One of the most exciting days while abroad included time spent wandering the Palace of Versailles. As a first-time traveler to Europe, this was high on my list of must-dos, and it surely did not disappoint. After overcoming some minor bumps in the road there (i.e. missing our train switch), we arrived at the Palace and its first impression was nothing short of extraordinary. At first glance, one sees the massive front courtyard, gold detailing, and marble steps. However, once inside, you become enthralled by the attention to detail. The Palace itself was breathtaking, and extremely cool to see. However, in my opinion, the gardens were much cooler.
Spanning as far as the eye can see, Versailles retains a large garden equipped with large lakes and shrubbery. As I began my journey into the gardens, I started to hear music and wondered what it could possibly be… there were speakers hidden within the trees playing orchestral music, making the experience that much more remarkable. My friend and I were able to rent a rowboat and spent about an hour trying to maneuver the rowboat on the pond. After exhausting our efforts at this, we decided to walk the gardens and visit the Trianon estate. What I found to be the most remarkable about the entire experience was the lack of people wandering the gardens. After waiting in long lines and being smushed like sardines within the palace, we found to have the Trianon and garden almost entirely to ourselves. We ventured over 10 miles in the garden that day and took in all that it had to offer. It was truly one of the best days I had experienced so far in Europe.