June 23, 2011 The Grand Versailles

The gold gate is just a small taste of what is to come. 

An art collection of rounded pieces of metal were  by the entrance and in the gardens. 

Seeing double?

The cottages of Marie-Antoinette.

The beautiful flowers and more of Le Domaine de Marie-Antoinette. 

Le Grand Trianon (pink stone and black & white checkered floor)

The Hall of Mirrors (Yes, I was there! I give you permission to be jealous.)

Today we visited the Chateau of Versailles.  What an incredible experience! We began outside in the gardens that are huge and expansive. Overall Versailles, five main places: the Chateau or the castle, le jardin or the gardens, le Grand Trianon and the Petite Trianon, and Marie-Antoinettes cottages. So back to the gardens, you can spend hours in them ( we spent close to five hours in them).  They have many fountains, statues, and excellent landscape design. After spending time in the gardens we sketched the Petite Trianon, and then walked to Marie-Antoinettes cottages. She was married to King Louis XVI and one of the only queens to impose her personal taste and style upon Versailles. She created these cottages for a simple, rural life, far from the grandness of Versailles. The cottages were quaint and reminded me of something Snow White would choose to live in. After the cottages, we visited le Grand Trianon. It has a pink colored marble with a black & white checkered floor. Once we had finished touring the Grand Trianon we made our way back to the Chateau. A little history about the house is that it was once the hunting lodge of Louis XIII and was converted and enlarged by his son Louis XIV.  As the different kings lived on the property, they would add their own addition and continue to add to the grandness of Versailles. My favorites included the gardens, cottages, and the Hall of Mirrors. What a house-and I got to see it!!! WOW!!!