Quite Contrary: Sanssouci: "Without Worries"

Because we survived two grueling days of German paper wars, Adrian and I decided to go on a little trip to Potsdam and visit Sanssouci Park. Sanssouci Park is outrageously big and in addition to palaces from the 18th, 19th, and 20th century, contains a windmill, a "Chinese" pavilion, a Roman bathhouse, and expansive gardens! Despite spending the entire afternoon there, we only saw Sanssouci Palace.

Schloss Sanssouci

Schloss Sanssouci (after which the park is named) was built by Frederick the Great in 1744 as a vacation home. He was apparently a huge fan of wine, because the terraces in front of the palace were originally covered in grapevines. Although they don't really look too big in the picture, each terrace is about 10 feet tall and each "shelf" is roughly 20 feet wide -- that's a lot of grapes!

A close-up of the outside of the palace.

A little gazebo right outside the palace doors.

As with the outside of the palace, the interior was decorated in the Rococo style and was very ornate (one could even call it gaudy) -- lots of gilded swirls, marble statues, and elaborate wall carvings. Unfortunately, there was additional fee to take pictures inside the palace and I am incredibly cheap (something I should probably reconsider if I am going to be writing a blog...).

My two favorite rooms were the library and the Voltaire room. The library was awesome, not because of its decor, but because of its layout. At just 5'2" (roughly my height!), Frederick the Great was a very short man. He was also a voracious reader. Instead of having tall walls of books that spanned the entire height of the library wall, Frederick designed the room to have very low shelves to ensure that every book was within his reach. Never having to find a stepladder or stand on tiptoes to reach a book? Sounds like it was pretty great to be the king!

While the entire palace was impressive, the most amazing room was definitely the Voltaire room.

Schloss-Sanssouci-Voltaire's-Room-Postcard

Postcard of the Voltaire Room

The walls were yellow and covered in detailed painted carvings of fruits, trees, and various animals. Vines "hang" from the walls, dripping with flowers and fruit. Overhead, a delicate tangle of tiny white flowers and dark green leaves of porcelain made up the amazingly beautiful chandelier. The entire room was gaudy in the absolutely best way ever! I would have been more than happy to stay in that room as a guest of the king!

After leaving Sanssouci Palace, Adrian and I walked around the gardens, which were extensive! We saw less than half of what was there!