Travelled : 169 kilometres from Troyes to Milly-la-Foret, Paris Region.
Visited : Fontainebleau Chateau (โฌ26 double with audio guide).
Stayed : Municipal aire Milly-la-Foret, free with service. N48.39808 E2.48024 (CCT) one night.
Pam has had second thoughts on something she brought for a friend’s new baby and wants to exchange it, so we depart Troyes via the McArthur Complex (N48.32903 E4.10384). They have excellent free wifi that extends into the carpark, so I download the Australian while Pam does her thing. Finally where off, continuing north-west along the D619 which closely follows the River Seine…
We stop for a late morning coffee by the canal at Romilly-s-Seine. The Haute-Seine Canal runs parallel with the river and this unusual iron lift-bridge and walk-way make an interesting back drop for our coffee-stop.
Another view of the canal with a small cemetery in the background.
Back on the road, the D411 is an easy drive. There’s little traffic and the road is unusually straight, we sit on 90 kph and just roll across the country-side.
France
It would be an untruth to say we planned our visit to Fontainebleau Chateau today but I had set the GPS for a small car-park near the back-gate and we arrived in good time to visit the hunting lodge of the Kings and Emperors of France.
Looking across the ‘carp pond’, one of the man-made lakes that surround Fontainebleau Chateau.
Originally a hunting lodge, Francis I started the expansion of the lodge into a Chateau in 1528.
What makes Fontainebleau Chateau unique is the furniture and fittings are original. According to the blurb Fontainebleau was the only royal residence not damaged by looting following the French Revolution in 1789. Whilst some furniture was removed by Napoleon its was only as part of the renewal and upgrading of the Chateau.
Cannot remember the name of this gallery, but I’ll update it when I get some Google time.
Diane’s Library. Named after the Goddess Diane whose legend is pictorially described on the ceiling and Napoleon’s 16,000 volume library adorning the walls.
The Throne Room (obvious even to Australians). So while much of the structural work was built by Henry IV and Louis XV (Kings) the current decoration are down to Napoleon I (Emperor) and his descendants.
The Trinity Chapel at Fontainebleau. Pam and I both noted the decorations must be the work of Martin Freminet, given the similarity to his work at the Palace of Versailles.
The comparison with the Palace at Versailles is something you need to judge for yourself. For us, some aspects of the gardens and fountains at Versailles may be superior. However the interior furnishings and fittings of Fontainebleau Chateau are grander and in better condition than Versailles. It may also be the crowds at Versailles detract from the experience somewhat and we had an easy walk through Fontainebleau.
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