My Favorite Places to VIsit...

Visiting Versailles in the summer of ‘17

I know I’ve been lucky. Call it blessed, call it fortunate, but being in the right place at the right time with a little effort and skill under my belt has allowed me many fantastic opportunities. The experiences of this kind that are dearest to me, however, are of the world travel variety. It seems that everyone these days bangs on about how much they love to travel, which is why I want to share my three favorite places abroad with you lovelies. These are in no particular order.

Gardens of Versailles 

Practically every girl loves to go on about how much they love Paris, and while I do love the city of lights for its immense and horrible history as well as it’s delightful cuisine, my favorite part of going to France happens to be a 45-minute train ride away from the city.

 As a child, I loved palaces, probably not for the same reasons as others (I loved those military horse portraits) so of course a trip to Versailles on my first trip to Paris was a must! I’m going to be honest with you: the chateau is a shitshow. You need to line up ages before it opens and even then you may still have to wait. It’s crammed full of people, some of which have zero respect for the artifacts or the setting, and it’s all in all chaotic. I was harried and ragged by the end of my first walkthrough but that was quickly remedied by a walk through the gardens. 

The gardens of Versailles are immense, even if you have attributed some thought as to how large they are it will still be surprising to view in person. It’s labyrinthine but in a way that allows you to meander and enjoy the surroundings rather than feel trapped. During business hours classical and baroque music is piped in throughout the gardens and there are periodic fountain shows. I quite believe that wandering the gardens is the closest one can achieve being awake in a dream. Vignettes of marble are arranged in certain groves that provide whimsy as well as a touch of the surreal. If you happen to visit during the summer treat yourself to one of their fireworks spectaculars or even their Grand Masquerade Ball (which I have been to once and can’t wait to go to again). 

Nara Park

Based in Japan’s first capital this place is chock full of all the sylvan charm you wouldn’t expect from Japan. The park is serene and souvenir vendors line the streets, they however don’t add a cheesy air to this placid environment and you are likely to be distracted by the droves of friendly deer roaming around. Some a little too friendly, I was luckily not traumatized by one trying to hump my leg. Snacks for the deer are available to purchase but they are pretty amicable regardless of your plans to feed them. After spending so many nights in ultra cities like Tokyo and Osaka it’s quite the welcome change of pace to enjoy the beauty of the manicured nature in Nara Park.

Nara Park is also home to Todaiji Temple. Todaiji is one of the seven great Buddhist temples that were in Nara and houses the world’s largest bronze Buddha Vairocana. I haven’t seen too many giant Buddhas but I do say that seeing this has made the temple room in the MFA seem slightly less impressive. Regardless of my impressions, the park is still a lovely way to spend the day with surprisingly furry, four-legged novelties. Just don’t plan on having a picnic unless you want some antlered guests. 

Venice

Venice is getting a lot of unfortunate attention in the news this week and this is one of the reasons why I’ve chosen to highlight it in my top 3 favorite spots to visit. I went for a weekend last year and I found that to be just enough to keep me yearning for more. Some people say it’s too touristy or tacky but I found it to be inspiring. I loved the ornate buildings and the feeling that I was never going to be able to navigate my way back to anything. It felt thrilling to think that in this modern day and age one could get so lost in a place. Everything was so ornate and so distinctly alien to me in a romantic way, it didn’t matter that I could get lost in it, what mattered is that it made me want to get lost in it. 

Venice is also the setting of one of my favorite books, Kushiel’s Chosen, book two in a sexy allohistorical story of a sacred whore who gets involved in plots of political intrigue and other wild adventures. Naturally my brain was reeling with my recollections of the fantastical exploits sprung forth from the novel. But the fantasies that really stole my attention in Venice were ones that were in the realm of possibility. Wandering around late at night I couldn’t help but think about how easy it would be to slip away into one of those dark alleyways, no one would notice. We wouldn’t get caught. So now I just hold onto the hope that I get the chance to sneak off into one of those dark, secluded alleyways with a lover before Venice washes away.

What are some of your favorite places to visit?