Bonsoir a tous,
My French diploma exam is tomorrow, and so I really ought to be revising, but somehow I am as ever an expert at procrastination and will therefore write a little bit about my recent visit to Versailles.
Versailles is a town in the South West of Paris, a 45 minute train journey from Saint Lazare station. The train ride was free thanks to my navigo pass. Entrance to the castle was also free (to EU members under 26!) although the 6 euro entrance fee to the gardens was inevitable but completely worth it. Have you ever heard of Versailles? It's famous as one of French royalty's most exhibitionist indulgences in grandeur and luxury.
It is the castle that the much despised and notoriously greedy "sun-king" (so called for his love of all things shiny and bright, as well as his own love of the divine right of kings) Louis XIV had built. It is also the location of perhaps the most important event of the French revolution of the 18th century: it is where King Louis XVI and his wife Marie-Antoinette were hunted down by their own infuriated subjects. Always one for a love of all things history-related, this story fascinates me. And Marie-Antoinette is a main selling point of the castle - her image can be found more than any other in the caste's many gift shops.
The castle has been host to many French Kings and Queens and is as can be expected dripping in exquisite detail and gold furnishing (the man to the left is only one detail of a chimney decoration). The hall of mirrors is always fun to walk down, and the lavish displays of ceremony as well as rooms for play and luxury (mostly linked to Marie-Antoinette) are interesting to say the least. It is of course painfully ironic when compared to the famine and debt France was suffering from at the time. Marie-Antoinette (I know you're dying to hear about her, wasn't she fabulous, with her youth and her beauty and her fancy things?) left her mark on the place by establishing what is now known as her "domain" within the extremely large gardens.
This domain is almost hidden away about a 20 minute walk away from the Grand Lake and is comprised of what is known as a Hamlet (smaller than a village, but only just). The King gave the building known as "Le Petit Trianon" to her as a gift. There's no doubt that Le Petit Trianon is a luxurious building, and it's said to be Marie's favourite place. The gardens around it are also pretty nifty (see photo) I also liked that Le Petit Trianon had simply furnished (albeit undoubtedly expensive) spare bedrooms and a billiard room.
Being not overly keen on gardens (they're alright I suppose, but you know, a garden is a garden) I wasn't expecting much from the Jardins de Versailles and was a bit annoyed at having to pay the 6 euros to get in. But they were exquisite, and it was a beautiful day (30 degrees celsius!) and it was easy to imagine the sorts of courting that would have gone on back in the day. It was all very Mark Darcy ish, if you know what I mean. Also, for the high season of summer only, the fountains of the jardin de versailles harmoniously play classical music, of the kind designed to encourage your gaiety and make you feel like you are a lady of the court partaking in her daily walk back in the 18th century, pondering what you will be wearing to the ball this evening. Maybe this is where the idea of Mark Darcy popped into my head. The photo doesn't do them any justice - there were grand gravel paths, meticulously arranged greenery, small and big lakes, fountains, mazes and the fabulously large Grand Lake where you could hire a rowing boat which I imagine to be ridiculously expensive but very idyllic. If you visit Versailles, taking a peek at the gardens is a must.
I have other things to tell you about things that I've done recently, but really have to go do some last minute revision now, donc je vous ecrirai bientot!
Bonne Nuit xx
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