Paris - Day 7

     I was the only one at breakfast this morning. The little room they have here at  the hotel has several tables and each morning you can find most of the spaces set for breakfast with a chunk of bread, croissant, yogurt, coffee mug, juice glass and fixings for the bread and coffee. If I have a big breakfast I feel bogged down so this is a nice quick meal to get me going. It's weird though because the chick who takes the payment also comes over to fill the juice glass then fills the coffee mug and adds the milk. It's too much personal waiting on me for me to be comfortable with but I sit back and let her do her thing then I tip her 1 euro and she acts surprised every time. I think she's genuinely surprised but I can't help it. I'm a former waitress. I will always tip and mostly over tip. I know tips are generally added in but the whole thing is only 3 euros and when I get a tall coffee and croissant at Starbucks it's 6 euros. 


     I know it's expensive over here but I've tricked myself into thinking of costs as being in dollars and Vermont is expensive too so it all seems even in my head. It also helps that I'm actually staying within my budget. My goal is to not use the credit card at all and I really think I'll be able to meet the goal. Though there was a necklace today that I really, really want. It's 90 euros and I almost got it but my gosh darn efficient brain said, "You know you will buy a book and post cards too and you're already tired, so buy the stuff later so you don't have to carry it all day".


     Darn it, that had me breaking one of my golden rules regarding do it now because you may not pass this way again and sure enough even though I did pass that way again I was carrying my dinner and then was half way back across the estate before I remembered I wanted to go get that necklace. The next two shops didn't have it so I'm going to be on a mission to find it or something similar the next two days. 


     This was my dinner so you can probably understand my distraction. There's a baked potato hiding under that gravy, peas, carrots and beef.

This was the scenery at dinner.


     An Auntie commented on my Facebook page that I must be getting tired here on my trip...um, yes. That's about the only way I could possibly have thought yesterday's blog made any sense. I just phoned that one in. My apologies. I woke up this morning refreshed and ready to go but only had one place to go see. Fortunately the kings and queens of France were abundant in their flaunting of wealth and I had a vast amount of space to cover in my day at one place. I walked pretty much most of the time from 9am to 6pm today so I'm back to being ready for another long nap.


     The train ride out to Versailles was just under an hour and I was able to take some pictures of graffiti for the kid. I don't think any of it is any good but he may think one or two pieces are ok.   I don't condone graffiti. I think it's bad, but the kid is enamored with it and was interested in the possibility I might get some photos for him so I'm obliging. I haven't seen it much within Paris except for the metro tunnels. 


     I was worried about finding the Chateau of Versailles but had read that it's fairly easy to get to. One blog I read advised following the crowd after getting off the train. I did that as well as listen to the guy holding the door open. He said, "Cross the street, go right then left then voila"! It worked.


     As I was walking I thought to myself how Versailles is actually it's own city and the Chateau is only a part of the city. I started thinking that instead of saying you're going to Versailles you really ought to say you're going to the Chateau of Versailles if that's the only place you're going while in Versailles. It's like people saying they're going to Burlington and really all they do is go to Church Street. Or they go to the U-Mall and that's in SOUTH Burlington. So, to make up for my faux pas I made a point of stopping in some shops on my way back to the train...no necklace there either, dammit.


     The grounds at the Chateau are immense. They just go on and on. Back in the day the whole thing was open to the public. The peasants could just stroll around and do what they wanted. If they wanted an audience with the king or others in the house they probably did some kind of favor or paid a donation or something. They still can wander the grounds and getting into the building is more spelled out in that you need to purchase a ticket. 


     The picture below as quoted from the visitor's guide I purchased: "The Fountain of Latona tells the story taken from Ovid's Metamorphoses, an ancient masterpiece providing numerous themes to the decor of Versailles. An episode from Apollo's childhood is depicted here. His mother, Latona, having been ridiculed by the Lycian peasants, beseeches Jupiter for vengeance, who then turns them to frogs". Moral of the story? Don't piss a mom off.

 There's gold in them thar walls.

 I love fireplaces, marble and anything that allows me to sit.

 All of the ceilings on the first floor have some kind of over the top decoration. The rooms have chandeliers and high doors and ceilings. I will no longer complain about my heating bill.

 Marie Antoinette gave birth in this room and there were dozens and dozens of witnesses. Ew.

 The king and queen would sit in the royal chairs, their children and grand children would sit on the stools at the table and the audience would sit away from the table and admire how the royalty ate their food.

Ok, I really want some kind of decoration like this around the light in my bedroom. I'm going to seriously look into a different fixture and maybe have Quintyn paint something around it. I love this stuff!


     When the Chateau became too much for the king he would retreat further into the country to a little place called Grand Trianon. It's about a 30 minute walk from the Chateau so I can't imagine how he thought it was further in the country except that you can't see it from the Chateau. Not to be left out the queen got to have Petit Trianon. I'll take either of them as a year round home. I need to store all these visitor guides somewhere.

Grand Trianon is way smaller than the Chateau - only two wings.

 After all the red rooms, dark green rooms and gold, gold, gold, this yellow room was a nice sunny change.

Apparently I was very excited about the yellow room.


     Petit Trianon is smaller but still as lavish as the rest of it all. 

 No wings and only three stories. Poor, poor queen had it so rough in the country home.

Marble, stone, gold....staircases deserve decorating too!


     It'll be a light day tomorrow. Most stuff is closed on Mondays. Maybe I'll have time to finally write up some postcards.