Sailing to Paris by way of Versailles

Travelling the Seine with CroisiEurope and Transat Discoveries, the cruise visited Versailles on the fourth morning, going from lock to lock while approaching Paris.

We sailed all night from Rouen and when we woke in the morning, the Botticelli was moored at Mantes-la-Jolie. Although this small town in Yvelines has a beautiful college, I did not have time to discover it as I was taking part in an excursion to Versailles. We had barely eaten breakfast and we had to get on the bus that took us to the castle of Louis XIV, the 'Sun King.' This was my third visit and instead of the suite of rooms and chandeliers in the hall of mirrors, I was more interested this time in British artist Anish Kapoor's installations scattered in the gardens of the royal domain. The idea was, of course, to integrate contemporary art and ancient art. The intended effect was rather successful in the case of this exhibition, which will be on display until November.

Anyone with delicate sensibilities would be advised to avoid the monumental installation called 'Dirty Corner.' It faces the Apollo fountain at the entrance in the east-west axis of the gardens. It takes the form of a large trunk of rusted steel, 60 metres long, with such obvious sexual connotations that the European media have dubbed it "the queen's vagina." It was vandalized in mid-June, but the damage (some yellow paint) was quickly cleaned.

There were already 221 statues in the park, not including the curved mirrors and the "Vortex" (which is a swirling pool of water symbolizing the primeval chaos) which seem to work in tandem with the location’s history.

The arrival in Paris

We joined the ship in Poissy. We sailed immediately and began to travel upstream to Paris. Throughout the course, the banks are complimented with lines of houseboats in often very charming residences.

We moored in the locks of Chatou and later, in those of Suresnes. Over the course of our treks along the Seine before taking in Paris, we walked along the banks of suburban cities - Asnieres, Courbevoie, Levallois, Perret - and bypassed several islands - the island of Puteaux, the Seguin Island, Ste-Geneviève Island.

Of all, I remember the name of the Ile de la Jatte. Formerly called "Island of La Grande Jatte", it has been beautifully illustrated by the Impressionists, including Monet, Sisley and Van Gogh, but of all the paintings dedicated to it, the picture by pointillist Seurat – a Sunday afternoon in the Island of La Grande Jatte - is the best known. A four-kilometre trail, called the "Impressionist course," has also been landscaped and winds its way between residential areas and public parks. These form a green archipelago on the island, two kilometres long and 200 metres wide, integrated in the chic suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine. Along the banks, residences emerge between the curtains of foliage and, at the tip of the island, the rotunda of the small temple of love stands as a promise for cruisers and boaters who are entering Paris. The towers of La Défense on the horizon bring us back to a more mundane urban reality.

Minutes later, the Statue of Liberty is waving her torch before our eyes. A hallucination? No, it is a replica at least four times higher than the original. She was placed at the tip of the Isle of Swans, which serves as support to the Pont de Grenelle. Next to the Eiffel Tower looming in the distance, however, it's tiny. A few minutes later, the Botticelli was beginning its docking maneuvers.

The cruise was not over, however. After dinner, when night fell, we left for a night navigation around La Cite and St Louis islands, which took us under 37 bridges in the city and past the iconic structures of Paris: the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Orsay Museum, the National Assembly, Conciergerie and Notre Dame de Paris. To complete this nautical city tour, we had to lower the awnings on the panoramic deck. Despite the heat wave and the late hour, the banks and bridges were silhouetted with people. Paris vibrates, even at midnight.

This is the final installment of a four-part series; click to read part 1, part 2 and part 3.