My Euro tour Part 22 Amboise, France

Renxkyoko Iglesias here. Hi there !

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I won’t be chatty on this post, although I don’t know what not being chatty means to yours truly…..less than 1000 words, I guess.Besides, it’s either my computer or WordPress itself is whacked, but writing a post now is so annoying. I don’t know how to fix this coz I’m technically -challenged.

I got a letter and Certificate of Appreciation from the Southern Poverty Law Center. It states. ” This certificate is presented to Ren Iglesias in recognition of your contribution to the ongoing fight againts hatred and intolerance in America. The name shown above will be added to the Wall of Tolerance in Montgomery, Alabama, to provide inspiration to all those who chose to take a stand againts hatred. Thank you for taking a stand. Morris Dees, Founder …. Southern Poverty Law Centre.”
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SPLC was founded by Morris Dees and Josepj Levin, Jr. as a legal firm to handle anti-discrimination cases and has now become a nonprofit civil rights organization that deals and monitors the activities of hate groups such as the Klu Klux Klan, neo-Nazi white supremacist groups, or any group that assault or discriminate againts groups of people, like colored people, gays, immigrants, and the like. I consider myself a colored immigrant. I’m a double whammy.
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The main headquarters of SPLC in Montgomery, Alabama.

Oh, I haven’t told ypu that I also got a Christmas card from the White House. I’m sure, million others got the same exact card… with a picture of their dog Bo frolicking in the snow, and the White House as backround.

To be honest, I don’t think I deserve to have my name added to the Wall of Tolerance, because you know what, I’m intolerant…. intolerant of injustice, wastefullness…. in fact, I can list dozens of things I cannot tolerate. Everytime I see, for example, Michelle Bachmann or Rush Limbaugh, Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz, Glen Beck and any of these nutjobs, I cannot tolerate to see their faces. I believe they’re evil. I even rejected a hot guy who thought climate change was a hoax. So, yeh, I’m quite intolerant.

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day. To all the mothers of the world, Happy Mother’s day ! !Below is my mother. I was told she was pretty popular in college, one of the campus’ beauties in her time. Pity I don’t look like her. I look like Dad. +_+”

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My Mom

So, here’s my tour of Amboise , France.

Amboise ( pronounced Abwaz), located in central France. It is a small market town, but used to be a French royal court, and lies on the banks of Loire River.\

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This is how I envision A French town should look like.
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That house is carved into the rock mountain. It’s a little unexpected to see that in France .
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The photo avove is the house where Leonardo da Vinci actually lived and died.

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I thought I could include Bordeaux , France, but I have enough materials for Amboise. In fact, I have dozens more, but they are redundant, and I think the ones I posted are representative of the place.

This is all for now. Bordeaux, France is next. Paris will be my last travel post. The thought that it’s almost the end makes me teary eyed and sad. But I’m sure to go back and see those beautiful places again. I will start to save up for a second trip and it starts NOW.

Have a good day and PEACE !

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123 responses to this post.

  1. Posted by Tatsat on May 13, 2013 at 8:15 am

    First of all, congratulations on the certificate of appreciation. You are young and it is going to be interesting to see what all you do in times to come. Take this certificate as a pointer in the right direction. You have my utmost respect…
    Your mum looks lovely and the three kids ( assuming the second one is you ) are even more adorable 🙂 So what is the plan for the day ? Special gifts for mum ? something handmade maybe…
    I am majorly biased in favour of french stuff. In fact, my latest girlfriend is from France as well, though she does not know about it yet 😉 Melanie Laurent- did you bump onto her somewhere? 🙂
    I was thinking as to how these people carve homes out of mountains. I am not a civil engineer but it is quite fascinating isn’t it ? I like restaurant pizzeria as well ( the one covered by grass and all )… Seems like a cool place to sit and spend time alone 🙂

    As for the end of the tour, well… this is just the start my friend. In words of JRR Tolkien,
    “Home is behind, the world ahead,
    And there are many paths to tread
    Through shadows to the edge of night,
    Until the stars are all alight.
    Then world behind and home ahead,
    We’ll wander back and home to bed.
    Mist and twilight, cloud and shade,
    Away shall fade! Away shall fade!
    ”…

    You will be fine 🙂

    Reply

    • Tatsat, I gave her a dozen white roses… Also, my sis and I did the cooking on Mother’s day ( we had grilled chicken and pork, and “sinigang”, pork in sour soup… it’s good )

      Melanie laurent ? yeah ! I did see her, said Hi to each other…. ah, you should have told me about her, then I could have dropped a hint or two about you. He he he we’re in the same situation , y’know. Keanu Reeves is my boyfriend but he doesn’t know , either.

