Tags
Art, Chantilly, Charles IX, Château de Chantilly, duc de Chartres, Gare de Chantilly-Gouvieux, Gare du Nord, Grands Lignes, Hameau, Louis-Philippe, Picardy, Raphael, whipped cream
Tuesday was yet another beautiful day! I had enjoyed a day trip to Chantilly in 2014 so I was amenable when Jared suggested it. The basics of the visit are covered in my earlier post; this is a grab bag of additional things I noticed on my second visit. Photos from both visits are in my Day Trips to Chantilly Photo Set.
Chantilly is in Picardy so you buy your ticket from the Grands Lignes machines even though the fast train from Gare du Nord takes only 23 minutes; overall it was just an hour from our apartment to the Gare de Chantilly-Gouvieux. The tourist information office wasn’t where the guidebook said, so it took us a few minutes to get oriented, but once we got our bearings we navigated without further incident. It’s a lovely half-hour walk through the forest to the Château.
This visit to the Château was enhanced by the fact that Jared looked closely at each room and often read the captions. We also both got the excellent free audio guide, which I had skipped last time. So here are several items I had slighted in 2014.

I loved the Baroque décor One of the two Singeries

Of course I recalled that there was an art gallery but I hadn’t remembered how large or good it was. Our meticulous pace enhanced my appreciation of the collection, as did my growing knowledge of art.

One of their three Raphaels Who did it best?

Two of my favorite kings:
Charles IX The young duc de Chartres, later king Louis-Philippe
And just to prove that my aesthetic sense is Catholic, here are two paintings from a temporary exhibition.
Foolish girl choosing some boy over much more reliable suitor Naked ladies at play (from the Louvre)
After lunch at the correct, although predictably overpriced, restaurant we explored the extensive gardens and topped off our afternoon with a treat.

Chantilly is whipped cream, but it’s very thick and rich — almost like butter!
One of several paradoxes we noted during the day is the fact that the Hameau (hamlet), although completely bogus when it was constructed, is now an authentic historical treasure.