A Country Vacation Cottage?

I guess that if we don't buy a second home in La Quinta, this one may do, but only if there is a golf course nearby.

This afternoon, we visited Chateau Germolles, one of the oldest castles in Burgundy. The Duke of Burgundy purchased the property in 1380 for his first wife. Supposedly, this was one of several chateaus the Duchess moved around between with her entourage of 70-80 staff.

Today, two brothers who are descendents of owners in the 19th century, live in the chateau and are restoring the entire estate.

In the U.S., we would call this a "gut job." I'd be making a dozen trips a day to Home Depot if I were working on this place. Here in France, they treat properties like this as national treasures, but don't provide a lot of funding to restore or maintain them.

It is an incredible chateau that has undergone several architectural remodels and experienced numerous fires over the decades (before the era of lightning rods). But it has gobs of history and is a beautiful property.