Maison Marie Bon

The house was inhabited by Marie Bon, her husband Armand Bon and their daughter Nadine from 1865 to 1878. Pierre Loti, who was still Julien Viaud, stayed there many times, as described in Prime Jeunesse. The house at 96 rue Nationale in Saint-Porchaire was lived in by Marie Bon, her husband Armand Bon and their daughter Nadine from 1865 to 1878. Pierre Loti, who was still Julien Viaud, spent many periods there, as described in Prime Jeunesse, the text of which provides the basis for the visit and the evocation of this period. The tour takes in all the rooms on the ground floor: the entrance hall, the large living room, the dining room and the kitchen. Each of these rooms offers a thematic point of view: the corridor: the family / the grand salon: the painting studio / the dining room: the meal on the return from La Roche-Courbon / the kitchen: the landscape. Although the visit to the house takes visitors back to a bygone era, it is also a visit in the present tense: a painting in progress, a family meal, a walk in the woods... The devices created offer visitors a visual, aural and poetic experience, engaging Loti's memories and superimposing them on the present moment of the visit. A 2km signposted footpath (fee payable) linking the Maison Marie Bon to the caves of the Château du Bouil Bleu at the Château de la Roche-Courbon.