      Reply

      • Posted by Tatsat on May 14, 2013 at 3:14 am

        That sounds like quite a celebration 🙂 I am sure mum would have been proud of you guys 🙂

        Reaves 😉 Novembers are sweet indeed 😛

        PS- do you ever talk about vegetarian food 😀

        Reply

        • Nah, it was just a simple meal. I didn’t have time to cook. I didn’t even have lunch with the family. I had 2 jobs to go to. I precooked the night before.

          Tatsat, when you say vegetarian, are seafoods not included?

          Reply

          • Posted by Tatsat on May 14, 2013 at 4:20 pm

            Ohh… Hats off to you, for you manage two jobs at the same time. I wasn’t able to handle even one 😦

            Hey !! Seafood is the fruit of the sea, and by that logic not at all non-vegetarian 😉

            Reply

  2. hello, Ren… hey, Amboise town looks laid-back and pretty, the houses are nice… btw, your mom’s a looker, ahaha. she must be taller than you (hula lang). btw, marami raw magaganda noon sa U.P. – ala Hilda Koronel. but you’re good-looking as well, maybe not a spitting image of your mom, but then… ganito, mas beauty-conscious sila noon, trust me. 😉 happy Mother’s Day kay mommy mo… election dito today. they have extended the voting time na, till 7pm. before, it was only until three… oh, well… warm regards sa iyo. 😉

    Reply

    • Mom and I are of the same height, a petite 5’3″, ha ha ha.

      Someone said my dad and I are like a coconut split in two, he he

      Hey, I hope you guys get to pick good public servants. But I have an idea what kind of t politics is in the Philippines… the whole family run, the mother, the father, the children,

      Reply

  3. I always love your photographs, and just think what an amazing trip this was. I’m so glad you have given us the chance to share it with you

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  4. Your mother is so pretty !!! So are you !!! 🙂

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  5. Oh love the photos! You mum looks very pretty and as Arjun said you as well. And congrats on the certificate! That is so cool!

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    • I don’t think I deserve it, but I’m still glad I got one. Maybe, one of these days, I’ll go there and check if my name is indeed there. ^.^

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  6. I think you look exactly like your mom, actually!

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  7. First of all – your mother was absolutely beautiful! Wow 🙂
    Second – wonderful photos. Such a lovely place. I miss France so much. In my youth I used to go there a great deal…

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  8. Posted by ~REBECCA DAWN~ on May 13, 2013 at 1:25 pm

    how are you, Ren! you should be proud of your certificate!! that is quite lovely! did you have a lovely mothers day with your mom?
    i didnt my mom had to work, but my sister cooked her supper so she could enjoy it later.. the extent of my excitement from yesterday. bwahahah

    Reply

    • Oh, hey, we did the cooking for the family. Sis and I went grocery shopping, bought ribs and chicken , marinated and grilled them. So delicious. We also made a coconut -fruit salad, and cooked rice cakes. Very Filipino.

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      • Posted by ~REBECCA DAWN~ on May 14, 2013 at 2:45 am

        sounds yummy!!! Your mom was very lucky 🙂
        my sister made fried fish, and made some potatoes. I didn’t like the potatoes so much, so my neice and I had kraft dinner as a side dish.

        Reply

  9. based on the picture, your mom does look very pretty… i can see why she was popular in school. nice pictures of amboise too 🙂

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  10. I truly enjoyed the sights with you. Wonderful post

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  11. – Bravo and Congratulations for a letter and Certificate of Appreciation from the Southern Poverty Law Center.
    – I share your thoughts on the ‘nutjobs’ and a few more too.
    – Your Mom is beautiful and I’m sure she still is beautiful today. I think you do look like your Mom.
    – Thanks for taking us to your travels, I’ll be looking forward to Paris!

    Reply

    • I was so happy to get one. I didn’t even know they gave certificates like this one. Much appreciated.

      Ha, the nutjobs…… yes, and a few more too… in fact, tons of them. So many meanies.

      Reply

  12. As always, beautiful pics!
    I wish I could join your journey for merely a day; my life has been tumultuous of late and yours looks pretty appealing.
    Be well, my friend.

    Reply

    • Ah, Mr. Hook. Happy faces and beautiful places hide a dark side. Look at Spain. Spain looks so beautiful in my photos, but when we were there , we could see the looks of desperation , what with 28% unemployment, and 56% among the young folks. Young people hang out in the streets, with blank looks in their faces, doing nothing.

