Fontainebleau: Napoleon slept here
By Susan Spano
Los Angeles Times
PARIS — Fontainebleau, a royal chateau near Paris, is on a site occupied by French kings for 700 years, beginning as a hunting lodge in the Middle Ages.
After the chateau fell into disrepair during the French Revolution, Napoleon — who called Fontainebleau "the true house of kings" — restored it in the distinguished Empire style.
Et voila: The chateau you see today as you approach along the Rue Royale from Paris.
Enter the gate and stand in the White Horse Courtyard, gazing at the famous horseshoe staircase where Napoleon said goodbye to his troops before going into exile in 1814.
Visitors can tour the Grands Appartements, with audio guides to point out the late-Renaissance frescoes, framed in richly modeled stucco, and Napoleon's suite, where the workaholic emperor and general rarely slept through the night.
Guided tours are available for the Petits Appartements and Napoleon Museum. The beautiful gardens are open daily, free of charge.
Royal patronage made the town of Fontainebleau prosper, and it is still a handsome place today, full of shops, restaurants and hotels. Elegant cafes overlook the Place Napoleon Bonaparte with its pollarded trees and restored carousel.
The Seine nearby winds past quiet stone villages and at almost every turn, paths beckon into the Forest of Fontainebleau.
GETTING THERE: Fontainebleau can be reached from Paris' Gare de Lyon in about 45 minutes; package tickets, including train fare, bus connections and chateau entrance, can be purchased at the station. Bikes can be rented at A La Petite Reine, 32 Rue des Sablons, 011-33-1-60-74-57-57.
LODGING: Aigle Noir, 27 Place Napoleon Bonaparte, 011-33-1-60-7460-00, www.hotelaiglenoir.fr, is an attractive, centrally located inn founded in 1764; doubles start around $200. Behind it is the Ibis Hotel, 18 Rue de Ferrare, 011-33-1-60-23-45-25, www.ibishotel.com, a sound budget choice; doubles start around $90.
DINING: Two good places to eat: Au Delice Imperial, 1 Rue Grande, 011-33-1-64-22-22-70, a distinguished bakery-cafe on the Place Napoleon Bonaparte, and La Ferrare, 23 Rue de France, 011-33-1-60-72-37-04, a classic French cafe a few doors down from ReelBooks, an excellent English-language bookstore.
For information: www.fontainebleau-tourisme.com.
