A Day at Versailles

I will be visiting Versailles again this year and am always in awe of the splendor and beauty of both the chateau and the gardens, envoking thoughts of life there in the 17th century…..Vive le Roy!

Photo gallery Video HERE

Video spoof HERE

 

 

 

A la Franςaise – A Creative Video

Anyone who’s in the know, knows that I love anything and everything to do with Louis XIV & Versailles and am looking forward to being there again soon for a special event (stay tuned for blog post in June)!

The video (link below) was created by a group of graduate students and is done incredibly well as a tongue in cheek short animated film about life at court in 1700 – creative and amusing entertainment!

See video HERE

What do you think of it?

 

 

Versailles – A Word Search

 Find the capitalized names below in the letters box:

Robert de COTTE            Jean-Baptiste LULLY                    Jean RACINE

PLACE D’ARMES            Jules Hardouin-MANSART         RICHELIEU

GRAND CANAL             MARIE ANTOINETTE            Hubert ROBERT

JEU DE PAUME            Cardinal MAZARIN                   TRIANON

MENAGERIE             Mme de MAINTENON                COLBERT

LA FRONDE              Mme de MONTESPAN                 LOUIS

Charles LE BRUN     Mme de POMPADOUR               MOLIERE

André LE NOTRE            François d’ORBAY                  ORANGERIE

Louis LE VAU            François BOUCHER                   MARBRE

Bernard de JUSSIEU

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Louie, Louie, Oh, oh – Louis, Louis, Oh, la, la !

My favorite place to be is the Chateau de Versailles, with its opulent Baroque decor and grandeur.  So, not surprising that I recently spent some time there during my trip to Paris.  This time, however, I did a “visite-conférence” – a one-and-a-half hour guided visit, which included access to the private apartments of Louis XV and Louis XVI, the Royal Opera, and the Royal Chapel – areas  not permitted to visit with the general admission.  You can reserve the “visite-conférence” online (recommended) for the guided visit in English or in French.

My favorite “Louis” is the XIV, and with the chateau being his signature piece, his visual presence is seen everywhere.  I love the dress and music of that period (video below).  As the “Sun King,” he was golden and the gold-leaf decor equally resonates throughout the chateau. Vive le Roi –  “My Louis”!

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Fairies of the Forest: A Royal Ballet

Seeing that the Le Ballet des Fees de la Foret de Saint-Germain was being held at the Versailles Royal Opera during my recent trip to the area, I thought it might be fun to attend and watch a little classic ballet (read Baryshnikov).  I love baroque style decor, and this is the place where Queen Marie Antoinette performed – I was very excited!

The Opera was dimly lit and bigger than I imagined, although not huge, as I was escorted to my ground floor seat.

Stage curtain

The orchestra music began, with works right out of the time of Louis XIV and Molière, and I felt transported back in time.  The cast acted out a theatrical play, including Cirque de Soleil-type acrobatics and entertaining feats. What an absolutely delightful surprise – it was so well done and truly entertaining! (videos below)

Video clips:

A Royal Commute, “Sire” – “Your Majesty”

I am so excited, on cloud nine, over the moon, etc.   I absolutely love anything to do with Versailles, and actually, am traveling there soon.  The RER-C commuter trains, running from Paris to Versailles, are being re-decorated inside to ‘match’ the interior of some areas in the Chateau de Versailles (link in English).  How totally cool is this!

All aboard — Especially me!

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Photos Credit: http://www.gentside.com and http://golem13.fr/rer-c-chateau-versailles-decoration/