Day 11

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Day 11: Thursday, July 2, 2009

PARIS, FRANCE

Decided today I would visit The Château de Versailles (or Palace of Versailles). According to the Versailles website, it "is one of the most beautiful achievements of 18th-century French art. The site began as Louis XIII’s hunting lodge before his son Louis XIV transformed and expanded it, moving the court and government of France to Versailles in 1682. Each of the three French kings who lived there until the French Revolution added improvements to make it more beautiful." (1) Versailles is located just south of Paris, and is easily accessable via the RER train system, making it a popular destination for many visiting Paris.

7:55 am - Left hotel headed to St. Michel metro station to catch RER train to Versailles. From the book "Rick Steves France 2009", it says you can purchase Versailles Passport (admission tickets to Versailles) at train station. When you do so, the RER train tickets are included. This option saves a little money and you don't have to queue for tickets upon arrival. However, when I spoke with person at the RER ticket counter, I found this wasn't the case. They use to do this, but no longer. I didn't ask for details. I purchased round trip fare from St. Michel to Versailles which is sold as two separate tickets (5.90 euro total; 8.27 USD).

8:16 am - Left St. Michel station on "C" line RER train. As it turns out, I went the opposite direction than I had intended, but it worked out ok. The "C" line of the RER essentially makes a big loop around Paris. So, it would still take me to Versailles, but I was taking the long way around. This way took me around the eastern edge of Paris. The other thing to watch, as Rick Steves points out, there are two stations near Versailles. One is closer than the other.

Tired. Starting to nod off. Also hungry. Didn't have breakfast. Around 9:30 am it started to get more rural. There were black and white cows in a field next to the Vauboyen train station. From the map, looks like three more stations to go.

9:45 am - Arrived at Versailles-Chantiers station. After exiting station, just go staight and follow the signs for the Chateau.

9:50 am - Passed sign indicating tempurature of 25 C (77 F). Road I've been following comes to a "T" with Avenue de Paris. From here, the signs indicate one could go right for Chantiers or left for Versailles. Wouldn't mind visiting Chantiers, but today is about Versailles, so left it was. Even without the sign, though, you can pretty much figure it out. Once you reach Avenue de Paris, you simply need to look down the road and you can see the palace in the distance. It's so large that you'd have trouble missing it.

Another 15 minutes walk and I'd reached the statue of Louis XIV which stands out front of Versailles. I had hoped to arrive early to beat the crowds, but due to my blunder on the RER train, the trip had taken longer than expected. As a result, I arrived at the same time as the tour buses. Oh well. Like everyone else, I had to queue for tickets. The line moved well enough. I purchased the ticket for everything (Chateau, Gardens, and Marie Antoinette Estate) for 20 euros (28 USD), but for those interrested, they also sell tickets for each separately. After I had my ticket, it was back out into the courtyard, pass through security, then over to another building. This was full of people. Now queue again for audio devices. For some reason, this was a bit slower than the ticket line.

The start of the tour provides a glance into the Chapel. That is, after you get past all the other people fighting for a look. They weren't letting people into the Chapel, so you must look through the doorway. It's like a mass of paparazzi trying to get a picture of a celebrity. Once I worked my way to the front, it was something to see with the white marble columns, gold accents, and painted ceiling. Though regular ticket holders weren't allowed in, I guess special groups are permitted inside as there was a small group in there at the time.

Moving on through a hallway lined with statues, you then pass through several rooms full of portraits and paintings of the property. Along the way there are windows overlooking the gardens behind the palace. Upstairs and through another hallway with statues, you arrive back at the Chapel. At left is a door opening to the second level of the Chapel. From here you get full view of the painted ceiling, which is spectacular.

The "Hercules Drawing Room" is actually an 18th century ballroom, but appears to be named for the ceiling mural of Hercules entering the kingdom of the gods. The room is huge, lined with various colors of marble that were carefully blended to great effect. Once you've taken in the room, you spend your time looking up admiring the ceiling mural, trying not to walk into the other people doing the same.

And on it goes. Room after room with ceiling murals, guilded trim, portraits, busts of notable people, and beautifully crafted furnature.

Then there is the Hall of Mirrors. I've heard of it, but don't recall ever seeing a picture, so wasn't sure what to expect. Wow! Louis definitely knew how to impress. If the palace or gardens weren't enough, the Hall of Mirrors defintely does the job. What you have is a long hall (or ballroom to be more precise) with vaulted ceiling full of murals, mirrors along the left-hand side, chadeliers, windows at right opening to the gardens, and golden statues between the windows. The effect is dazzling.