      I guess it’s the same everywhere in the world. You, me, ……. so, whatever it is, hang in there ! ! !

      Reply

  13. Beautiful ..thanks for sharing dear

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  14. A wonderful honor and I agree with you about what you don’t tolerate! The pictures of Ambroise are amazing.

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  15. Congratulations on the certificate of appreciation… 🙂

    As usual great narrative photos and very well written too… 🙂

    Hurry to get saved up for new trips, your travel descriptions are so good… 😉

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  16. Your pics are inviting….:)

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  17. congratulations Dear , m very happy for you my friend , lovely Photos 😀 🙂

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  18. Wow, congrats on the certificate! That’s awesome! I’m sure you deserve it. 🙂 I completely know what you mean about being intolerant about intolerance though. I’m the same! I seriously can’t stand people who discriminate against others. I don’t blame you for ditching the guy who thought climate change was a hoax. You’re probably better off without him! 🙂

    Reply

    • Darn, he was hot ! But then I’m sure it would stress me to no end if I got together with him. Our values and beliefs were fundamentally different.

      Reply

  19. Whoa. The houses carved into the rock were cool! Thanks for sharing! I really want to go back to France…

    Your mother *is* beautiful, as are you.

    I think your intolerance is a good thing. Why should one tolerate things such as bigotry, discrimination, or the rejection of climate change? (It’s real in California, I’ll tell you that!) So congrats on the award. I think it means your tolerance for different races, etc., not the opposite.

    Reply

    • Aaaargh. I can’t be anything else. I belong to that group that ‘s potential target of hatred.

      I’m such a recycling fiend, though. Ha ha ha. I try not to add too much to the landfill.

      Reply

  20. Congrats on the certificate!
    I hope you continue writing on this blog after you are done with the last travel post!

    Reply

    • Hopefully I can continue blogging. After this travel blogging, I don’t know what else to talk about, about something that will interest my readership.

      Anyways, cheers !

      Reply

  21. congrats on the certificate, you and your mother look very nice, you have so many amazing photos thank you for sharing

    Reply

  22. wow, haven’t been here for a while. Is this still the trip from last summer?? That trip seems made a lot material for a year blog post 🙂

    Reply

    • Ha ha I post 2x a month, been to 45 places in one month, so you can imagine how much material I have… but I’m almost done, Farah. How are you? It’s been awhile.

      Reply

  23. Congratulations! That’s an important fight and a really cool certificate, you must be proud of yourself:)

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    • Thanks, Mitzie Mee. To be honest, I don’t know why I got one, ha ha ha. I did some political stuff, but I’m not sure if that was the reason why I got a Cerificate. Not complaining, though. Very much appreciated.

      Reply

  24. Beautiful photographs. I’ve not been to that part of France. Thanks for sharing. 🙂

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  25. Wow! Congratulations on receiving the certificate of recognition 🙂 Lovely pics, hopefully I will be able to go to France one day too, it’s beautiful x

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  26. Cheers! for your certificate and letter of recognition for fighting against discrimination, I had gone through a lot of racism growing up in Iquique, Chile. being one of the few Asians at the time. :\

    Awesome photos as always 🙂

    Reply

  27. Wonderful 😀

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  28. Congrats on your recognition! I think it’s fantastic that you take an active part in upholding your beliefs.

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  29. Beautiful place, thanks for taking me on a free trip!

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  30. congrats on the certificate. 🙂 it’s good that one’s participation is acknowledged, yeah. and we won’t tell them that you’re intolerant at times, we won’t, ahaha. 🙂

    am waiting for the next post, dear. hope you’ll be able to steal the time for it. keep well… 🙂

    Reply

    • LOL ! 35andup….., I have a feeling you’re onto something. He he he

      Reply

      • oh, you think so… ba’t mo nasabi… am lame in real life, dear and slow to boot, ahaha.. hello, Ren. 🙂

        Reply

        • For a while there, I suspected you knew I ‘m really an intolerant person. And impatient, ha ha ha. highly opinionated too. add nasty. +_+”

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          • oh, well… in the sense that you’re sharp, you seem to be the kind that does not suffer fools gladly, ahaha. 🙂 but in the sense that you’re curious and trying to promote scientific thinking (scientific talaga, haha) and decent living, as best as you can, i guess there’s a part of you that’s patient and willing to listen to the explanation of the other, different sides. parang gano’n, Ren…

            no worries, may hawig tayo, hehe. impatient na patient rin naman. may salespitch about tolerance na nalalaman, ahaha. hala pa… regards, dear 🙂

