29 June - Versailles

Up at 6  and went in search of batteries for Margies camera.

It was a cool grey morning, the clouds holding the promise of rain. I considered taking my umbrella and thought I would be brave. After searching on our island I went across the Ile de la Cite to the right bank? to see if I could find a shop open. There were quite streets and parks and lots of closed shops.

As I wandered the streets of Paris I came upon St Germain church. It was open so I went in and after quietly checking the place out, lit a candle and said a prayer.

I left the church and almost right across the street was an open shop and I found battieries for Margie's camera. So much for the power of prayer.

By 8 am I was back at apartment and Margie and Maureen were both up and getting ready. A quick preakfast and we were on our way to Versailles!

We got to the RER stop by 830 and waited but there did not seem to be very many people around. Maureen checked out the area and discovered that there was another RER stop. We were at the wrong RER stop. So much for research. I think they need more signage.

The proper stop was busy with an attendant to keep people organized. I asked him in terrible french, which train to catch to Versailles. He was very nice and said to wait and at 930  we were on the RERC on our way to Versailles. We left paris and went through lots of little towns, or suburbs, occasionally stopping and letting people on and off. We even had musicians come on and play  for us for a small donation of course but why not, it was fun.

We arrived at 1015 in the town of Versailles and after consulting a map at the station found our way to the Palace of Versailles. about a twenty minute walk from the station.
By 1030 we were in the long line in the courtyard to the chateau. When the tourist books tell you to get there early. get there early. Also we found out later that it was one of the busiest days of the year for the chateau as it was a special day for schools to come. that explained all the young people that were there.

By 1130  we were in the Chateaux. Wiki says "The earliest mention of the name of Versailles is in a document dated 1038, relating to the village of Versailles. In 1575, the seigneury of Versailles was bought by Albert de Gondi, a naturalized Florentine, who invited Louis XIII on several hunting trips in the forests surrounding Versailles. Pleased with the location, Louis ordered the construction of a hunting lodge in 1624. 

Eight years later, Louis obtained the seigneury of Versailles from the Gondi family and began to make enlargements to the château. This structure would become the core of the new palace. Louis XIII's successor, Louis XIV, had it expanded into one of the largest palaces in the world. Following the Treaties of Nijimegen  in 1678, he began to gradually move the court to Versailles. The court was officially established there on 6 May 1682.

After the disgrace of  Nicolas Fouquet in 1661, Louis confiscated Fouquet’s estate and employed the talents of Le Vau, Le Nôtre, and Le Brun, who all had worked on Fouquet’s grand château Vaux-le-Vicomte, for his building campaigns at Versailles and elsewhere. For Versailles, there were four distinct building campaigns.

The first building campaign (1664–1668) commenced with the Plaisirs de I''Ile enchantee  (Pleasures of the Enchanted Island) of 1664, a Fete that was held between 7 and 13 May 1664. The first building campaign (1664–1668) involved alterations in the château and gardens to accommodate the 600 guests invited to the party. (Nolhac, 1899, 1901; Marie, 1968; Verlet, 1985)

The second building campaign (1669–1672) was inaugurated with the signing of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which ended the War of Devolution. During this campaign, the château began to assume some of the appearance that it has today. The most important modification of the château was Le Vau’s envelope of Louis XIII’s hunting lodge. 

(Nolhac, 1901; Marie, 1972; Verlet, 1985) Significant to the design and construction of the grands appartementsis that the rooms of both apartments are of the same configuration and dimensions – a hitherto unprecedented feature in French palace design. 

Both the grand appartement du roi and the grand appartement de la reine formed a suite of seven enfilade rooms. The decoration of the rooms, which was conducted under Le Brun's direction, depicted the "heroic actions of the king" and were represented in allegorical form by the actions of historical figures from the antique past (Alexander the Great, Augustus, Cyrus, etc.). (Berger, 1986; Félibien, 1674; Verlet, 1985) ( As in Napoleons Apartments at the Louvre, there was an Art show with different odd pieces in different spots throughout the chateau these 6 foot high heels were made out of pots and pans)

With the signing of the Treaty of Nijmegen  in 1678, which ended the Dutch War, the third building campaign at Versailles began (1678–1684). Under the direction of the architect, Jules Hardouin-Mansart, the Palace of Versailles acquired much of the look that it has today. 

