Chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte, Paris

Barbara and I did a day trip outside of Paris to visit this very lovely Chateau- which is actually IN the Paris region- and very accessible by RER/tax or navette services! I highly recommend it as an alternative to Versailles for those of you visiting Paris who are interested in castles! I was in awe of this beautiful castle- very majestic and not to flashy- and it's grands were equally awesome!

The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte is a baroque French château located in Maincy, near Melun, 55 km southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne département of France. It was built from 1658 to 1661 for Nicolas Fouquet, Marquis de Belle Île, Viscount of Melun and Vaux, the superintendent of finances of Louis XIV.

The château was in many ways the most influential work built in Europe in the mid-17th century and the most elaborate and grand house built in France after the Château de Maisons. At Vaux-le-Vicomte, the architect Louis Le Vau, the landscape architect André le Nôtre, and the painter-decorator Charles Le Brun worked together on a large-scale project for the first time. Their collaboration marked the beginning of a new order: the magnificent manner that is associated with the "Louis XIV style" involving a system of collective work, which could be applied to the structure, its interiors and works of art and the creation of an entire landscape. The garden's use of a baroque axis that extends to infinity is an example of this style. -- Wikipedia

A lovely view.... on a gorgeous day!

^{One of my fav photo 'poses' is the "jump shot" - so here I am- jumping!}

^{My other fav thing to do is 'tree pose!"}