Epilogue to Trip

This has been a wonderful trip. Thinking back, it was planned nearly 5 months ahead, shortened once and shelved twice. However after all that happened, we really did manage to visit the many sites and marvel at these two cities and the wonders they offer.

Closing this chapter of my blog are two photos that I believe best captures the beauty of these two cities.

Versailles - The Gardens

Navigate around Versailles' home page and you can find the map of the whole compound. The gardens cover a huge part of the palace compound. The gardens stretched as far as the eye can see, and I am not exaggerating this fact. There is a huge lake in the middle of the garden, shaped as a cross. The king sometimes take a boat ride from one end to the other. Even today, there are boat operators in that lake that provide leisure boat rides.

In the background, the palace building. Countless statues populate the gardens of Versailles. It made me wonder how the garden was kept maintained in those days without cherry pickers and grass cutters. Well, if you have tonnes of French francs, this would not be a problem I guess. The paths in the gardens, contrarily to what I used to thought, were actually fine pebbles, not fine sands.

The building in the background, with the tall windows is where the halls of mirrors are located.

Fountain of Apollo. King of the Gods, the Sun God is again being used to symbolize the King's absolute power.

Versailles - The Palace

The Palace of the Sun-King, Château de Versailles was the center of administration during the reign of King Louis XIV. We arrived early in the morning after half an hour's train ride from Paris into the small town of Versailles. The queue into the palace was already long and growing by the minute. Holiday makers from everywhere and of every colours can be seen while lining up.

Versailles chapel, where royal events were celebrated was one of the nicest rooms to occupy the vast compound of Versailles. This was how the King and Queen would have seen the chapel, from the tribune royale, where they heard mass.

The chapel as viewed from the ground floor. The colour scheme, yellow and white, was used extensively throughout the palace. In the other apartments, which can be found through the link above, architects borrowed inspirations from Roman mythologies.

One of the more famous area in the Palace was the Halls of Mirrors where 17 arches are lined up to reflect the light from 17 opposite windows which faces the gardens of Versailles. It had to be made known that during the time of its construction, mirrors were among the most priced item to possess and a rarity in its own class. To have a hall lined up with nearly 350 mirrors showcased the grandeur and extravagance of the Sun King.