Day 6: Versailles

After visiting Marie Antoinette’s village I wandered back towards Versailles to catch one more view of the grounds before it closed for the day. People were hanging out on the steps, running through the gardens and lounging in front of the massive reflecting pools. It was amazing to see a place, that was once reserved for only the very rich, opened up to the general public like a massive park.

After leaving the palace I wandered into the actual town of Versailles, stopping at some local boutiques and antique shops. I found one particular Antique shop that I really loved, and I ended up buying a beautiful old Victorian sterling charm that is quite odd and magical (but that is a story for another day). The rest of the evening I spent wandering through the tiny streets, walking past endless restaurants and tiny fruit stands, and eventually walked to their local cathedral in the town square. From there I wandered back to the station and caught a train back to reality.

Day 6: Versailles

After Le Petit Trainon I wandered over to Hameau de la Reine, Marie Anotinette’s personalized peasant village that she had built for her amusement. It was truly beautiful, but also made me feel oddly like I was in Disneyland. How strange.

Day 6: Versailles

From Le Grand Trianon I walked through the grounds to Le Petit Trianon, the smaller version of their summer palace. This was one of Marie Antoinette’s favorite places to stay on the grounds. Her room has the only actual furniture that was originally in the house while she was there. Her complete bedroom set was sold during the revolution, traveled the world, and has ended up back in Le Petit Trainon, where it began.

Day 6: Versailles

After visiting the main palace I took a twenty minute walk through the ground to Le Grand Trianon, the royal’s summer palace. A smaller version of Versailles, it has just as many elaborate gardens and long, glorious halls of mirrors and chandeliers.

Day 6: Versailles:

After walking through the palace I went out for a walk through the gardens. The sheer scale of the manicured land that they owned was beyond comprehension. There are endless shrub mazes, topiary, marble statues and fountains wherever you turn.

Day 6: Versailles

One of the most notable moments was seeing Marie Antoinette’s bedroom and the hidden door in the wall that she used to escape into the King’s bed chamber when the rioting mob burst into Versailles to capture the royal family.

Day 6: Versailles

My favorite and most anticipated room in Versailles. I cried when I came into this room. Called “The Hall of Mirrors”, it’s one of the best known rooms in Versailles. Full of endless mirrors and chandeliers, this room is beyond belief. 

Oh, and it never served any sort of function, it was just their hallway between “The War Room” and “The Peace Room.”

Day 6: Versailles

More stunning rooms, more elaborate walls, more gilded objects.

Day 6: Versailles

Images from the many, many elaborate and extravagant rooms in the palace, with views out to some of their small manicured gardens.

Day 6: Versailles

This was the start of my tour through Versailles, in an incredibly crowded walk through the main, upper level of the palace