐心，再放開(kāi)你的想象，你或許可以聽(tīng)見(jiàn)文藝復(fù)興時(shí)期這里曾經(jīng)舉行過(guò)的慶典儀式的余音。當(dāng)踏著夜色歸來(lái)時(shí)，心頭仍不斷回味著歷史給這座名城留下的足跡……

My Visit to the Loire Valley： Cradle of French Splendor

By Xuan Jianing

Many people may think Paris stands for France， mistaking Paris as everything France can offer and believing the city is all one needs to know about France： Eiffel Tower， Moulin Rouge， Palace of Versailles， Louvre Museum， Seiner River Cruise， Triumphal Arch， Notre Dame， and Champs Elysees. Not so many people know， however， that the Loire Valley is where the history and culture of France originated and still shine today. It is referred to as the cradle of the French language， and the garden of France thanks to the numerous vineyards， orchards and crop fields that line the banks of the river. The Loire Valley features the Paleolithic Age sites as well as the worlds most beautiful cluster of more than 300 castles. A tour on the river enables one to enjoy the mild climate， river scenery， castles， with a glance into the past prosperity and affluence. In 2000， UNESCO added the central part of the Loire River valley to its list of World Heritage Sites. That is why some people say that your visit to France would not be complete without a trip to the Loire River.

Loire River is the largest river of France. It is flanked by hills and vineyards. As French royal people once came to the river， the whole valley is occasionally referred to as Frances Valley of the Kings. A boat travel on the river enables one to see numerous castles， which stands for splendor， history， romance， and elegance.

Considered as the diamond of the river valley， Chateau de Chambore is the most magnificent and largest castle in the valley. I was awed at the sight of the huge architecture. The castle features 440 rooms， 282 fireplaces， and 84 staircases. It is one of the worlds most recognizable chateaux because of its very distinct French Renaissance architecture that blends traditional French medieval forms with classical Renaissance structures. It was built to serve as a hunting lodge for Francois I， who maintained his royal residences elsewhere. Who designed the castle remains unanswered. Some have suggested that Leonardo da Vinci may have designed it.

Following a long road of hundreds of steps， I reached a village square. The village looks like Italian oozing the atmosphere of Renaissance. The minaret of the mosque gives the village an oriental touch.

The Chateau de Chenonceau is a very special architectural phenomenon largely because it spans， like a bridge， the Cher River in the Loire Valley. Such a structure is rarely seen even in the world. It was probably built in the 11th century. In the 16th century， Henry II offered the chateau as a gift to his mistress， Diane de Poitiers， who became fervently attached to the chateau along the river. In 1555， she commissioned an architect to build the arched bridge that joined the chateau to its opposite bank. After King Henry II died in 1559， his strong-willed widow and regent Catherine de Medici took it over and made Chenonceau her own favorite residence. In 1560， the first ever fireworks display seen in France took place in honor of Catherines son Francis II ascending to the throne. The grand gallery， which extended along the existing bridge to cross the entire river， was dedicated in 1577. Nowadays， Chenonceau is a popular venue for wedding ceremonies. Many local young people choose the place to get married. When I was there， I saw a few couples holding wedding ceremonies. Local people say that many owners of the ancient chateau were famous ladies in the history of France. The legendary history adds a touch of romance to the castle.

I walked through the 60-meter-long gallery spanning the Cher River. I felt as if I still could hear the nobilities talk. The delusion of the history and whispering of the river water under the bridge brought me back to reality. I set off to reach another chateau. The setting sun added mystery to the valley.