Day 10 - September 18; Two Chateaux; 11,250 Steps

Another early rising, and I took the Metro (during rush hour, yet) to the Tuileries Gardens. It was a short walk to the Paris City Vision office at Place des Pyramides with its gilded statue of Joan of Arc. Of course, I was there far too early, but soon boarded the bus, heading to the Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte.

The bus was huge, very comfortable, and full.  I was one of 12 people who had signed up for the guided tour.  It was nearly an hour before we arrived at the Chateau, which is literally out in the middle of nowhere. It was blue-sky-sunny when we left Paris, but as we drove deeper into the countryside, it got very foggy.  We couldn't see much, but drove through cultivated fields.  They grow sugar beets, canola, and wheat in the area.

Vaux-le-Vicomte was built in the mid-1600's by Nicolas Fouquet, who was finance minister and tax collector for Louis XIV.  Upon completion, he through a lavish party, and invited Louis.  The chateau was grander and more elegant than anything Louis owned, so he got miffed and returned to Fountainebleau.  I think Louis must have started to think about how his finance minister and tax collector was wealthy enough to build something so grand, so a couple of weeks later he has Fouquet arrested.  So, the poor guy never really got to live in the chateau, but Louis, not to be outdone, took possession of all of the furnishings at Vicomte and built Versailles.  The chateau fell into decay until the late nineteenth century when the ancestor of the current owners bought it at auction.  It was restored and opened to the public in 1968.  It is the largest privately owned chateau in France.

The chateau is fully furnished, but most items are either replicas of original furnishings or antiques purchased in the 19th century.  There are also extensive gardens with water features, including a moat - the building on the site when Fouquet bought it was a fortress.  Our tour included rooms on two floors plus the kitchens and our guide provided a great deal of information, both about the furnishings and the history of the property.  It was all very impressive.

At the end of the tour we had some free time, and had lunch at the cafeteria located on the property, as well as a visit to the boutique.

I slept through the entire 45 minute drive to Fountainebleau.  By contrast, while Vaux-le-Vicomte is in the middle of nowhere, Fountainebleau is in the middle of the small town by the same name.  The chateau was built by Francois I, the renaissance king of France.  His contemporary was Henry VIII.  It was added onto over the years by other kings, including Henri I and Henri IV.  It was the favorite chateau of many of France's kings, and especially Napoleon I.  Our tour included the private apartments of Napoleon.  The property includes extensive gardens as well as the Forest of Fountainebleau, which is the largest forest in France.

These are definitely the chateaux you want to visit if you want to get away from the crowds.  It has been years since I visited Versailles (other than the town and King's vegetable garden), but I do know it is very crowded.  What the three chateaux have in common, other than their beauty, are their paving stones -- big and uneven -- very difficult to walk on.

It took a little over an hour to get back to Paris due to heavy rush-hour traffic, but it seemed a lot longer. I rode the crowded Metro back and was offered a seat by at least 5 different people, but I politely declined since I didn't have many stops before getting off.

It was a nice day -- good weather, though it did rain on the drive back to Paris.  I'm glad I did the guided tour, but otherwise have little interest in long bus tours.

Well, I want to get my day started, so will post pictures later.