Paris – Versailles

“Excuse me, do you speak English?”
“Only when I'm drunk.
But I'm French so I'm always drunk.
How can I help you?”

- introduction to the guy at the front desk at Versailles.

Last night mom told me to not bother setting the alarm as she wanted to sleep in a bit and she figured she'd likely wake up before 8:00 a.m. I woke up around 7:30 a.m. and went back to sleep, repeating this process with my sleep getting lighter and lighter until mom touched my shoulder at 10:40 a.m. and said, “Honey, time to wake up! What time is it?” I told her the time and she gasped.

We reached the Palace of Versailles around 2:00 p.m. and spent the next six and a half hours exploring the palace, grounds, and Marie Antoinette's smaller palaces and grounds. It is an absolutely incredible place with a size and richness that is quite overwhelming.

The front gates at Versailles.

Detail of marble in fireplace surround.

Fireplace mantle.

Many walls were covered in textured fabric.

View of a garden from a palace window.

Hall of Mirrors.

Mom and I geared up with backpacks, cameras, and self-guided audio tour.

A bedroom at Versailles.

A small study - close-up of paneling is below.

An amazing location for an art class!

Marie Antoinette's private theatre.

Marie Antoinette's large palace (we arrived too late to gain access to the interior).

Me and a statue in Marie Antoinette's garden - this pic is for my little brother, Jonathan.

Water fountain at Versailles.
None of the fountains were turned on during our visit.

View of the back lawn at Versailles.
David, you need to come over and teach their gardeners how to mow lawns in a proper straight line.

Mom climbing what is supposed to be the "100 steps" staircase, but she counted as she walked and there were over 100 steps.

The view of the back of the palace from the top of the "100 steps".

The view of the gardens from the expansive back terrace at the palace.
The photo below is the view in the opposite direction.

The view of the palace from the back terrace.

Our feet were in absolute agony by the end of the day, but it was fabulous to have a chance to see such an amazing palace. We enjoyed dinner at another small crepe shop, this time trying both a savory crepe for dinner (mine had smoked salmon, spinach, and cheese) and a sweet crepe for dessert – mine had pears, cream, and chocolate and mom's had honey, walnuts, and bananas.

Our savory crepes.

Outside a street-side cafe.

To finish up, here are two photos of me and mom in the gardens at Versailles. For the first photo, Mom asked me how I wanted her to pose for the shot and I told her, "Just look tired," as I proceeded to flop onto the bench to give a realistic portrayal of how tired I felt after walking around Versailles for over six hours.

As you can see, she couldn't stop laughing long enough to pose.

Mom and me.

Click here for more photos of Versailles.