Château Versailles

With Scott off to the U.S. for a quick business trip, I found myself with a day in Paris to explore on my own. Encouraged by the concierge at our hotel that the Paris Metro was not difficult to negotiate, even for someone with an extremely limited French vocabulary, I set out for the Château Versailles. About an hour later I found myself in front of the beautiful palace created by Louis XIV. I booked a private tour which included the Opera House built for the wedding of Austrian Archduchess Marie Antoinette to Louis XVI. We also saw several other rooms not open to the public including the king's bed chambers and several dining rooms. After our private tour we joined the masses of people pouring into Versailles for the "public" tour. The Château Versailles was Louis XIV monument to absolute monarchy and, as such, he moved his entire government from Paris to Versailles. The Palace remained the centre of political power in France for more than 100 years.The Palace is still used for political purposes on occasion, such as when heads of state are entertained in the Hall of Mirrors. The French government meets in Versailles when they are voting on amendments to the French Constitution.

Entrance gates to Versailles

Statues and detailing along the roof at Versailles.

The Palace of Versailles.

Versailles from the gardens behind it.

Versailles looking across one of the 50 fountains in the gardens.

The gardens at Versailles are just amazing. They cover almost 2000 acres, include 200,000 trees, 50 fountains, and 210,000 flowers, planted annually. There are also countless bronze and marble statues. Within the gardens are the Palaces of Trianon, built to be the recreational residence of Louis XIV and his family, and Marie-Antoinette's Estate. There is also a Grand Canal where you can take out boats. I did not have enough time to see the entire garden, so it will have to wait for another visit. Besides, Scott was not with me, and I know he would really enjoy spending a day just exploring the gardens and taking photos. Sounds like we need a trip back to Paris, doesn't it?!! Anyway, Scott did leave his camera for me and I did try to channel some of his photography skills, and managed to take a few pictures in the gardens!

From the Palace of Versailles (behind me in this photo) to the Grand Canal is 1 km, or just over a half mile.  The path is lined with statues. Everything you can see in this photo is part of the gardens.

There are hundreds of these beautiful flowers planted in the gardens.

Okay. I know Scott does a much better job with flower photos, but I loved this butterfly!

After spending about 5 1/2 hours at Versailles it was time to get back on the train and head to Paris. I still had a few hours left before the shops closed, and the huge Lafayette Department Store was just where I wanted to go. After a quick stop at the hotel to drop off the camera I got back on the Metro and went to do some shopping. The Lafayette store reminds me of Macy's in Herald Square, New York, the old Marshall Field's on State Street in Chicago, and Harrod's in London. Rummaging around the huge store was a fun way to spend my last evening in Paris. 

Sights on the Seine, and a Surprise!

No trip to Paris would be complete with a trip down the Seine. We found ourselves at the Eiffel Tower one morning and wanted to go to the Louvre. No problem! We boarded the Batobus and began our float down the river. As a "water bus" it was OK, but on our last day together in Paris Scott decided we should do a lunch cruise, complete with live music. It was a beautiful day, the food and wine were great, and we enjoyed a nice relaxing afternoon before Scott left for the U.S.

There are lots of different houseboats docked along the river along with barges and other "working" boats.

Lock of Love along one of the bridges. Couples affix a padlock and throw the key into the Seine to signify their eternal love. This has been a European tradition for a long time. However, in many cities, including Paris, all of the locks are periodically removed, resulting in public outcry. The sad truth is that, as romantic as they seem, they do damage the bridge and there are also worries about all of those keys at the bottom of the river.

Surprise! Right in the middle of the Seine is a replica of the Statue of Liberty! 

You might recall that the Statue of Liberty standing in New York harbour was a gift from the French,
 and was dedicated in 1886.

This Statue of Liberty was a gift to France from the U.S..

It was dedicated in 1889 and looks towards the Atlantic Ocean and her "sister" statue in New York Harbour.

Arc de Triomphe and D'Orsay Museum

The Arc de Triomphe is one of the world's most recognizable monuments, and a popular tourist attraction. We rode past it on several occasions, and Scott managed to take some great photos. The arc honours those who fought and died for France in the Napoleonic and the French Revolutionary Wars. Names of battles and generals are inscribed upon it. At it's base lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a victim of 

World War I, marked by an eternal flame. The arc itself is massive: 164 feet tall, 148 feet wide, and 72 feet deep. 12 different streets come together here, and the traffic circle that goes around this arc is positively frightening! There is an elevator nearly to the top, followed by about a dozen steps to the very top where the views of Paris are really nice. We drove past this several times, but we did not make the journey inside. Perhaps on our next visit.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I really enjoy the art of Monet and Renoir and Scott and I spent an afternoon in the D'Orsay Museum, home to the largest collection of impressionist and post-impressionist masterpieces in the world. Here I found my Monet's, Renoir's, Degas', and Cezanne's, as well as quite a few Van Gogh's. This building was originally a railway station, became a mailing centre during WWII, was used for filming several movies, and then was slated to be demolished in the 70's. Instead of demolishing this beautiful building, however, a decision was made to turn it into a museum containing mainly French art dating from 1848 to 1915 (too "young" for the Louvre and too "old" for the modern art museum). This was definitely one of my favourite stops in Paris! No photos allowed inside, but Scott did manage to take a couple looking out through the clock face, and a quick "illegal" photo of the inside of the building.

Paris: L'Hotel National des Invalides

L'Hôtel national des Invalides (The National Residence of the Invalids) is a complex of buildings containing military history museums and monuments, a church, a hospital and retirement home for injured veterans, and a burial site for some of France's war heroes, including Napoleon Bonaparte. I am definitely not a fan of museums dedicated to military history. I much prefer looking at Monet's and Renoir's over uniforms and weapons, so I entered this complex of museums mainly to humour Scott. I will admit, in writing, that it was, at times, an interesting place to visit. The domed chapel where Napoleon is entombed is positively amazing. 

Louis XIV commissioned this project in 1670 because he wanted a hospital and home for aged and unwell soldiers. 450 years later there are still about 100 elderly or incapacitated former soldiers who reside here. Originally the complex contained a chapel where residents were required to worship daily. Once that was completed, Louis XIV ordered that a separate private royal chapel be added. Both are quite beautiful.

Dome of the crypt of Napoleon and the L'Hotel national des Invlides

Napoleon statue

looking up at the Dome

Inside the dome

Looking towards the chapel.

Napoleon's Tomb

A beautiful quiet resting place for a war hero.

Inside the chapel. They were preparing for a service so we could not go in.

Part of the museum complex.

Scott and one of the really big cannons at the museum.

This picture is of a photograph hanging in the museum. Evidence of difficult times.

This was amazingly small! I cannot imagine someone inside of it, let alone hanging from an airplane shooting at something! Scott tells me his Uncle Jimmy had that job during the war. Yikes!