Paris – The Palace of Versailles
Thursday we got up early had a quick breakfast and headed off on the RER/Metro for “The Palace of Versailles”. RER return tickets were 12 Euro and from Station St.Michele you take the Versailles RG train, very easy to figure out from Paris…. remember this for later. Thanks to Rick Steeves France guide we got there early before the crowds really started and walked in with no line-up. The Palace of Versailles was the place for the French Royal Family to escape the demands of Royalty in the City of Paris and boy did they escape! The first thing you see when you walk towards the Palace is the gold leafed painted gates and the immense size of the palace. Once inside it is even more breath taking. Thanks Donna for the suggestion that we take the time to visit this historic monument of the French Royal Family. One of the most magnificent rooms was the Hall of Mirrors which is 250′ long with 17 arched mirrors that match 17 arched windows looking out to the Royal Garden….. mirrors were a luxury at the time. There is really too much to see, understand and talk about inside. After our self guided tour we headed outside and walked the grounds down a bit of the Grand Canal. A little way along we found bicycle rental; so fresh off our Amsterdam experience we headed off on bicycles and cycled all four arms of the Grand Canal. It took about an hour and was a highlight of the day especially since it was a sunny warm day. Not sure how far it is around all four arms of the Grand Canal that make up a cross but it’s a fair distance. From here we walked back to Marie Antoinette’s estate at Petit Trianon and Grand Trianon. These are not just big estate houses but they are more like mini villages with cottages for workers, huge gardens and a network of paths, buildings, grottos, streams, waterfalls, theatre building, wild areas, etc…. truly amazing. Marie Antoinette lived at Petit Trianon to escape the grandeur of the Palace of Versailles. Petit Trianon had her decorating touch and was more livable and less opulent. We had a picnic lunch near the gardens and then were ready to head back to Paris. After leaving the Palace we retraced our steps to the Versailles train station however once there the directions of which train and track to take were complicated…. well at least for us. We noticed people going through the turnstiles, however we weren’t sure if it was the one we should take and which platform our train was leaving from. So we got in another line for information, the young gentleman was very helpful and in perfect English with a French overtone said “You ave 4 minutes till zee train leaves the station”….. Yikes! Turnstiles are jammed and only two are open, thanks to very pointy Sill elbows we made the train back to Paris.
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Fabulous photos. Brought back many many wonderful memories. Glad you enjoyed it. Lynette definitely has Versailles stories to tell!. Enjoy the South of France!
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God Bless – Love
Donna & Bob :O)
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