Versailles! The last time we were here was very stressful, so it was nice to know the ropes this time and work to make it a more enjoyable day. We caught the train from Paris bright and early and were there when the palace opened.
A peek into the royal chapel
I think that after about ten minutes at Versailles it's very easy to understand why the French Revolution happened.
The ceilings are usually my favorites in places like this. Just incredible.
Requisite photo of the painting of Louis XIV
The Hall of Mirrors really is incredible, and it was nice to see it without lots and lots of people.
Honestly I think this is a place that speaks for itself, not a lot to add with photo captions!
I love the ostrich feathers at the corners.
And the requisite photo of the famous Marie Antoinette painting.
Jules contemplating the last of the State Rooms before we headed out to the gardens.
This time I made sure to come on a Saturday so that the fountains would ALL be on!
The gardens here are so satisfying to my order-loving brain.
We walked through the upper gardens and then went down to catch our lunch reservation at La Flotille on the canal. It's amazing how exquisite a simple salad and sandwich can be when the ingredients are all so carefully chosen and absolutely at their peak.
Then we rented bikes (learning from last time!!) and pedaled over towards the Trianon.
I love this breezeway.
And the marble inlays on the floor.
Jules and I were giggling over how much this looked like the Lorax.
More very orderly flowers on the way to the Petit Trianon.
For some reason I really loved this sign about Admirable Trees.
I really enjoyed seeing the inside of the Petit Trianon (we didn't have time on our last visit) but apparently I liked the flowers more.
Then over to the Queen's Hamlet, aka Peasant Disneyland.
After the stifling opulence of Versailles, I can totally understand Marie Antoinette's desire to escape court life and just pretend to be a shepherdess.
Very very tranquil and adorable.
Then back on our bikes--we biked around a LOT and I really loved this part of the day. We looped the canal a few times and did some biking through teeny little (slightly scary) woods trails; it was a perfect spring morning.
Then we took the train back to Paris in time for our dinner reservation prior to our Eiffel Tower reservations.
I wasn't blown away by our dinner (thanks a lot Michelin guide) but I LOVED these pastries we picked up later so much that we went back to the same boulangerie the next day.
Also kinda hate to admit it but Costco's palmiers are better.
This was a very long day, but Juliet's request was seeing the Tower at night, and it was beautiful so I'm glad we opted for the later time!
Selfies from the top during the sparkle--can you tell it was VERY windy?!
If I recall correctly, we were there long enough to catch the sparkle from both on the tower and below it, which was really cool.
Then we walked back from the Tower to our Airbnb in the 1st, which was a pretty long walk but it was a beautiful beautiful night and we had our pastries! A pretty darn perfect day.
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