Day Twelve – Versailles; Musee D'Orsay

Tuesday March 13

     Today we're on our own until Nicole gets through with her classes in the afternoon, but we have sight seen enough by now to know how to negotiate the transit system.  It should be no problem finding our way to the suburb of Versailles.   

     After the usual carbing up on delicious fresh French pastries, cereal and fruit, it's off to the RER train stop a few blocks away.  They don't run as frequently as the Metro, but the doors stay open for several minutes rather than seconds.  After deciphering the ever changing schedule, we figure that we have about a twenty minute wait until our train arrives.  At that moment I realized that I'd left our museum passes back at the hotel, and I dashed off to retrieve them.  The RER stop is located on one of about eight corners of a traffic circle and I was momentarily befuddled as to which direction to go.  Walking around the circle until I came to the street our hotel was on, I hurried to Heliopolis and back, descending the stairs to the tracks just as the train pulled in.

     We had to switch trains after a short jaunt, and as we waited our connection, we tried to figure out what 'short' meant after the abbreviation designating our train.  We soon found out when the 'short' train pulled in and down to the other end of the station.  It was at this point that you could easily spot the tourists in the crowd as we all sprinted to catch the train, forgetting that, unlike the Metro, it would sit for a few minutes.  Local commuters eyed us with some amusement.

     From downtown Paris, it is only about a twenty minute trip to Versailles.  The palace itself is about a ten minute walk from the train station.  For about one hundred years, it was the center of power in France, starting in 1682 when King Louis XIV moved there.  Wanting to escape the hubbub and disease of the city, he moved to the Royal Hunting Lodge and in the following decades expanded it into the largest palace in the world.

     Being early on a weekday, there were not huge crowds to contend with, but steady foot traffic made us glad we had our passes.  We shunted off to a side entrance and immediately began our tour of the palace.

     The building is massive and crammed with art treasures at every turn.  Passing through the chapel, bedrooms, and gathering places decorated from floor to ceiling with frescoes, paintings, tapestries, sculptures, my mind began to freeze up, trying to absorb it all. 

     The detail applied to the simplest of things, such as the corner of a room - every room - is truly awesome, but obscene when you consider that the general populace seemingly existed solely to support this lifestyle of the rich and richer.

     Four major building campaigns produced a series of apartments, each of its own unique design.  What's the big deal about the 'Hall Of Mirrors'?  In the 17th century mirrors were one of the most expensive items you could possess.  Hence, the 'Hall of Mirrors' featured seventeen mirror-clad arches reflecting seventeen arcaded windows that overlook the gardens. Each arch contains twenty-one mirrors with a total complement of 357 mirrors.  The perfect room for people who think they're better and more beautiful then everyone else. 

     It's unfathomable to think that this was a 'residence' at one time.  One would need to take a few moments and sit in the silver furniture just to ponder the concept. 

     Above you see a portion of the little chapel, which is part of and the result of, the Louis the XIV building campaign.  Truly a masterpiece, it was the site of several notable occasions such as celebrating births, weddings, etc, all quite elaborate, no doubt.  Nice place to have a party, eh?

     This incredible 'life sized' painting captured a coronation spotlighting the King and his court, and I don't mean Eddie Feiner.  The dimensions were at least 10X20 feet, (note photographer at lower left and tourist at lower right), and was actually not of the King, but a representation of Napoleon crowning himself Emperor of France, (apparently the Pope didn't hold enough rank for the job)!  It's interesting to note how the painter highlighted the principal characters in vivid colors and depicted lesser players in faded tones.

     We cycled through different levels and wings of the former King's crib then, outside,  found a little nook outside, to have a snack of baguette with tomato, and cheese -

      - from which we were immediately shooed away from by matronly employee who chastised us for our brazen effort to have a picnic, asking in a thick accent if we'd do such a thing in our country.  "Of course.", we replied.  Those French.  Ya gotta love 'em. 

     So as we ate, and walked, we were amazed at the immense size of the building and property.  The staff alone must have numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands.  No wonder there was a French Revolution. 

But the artwork was beautiful and seemingly endless... 

...room after room...

...ceiling after ceiling...

...painting after painting...

...fireplace after fireplace...

     Finally, after about three hours of sensory overload it was time to go.  Leaving all of this opulence behind, we hiked back to the train station, with our next destination being the Musee D'Orsay, in Paris, for more sensory overload. 

 Above, Vincent Van Gogh, turning a deaf ear.

     Located in an old train station, Musee D'Orsay was refurbished to house art, and more art.  It doesn't appear as large as it actually is at first glance, and I told Alayna and Logan that I'd meet them in an hour.  My camera battery died and I was going to go a few blocks away to Amira's apartment and borrow her power converter.  An hour later, when I re-entered D'Orsay, there was Alayna right where I'd left her, and a few seconds later Logan strolled up.  I realized that this was an incredible stroke of luck after I saw how large the place actually was.  Six floors of exhibits offered many hiding places and I would have never found them on my own. 

     Anyway, this was a short visit to Orsay.  We'd be back tomorrow to explore more extensively.  It was getting late in the afternoon and time for dinner and a trip back to the Arch de Triomphe - this time going in and up to the top.

      A spiral staircase inside one side of the Arch, took us to the top for a lovely view of the bustling city below and the Champs de Elysee'.  The Monument is one of many honoring those who fought for France.    

      With only a couple days to go, there is still much to see and do.  We've acclimated ourselves pretty well to this city.  We move about confidently and securely and look forward to our next tasty meal...

Day One Travel To Iberia

Day Two Marbella

Day Three Mijas

Day Four Granada

Day Five Gibraltar

Day Six Ronda

Day Seven Marbella

Day Eight Paris

Day Nine Pere Lachaise

Day Ten Louvre mall; in Notre Dame

Day Eleven Ste Chappelle; Le Tour Eiffle

Day Thirteen Louvre Musee

Day Fourteen Musee's D'Orsay, Rodin, Paris Modern Art

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