Versailles....now this a a palace! Thursday, June 25, 2015 continued

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After lunch back on the ship, we went with our group on one of the optional excursions to Versailles.  During the time we would be touring this most magnificent palace, the ship was going to sail towards Paris, and we would meet up at it's new destination.  Very nice!  No backtracking for us!

 We've all heard about the opulence, and grandeur of Versailles, but until you actually arrive, I don't think one can actually be prepared for just how big, and how, well, shining this palace actually is!



I was expecting it to be crowded, and it was, but it was never unbearably crowded.  Our guide went up to a group window and got our tickets for us and we we walked right in. No lines to wait in.  






So much gold!  Everywhere you turned...and we weren't even inside yet!



While the rooms were filled with people, we were always escorted to just that right place to stand and told our stories and then moved along as if we were the only people that mattered.  Having a fantastic guide makes so much difference when you're in a place so incredibly huge!


This is the Royal Chapel




And the ceiling of the Hercules Room





And we have the Venus Room


The ceiling in the Mars Room


The Apollo Room, Louis XIV's former bedchamber










Looking out the window towards the gardens




And then we made our way to perhaps the most famous area of Versailles, the Hall of Mirrors...


Yea, it was crowded....but we managed!




Another view out the window...if only the fountains would have been on!




The crystals, the glass from the mirrors, the gold...this hall was absolutely captivating!













And this is the "King's Bedroom" where Louis XIV lived until his death.  The Royal rising and going to sleep ceremonies took place in this bedroom.



During her time here, this was Marie Antoinette's Bedchambers



After our guided tour inside Versailles, we had some time to walk around outside.








Again, I so wish those fountains would have been on!  But it still was beautiful!





Our afternoon at Versailles was about done.  We really enjoyed it, and thought it was definitely an optional excursion well worth it!  It was time to head back to our ship for dinner.  Our day wasn't over yet though, we were now going to get to sail into Paris, and we still had plans for this evening!  

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