The Rain of Louis XIV (Versailles Palace)

Member Name: Ophelia

Product:	Versailles Palace
Date:	12/07/02 (503 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Opulence, gardens, paintings

Disadvantages: Crowds

As I stepped off the coach the heavens opened and rain began to cascade from the sky. I was experiencing my first Parisian rain and, far from being, the imagined romantic drifting soft dew I would have expected from the precipitation of such a fine city, the water poured down like a monsoon.

I trudged my way to the Palace's courtyard, followed at a more sedate pace by the members of the Newdigate Women's Institute. (Although not a member myself, not qualifying by some 40 years, the offer to join them in Paris at only £75 for two nights including travel had been irresistible).

Our guide disappeared into the frighteningly large queue outside the Palace to obtain our tickets. Meanwhile I, as one of the few able-bodied people present, assisted the old ladies in remaining vertical on the slippery cobbles, in a manner akin to plate spinning on long poles.

After a fifteen minute wait and bribing the officials we were allowed in a side entrance, skipping the queue, where rumour had it that the wait stretched over an hour.

I had always imagined the Palace to be one of the most opulent and impressive in Europe and was particularly looking forward to seeing the famous Hall of Mirrors. The first room did not disappoint and the ceiling was emblazoned with images of idle gods and the walls covered with huge canvases depicting members of the old royal families and of Napoleon and his battles (strangely not a single portrayal of Waterloo or Trafalgar in site).

There were very few signposts or explanatory notes and so, in retrospect a guide book might have been handy, as would taking one of the offered guided tours. However, I quickly learned to despise the guided tour as they quickly blocked each room causing a swiftly growing backlog of people jostling to get from room to room.

The second room again did not disappoint; a large bed decorated with ostrich feathers, walls with luxuriant wallpaper and large paint
ings. However, as I entered the third room I began to realise that once you have seen one room in Versailles you have seen them all. There are only so many paintings and ceilings that you can oh and ah over before you start to get an impending feeling of déjà vu.

The Palace was not as rich as I had expected it to be. I only spotted one chandelier! The tapestries and wallpapers seemed faded and uncared for and the rooms looked as though they had been stripped and the contents left out for the rag and bone man, as most of the rooms were devoid of furniture. This meant that it was difficult to obtain a true picture of what life would have been like there.

The other disappointing aspect was that it was impossible to admire the site and to absorb the ambience when you have someone's video camera stuck in your ear, an American prodding you with his camera and a child trying to squeeze through your legs. The Palace was too crowded and this stripped any remaining atmosphere from its walls.

When I finally emerged at the end of the tour I noted that the passage through the limited number of rooms open to the public had taken only 40 minutes. I then queued to use the lavatories, which took 25 minutes and cost me 0.40 Euros. The queues for the Palace and Loos were comparable as was the value for money!

The grounds, which stretch over four square kilometres, are famed for their beauty and from what I could see contained lovely topiary, small shaped hedges containing flowerbeds, fountains and the usual manor house type gardens. The prospect of queuing and paying again for the grounds in the middle of a monsoon was not attractive, so I skipped this little delight and returned to the coach and my awaiting baguette.

PALACE HISTORY

The Palace was built by Louis XIV in 1664 (to 1715) after he had become jealous of his one of his minister's houses, the beautiful chateau at Fontainebleu.

After his death the
Palace was left vacant for a while until inhabited by Louis XV, remaining the official residence of the royal family until the Revolution in 1789, after which it was left to stand and decay until it was turned into a museum in 1837, although it was not until the 20th century that full restoration works began.

VISITING INFORMATION

Cost: 7.50 Euros (plus your money for the loos)

Location: 20 km southwest of Paris

Transport: From Paris take the RER Line C train to Versailles Rive-Gauche. (Trains depart every ten minutes - doesn't sound much like British Rail!)

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