Chateau de Versailles + Our First Dinner Soirée

Last Saturday was a busy day! During a supermarket run that morning, the sky looked bright, yet partly cloudy, and a bit windier than normal. Then, an hour later, as soon as I set foot outside to pick up my friend from the train station... Torrential downpour! My shoes and pants got soaked, and my poor H&M umbrella got snapped in half! The insane storm lasted about 5 minutes, just long enough for me to hop on a bus instead. As soon as we were walking back from the station, the sky was once again clear and sunny! ... I'm not used to this weather.

We stopped for a few to browse through an antique market, grabbed a bite to eat at a boulangerie, then headed to the palace. Here were the things I noticed this time around:







Being winter and all, the gardens are quite bare, but I did take plenty of pictures of the gardens last last summer, in this post.


That evening, Erik and I had a couple friends over for a casual dinner party, we ate tiny french pickles, bread, cheese, wine, and I cooked up a little asian stir-fry and rice. There was also much wii-U playing, it was a lot of fun with fantastic company! I am very seldom a hostess, so I was a bit nervous our guests would be bored or wouldn't like the food, but we were having such a pleasant time that we almost lost track of the time and missed the trains! It all worked out in the end. I didn't take any pictures :)



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Gardens of Versailles

The day we visited Versailles, the gardens were absolutely beautiful. It was sunny, but the sky was covered in beautiful, full, textured clouds, and there was a fresh chill in the air. The gardens seem to extend out to infinity, and I loved imagining Marie Antoinette-type ladies wandering about in these gardens, or floating in a canoe on the canals.

I made the mistake of wearing uncomfortable shoes, yet again. I don't know how many times I have to self-induce suffering upon myself before I actually take my own advice, and that advice is: WEAR COMFORTABLE SHOES THAT FIT PROPERLY!! Evidently I never knew what walking really was in Long Beach, because I've never had so many shoe/foot-related problems in my life!

Try to catch the gardens when the fountains are turned on!














We also visited Marie Antoinette's Hamlet. So adorable!

Palace de Versailles

One of the activities I accomplished with my mother was the enormous Palace/Chateau of Versailles. Think Marie Antoinette and her husband Louis the sometheenth. (Sorry guys, not so good with historical details!)

The interiors are ridiculously detailed and gaudy, it actually got rather sickening towards the end of the visit. But I'd say it's still worth a visit.

Aside from the main chateau, you can also explore the gardens, two smaller palaces, and the Queen's hamlet. We saw everything there was to see, and I have to say the smaller palaces and hamlet were much more enjoyable, simply because they were far less busy.

It's a super short train ride out to Versailles, followed by a ten minute walk to the palace. There is a lot of walking involved if you decide to explore the gardens, so wear comfortable shoes. Or you can rent a golf cart for around 35 Euro.

The gardens were gorgeous! I'll be posting pictures of the gardens in a separate post. :)


{I adore tiny decorative details!} {Such great colors and textures} {Everything is so...frilly} {I took about fifteen pictures of these details alone} {Formal bedroom of Marie Antoinette}


{If Marie A. had a helecopter, this is what it'd look like} {Hall of Mirrors} {Looking awkward in the Hall of Mirrors} {Crazy ceiling} {Another ridiculous ceiling} {LOVE doors}
{It's Marie} {Interior Courtyard} {Moi in front of the gate!}