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Published: August 25th 2011
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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 prohibited area the tour photographer completed a picture story of the area.
The drive north towards Versailles took us across great areas of flat countryside with quite a westerly wind blowing. At one point we encountered a mini dust storm created by Farmer Pierre preparing his land for the next crop. Marching across the land were the ever present power pylons and wind turbines.
We
had a feeling of excitement about our visit to Versailles. We have been to Paris before but never had the time to make the journey to see one of the world’s finest palaces. On this trip it was a “must see”. As we turned the corner and drove down the boulevard towards the palace it was breath-taking. After parking the car we joined the crowds making their way to the ticket office. For nearly everyone the routine of queuing was quite normal. Not so for one woman. After some time appearing to push her way past she explained she needed to sit on a seat and wait while her husband stayed in the queue. It didn’t take long before she found a “friend” further up the line, called her husband over, and was soon heading inside well ahead of her rightful place in the queue!
Tickets in hand we joined the masses entering the galleries and apartments. How the rich and famous must have lived prior to the Revolution. The views from the windows overlooking the gardens whetted our appetite for what would follow. After some time of being pushed along by an avalanche of humanity, who seemed to have
left their manners on the many tour buses, our excitement was starting to wear a little thin. The jostling and pushing, and the very limited chance to pause and admire, was getting too much. So it was time for the freedom of wandering the famous gardens. At this point one of the tour group discovered they had lost their ticket so the other one approached the official and was told their ticket was not valid for the gardens. What a let-down.
Having spent several hours at the palace we decided it was time to continue our journey to Illiers-Combray. During our drive we chatted about our experience and the disappointment we felt after such a feeling of high anticipation. Perhaps on our next visit to France we will be better prepared and just visit the garden.
Our hotel is set in the corner of the town square and has all the atmosphere of small town France. Tomorrow we will have a relaxing start to the day before taking a short drive to Chartres.
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