Versailles

First week of classes is over, so today was a sort of day off with a visit to Versailles.

Firstly, once you actually get outside of Paris proper and get to see French suburbs (today, via the RER/extended metro), you realize that all of us live in the center of Paris. And it is very, very nice.

As for Versailles -- what can I say, it must be very cool to live in a palace! How do the French keep all the gold leaf/plating/shiny-ness on the palace gates and clock so bright and shiny, even in the winter weather??

"A toutes les gloires de la France" -- one of the buildings at the main entrance.

The main gate.

EDUCO Girls.

View from the main gate out to the rest of the city.

One of the reliefs inside the palace (in one of the rooms in which the King received visitors, I think).

La Chapelle Royale

Napeleon's Coronation. Interesting details:

--The Pope is sitting down behind Napoleon. In actuality, he didn't approve of the proceedings entirely, so he was sitting with his arms and feet crossed. That's how the painter presented it at first. Napoleon was displeased and the Pope was repainted in a more agreeable position.

--Secondly, there is a woman above Napoleon's wife, Josephine - that is Napoleon's mother. She never came to the coronation (one of the reasons being that she didn't like Josephine). She was added in to make the coronation appear all proper.

--There was a second copy of this painting, in which the lady on the left in a pink dress has a white dress. If I remember correctly, the painter loved her...

--The painter included himself somewhere in the balcony above Napoleon's mother.

In the Hall of Mirrors.

In the Hall of Mirrors.

Beside the Grand Trianon.

Duke classmate Katie beside the Grand Trianon.

Lovely day overall, even though we got cold at the end. Versailles is huge! Some other places to visit within Versailles: the King's private rooms, the kitchens (separate building; they prepared up to 19 different foods for a meal...in which the royal family ate and everyone else watched...), the children's palace (they spent their time there until they were deemed old enough to join the adults).