Ugly Versailles
Channel: slobomotion
Date: 2012-02-05

I worked in Versailles years ago on a long term assignment of some sort -- details forgotten -- and hated the city.  It's expensive and if you think they treat tourists badly in Paris, just wait til you come here!  Going to get lunch in a café or something was a lot of bad service and indifferent quality at a high price.

The RER train is far from the château, also, and you might need a taxi.  There is an ordinary city bus from Paris, I think around Sevres or Porte de Saint-Cloud which is okay.  That takes you right to the front of the château and the ride takes less than an hour.  I am sorry I don't recall its number but it's not hard to look up, and if you need a private guide, I can take you around on a low budget besides my basic fees.  It is a joy to see people have extra cash to take back home or buy something really worthwhile, such as a fine meal or some substantial object -- I can arrange the shipping, everything.  So going on budget is a great idea here.  But even buying a transit ticket, the person or machine will generally quote you the highest price.  I just hate that!

Please bear in mind, if you must see Versailles, you'd really need to devote several days to that, for both the inside, all the buildings, and the parks.  The park was closed today due to snow.  The first Sunday of every month, a lot of cultural attractions are free in France, which is why we were here, despite the very cold weather.  A plus was that traffic was extremely light, but we skidded out a couple of times.  I still favor the Carnavalet Museum in Paris (métro Saint-Paul on the 1 line) for cool interiors of a variety of châteaux and lots of other interesting stuff.  It's always free and is in two old mansions.  Le Marais is a charming area right in central Paris by the River Seine.  The Carnavalet has something for everyone and is way more kid friendly.  

Versailles is not accessible for the disabled, at least not for me, and is not a kid-friendly place.  The bathrooms did not have toilet paper.  I do understand that the color scheme here was a conscious choice, but I found it ugly.  Gaudy statues, garish furnishings, yecch!  Versailles is also pretty far from Paris.  If you must come here, wear sturdy shoes -- the charming cobblestones and slippery staircases do not make for firm footing.  There's a tearoom, which smelled dreadful, and a gift shop with stuff in it I wouldn't buy on a dare.  Really, this is the ugliest thing in France!  When the French get it wrong, they really get it wrong.  There was also a terrible sadness to this place, and bewildered tourists crashing into me did not add to the experience, nor did my spouse, who threatened to abandon me when I resented being scanned entering here.  There are a lot of famous paintings in this place which it was fun to see in reality, but really, you can skip it and just look at reproductions, sez I!

copyright 2012 Lisa B. Falour, B.S., M.B.A. all rights reserved LISA, INC. (EURL) cutecatfaith.com

I had permission to make this clip there, and no one was respecting the "no flash" rule with their cameras, adding to the annoyances from the madding crowd.  This place must be just as horrendous during the hot Summer months here.  If not more so.