Palace Of Versailles: No One Stopped Us
Costumes are permitted once a year at Versailles. This was not that day. Ji'ana Fenix and HK7335 in the Hall of Mirrors. Louis XIV was not consulted.
FIELD NOTES
Armor Field Note: Palace of Versailles, Île-de-France, France
I approached the golden gates in full beskar, HK7335 at my side. The palace stretched before us like a monument to excess, its baroque facade gleaming in the morning sun. Security personnel materialized from multiple positions.
The guards moved with practiced efficiency, forming a perimeter around our position. Several tourists stopped to observe the proceedings. One guard spoke rapidly into his comm device while another gestured toward the main entrance. A supervisor arrived within minutes, clipboard in hand, explaining costume restrictions in three languages.
The palace opens at 0900 hours. Arrive before 1000 to avoid the worst crowds in the Hall of Mirrors. That corridor runs seventy-three meters with three hundred fifty-seven mirrors reflecting twenty thousand candles when lit for state functions. The main palace contains twenty-three hundred rooms. Gardens span eight hundred hectares. Audio guides are available in twelve languages. The estate closes at 1730 in winter, 1830 in summer. Security presence is significant throughout all sectors. Train access via RER C to Versailles Château station takes forty minutes from central Paris. Parking fills quickly during peak season. The annual Fêtes Galantes event permits period costumes one weekend each year.
The supervisor finished his explanation while maintaining professional courtesy throughout our brief detention.