Each time we come to Paris there is one outing that must be made: A visit to check on "my" tree at Versailles. Yesterday, we took advantage of the crisp, sunny weather and took the RER to Versailles Rive Gauche.
The RER does not have the speed of the trains or the métros and, with a stop at every station along the way, the trip took us 40 minutes. From there we joined what seemed like thousands of eager tourists from all over the world on a 10 minute walk to the Chateau.
We did not plan to visit the Chateau itself so we went directly through to the gardens. Although most of the statues are covered for the winter and the flower beds are empty, the area near the Chateau was full of people enjoying the beautiful vistas, strolling along the wide paths, and, it goes without saying, taking pictures.
Before making the hike to visit my tree, we had lunch at La Flottille, a lovely little restaurant-brasserie and salon de thé near the Grand Canal. Sitting at a table by the windows surrounded by the 1900 style decor, we indulged in a lazy 2 hour lunch, gazing out at the gorgeous day and watching people, both inside and outside the restaurant. Our waitress, a beautiful, young woman from China, has been in France 4 years. Her waitressing skills were perfect, she handled a couple of dozen tables with apparent ease and her French was beautiful. It turns out that she learned French only after moving here. I'm sure she has a very interesting story to tell, but she was busy and had no time to chat.
Lunch behind us, it was time to strike out for the far reaches of the Versailles grounds beyond the Grand and Petit Trianons to the Allée de la Reine, part of a large area planted with young trees to replace those destroyed in violent storms in late 1999. My tree is one of those replacements, a gift from Charles for my 60th birthday.
When last seen in April, my tree was still the tallest in its row but devoid of new leaves. Clearly, it does not put out its leaves at the first hint of warmth. I was a little worried that the tree was not healthy, but this visit we found it covered with dead leaves, evidence that it had had a good summer. And it continues to be the tallest in its row.
Now for the crime part of the story.
My tree is in an area closed to the public. Each time we visit we try to find a way past the fences and the do-not-enter signs, usually without success. This time, the gate was not locked. We did what any of us would do if we were making a biennial visit to our tree. In we went. I rushed over to stand by the tree, trying not to sink into the muddy turf while Charles set up the shot. Just as I turned for the picture, I saw a woman and dog approaching with determined strides from behind Charles. Too far away to warn him, I tried to convey my thoughts with gestures: "Hurry, hurry, hurry. Get the picture - quick." Unfortunately, setting up a shot with a heavy, telephoto lens can take a bit of time. The woman and dog got closer. Charles took the picture just as the woman reached him and politely told him that we were in an area forbidden to the public and would have to leave.
Undaunted, Charles whipped out our map showing the tree and identifying it as mine and told her the whole story. We all walked back through the gate together at which point she said: "Now that I know you and know how much you love Versailles, you may go back in and take more pictures if you wish."
We were very pleased, but even more pleased when she agreed to join us and take our picture. You can see the result above.
It turns out that the woman, Christelle, works for the Ministry of Culture and lives, with her husband we think, on the grounds in a house just behind the glacier (ice house) built during the
reign of Louis XV. She regularly walks through the grounds keeping an eye on things and came upon us by chance. We strolled together and chatted for a while and were delighted when Christelle invited us to see the glacier, which is currently closed to the public. She explained how the ice was brought from the mountains and stored in a deep, deep hole in the ground under the house for use by the royal entourage. As we headed back towards the Chateau and the train station, she pointed out the house in which the botanist, A.L Jussieu, lived, also during the reign of Louis XV. Christelle assured us that now that she knows us, she will not worry if she finds us visiting our tree in future. Here is a picture of our new friend with her equally friendly dog, Pattie.