Note: Mirrors were very expensive at this time in history. Therefore having so many mirrors was a show of wealth.

After going through the royal quarters, I eventually arrived at a huge hall that has been taken over with paintings depicting the history of France. There are large paintings depicting different battles and events, all arranged in order so that you can work your way down one wall, then work your way back along the opposite wall, following the history of France.

On to the gardens. One could make a day of touring the gardens. According to the Versailles website, "In 1661, Louis XIV commissioned André Le Nôtre with the design and laying out of the gardens of Versailles which, in his view, were just as important as the Château. The works were undertaken at the same time as those for the palace and took forty years to complete." (1) According to Wikipedia, "the gardens cover some 800 hectacres of land." (2) Put simply, they are huge. Nearest to the palace are floral gardens, with low lying shubs, arranged in ornate patterns with numerous fountains. While on the tour, I read somewhere that they nearly redirectled a river to power all the fountains at Versailles. Now days, they only run all the fountains on weekends and on special occassions.

Off to one side is L'Orangerie (or The Orangerie). Walking to it from the floral gardens, you are treated to a grand overview as you are still about two or three stories above the Orangerie. There you see hundreds of fruit trees in planters, perfectly arranged in rows, with a central fountain and some flowers. Beyond is a pond. The Orangerie would provide the palace with oranges and other citris. In the winter months, the trees would be moved to greenhouses.

Farther away from the Palace are pockets of gardens between walls of 15 foot high bushes which have been trimmed to be perfectly flat on the sides. You walk along wondering what is around the next corner. Sometimes you'd find an intimate little area with benches, a statue, perhaps a fountain. Other times the hedgerow would open to a larger area with grass and flowers. There are statues all about and so many different designs within a much larger garden scheme. Without the map, you could nearly get lost.

From the Palace, there is the main walkway which passes through the garden to pond at the bottom of the hill. There you will arrive at the Bassin d'Applon, which is a basin with a large fountain of Apollo on the chariot of the sun (an allusion to Louis XIV, the Sun King). By this time, the battery in my camera had already died because I didn't recharge it last night. Beyond this is the Grand Canal which is layed out in the shape of a huge cross. People were about in paddle boats.

Moving to the right of the Grand Canal, there is a restaurant and snack place. I wanted to get something, but they appeared to have a problem and it took forever for anyone to get served. So I moved on.

Continuing away from the Grand Canal in this direction takes you towards the Marie Antoinette Estate. Another smaller palace was erected away from the main palace as a retreat. Decked out with a lot of pink marble, this estate is only sleightly less impressive than the main Palace. It too has gardens. However, I didn't have time to visit them.

1:35 pm - Finally got sandwich and coke near Antoinette Estate. A little less expensive than elsewhere, but still expensive. Paid 7.30 euro (10.23 USD) for Sand Jambon (ham sandwich) and 500ml Coca-Cola bottle. One advantage to eating here was there seemed to be fewer people. Was able to sit in shade at one of the tables outside and relax a bit.

Tip: The best price I observed for sandwich and drink was at the stand near the Grand Canal.

Note: The grounds are vast and can be a long walk. If you get tired or have difficulty walking, there is a transport system that runs between the Marie Antoinette Estate and the main Palace. I didn't use it, so don't know specifics on cost or where it stops.

By this point I was worn out. It was time to return to Paris. Following are a few of the notes I made while at Versailles:
• Marble is incredible!
• Hot day!
• I finished the palace by 12:00 noon. It was a mad house. Too many people. Even so, it was far worse when I went to return the audio guide.
• Gardens are amazing.
• (after camera battery died) Such a shame. Got everything I wanted in Palace, but little of Gardens and other buildings. Will need to return some day at which point I would probably just do the gardens. There is still much of the gardens and Marie Antoinette's Estate that I didn't explore. Should come on weekend when fountains are running.

2:35 pm - Pharmacy sign on way to train station says temperature 39 C (102.2 F). Not sure that's correct, but it was seriously hot and humid.

Got on wrong train. Got on "N" train (instead of "C") which didn't show on my map. Map on train shows more clearly. Will need to go back from next station (Viroflay Rive Gauche).

Station manager told me I could catch any train on track #1 and it would take me to Paris. Also told me I'd have to purchase new ticket. Cost 2.95 euro (4.14 USD). Next train at 15:54 (3:54 pm).

