Palace of Versailles

We visited the Palace of Versailles on two different days. On May 12th, we spent several hours there, visiting not only the palace itself, but also touring some of the incredible gardens. Although we walked several miles while we were there, we visited only a fraction of the spacious grounds. Our second visit to Versailles was on the first full day of our tour, which was May 13th. Tauck arranged for a one hour guided tour before the palace opened, which was amazing. We learned so much from our tour guide and being able to see a room like the Hall of Mirrors without the crowds was incredible. Now owned by the government of France, the Palace of Versailles is the formal royal residence. Originally built by King Louis XIII as a hunting lodge, his successor (Louis XIV) expanded the chateau into a palace and moved his seat of government and the capital from Paris to Versailles. The palace was abandoned and emptied during the French Revolution but following his coronation as emperor, Napoleon used Versailles as a summer home.

The royal chapel (first floor view above, second floor view below).

The ceiling painting in the Hercules room is the single largest painting in the world.

Full size marble statue of King XIV by Jean Warin, depicting the king at age 30 as a roman emperor.

1655 marble bust of Louis XIV by Bernini in the Diana Room.

King's bedroom.

The candelabras were made for the wedding of King Louis and Marie Antoinette.

The Hall of Mirrors. The cost of these mirrors during the time of Louis XIV was enormous - each pane cost more than a merchant's house, and there are thousands of panes. The hall is where the Treaty of Versailles was signed and it is still used today for state visits of foreign leaders.

Marie Antoinette's bedroom, exactly as it looked the day that she fled.

This obelisk to Napoleon's military triumphs sit in the center of the room dedicated to him.

The Gallery of Great Battles includes a painting commemorating the Siege at Yorktown.

As much as we enjoyed the palace, we spent a significant amount of time touring as much of the grounds as possible. The gardens of Versailles are magnificent, covering more than 800 hectares and include manicured parterres, tree lined groves, and dozens of fountains rooted in mythological scenes.

The Bacchus Fountain, representing the allegory of autumn.

The Fountain of Apollo depicts the sun god in his horse-drawn chariot rising from the water.

The Bassin de l'Encelade depicts the mythological giant Enceladus being buried under rocks by Jupiter.

Versailles, France

Our big family adventure for 2026 was France. I've been talking about this trip for a few years and finally, the timing was right. After looking into various different trips, we decided to take Tauck's trip to Normandy, Brittany, the Loire Valley and Paris. We had an incredible time and really packed in a lot in two short weeks.

After landing in Paris on May 11th, we traveled to Versailles, France to start our trip. We stayed at the Versailles Trianon Palace, which is about a ten minute walk from the palace. The hotel was really great, and filled with history, as it is the location where the Treaty of Versailles was drafted during the first World War. The opening night of our tour, we had dinner in the room in which the treaty was actually drafted, which was very cool for history geeks like us. Our first afternoon, we briefly walked around town. On our second day, we spent most of the day at the Palace of Versailles (more on that later), grabbing lunch in town and making the most of the different boulangeries and chocolate shops. The town is very walkable and we found the people to be very friendly, especially when we made an effort to order in French.

Trianon Palace

Commemoration of the drafting of the Treaty of Versailles.

Opening night dinner

We liked trying various treats from different shops.

This place was our favorite!

Mexico

One of the great things about Elizabeth living in the southwest is the opportunities she has to see more of the country - and other other countries. A few weeks ago, she traveled to El Paso, Texas to meet up with one of her friends. They spent the weekend in Juarez, Mexico - living like locals, as his girlfriend is a resident.

View of Mexico and the border wall from the roof of University of Texas El Paso.

The border crossing.

Elizabeth had crickets for the first time!

Traditional dancers

Our Lady of Guadalupe Cathedral is located in the Historical Center of Ciudad Juarez. it was consecrated by Father Baudelio Pelayo in 1941 and construction was completed in 1957. It is attached to the old Franciscan mission, founded in the 17th century.

One of the many art galleries they visited.

Pancho Villa. Elizabeth's great grandfather fought against Pancho Villa and during this trip, she learned that her friend's great grandfather fought with Pancho Villa. Small world.

More of the downtown area.

Massive white writing on the mountain in Ciudad Juarez reads "La Biblia es la verdad. Leela" which translate to "The Bible is the truth. Read it". This message was created in 1987 by evangelical pastor Gerardo Bermudez.

The Juarez X that you see when you drive back into El Paso.

Chilequiles Verdes (Mexican breakfast food)

Arizona

Lee recently spent several days in Arizona with his brother and his family in Arizona. They hiked the Seven Falls Trail of the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area. The landscape was spectacular, even if the temps (a dry 85 for a New England guy used to low 30s) were a bit warm. The hike was about 9 miles and they narrowly avoided a mishap with a rattle snake. They also spent some time in Tombstone and Bisbee.

Colorado

For their final fall break as students, Elizabeth and her friend Sophia decided to travel to Colorado. They spent five days in Denver and the surrounding area, visiting Rocky Mountain National Park, touring the hotel from The Shining, visiting the state capital and taking in a Colorado Avalanche game. They took the train from New Haven to LaGuardia, which was impressive from my perspective, as they had to take a few different trains. Elizabeth really loved Rocky Mountain National Park and all of its glory. 

The State Capitol

The Bruins happened to be playing the Avalanche and the girls were more than happy to take in the game.

Outside the house from The Shining.