VERSAILLES

May 14, 2005

A week has passed already.  We have totally reorganized the kitchen because I don’t like to have people walking around my kitchen or standing in my work triangle while I try to cook.  So, we took all of the dishes and flatware out to the dining room and put the wine glasses on the bar and relocated the coffee mugs and other glassware and various beverages in one corner of the kitchen.  We also set up a wine and snack drawer in the dining room and a breadbasket full of croissants, baguettes, and sliced bread, and a place for sugar, sweetener, salt and pepper and cereal.  Of course, everyone who knows me knows there is also a large bowl of fresh fruit, which we placed in the dining room as well.  I shuffled small appliances and large trays into cupboards or parts of the counter that are not in my workspace.  That leaves most of my kitchen free for working. 

Saturday, May 14^th was a rainy day.  We decided to go to Versailles.  Don stayed home and I drove.  Since it was not a workday the traffic was not bad and we made it to Versailles in a little over an hour.  We parked in the lot right at the entrance to the castle and everyone put up their umbrellas and rain hats and trudged across the cobblestone courtyard to find the ticket seller.

There was a long line to wait in for tickets.  We stood in the rain and shuffled along with the crowd.  Once we got into the building, went through the security screener, and arranged our audio guides we began our tour.  I was especially looking forward to sharing this experience with Susan because I think this, of all of the chateaux, is the most elaborate and dramatic.  The Hall of Mirrors is the highlight of this whole tour and I really thought Sue would enjoy it.

The rooms at Versailles are beautifully furnished.  Because the castle was vandalized during the French Revolution there has been a big project to trace and recover original furnishings, and in lieu of that, at least authentic period pieces similar to those which furnished the Versailles during the reign of Louis XIV.  Our audio guides were very helpful describing each room, its use, the furnishings and artwork. 

We saw the rooms where the King’s Guard hung out, the King’s staterooms where he welcomed visitors, the hall where he received visitors and his official bedroom where he heard their pleas.  Each was well decorated and described.  When we got to the fabulous and breathtaking Hall of Mirrors, however, we were very disappointed.  Instead of the grand and glittering view of the long hall we saw just plain boards.  The hall is being restored.  The work will take 4 years and won’t be completed until 2007.  What a disappointment.

After passing through the long hall of wood and a small section to give a little idea of the resplendent hall, we got to the Queen’s side of the castle.  The beautiful Queen’s birthing room, decorated by Marie Antoinette in tapestries, wall coverings and drapes in a beautiful pink floral design, was lovely.

After finishing the tour of the official State Rooms we went to the café for a quick lunch.  Then we went to see the King’s private rooms, which included more guardrooms, reception rooms, and bedrooms.  All of the kings and queens beds were quite large—definitely KING sized.

We finished up and drove home with not problems.