Fontainebleau & Barbizon

On Saturday morning, my class took a field trip (very elementary school, I know) to Fontainebleau and Barbizon. Considering we all had to be in Paris by 9:00am on a Saturday morning, I was very impressed with our group-- only one person missed the bus. (Don't worry, she managed to catch a train and meet up with us later).   

What's there to see at Fontainbleau you ask? Well a chateau of course! The main structure of the palace that you can see today was built by François I in the 16th century, though like most palaces and churches, there are remnants of older structures on which the palace was built. Since François I's reign, others such as Henri IV and Napoleon Bonaparte (Fontainebleau is where Napoleon attempted to commit suicide) have also added and changed various sections of the palace. 

Like any chateau, Fontainebleau also has several gardens in various styles. I had no idea there were such things as a French garden and an English garden, but I guess it makes sense that the French and the English would have two very different ideas about what a garden should look like.

English style is more 'natural'

French style is very ordered and symmetric

After a break for lunch, we hopped back on the bus and found ourselves in the small town of Barbizon. Barbizon was made famous by a school of artists (suprisingly named the Barbizon school) who gathered there to paint the landscape. Dr. Costello had hoped to take us to the museum in Barbizon to see some of their works, but despite the fact that he called ahead to make sure it was open, the museum was of course closed. Instead, we walked through Jean-François Millet's atelier, where he produced some of his most well-known works. Then we took a little hike through the forest of Fontainebleau which lies on the edge of the village of Barbizon.

Millet's Studio

I know what you're thinking, but it's not bigfoot.
It's just Dr. Costello.