And let me also apologize for my pathetic, wobbly, rushed video clips. If I had my brain turned on I would have slowed down and taken my time to more adequately document this amazing voyage with my family in Europe! Alas, this is what you're stuck with (and did I really pronounce "Chartres" as "Chart"? You'd think I'd never spoke a word of French. Geesh.):
First stop was Chartres - we got there so early that there were no tourists, we found a great parking place, and the church doors had just opened. Chartres is THE gothic cathedral studied in all art history classes. Okay, all those who took Julie Hewlett's humanities class, see if you can spot the following items:
*flying buttresses
*ribbed vaulting
*gothic arches, lancet windows
*nave, transept, apse, chapel
*clerestory, triforium
*rose window (behind the scaffolding)
Not only was the cathedral transcendent, but the village of Chartres surrounding it is charming, clean, and aesthetically pleasing. Major eye candy - another place I could have spent a happy holiday. Too bad my camera was dead!But welcome to Versailles!
The little French cd we've been listening to talks about going to Versailles, so the kids had heard of the golden balcony, statue of Louis XIV, Hall of Mirrors and King's Bedroom well before we actually got there. Sophie had her checklist in her brain of these four things and as we saw each one she ticked it off. The lines were long and by the time we got to the Hall of Mirrors and Marie Antoinette's room, we could barely find room to stand. Which was sad, because the kids were so interested in seeing the beds and furniture. We just hoisted them on our shoulders and moved along in the herd! Sophie's cool bed fetish continues, and this one is, of course, her favorite:
Just fyi, Versailles has a mere 2,300 rooms and 67 staircases.
We were looking forwards to a row on the Grand Canal and smelling flowers at Marie Antoinette's hamlet out in the corner of the grounds... until we looked outside and saw that it was pouring rain! Argh! We sat down in a covered archway, had a picnic with the bread, cheese and apples I'd brought with us, and waited for it to stop. Which it didn't. So Gary ran to the car and brought back our umbrellas; we had already purchased tickets for the Hamlet, and I wasn't about to end our Versailles experience after a 45-minute walk through slammed rooms. I wanted it all!
So we plowed through it! Bought our fare on the little train that goes (almost) out to the Hamlet, dodged the advances of a friendly (or should I say, hungry) swan by the Petit Trianon, walked the rest of the way, then savored in the atmosphere of this lovely place:The kid did pretty well, all things considering. We were all soaking wet, muddy, and cold, but while we were at the Hamlet they were as entranced as I was and we went around each building, discussing its possibilities and picking out the ones we'd want to inhabit (I liked the Mill, Sophie, liked the one with the light house, and Maggie wanted the working cottage with the chicken coop.) Gary's foot was hurting so he waited for us at the biggest house. And shot the video. Mission accomplished.
After a soggy, rather muddy trip back to the Palace, skipping the train (it really isn't that far) in favor of walking up through the gardens and seeking a certain outdoor amphitheater that Gary had read about in his studies. Many of the gardens were closed off, and it was far too blustery to rent a boat for the Grand Canal. My overall opinion of Versailles is that it is very impressive, but with better management, it could be a world-class attraction. They need to open more of the castle (we only saw about 15 rooms, really) to help with crowd control, and provide better toilet facilities and eating options. And the buildings of the Hameau really could and should be opened to the public, even if there's no furniture inside. It's just a little disheartening to make the trek out there and not be able to enter into the charming little cottages. I looked through windows, and most are bare and cobwebby. Imagine if they were brought to life by somebody with the right taste!
For the number of people we saw there and for the amount we paid to get in, there should be more. But, the kids had a great time, so we crossed it off the list, changed out of our wet clothes in the car, and drove to
PARIS!
The view of Paris as you come out of the tunnel connecting Versailles to Paris is stunning - there's the Eiffel tower, boom, right in front of you! We were so excited! Only our GPS took us right through the heart of downtown to get to our hotel by the Gare de l'Est. Really? There was no simpler way? Oh well, at least we got to see a lot on the way in! Our hotel, Amiot, was in a shady area, but we were pleased with our family room (four twin beds pushed together to make two big beds, and an en suite bathroom complete with bidet. And a view from our 7th story room to both Sacre Coeur and the Eiffel Tower - sweet!) We only were in the room long enough to drop the bags though and hit the pavement, or, in this case, the metro, to see the City of Lights!First stop: Pizza Hut by Les Halles. I know, you're thinking, really? But it makes the whole family very happy, let us sit down for a bit, and was a great springboard for the rest of the evening. Rule #1 when traveling with kids: make sure they're as well rested and fed as possible! And always use the free toilets when available! Plus, the kids meals came with huge free desserts - we got two Floating Islands (I had purchased one of these, a sort of marshmellowy cake floating on a sea of sweetened creme anglaise - yum! - at one of our gas station dinner stops and the kids ate it up before I could) and one Chocolate Mousse. Mmmm.
The goal of the evening was to get to the Seine River boat cruises by Pont Neuf - it was the perfect way to introduce the kids to Paris. They LOVED being on a boat and seeing all the bridges, and having the tour guide commentary was helpful to everyone. Our pictures didn't turn out so well, but here are a few:
I told Sophie she could film a bit when we got to Notre Dame. Of course Maggie wanted in on the action as well... life with kids.After the cruise we took our tired yayhoos home on the metro for some sleep - they were beat! But happy to be in Paris!
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