"Eiffel" in "Louvre" with Paris (Part 2): Palace of Versailles, Musee d'Orsay, Sacre Coeur, and Moulin Rouge

- Dec. 18, 2017, Sunday.

- Still having a hangover from jetlag and the fun from our first day in Paris (click here for Part 1), my family and I had to prepare for an early start for Day 2. We had to leave the hotel at the crack of dawn to ride the regional train to Versailles for none other than the Palace of Versailles (Chateau de Versailles.) To get to Versailles, which is just a bit outside Paris, one would need to ride a regional train called "RER" trains. These RER trains are intertwined with the regular metro system so sometimes these regional trains are used to go around the city as well. RER lines are alphabetically arranged; the line going to Versailles is the RER C line. To go to the palace, get off at Chateau de Versailles - Rive Gauche station; be careful, there is another station close by that almost looks identical to this but does not go to the castle at all. By the way, reservations for this kind of train are not necessary and one can simply use the Paris Pass or buy tickets through the machines in the station. Since we only had a few days in France and wouldn't be using the metro that much, we opted to buy a single-journey ticket per trip as it was more economical.

- We arrived in Versailles after a 30-minute journey from downtown Paris, and the sun was still not up. We waited around an hour until our 9am reservation. Since we were there early, we were able to take photos around the palace grounds with less "competitors" for that sweet photo spot, or photobombers who just don't care that you're taking photos (not intending, of course, to have them in your photos.)

Sun isn't up yet!!

The palace, however, was shining brighter than ever.

Gate.

Royal.

Not sure if it's a crow or a raven, or none of the above.

Golllllddddddddd.

This is where you'll enter.

The sun's just risen.

- Versailles was the capital of the Kingdom of France for around a century (from the 1600s to the 1700s,) and the palace was built by King Louis XIV. As a residential area, the palace has exhibits on a lot of things and personal items used by the people in the palace. Going around the palace would take up the whole morning. Had we decided to go around the gardens at the back, a trip to the palace would easily take up the whole day. Since we were more interested in the palace, we just took our time there. My favorite place in the palace was the Hall of Mirrors or the all-around function hall.

Never thought I'd wear a ruffle cravat in my life ever. This one's DIY by the way. I just bought a yard of lace from the craft store, folded it, and hung it around a rolled up white handkerchief.  Also, friends would as me where Belle was since I looked like someone from Beauty and the Beast. I'd tell them that I fed her to the Beast. Haha. (Sorry Belle.)

The palace looked more astounding with sunlight.

Details, details.

Inside the palace.

Was controlling myself very hard not to play the piano.

Venus.

The chapel from the ground floor.

This is a perfect example of how my best friend and I are at times.

My sister told me to do this since we both had ruffle cravats.

Plenty of sculptures and paintings.

King Louis XIV. (Look at those tights!!)

The moment I stepped into the room, I was nervously waiting for one or all of them to move 

THREE DIMENSIONAL HOW COOL IS THAT!!

The chapel from the second floor.

The biggest fireplace I've ever seen in my life. (The logs used are around 5-6 feet.)

At the main hall.

Everything was painted. EVERYTHING.

One of my favorite bed chambers. 

The Hall of Mirrors.

Wonder if they'd come alive at night, like in Beauty and the Beast.

HAMILTON.

I wonder what kind of costumes I can have made with that kind of fabriccccccc.

Golden sun, golden palace.

A closer look at my ruffle cravat as I stare blankly into space.

Dining table setup. Hello origami.

I am in love with that blue-violet-black color on the roof.

- We had lunch at McDonald's - and don't judge - because it was the only thing open that time as it was still quite early for lunch by European standards. Also, I'm curious as to what McDonald's in France is like, just as I'm curious as to how other popular fastfood chains are like in different countries. As expected, McDonald's in France as a bit of a "gourmet" twist, like a slightly leveled-up fastfood restaurant (more salads and things like that.)

- We rode the RER back to downtown Paris, and rode all the way to Musee d'Orsay at the 7th arrondissment. Again, Paris is divided into districts called "arrondissements." This museum has its own metro/RER station, conveniently called "Musee d'Orsay." This young museum, established in 1986, houses French visual art and decorative arts from the 1800s to the 1900s. I think this particular time frame is relevant since the building that houses the museum was actually a train station called "Gare d'Orsay" in the early to mid 1900s.

A rhino (statue) outside the museum.

Carrying the world.

A dissected model of an opera. 

The giant clock, a common feature of train stations. (Featuring a stranger having her photo taken by her friend. The pose was nice so I took a silhouette shot.) 

Tick tock.

The cafe is in a room at the opposite end of the earlier clock.

View from above.

The first "Starry Night" by Van Gogh. (The second one is the more famous one, now exhibited in New York's Museum of Modern Art - click here to see.)

And here is Van Gogh himself.

"Bitch please."

These creatures are called "Monsters" by the artist. (No, I'm not joking.

Still has that train station vibe.

"My hair is made of spaghetti."