            Reply

  31. Posted by 25pesocupnoodles on May 20, 2013 at 6:06 pm

    83rd liker 🙂

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  32. congratulations dear…you deserve it and I am proud of u 🙂

    Reply

    • Thank you, Kavita Joshi ! And I really hope I deserve it…. such a responsibility to maintain this. I don’t feel like I can. My mood swings. LOL

      Reply

  33. Posted by melanietoulouse on May 21, 2013 at 1:42 pm

    Congrats & vive la France, my beautiful and pittoresque country! 🙂

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  34. Christmas card now?

    Congrats for the certificate 🙂

    Nice Photos

    Reply

  35. Posted by Ajaytao2010 on May 22, 2013 at 5:38 am

    absolutely beautiful pictures

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  36. Looks like a very cosy and interesting place, might go there too 🙂
    Thanks for this post!
    And Don’t be sad, every beginning starts with another beginnings end 😉
    peace and love

    Reply

    • Europe is extremely interesting…. so much history. And most historical places are well-preserved. And they are so postcard pretty.

      Reply

      • yes it is. Each country has its own history and culture, still all history connects the countries in a way. The real exciting part is the culrural difference within some countries. Depending on the country some historical places are not as well-preserved as they should be.

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  37. Ren, I always enjoy your travel posts. The way you posts your experiences and thoughts, it makes us feel like we were also part of your trip. Well done once again, Ren!! 🙂 Have a great day!!

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  38. You with your mother…
    Nice. 🙂

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  39. That’s such a meaningful Certificate I’d love to get it too 🙂 Because I would like to see a world without hatred ~
    And what a cute photo of you and your family! and I’m still jealous of your travels! 🙂

    Reply

  40. I nominated you for a Most influential blogger My sincerest congratulations to you ,Have nice day
    Maxima

    Reply

  41. beautifull places, worth to visice at least once in a life time..
    great photograph and review too…

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  42. Posted by supernova on May 23, 2013 at 7:58 pm

    Hi Ren, many congrats for the Certificate of Appreciation, I know you deserve it. Your one of the beautiful people of this world!
    I must say Ren, your photography is second to none, I truly got the flavour of Amboise and what a lovely town, I loved that you saw where Leonardo da Vinci lived, classic!
    Great tour Ren, speak soon James 🙂

    Reply

    • Thanks, James ! * blush *

      My photos….. someone told me my photos are charming because they were taken by an amateur ! H aha ha ! I mean, they are not glossy, they are out of focus, etc., the lighting is all wrong, but they are authentic.

      I think I know what he means.

      Reply

  43. Posted by Jueseppi B. on May 23, 2013 at 9:59 pm

    Your Mom is beautiful and your photographs are magnificent.

    Reply

    • Ooooh, thanks, Jueseppi B.

      By the way, I checked out my subscription folder, saw you were in the list, but then the email delivery was OFF. No wonder I haven’t been getting your posts. It’s now on INSTANTLY.

      Reply

      • Posted by Jueseppi B. on May 25, 2013 at 5:30 am

        WordPress has been messing with a lot of things we set one way, only to find WP has gone in and reset. I’ve had 2 bloggers I KNOW I subscribed to follow, because I had been following them, only to find I was not following them in the past 3 weeks.

        WP hard at work messing up stuff.

        Reply

  44. Reblogged this on By the Mighty Mumford and commented:
    TRAVEL IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL!!! IF YOU CAN AFFORD IT.

    Reply

  45. Congratulations Renx!

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  46. wow, that’s amazing, really beautiful place, by the way, I think you look a lot like your mother, but that’s just me.

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  47. Congratulations for a letter and Certificate of Appreciation from the Southern Poverty Law Center.Amazing post as always. 😀

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  48. Posted by E on May 30, 2013 at 6:35 am

    Wow! France is lovely. Wish I could go there soon.

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  49. Cushlamochree! I love France, and these are beautiful photos!

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  50. Seems like an adventure!

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  51. Posted by Jean-Paul on June 6, 2013 at 5:44 pm

    excellent ♥

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  52. It looks soo enticing. And those are some really nice pictures 🙂

    Reply

  53. Great blog you’ve got here.. It’s hard to
    find good quality writing like yours these days. I honestly appreciate people like you!
    Take care!!

    Reply

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