Sunday, January 5, 2020

The Gardens of Versailles Palace


Hello everyone and welcome to 2020, the beginning of the new decade ahead. 
May it be a wonderful year (and decade) for us all.
It is always exciting to start a new year full of promise and our hopes and dreams.

I hope to make progress on some of my own modest goals toward living a better life.  I usually set a few goals at the beginning of each year.  It gives me a sense of satisfaction when I achieve them and when I see that I am using my time well and learning a few new things along the way.

 However big or small, may you also be able to make progress on your goals.  
Whether you set yearly goals or not, it's likely that you have some ideas about things you would like to do or see happen in the coming year.

 I will be taking a few weeks in this month to really consider how I want to approach the year and to set a few goals.
In the meantime I am in reflection and preparation mode. I spent a lot of time looking at planners and finally purchased one which should be arriving any day now.


 With the first post of the decade I am resuming my travel posts for the travel I commenced almost one year ago..
I didn't blog as much in 2019 as I normally do, thus I didn't post about as many things as I was hoping to post.

This first post is about the gardens of Versailles in Versailles, France.
It is part of a travel series on my trip to Paris and Versailles in France and to Nairobi in Kenya, East Africa in January and February 2019.
(Please click on each photo to enlarge).



In 1662, Louis 14th, entrusted a man named André Le Nôtre to create and renovate the gardens of Versailles. The work on the gardens started at the same time as the work on the palace and lasted about 40 years. Le Nôtre collaborated with a few other men on different aspects of the project and I understand the King himself reviewed each project (and presumably approved) as he was keen on the details of the gardens.


Having walked some of the gardens and taken the on site train to other parts of the garden, it is clear to see just how massive the gardens are and to appreciate what a monumental task it was to create and renovate such splendid gardens. Soil had to be moved to create level places, parterres like the one above had to be created, fountains and canals had to be dug and built and trees brought in from various regions in France. The work occupied thousands of men, sometimes even entire regiments took part in the building of the gardens.

Once you step outside you have a pretty good idea of the massive grounds you are about to cover. I decided I could not walk that far as I was struggling even with my walking poles. Fortunately I found a small train that would transport me to the next major part of the grounds, Le Petit Trianon.

The train is a hop on and off train and costs 8 Euros. The train does not cover the entire gardens. Make sure you know where it goes before you use it as many tourists get upset when they discover the limitations. For me, the train was a God send and I thought it was worth the cost to save my knees especially as I had no idea how far I might have to walk. Besides I was already tired from the hours spent walking inside the palace.

The train runs approximately every 20 minutes and you catch it to the left or west of the center of the Palace.  You will see a small ticket booth and queue to help you know where it is. Here is a link to all the information in English about the train.



Below is a map of the Gardens of Versailles.  If you locate the center of the palace and let your eye wander straight down the middle you will see the majority of what I've been showing in this post and my last travel post here.




I was very much in awe of the expansiveness of the palace and the grounds on which it sits. 
The statuary and fountains are magnificent. 
It was also wonderful to see the bird life enjoying the fountains.





 These people are walking in the direction of Le Petit Trianon.
 Le Petit Trianon is where Marie Antoinette spent much of her time.
My next post will show you a bit of what I saw there.


Thank you for your visit.
I wish you an excellent week ahead.


18 comments:

eileeninmd said...

Hello, what a lovely place to visit. The gardens and sculptures are just beautiful. I like the quote dream new dreams. Traveling more is my goal, since retiring I have always wanted to visit new places. I do not think I will get to France, so I really enjoyed your photos and visit. I wish you all the best in 2020, a very happy, healthy New Year. Happy Monday, wishing you a great day and a happy new week!

Pamela M. Steiner said...

How wonderful to have been there and to see all of that beauty up close! Thank you for sharing it with us, as I am sure I will never be able to go there in person, so it is wonderful to have a glimpse of such wonders!! I am still thinking about goals for 2020. A lot depends on financial considerations. Since we just moved, money is tight. But we would love to go to Maine in October to visit our only grandson for his 21st birthday. I do hope we can do that, so we are saving up for it now! Your post has helped me to realize I need to start looking ahead as we will need to stay in a motel and our son and his wife from here are hoping to go as well, so we have some coordinating to do. Guess we'd better start planning! Thank you! have a blessed and happy day/week!

Red said...

I always wonder about the wealth at that time where they could afford massive projects I guess the remainder if the people had nothing.

Rhodesia said...

Fabulous photos, we walked the garden, thankfuly it was in the days that Nigel could still walk fairly well, it would not happen today. It is a beautiful place, thanks for the memories. I hope that 2020 wil be full of good things for you. Diane

Joyful said...

Hi Eileen, I'm so glad you are enjoying the tour of the Palace and it's gardens. It truly is spectacular. I wish you a very Happy 2020 too for you and your family.

Joyful said...

Hi Pamela, it was a real treat and delight to see all the wonders of the Palace and Gardens. I'm glad you are enjoying the photos especially if you don't think you will get there in person. If you are going on a trip in October, thinking about it now and setting aside a bit of funds each month until you travel will really help with the stress levels and the enjoyment of your trip. All the best as you plan and a blessed week to you.

Joyful said...

I'm sure times were not easy for the vast majority of people in those days.

Joyful said...

It's great that you and Nigel were both able to walk the gardens when you visited Diane. It is such a beautiful place. I do hope 2020 will be good to you and Nigel also. Thank you for the well wishes.

annie said...

So wonderful that you were there! Lovely photos , so happy to have seen them.

Joyful said...

Thank you Annie. Glad you enjoyed! Happy New Year 2020.

Mari said...

Wow! It's beautiful! I can't even imagine the size of it. I really like the statues.

Joyful said...

Yes Mari, very beautiful and huge, lol.

Jeanie said...

Penny, this is so impressive. It really does make me think that if I ever return to Paris, I should take a day to discover Versailles. I'm sure my jaw would hang wide open!

Joyful said...

Hi Jeanie, Happy New Year 2020! If you ever do get back to Paris I encourage you to go to Versailles for a day. You will love it.

R's Rue said...

Beautiful.

Lowcarb team member said...

Such an interesting place to visit, I did enjoy seeing your photographs.
My good wishes for 2020.

All the best Jan

Jan said...

Happy New Year Penny and thank you for your lovely post. I visited here too once and enjoyed looking at your views and account of your visit. It brought back memories. I am so sorry I have been absent in 2019 from blogland and hope to visit more regularly in 2020. Much love. Jan

jabbott said...

Beautiful place indeed 💕

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