Château du Plessis

Tour Guide

Thilouze

Village Information
http://www.thilouze.com

The village of Thilouze is a pleasant two kilometers walk from the Château du Plessis.  Thilouze is the closest most convenience resource for Le Plessis.

The boulangerie (bakery) is easily reached by foot.  As it opens at 7 AM, most visitors work up an appetite while walking through the private woods along the pathway leading to the village entrance. There is adequate parking in front and behind the XIIth century church or along the main street leading to the Mairie (City Hall) for those who prefer driving to the village. 
Be sure to check the days and hours of operation before hand.  The only reliable rule is that everything is closed Sunday afternoon and during the lunch hours, however the individual shop chooses to define what those are.  The other rule is that whatever hours are in operation this year, will change next year!
Most everyone is very friendly and it is good manners, indeed expected to say “Bonjour” to everyone every time one enters a shop. 

Boulangerie (1)
13 rue des Lavandières (across from the Mairie) – Patrice & Marie Ange Tranchant 02 47 26 87 53 – Tu-Sa 7AM to 1PM & 3PM to 7:30PM; Su 7AM to 1PM; Closed Monday
The bakery is small which means that it does runs out of certain breads, croissants, pastries, or desserts as the day goes on.  So if you are in search of something specific, it is wise to go in the morning.  Be sure to check the schedule of opening hours before going or you might be disappointed and find the door closed.  The breads are good, particularly the "Banette" to which we are addicted. the "Croissants" and "Paints-au-Chocolat" are required for breakfast. For other breads, we prefer some of the breads in Azay-le-Rideau, Ballan Miré or even Tours.  The owners, the Tranchants, are a young couple, most helpful and friendly.  They do not speak English and business is for cash only. 

Mairie (2)
02 47 26 87 41 – Tu-Fr 9AM to 12:30PM and 2PM to 5:30PM
The Mayor, Eric Loizon, is young, energetic and progressive.  You are highly unlikely to need to do business with the Mairie, however should you need to, you will find the mayor and the staff to be friendly and helpful.

Café-Restaurant: "A La Bon'Heure" (3)
1 Place de La Mairie – Pascal & Nadege Pommier 02 47 72 99 51- http://www.alabonnheure.fr
Opened daily, Monday: lunch only.
We celebrated the opening of the first restaurant in Thilouze in over two decades by visiting it for a weekday lunch. The old Café/Bar on the Place de la Mairie has been totally gutted and transformed into a clean, modern and rustic Cafe Restaurant. On weekdays the daily menu is an exceptional value at 10 and a half euros. It includes a salad bar for starter, the choice of four main courses, dessert and cafe. the house wine is equally reasonable. The generous and tasty daily specials seem improbable for the price. We also tried the restaurant on Saturday and chose from a more elaborate Carte. While the food was good, there were too many choices for the chef to execute each with the same expertise and attention as brought to the daily specials. The restaurant also caters within a 10 Kilometers radius (and Le Plessis is less that 2 kilometers away). Ala Bonne Heure is a welcome and valuable addition to Thilouze.

Presse (4)
7 rue des Lavandieres
The newsstand sells local newspapers, occasional stationery items, small gifts, and of course cigarettes.  Unfortunately, you won’t find the Herald Tribune here.  See Azay-le-Rideau or Ballan-Miré for the closest sources.

Poste (5)
Boulevard de la Baronne – 02 47 39 07 58 –Tu & Th 2:00PM to 5:00PM and We, Fr & Sa 9:00AM to 12 noon.
French full services Post Offices are closing every day and Thilouze's did last year. The current postal agency has limited office hours and limited services (stamps, packages, et.).

Superette “VIVAL” (6)
9 rue Honoré de Balzac – Monsieur Eric Mallet – 02 47 73 21 60 – Mo-Sa 8:30AM to 12:30PM & 3Pm to 7:30PM & Su AM
Recently under new ownership, VIVAL (ex “Panier Sympa”) is kind of a Seven Eleven.  You will find almost anything you might need on short notice, from fresh food, to frozen goods, to wine, to dairy products, cleaning supplies, etc.  Beware, they may just run out of stock whenever you need some fresh produce! 

Pharmacy (7)
21 rue Honoré de Balzac – Madame Marie-Pierre Le Cornec 02 47 39 07 58 – Tu-Th 2PM to 5:00PM & Mo, Fr & Sa 9:00AM to 12:00PM
The pharmacy will supply you with most non-prescription drugs you might need.  They will not honor US prescriptions, however except perhaps for emergencies, after consulting with the doctor.

Médecin – Doctor (8)
18 rue de la Baronne – Docteur Jean Locquet
We have met Doctor following minor incidents such as cutting one’s finger, or treating severe skin rashes.  He will take you in on short notice, and very capably treat your ailment and will charge you all of €20 per visit.  We try to avoid being in need of medical service when in the US and save taking care of all of our ailments when in Thilouze.  We also enjoy Doctor Locquet’s company for which there is no extra charge as long as one speaks French!.

