Versailles

I was really excited for our visit to Versailles. It was hard for me to believe that I would be walking the same halls of a palace that has housed famous figures I've learned about such as King Louis XIV.



To get there, we had to ride the metro to the train station, then take a train to Versailles. It wasn't a long train ride, but we seemed to be going so slow! There were a few stops between the station and Versailles, so maybe that had something to do with it.



The palace is just massive. Gold trim and decorations are everywhere.



The Hall of Mirrors wasn't quite what I expected it to be. It was grand and opulent, crystal chandeliers running the length of the hall, the windows on one side spanning the the height of the wall, with the little light of the day reflecting in the mirrors on the opposite wall. But when I went to get a closer look at the mirrors themselves, they were extremely dirty and dusty. It was surprising; I don't know if we were there on a bad day or what.



This bust of Descartes really brought back memories of the European History class I took my senior year of high school. We spent a great deal of time studying the Enlightenment, an 18th century movement which emphasized the ideals of reason and progress, among other things. Descartes was a philosopher and mathematician who contributed greatly to the movement. He is known as the Father of Modern Philosophy, as well as the Father of Analytical Geometry.



After exploring the palace ourselves, we dealt with an inefficient lunch line (lots of customers, not a lot of workers manning the cash registers) which forced us to gobble down our food in literally two minutes, because we had a private tour to run to. It was an interesting tour; we were able to go into the chapel and visit the King's quarters.



After the tour, we ventured outside to see the gardens. It was kind of a dreary day, very windy and cold, plus I was trying to fight off a sickness. Needless to say, I was ready to head back to the FIAP as soon as possible.



Nothing was really in bloom since it's still technically winter, but we talked about coming back to Versailles during our next trip to Paris just to see the gardens. By then, it should be a lot warmer, and hopefully, a lot prettier.



You can see the bones of what the gardens contain, and I think it will be a beautiful sight to see in warmer weather, with greenery and flowers flourishing in the warmth.