In addition to the Hall of Mirrors, Hardouin-Mansart designed the north and south wings and the Orangerie. Le Brun was occupied not only with the interior decoration of the new additions of the palace, but also collaborated with Le Nôtre's in landscaping the palace gardens (Berger, 1985; Thompson, 2006; Verlet, 1985). (Another of the odd Art pieces, a crochetted hanging balloon thingy)

Soon after the defeat of the War of the League of Augsburg (1688–1697), Louis XIV undertook his last building campaign at Versailles. The fourth building campaign (1699–1710) concentrated almost exclusively on construction of the royal chapel designed by Hardouin-Mansart and finished by Robert de Cotte. 

There were also some modifications in the Appartement du roi, namely the construction of the Salon de l'OEil de Boeuf and the King's Bedchamber. With the completion of the chapel in 1710, virtually all construction at Versailles ceased; building would not be resumed at Versailles until some twenty one years later during the reign of Louis XV (Nolhac, 1911; Marie, 1976, 1984; Verlet, 1985).

During the reign of Louis XV, Versailles underwent transformation, but not on the scale that had been seen during the reign of Louis XIV. The first project in 1722 was the completion of the Salon d'Hercule. Significant among Louis XV’s contributions to Versailles were the petit appartement du roi; 

the appartements de Mesdames, the appartement du dauphin, and the appartement de la dauphine on the ground floor; and the two private apartments of Louis XV – petit appartement du roi au deuxième étage (later transformed into the appartement de Madame du Barry) and the petit appartement du roi au troisième étage – on the second and third floors of the palace.

 At 130 we had lunch in the chateau and then went to the gift shop spent way to much money on souvenirs. we then went to catch the little train to Marie Antoinette's farm. We thought it would give us a tour of the gardens but it did not. it also only stopped at two other locations. the Petit Trianon and Marie Antoinette's farm. if we had had the time we could have seen more but c'est la vie!

The crowning achievements of Louis XV’s reign were the construction of the Opera and the Petit Trianon  (Verlet, 1985). Equally significant was the destruction of the Escalier des Ambassadeurs (Ambassadors' Stair), the only fitting approach to the State Apartments, which Louis XV undertook to make way for apartments for his daughters.

The fountains were not turned on on fridays and we did not get to see them all, but what we saw was splendid. 
The Gardens  remained largely unchanged from the time of Louis XIV; the completion of the Bassin de Neptune between 1738 and 1741 was the only important legacy Louis XV made to the gardens (Marie 1984; Thompson, 2006; Verlet 1985). 

Towards the end of his reign, Louis XV, under the advice of Ange-Jacques Gabriel, began to remodel the courtyard facades of the palace. With the objective revetting the entrance of the palace with classical facades, Louis XV began a project that was continued during the reign of Louis XVI, but which did not see completion until the 20th century (Verlet, 1985).
Versailles is so worth seeing but again go and spend the night at Versailles and get the whole day in to see everything.

We caught the 430 RER back to paris with no problem. There was a group of Korean students from the States sitting by us and we traded money. It was fun.

At 515 we were at the Eiffel Tower and we sat at the garden under the tower for a bit. I sprinkled Mom and Dad's ashes by the koi pond at the base of the tower, out of the wind and sun and with a nice view of the park.

6:00  Parisienne Boat for dinner, which was excellent. I must applaud them on their vegetarian menu. A selection of one item, boiled vegetables in butter with some cheese sprinkled on it. but we did get wine included with the meal. the next time I go to Paris I am going to go to a real restaurant and see if they cook more than boiled vegetables for vegetarians. On the whole the cruise was very nice and we did have a Dali moment from the curved windows of the boat reflecting the trees in a very odd way. Dali's inspiration?

By 830 we were at the Apartment organizing Margie had brought the expandable suitcase which was a good thing so we packed and tidied and got ready for our departure the next day. while Maureen went to a concert at Saint Chapelle, we went shopping one more time. I found my little Ballerina at the puppet shop. I love it. 

packed up and rechecked drawers and things

asleep at 1130ish.