The Dîner en Blanc Paris threw its last event for the year at Versailles on Friday night. Arranged as a thank you for those involved in the organization since the inception of the dinner, it was exciting to find it perhaps the most international of the Paris Dîner en Blanc this year. The rain did not deter the revelers as we met at the front gates of Versailles and flowed into the main entrance of the palace like royalty. There was less urgency in the set up for this event as it was enclosed in the palace grounds and many took the time to take photographs. It was touching to see that even Parisians were still in awe of Versailles.
The dinner took place in the vaulted gallery of the Orangerie, the epic greenhouse designed by Jules Hardouin-Mansart. In one arm of the building, a massive dance party broke out. In an enclosed environment, it was incredible to see Parisian society once again get down across generations. Like the Dîner en Blanc on Thursday night at Notre Dame and Place des Vosges, there was a distinct message that the event was being passed to the next generation who would continue the tradition and retain its relevance. At its root, the Dîner en Blanc can only perpetuate if it retains the purity of spirit in which it began: just a place to share a beautiful moment in time with others. And of course, the event is only possible due to the trust between the organizers and the authorities, and particularly at Versailles it was incredible to see how few security guards there were.
When the music stopped, the crowd refused to let it be the end and began chanting songs together. But all good things must come to an end, and so in thousands we left, as the palace of Versailles gleamed in the distance reminding us of its permanence. Although captured in photographs, we were but a fleeting moment in the rich history of the Château de Versailles.
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