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Published: July 29th 2015
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Beautiful arches
Bosquet de la Colonnade It may be obvious that one of my favourite things to do on holiday is to plan meals. This morning was no exception, so after our usual breakfast of coffee and delicious pastries, we decided to walk across to the market near Versailles Notre Dame. The plan was to pick up some bread and cheese so that we could have a picnic lunch at the Chateau of Versailles. The lovely thing about following your nose and wandering the streets in the right general direction is that you often stumble across real finds - little jewels you would never have been looking for. As we approached the main shopping street near the market, a tiny shop caught our eye - "Mercerie Versailles Boutons". It was a treasure trove of magnificent lace, bias bindings, bead trims and buttons, and we spent almost an hour and significant euros here as we tried to choose from all that was on offer. I decided on some beautiful blue-grey lace and braid in different designs. Maybe I'll edge some sheets with it, but I think I am mainly just feeling inspired by the lovely grey interiors we are seeing everywhere in France. I also just had to
buy some gorgeous red, pink and yellow braid that reminded me of my friend Kate's house. She loves colour and who knows what she'll make of my gift, but hopefully she will appreciate that I was thinking of her! We all walked out happy and excited by our purchases, and after an additional stop at Petit Bateau to see if we could find something lovely for the babies in our lives, we finally got back to sorting out our lunch. Oh dear. Well, the market closes early you see, and we had been busy shopping for lace. Not to worry, a few doors up the street we found JC Gaulupeau.
Just the window had our mouths watering. Salads, various chicken dishes, little savoury pastries and one magnificently elegant cold salmon dish that was begging to be eaten in the gardens of a chateau! The lady in the shop cut a generous slice of the beautiful salmon terrine cooked in brioche, then ladled a thick dill and sour cream sauce into a separate container - which we all later dipped our bread in because it was too good to leave after the salmon was gone! From another counter we bought
The feast from JC Galupeau
The salmon in brioche - I will dream of it. cake and long, thin batons of marshmallow - 'guimauves' - in various pretty colours. We didn't even need to go anywhere else for wine, because they sold lovely half-bottles of champagne cold in the store at a very reasonable price - bonne chance! Just up the street we found great baguettes and luckily a few lonely stalls at the market were still open while they were packing up. The fruit stand had beautiful sweet little strawberries, and while one fabulous-looking cheese stand refused to serve any more customers despite a long queue, I managed to beg a little mound of chevre from a much kinder man just across the way as he was loading his truck.
With the picnic sorted and loaded into the gorgeous pink and grey Gaulupeau bag, we made our way to the closest gate and paid our entry fee to the musical gardens show which runs on Tuesdays. We were quite a long way from the lawns on the Grand Canal which are so lovely to picnic on, and by the time we got through the gate we were starving. I think we were getting a bit 'hangry' as we hunted for the closest legal
picnic area in the actual chateau gardens, but when we finally found it - disbelief. It was 2 lonely picnic tables next to the public toilets! The only way to handle it was to turn our backs on the ugly view and focus on the food. I think there would have been mutiny if I'd suggested finding an 'illegal' picnic area in the woods somewhere. We managed quite well actually, and really enjoyed our lunch despite our less-than-salubrious surroundings! We did, however, make a mental note to allow more time and head for the Grand Canal tomorrow at lunch time.
The enormity of the chateau gardens only hits you as you try to explore each little hidden nook and cranny, but we had all afternoon, and went from fountain show to fountain show - all while listening to the lovely piped music coming from hidden speakers in the hedges! From parterre gardens to the beautiful marble arches of the Bosquet de la Colonnade, to the unspeakably wonderful Apollo fountain, where Apollo seems to drive his chariot and horses from beneath the surface of the lake in a burst of frothing white water, we roamed it all. I was frustrated
by my photographic attempt to capture Apollo's horses, and in the end downloaded the photo I
wish I'd taken, which captures the movement and action in the fountain so perfectly. You'll be able to tell the difference between them, believe me!
Eventually we made our way to the Grand Canal, where ice-cream and the gift shop beckoned. While in search of a seat in the shade, I was amazed to find the rowing club, and struck up a conversation with one of the guys in charge that day. The rowing course on the Grand Canal is 1.5km, and competition happens at quieter times although training goes on year-round before the chateau opens in the morning. There were fours and eights on display and we got a guided tour. (Poor Isabel can't escape, even on holidays). I was quite taken with the romance of rowing on the Grand Canal with the palace in the distance, but Isabel assures me that the last thing you should be doing while rowing is looking at the scenery!
It is just so hot. We really began to wilt as the afternoon went on, but we wandered the Anish Kapoor installations before making our
The Market, Versailles
Beware: It closes before lunch time! way up the the chateau and down to the front gate. (I loved the whirlpool but I'm not sold on his rather large intrusion into the usually beautiful view from the chateau to the Grand Canal.) On impulse, I stopped in at the information desk on our way out, because we noticed the queue for the chateau was non-existent at 4pm. The lady at the desk discouraged us from heading straight in to the Hall of Mirrors because we'd only have an hour, and suggested instead that we come back at 8.15am the next morning after buying tickets online (She was very clear - no later!). We were a bit relieved I think, as we had walked absolutely miles and our feet were feeling it. Buying tickets and having them sent to Sarah's phone was really easy - much better than having to print them out or being worried about losing them.
On our walk home we wandered past the Maison des Parfums and through the Coeur des Senteurs for a change - we were too tired to linger, but it definitely warrants a return visit. A brief detour at a music shop selling guitars and a huge selection
of sheet music was a lovely diversion from sore feet. I was amazed at finding beautiful hard-cover editions of Chopin Nocturnes and Beethoven sonatas that I hadn't seen the like of since the practice rooms at Genazzano many moons ago. The mint green cloth cover of the Chopin was tempting, and I had Hugo in mind as I listened to the tone of various Spanish-made guitars, but common sense prevailed when I began thinking about getting these items home. We have a huge baggage allowance on Malaysia, but I don't think a guitar would be easy to fit in a suitcase.
Once home, there was barely enough time for showers before it was time to head out again to dinner. As we walked past the palace, the rain began, and it wasn't kidding. Handbags on heads didn't help much, and by the time we got to the restaurant we were pretty damp, however the food was reasonably priced and worth the walk, as the photos will attest! Sarah has been on a Rosè sampling quest, and we have found it the most reliable wine to drink as we don't love the lighter style reds and the whites can be
unreliable. (Champagne in restaurants is generally unaffordable, sadly). By the time we left, the rain had stopped and the restaurant was full of locals so we surveyed the other menu offerings coming out of the kitchen as we made our way down the stairs and headed off down the newly-washed streets towards home.
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