Bab 148: Chapter 148: Eden Amusement Park
Chapter 148: Eden Amusement Park
In the northwest of the Palace of Versailles, inside the music room of the Petit Trianon, Queen Marie signaled the musicians to pause and turned to a nearby court official, frowning as she asked, "Are you certain you heard correctly?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. The Prince was preparing a carriage. By now, he and Princess Maria should have already left Versailles."
The Queen appeared somewhat anxious—this official was responsible for overseeing the Princess of the Two Sicilies. He had just reported that the Prince was taking Maria on a tour of Paris.
If Princess Clementine didn't arrive in Paris soon, her son's heart might be won over by that Italian girl!
The Queen sighed inwardly: My poor niece, your luck is truly unfortunate. Clementine had set out very early, planning to sail to Marseille and then travel to Paris. However, a storm arose in the Tyrrhenian Sea as soon as she boarded the ship—such weather was common in the Mediterranean during January. For safety, her escorts decided to change the route, opting to travel north by land through Echirolles, crossing the Alps into France. Despite the detour, she was still expected to arrive in Paris before the Princess of the Two Sicilies.
But fate seemed unkind. Before Clementine could leave Tuscany, news broke of a peasant uprising in southwestern Austria, sparked by Emperor Joseph II's reforms to the serfdom system—yes, those foolish peasants were rebelling against reforms that granted them freedom!
Poor Clementine had to wait until the storm in the Tyrrhenian Sea subsided before setting out again. After rushing her journey, she was now just near Nevers, still three or four days away from Paris.
The Queen penned a letter urging her niece to hasten her pace and sent it off with a messenger, silently praying that her son wouldn't fall in love with Princess Maria...
On the Champs-Élysées in Paris, inside the "Paris Angel" boutique, the Prince's Guards stood in two rows, separating the Prince and the Princess from other curious customers.
Indeed, this was the first place Maria wanted to visit. It seemed that no woman could resist the allure of beauty.
The princess, dressed in a pale purple ball gown with her makeup perfectly done, looked dazzling. Her eyes scanned the luxurious cosmetic products, her excitement barely contained as she read about their uses. Yet, she restrained herself and selected only a few items, which her maid handed to the shop assistants.
Joseph, feeling a bit guilty that his staged assassination plan had inadvertently involved Princess Maria, had been meaning to make it up to her. Seeing her interest in the cosmetics, he promptly instructed the store clerk to bring a gold card and gifted it to Princess Maria.
Holding the gold card, worth a thousand livres, Maria felt an overwhelming happiness bubbling up inside her—The Prince does care for me! On our first "date," he gives me such a valuable gift! Oh, thank you, Lord!
Joseph then helped her pick out a large selection of cosmetics and even included the youth version of "Lady's Delight," called "Young Lady's Health" tonic. He had the store clerk deliver the packages directly to Maria's room at Versailles.
As they left the store, Maria looked at Joseph with a smile, her voice soft as she asked, "Your Highness, where are we going next?"
Joseph remembered that he had planned to check on the preparations for Paris Fashion Week. This was the perfect opportunity to give the princess an early preview and perhaps get some suggestions from her.
"We're going to visit the Tuileries Palace. You might have heard that Paris Fashion Week will be held there soon. Most of the preparations are already complete."
"Mm, I'll follow your lead."
As the carriage pulled away from the "Paris Angel" boutique, Joseph had no idea that a journalist was already drafting an article titled "Prince and Princess of the Two Sicilies Visit Boutique, Prince Expresses Affection with a Gold Card."
Outside the Tuileries Palace, Maria's gaze wandered over the large, under-construction villa complex. Her eyes quickly caught sight of the tall, round structure on the north side of the Tuileries Garden. Curious, she pointed and asked, "Your Highness, what is that for?"
Joseph followed her gaze and answered, "Oh, that's called a Ferris wheel. It's an amusement ride that lets you rise high into the air and take in a view of Paris.
"By the way, it's part of an amusement park surrounding it, filled with lots of fun attractions. If you'd like, I could show you around."
"I'd love that, thank you, Your Highness."
Soon, the carriage stopped in front of the world's first dedicated amusement park—"Eden Amusement Park."
Through the white fences, they could see a carousel powered by a steam engine, a Ferris wheel, a pirate ship ride, a haunted house, teacup rides, and other attractions. There were also traditional playground activities like slides and swings.
Due to technical limitations, most of the attractions were far smaller than those in modern amusement parks. For instance, the Ferris wheel was only about ten meters high, its structure adapted from a waterwheel. Compared to the massive hundred-meter-tall wheels of later years, it seemed insignificant, but to the people of the 18th century, it was a marvel of innovation and excitement.
As soon as Maria stepped through the gates of the amusement park, she began to look around excitedly, much like any young girl visiting an amusement park for the first time.
However, it was the fairytale-like carousel that first caught her attention. She turned her head and hesitantly asked Joseph, "Your Highness, is this something I can try?"
"Of course, you can," Joseph replied with a smile, signaling the park manager to start the ride.
The carousel was powered by a 12-horsepower steam engine, naturally from Watt's company. France's own steam engine factory was still under construction.
After waiting over twenty minutes, white smoke finally billowed from the small wooden hut beside the carousel, where the steam engine was housed.
The large wooden platform began to slowly rotate. Thanks to the leverage system, the intricately carved wooden horses, deer, elephants, and other animals started to move up and down as the platform turned.
Maria, feeling a bit overwhelmed, took a few steps back. Joseph chuckled and gently led her onto the wooden platform, gesturing around. "Which one would you like to ride?"
Maria cautiously pointed to a white wooden swan. "May I try that one?"
"Of course. Let me help you up."
Joseph gallantly assisted the princess onto the swan's seat. Maria nervously sat sideways, gripping the wooden pole tightly as the ride began, accompanied by the sound of music, lifting her gently into the air.
Though the carousel moved at a snail's pace due to the low-powered steam engine and the rough mechanical connections, the princess, who had never experienced anything like it, laughed with delight. She felt as though she was in a fairytale world, soaring through the air on the back of a swan.
(End of Chapter)
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