meet me in versailles

Our last day in Paris, we spent the majority of our time touring the magnificent Versailles.

It was nothing like I imagined it -- the chateau itself is one of the largest in the world, and is absolutely glorious in its wealth. Its history is wrought with extravagance, French power and ultimately its fame as a symbol of absolute monarchy.
But in the midst of the leftover winter, the grounds mirrored the dreariness of the skies.

Most of the garden areas weren't in bloom yet, and the statues were covered up and the fountains weren't flowing.
We spent most of our day walking around, a kind of eerie solitude seeming to follow us around.

Dress/Belt: Primark in London, Pants: Forever 21 (shop!), Purse: Target, Scarf: Disneyland, Watch: Gifted/La Mer from Target (shop!), Hat: (similar!), Booties: Urbanog

It was such a windy day, that I was equal parts happy and annoyed with my hat.
It was the perfect solution to keeping my ears warm, but it often attempted to fly off my head in the particularly ambitious bouts of wind.
All in all, I really like it and will try and continue to break my "I'm not a hat person" mantra.

As you can see, Versailles is enormous.
It was overwhelming walking around the property, unsure if we'd ever reach the outer limits.
I kind of had the feeling of walking around an abandoned property, or perhaps a haunted mansion where the inhabitants are long gone, but a mysterious spirit remains.
Even so, the property is littered with treasures, like little restaurants and secret gardens and other smaller chateaus, including the summer home of Marie Antoinette.
I became enchanted with her, such a tragic and strange historical figure. I wished I could have visited her in her prime, before all the chaos and obviously...the beheading.

It was quite an amazing experience, even though we were wishing for Spring the entire time!