La course étonnante

The amazing race was frankly,amazing yesterday.
Disclaimer: I got the translation off of Google translate,so if it means anything other than amazing race-pardonnez moi.
It was not the race that really interested me,but the first hour's location.France!!Not just France-but the Loire Valley.Not just Loire valley,but two of the three chateaux we made it to!!
I am not a fan of reality shows,but my older progeny,took to it a couple of weeks ago(better that than Honey Boo Boo,I say!),and the opening credits showed a tantalizing glimpse of both Chenonceau and Villandry-and that was what made me decide that we had to watch the finale.

Chenonceau

Villandry

The two Sri Lankan girls were frankly,not the inspiration.While you wanted to support them because they look like you,you wanted them to come last because they were too brash and loud.I get it,to participate in a reality show,you can't be just yourself,you need to be an exaggerated version of yourself,willing to do anything to win the prize-including eating stuff that would probably turn your stomach just to look at it,doing things that would scare the pants off of you in any other circumstance and being meaner than you thought yourself capable of.
We had taken a rental car from St.Pierre de Corps-the same train station they had to start their quest from-we even saw the cafe where we ate our lunch!!The route they followed was familiar too.So it was almost like we relived our Loire Valley trip.
Which is why I did not watch the final hour-New York City-never been there and ashamed to admit that after 15 years in the US-I have never made it to New York.Ashamed not in the same way that one would feel if one calls oneself well-read but has never heard of Dickens,but ashamed like-everyone goes there and I haven't!!