Continuing on with what I did in July…
We had to go to the Palace of Versailles. I wanted to see the famous chateau that once served as the seat of power for the French nobility. Nothing could stop me going there. I was glad that D and H also wanted to see it; otherwise, we would have gone our separate ways touring the country. Heh.
We took the train early in the morning and got there around 9.30. There was already a queue snaking from the entrance to the gates. I berated an Asian family for cutting the queue and glared at them the entire time. I suppose my glare got to them since all the males whipped out their ciggies and started puffing like crazy.
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Versailles[/caption]
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Flower garden at the back of Versailles Palace[/caption]
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Opulent decors[/caption]
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Breathtaking architecture[/caption]
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Hall of Mirrors[/caption]
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Everything was in muted gold and bronze tones[/caption]
Inside the palace, I was surprised by how hot the interior was. I imagined wide open hallways and rooms but the rooms were relatively small and the hallways were narrow. From the main palace, we abandoned the rest of the tourists toured the grounds. While there there are various modes of transport — those little kiddie open window trolleys, segues, and bikes, walking was the best mode. It wasn’t very hot at that time and we were able to enjoy the tree-lined avenue.
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Without a map, we stumbled on Marie Antoinette’s farm. A bit dilapidated though.[/caption]
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It was a real farm with hungry fishes gasping for food[/caption]
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Bunnies and some goats[/caption]
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Flowers, too[/caption]
H got to be our rower for the day when we hired a small boat and cruised the lake.
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H said rowing the boat was very calming.[/caption]
Getting back to Paris was fairly easy. We went back to the train station. We were a bit uncertain which train to take but I told H and D to follow the crowd and jumped into an open carriage. Turned out all the trains were bound for Paris.
Was I able to imagine French and other European aristocracy walking around in Versailles in all their fineries? When I closed my eyes and shut my ears from the madding crowd, yes.
Ever found a historical place where you imagined you lived through that time?
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No more queues at the end of the day[/caption]