Notaire – Lawyer (9)
7 rue de la Musardiere– Maitre Amandine Hamelin 02 47 26 87 49
French «Notaires», are considerably more than US notaries.  They must have a law degree and are in fact Real Estate attorneys.  While they specialize in Real-Estate law and successions issues, they most often are the only lawyer in small towns and villages.  It is most unlikely that you will need Maitre Hamelin services.  However, should you need to call on her, you will find Maitre Hamelin most helpful.  As everywhere in the village, English is not spoken here.

Information Technology – PHL Engineering
"Les Bruneaux"– 02 47 65 70 62
Against all appearances, Thilouze is the home of a sophisticated IT Service organization. They once saved me from a severe computer crash by removing my hard drive and making a mirror image which I was able to recover later. Not one bite of information lost.

Local Sites (as translated from Thilouze’s Website: http://perso.orange.fr/thilouze )

	Lavoir public (public laundry) on the  creek below the Pont-Thibault (bridge)
	Église St Antoine The 12th century nave aligns with the 15th century choir.  The bell tower with its 12th century base is surmounted by an octagonal stone spire 43 meters high.  It was classified (1959) as an historical monument.
	Le Plessis built mostly before 1446 and fist inhabited by the descendants of a Scottish archer: the Tourneton family whose motto was “when one has a heart, does one run away?” At first it was part of a fiefdom dependant of the Château of Montbazon.
	LA RIPAUDIERE Originally a fortified hamlet around 1320.  The main building surrounded by a moat contains a nice pigeon cote entry porch

Local Walks:

Circuit N°1 - 10 Km.
Start on Place de la Mairie where you will note the 43.50 meter high XIIth century bell tower (1).
Along the rue des Lavandières, on you right, then rue de la Baronne to the sport field.  Walk around the field and around the small lake (2) where fishing is permitted (see posted regulations). This is also a nice pick nick area.
Follow the narrow gangway leading to the Pont Thibault across the creek where the tour will end after a loop.  You are now on the road to La Ripaudière (3) old manor house (moats, pigeon cote) and just a bit farther, a well (4) of 247.50 meters which supplies the township with drinkable water.
At the place named Godart, turn left and walk to Bruneaux before joining the D19.
Turn left and rejoin the Pont Thibault with a thought for the laundry ladies who in the old days would come wash their clothes at the public laundry (5) whiloe exchanging local gossips.

Circuit N° 2 - 16 Km.
Start on Place de la Mairie where you will note the 43.50 meter high XIIth century bell tower (1).
Take the rue de l’Église and turn right on the rue de la Boulogne.  On the second right you can either:
Go toward Beaujardin in order to go see the Châtelet (6) surrounded by its water pond; this is a fine example of Renaissance construction
Or, go immediately, on your right, toward la Noëlle and la Messerie.
At the intersection, turn right and follow the road to Sorigny, then turn into the 1st road on your left.  Go past la Bennerie, then left toward Coteau (on your right, it is possible to rejoin the pathway Grande Randonnée in Monts).
At the intersection, go to the right, then take the first left, passed Bois Cornu (on your right there is another opportunity to rejoin the Grande Randonnée)
Follow the direction of the Gué de la Cour.  From there, you are just a few meters from the Dolmen de la Pierre Levée (7) at Les Messandières.  Seeing this 1.80 meter stone is well worth the short detour.(from there you just retrace your steps)
Next, back along Gué de la Cour. Pass the bridge, and turn left toward la Pinardière, cross the D8, pass les Grands Ormeaux and follow the path through the woods to exit on the D19 (on you right there is an opportunity to rejoin the path of the Grande Randonnée Montbazon-Azay le Rideau)
Next, turn left to rejoin the village via the rue Honoré de Balzac.  Take the rue de la Vallee du Lys and you will be able to glance at the private Château du Plessis (8)

Local Sport Activities

Tournoi de Football inter associations (Asssoc RST, Amicale des sapeurs Pompiers)
Traditional, this successful tournament unite around the soccer ball more than one hundred players representing various groups and neighborhoods of Thilouze.  The afternoon is prolonged by an open air pick nick, fireworks, and dancing.
Volley, Basket (Assoc SLT)
Free anytime access on the St. Antoine court in the village center.  Open daily.
Tennis (Assoc SLT)
Should you want to hit some balls, contact the Bureau de Tabac.  Annual membership or hourly fees available.
Concours de Pêche (Commune)
Each Pentecost Monday, the small La Baronne Lake is festively decorated for the annual fishing contest organized by the Mairie. Register between 8AM and 8:45AM.
Pétanque du Vendredi après midi
The bowling field near the stadium welcomes each Friday players of all ages for a game of pétanque.  Open to everyone, the annual Pétanque contest organized by the Club Loisirs et Amitiés each month of Mai.

Please send us your own comments and experiences by Email to gdekerchove@leplessisthilouze.com. We will endeavor to include them in updated versions of these guides should you allow us to do so.