I simple adore how the sculptor was able to merge several marble pieces into one masterpiece like this. (I specifically love the reddish marble.)

Why hello Statue of Liberty, you're in the wrong city.

Three continents: North America, South America, Oceania

Three more continents: Europe, Asia, Africa. (Antarctica isn't one of the statues.)

Musee d'Orsay.

- From the museum, we walked to Assemblee Nationale metro station, which is a few minutes' walk from the museum. Although Musee d'Orsay had its own metro stop, the Assemblee Nationale metro station was the one along line 12, which goes directly to our next stop - the Sacre Coeur at the 18th arrondissement. The Sacre Coeur, or "Sacred Heart," is a church on the steep hill of Montmarte, close to Abbesses metro station. The church was made in the late 1800s to honor those who died during the Franco-Prussian War (where the French were defeated); the Franco-Prussian War was a geopolitical war - with a hint of religious factors - between Prussia/Germany and France. The architecture of the church has some Byzantine (Eastern Roman) features, which was a style not frequently used during the time the church was built. The best part about visiting this church is that the church is free, so while there is a line outside, the line moves quite quickly.

It looks like....eggs.

He was so good at it that many people (including my family,) thought that he was a real statue. He kept still for SO LONG that no one really noticed him until he moved and everyone just dropped their jaws.

The two statues as King Saint Louis, and Joan of Arc.

Inside the church.

- Today, it's much easier to go up the hill, as there is a funicular that directly goes to the church from flat ground. The funicular works from 6am until around 1am, although the funicular was strangely closed the time we were supposed to go downhill. We had to take the long flight of stairs instead.

"I exist." - A random sign I found while walking at the back side of the Sacre Coeur. Wow, France really is one of the homes of philosophy. :|:|:|:|

The back side of the Sacre Coeur.

- After going downhill, we walked around the area, had dinner, and walked several blocks to the district's red-light district. It was actually quite awkward walking around streets and streets with sex shops and massage parlors (that also sold sex) and sensual shows. However, for those familiar with the city shouldn't be surprised as this arrondissement as always had some kind of sketchy reputation (hipster things, artsy matters, and sexual stuff to name a few). However, the main reason we were walking along the red-light district was to visit the Moulin Rouge. Yes, the Moulin Rouge ("Red Windmill") is real, and the movie "Moulin Rouge!" starring Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman was based on this cabaret place. Originally built in the late 1800s to not only entertain but to rake in investments from the rich people from the other districts, this eccentric building was home to some advancements in theater - from stage design to the execution of its shows. The Moulin Rouge is also generally regarded as the home of the famous "cancan" dance.

Welcome tooooo the Moulin Rouge!!!!

- The current building was built in the early 1900s after the original building got burned down. Today, the Moulin Rouge is still alive and kicking, after more than a century old. It has 2 shows per night - 9pm and 11pm - and customers may pay for a show-only ticket (the cheapest), show-and-dinner ticket, or show-and-dinner VIP ticket (the most expensive.) It is best to reserve beforehand in order to guarantee seats. The prices fluctuate by the way, so it is best to check out the Moulin Rouge website (click here to go to the Moulin Rouge website.) My family and I took the show-only ticket, since we were most interested in the show. Currently the show's name is "Feerie." Photography is not allowed inside during the show. I asked permission from the staff to get some photos of the interior before the Feerie show started; the photos I took were during the warm-up show as the guests were having dinner (for those who opted to buy the show+dinner tickets.)

Just before going inside.

The light show during dinner (no, this isn't the Feerie show yet.)

Just like in the movie.

- The show was astounding and artfully done. It's the least sketchy place around the area (apart from the restaurants and souvenir stores that is,) although this is not a show for children as the women in the show were mostly topless. However, as mentioned earlier, the show was artfully done. Going to the Moulin Rouge actually brought back so many memories. I was part of my high school theater group and we did a show on Moulin Rouge (partly based on the movie) more than a decade back. I played Harold Zidler - an homage to one of the founders of the real Moulin Rouge, Charles Zidler - who was the manager/pimp of the lead actress. While inside the Moulin Rouge, I was actually holding myself back from jumping to the stage from the balcony, and open the show just like I did in the play. So yes, going to the Moulin Rouge was hitting two birds with one stone - to watch the show, and to bring back good personal memories. It actually made me appreciate the movie and our play more.

- It rained quite hard that night, and although the best thing to do would be to hail a cab to our hotel, there were no cabs available, and it was running late. It was around 11pm, and so we decided to take the subway instead. The Blanche metro station was conveniently in front of the Moulin Rouge anyway. Although slightly soaked from the rain, our second day in Paris just made me look forward to exploring more of the city the next day, especially landmarks deemed iconic - like the pyramids of the Louvre and more!!

- Don't forget to read about my other Eurotrip adventures during the holidays here:

France: Part 1 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here!!

Italy: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here, Part 5 here, Part 6 here, Part 7 here, Part 8 here, and Part 9 here!!