Marie-Antoinette’s Hamlet
Everyone has heard of Versailles and its famous gardens, but for those who have never ventured beyond the formal French gardens, this visit will surprise and enchant you. Beginning in 1774 Marie-Antoinette, the young queen of only 19, transformed Louis XV's former botanical gardens into a picturesque landscape. A theater was concealed high in the garden where the Queen and her friends performed plays by Beaumarchais and Rousseau. Her pastoral retreat was enlarged and embellished in 1783 by the painter Hubert Robert with streams, grottos, a lake, a dairy farm and a water mill in addition to the Queen's humble thatchroofed abode and garden. Weather permitting, we will picnic on the grounds after our walk, so bring a sandwich if you want to stay.
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Credit: www.bc.edu |
Credit: www.canalacademie.com |
Instructor: Amy Kupec-Larue, a self-taught florist and gardener, shares her passion for plants as a tour guide for the City of Paris Parks Department and as a florist.
Date: |
Tuesday, June 3 |
Time: |
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. |
Code: |
LU031 |
Fee: |
25€ |
Place: |
Meet at 10:15 at the exit of the Versailles Rive Gauche train station on RER line C. We will walk through the gardens to the hamlet. Please advise if you can come by car. Wear comfortable walking shoes. |
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