Fortunately, the "C" line RER train has a stop at Musee d'Orsay. The Musee d'Orsay is an art museum filled with paintings, sculptures, and other forms of art (vases, furnature, etc). It's located along the south bank of the Seine River, across from the Louvre. Though I was hot and tired, I decided to go anyway (admission cost 8.00 euro; 11.21 USD). I went for a while, but was drained. No problem, the ticket is good all day, so I can return later. I specifically came today (Thursday) because museum is open late to 9:45 pm. This means I have plenty of time to return to my hotel, let my camera recharge, and rest a bit.

5:30 pm - Back in hotel room. Relaxed until 7:00 pm.

Returned to Musee d'Orsay. The Museum is very good and well worth a visit. Various styles are represented: naturalistic, impressionism, post impressionism, etc. After going through the diffent floors of the museum, I went for a desert and drink in Museum Cafe on top floor. An interresting thing about the cafe is the clock. A large clock seen on the exterior of the museum also acts as a window to let light into the cafe (see my picture).

After the museum, I walked along Seine River. I wanted to see the mini Statue of Liberty. Don't know why, just one of those things. If the map is correct, it's just south of the Eiffel Tower in a park on the Seine River. By the time I got there, it was starting to get dark and the park where Lady Liberty is located becomes a hang out for the younger crowd. It didn't seem dangerous at all. They just socialize, drink wine or beer, and play music.

Tip: Many people congregate right around the Eiffel Tower. If you want to escape the crowds, go north or south along the Seine. There are park areas where you can relax away from the crowds and have great unobstructed views of the Eiffel Tower.

On my way north, I was crossing the bridge just south of the Eiffel Tower when I just about witnessed a traffic accident at the intersection leading to the bridge. After hearing the screaching of skidding tires, I expected to hear a bang. Apparently someone went into the intersection when they shouldn't have (I'll call Car 1) and cut off a car that was on coming (I'll call Car 2). The offending car (Car 1) pulled onto the bridge when the cutoff car (Car 2) sped past Car 1 and then cut him off so that he couldn't proceed. The driver of Car 2 jumped out and started screeming at the driver of Car 1. I didn't need to know French to know he was angry, expressing his anger very loudly and at great length. It wasn't until several cars got backed up behind Car 1 that driver of Car 2 gave up and drove off.

By the time I returned to the Eiffel Tower, it was about 11:15 pm. The crowds had gone and there was no line to go up in the Eiffel Tower. Sign says it doesn't close until 12 midnight, so I decided to go up. At this late hour, they were only letting people go to 2nd Level. That was fine by me. Cost 8.00 euro (11.21 USD). Great view. It was fully dark now and it was difficult to get a good picture. There was too little light. Also, vibrations and wind made it difficult to hold camera still enough to prevent bluring. While up there, the flicker lights turned on at 12 midnight. That was a sight to see. Being so close to them, it was almost like being in a disco.

In the park below the Eiffel Tower, there were still a lot of people hanging out. Many had brought blankets, food, wine, whatever. Time for me to call it a night. I walked back to my hotel, taking the direct route instead of following the Seine River (which bows to the north). Even so, it took a while to get there. I was tired.

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Notes & Misc Information:
• When in Europe, it's good to know some basic metric. Unlike in the USA, you aren't likely to see dual measurements (i.e. oz/ml). It helps when ordering, especially drinks. For example, 330 ml (or 30 cl) is roughly a 12 oz soda/beer can in USA, and 500 ml (50 cl) is roughly 17 fl oz (a bit smaller than the 20 oz soda bottles found in USA).
• USD = United States Dollars.
• Currency: The currency in France is the Euro (EUR). The exchange rate was 1.40042 USD = 1 EUR or 1 USD = 0.71407 EUR as of June 25, 2009.
• Sunrise = 5:52 am
• Sunset = 9:57 pm
• Temp Low = {unknown}
• Temp High = {unknown; HOT!}

Sources:
1. Versailles - http://en.chateauversailles.fr/index.php?option=com_cdvhomepage
2. Gardens at Versalles - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gardens_of_Versailles

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Photos

Versailles
Statue of Louis XIV (The Sun King) that stands out front of the Palace of Versailles.

Versailles
Front of the Palace.

Versailles
More of the Palace front. The Chapel is the tall building.

Versailles
Interior of The Chapel.

Versailles
The Hall of Mirrors.

Versailles
Hall with the History of France.

Versailles
Overlooking The Orangerie.

Musee d'Orsay
Off of the Cafe, you can go outside. View from top of the museum. Across the river is the Louvre.

Musee d'Orsay
Museum Cafe with clock in the wall.

Roller bladers
Roller bladers play near Les Invalides.