Blogs from Versailles, Île-de-France, France, Europe
May 18th 2012
Day 6 Off to the Palace de Versailles today. More trains but first a new adventure. Public phone call to arrange pick up of lease car next week. First find public phone - walk the block only to find one opposite our apartment - d'oh... Free call number doesn't work so need to get phone card. Friends at the supermarket next door asked - this guy actually looks a bit like a mix of Basil Fawlty and a vulture - beside that he usherto then the corner news stand. Hand and rough French and we get a phone card - finally get it to work in the public phone and a time arranged to pick up car. Think we have missed the train we originally wanted to catch so we were wandering to station and got ... read more
Versailles, Marie Antoinette and Palace gardens. . .
Published: May 27th 2012Europe » France » Île-de-France » Versailles
May 1st 2012
Paris day 4 I was excited to catch up again with Candra from New Zealand who I had met through my Ireland tour. She happened to be passing trough Paris on her first day as I was leaving on my last day. We decided to take a tour out to the Palace and gardens of Versailles. Unfortunately when I got to St Michael's fountain the guides told me Versailles was closed due to the first of May public holiday in France. :-( I also couldn't find Candra so I was gutted. Luckily she walked back to the square 5 mins later and we found an info centre who told us if we caught the train out the gardens would still be open, and as it was the cheaper option we ran with it. We met a ... read more
March 2nd 2012
This entire day is dedicated to seeing Versailles from a private tour of the King’s chambers to the Gran and Petit Trianon’s. The bed as you would imagine was very comfortable and we slept very well. In fact, I didn’t really get up until our breakfast arrived. Since we would not have time to get into town for breakfast we opted for breakfast in our room. Room Service Room service is usually much more expensive than going to the restaurant, here it is really about the same price and just nicer. They set up the table by our balcony with a view of the Chateau. Jerry had an English breakfast, which is bacon sausage and eggs. I had eggs Benedict. The hollandaise while cold was very good. We also had a basket of fresh breads and ... read more
March 1st 2012
The day has finally arrived, my 50th birthday. Paris is a long way from St. Helens Oregon. We slept in a little and had breakfast in our room so we could back and get ready to leave for Versailles. There was one stop in Paris before we boarded the RER to Versailles. We packed and checked out of our hotel, leaving our bags until we finished this first trip of the day. The Battle with the Eiffel Tower Before leaving for Paris, I had purchased tickets to the summit of the Eiffel Tower for all of us. The plan was to ride to the top and toast my birthday with a class of champagne from the champagne bar at the top of the tower. We got there in plenty of time before we were to go ... read more
December 23rd 2011
SEE TEXT IN ENGLISH BELOW Uno de los día de París, fui a Versalles. No sólo yo tuve esa feliz idea, también otras hordas de turistas, que se acercaban al palacio como si algo importante fuera allí a suceder. Tenía muchas ganas de visitar el palacio, ¡la que fue la casa del rey Sol Luis XVI! Había visitado en España algunos palacios reales "tipo Versalles": esos palacios que los Borbones españoles copiaban según el modelo del de Luis XVI. El palacio real de Madrid, la Granja o Aranjuez, que sin duda no llegan a alcanzar la grandeza del modelo, pensaba yo, pues son lugares que no me acabaron de gustar. Tenía la curiosidad y la esperanza de quedarme impresionado por el lujo y la elegancia, pero si me quedé impresionado fue por el gusto tan hortera ... read more
December 22nd 2011
Imagine the most lavishly decorated house you can. Now triple it, and you will have some idea of what Versailles Palace is like. Famous as the last residence of Marie Antoinette, Versailles Palace is overwhelming in it's oppulence. After only a few rooms, my eyes and mind could take in no more. The over-abundance of paintings, decorative molding, the gilt, the staues...The rooms went on and on. The hall of mirrors was impressive, but Marie Antoinette's room was the most impressive. Every surface was covered, the bed and it's hangings were fantastic, but, of course, its big draw was fact that it was Marie Antoinette's. They had the door that she escaped through the night Versailles was attacked open. In order to truly appreciate the splendor of Versailles, one would probably have to spend a few ... read more
The best and the worse of France so far
Published: December 22nd 2011Europe » France » Île-de-France » Versailles
December 22nd 2011
The Best and Worse of France so far. Hamish. Overall France has been wonderful to be in and one of the best parts was playing in the snow. The first European snow. The worst point has been the car travel. I loved the ice skating because it was awesome. Josephine. France has been lots of fun so far. We have been ice skating and got the first bit of snow. Been to the Lyon soccer game which Lyon won 2-1. I got a purple top for myself. My favourite player, number 7 got a red card. The bad bits have been long drives and the scary road to Jujols. In Jujols we had a really great sport area with basketball, soccer and badmington. The food is da bomb. Zara. The best bits were the snow, the ... read more
November 9th 2011
After a bit of a slow start and a nice leisurely breakfast at Starbucks, we made our way to the train station and tok the train out to Versailles. The Palace of Versailles was the official residence of the Kings of France from 1682 until 1790. It was originally a hunting lodge, built in 1624, by Louis XIII. It was expanded by Louis XIV beginning in 1669. He used it as a little lodge as a secret refuge for his amorous trysts and built a fairy tale park around it. The terrace that overlooked the gardens was removed to make way for the magnificent Hall of Mirrors, the Galarie de Glaces. It is here from which the king radiated his power and where the destiny of Europe was decided over a century. The French classical architecture ... read more
August 23rd 2011
It was a relief on waking to find the day fine but pleasantly cooler than the mid 30 degree temperatures we have experienced over the past few days. Our drive from Olivet to Illiers-Combray, a small village near Chartres, was not going to take long. As we still have the car we decided to visit Versailles before arriving at our destination. Crossing the Loire into Orleans we could see the spires of the cathedral and they seemed to draw us ever closer. We hadn’t planned on a tour of the city but we took a drive through on our search for the cathedral. In about eighteen months the area around the cathedral will be tourist friendly because by then the new tram route will be completed. While the tour driver kept the engine running in a ... read more
Versailles and voila la tour EIffel
Published: July 31st 2011Europe » France » Île-de-France » Versailles
July 30th 2011
Left the hotel early to make our way to Versailles. The trip by the metro and RER lines should have been a simple one but made lengthy and rather difficult because of closure to line C. Finally got there and was blown away by the size of the landmark. Walked the gardens, went to the grand and petite trianons and finally the palace. We were fortunate enough to have the fountains working to a background of baroque music. A big day with lots of walking and lucky that the lines were moving and the day was not too warm. Note to self: Too many fresh crusty baguettes, camembert cheese and french pastries are fattening - no matter how much walking you do! Although we were very sore and tired, we decided to see the Eiffel Tower ... read more
