I swear, I'm going to miss having one of these pastries every morning. Today, we ALL got a pastry from the pasteria by the hotel before heading out to Versailles for the morning. We also got to large baguettes- we decided to find a fromagerie (cheese shop) and a market and picnic after visiting the palace.
The palace was huge- I kept saying that Louis must have had a LOT of money because it seemed that every room was decorated in gold. It was overwhelming. I would have liked to go into the gardens, but it was extra € and we were tired- walking that palace is a big job!
Side note- I've become quickly disenchanted with tour groups. I'm all about organizaton, but there is NO WAY POSSIBLE that you can take 30 people through a small room, among *other* tourists and expect them to be orderly. The worst? Asian tour groups. I know that sounds horrible, but honestly- they take pictures everywhere (even when the sign says in 10 languages not to), bump people around everywhere, and stand in ALL of my pictures. I don't get it- maybe it's a culture thing? Either way, tour groups have now become the bane of my existence.
Our picnic lunch was great- I may have liked it more than the others though. We got cheese from the local fromagerie- Pam successfully ordered a "recommended" cheese from the shop owner and it was AWESOME. I'm never eating Kraft Singles again. We then got turkey, ham, chips, and pasteries (from the pasteria across the street from the market, of course) to top off our lunch. Nothing beats the fresh bread and cheese. Nothing.
After Versailles, we went back towards Paris and tourned the Panthenon. It wasn't as great as I had expected. We then went to the Orsay Museum. Thank goodness Rick Steves had a guide of the museum, or I would have been stuck in there, far away from the pieces I wanted to see. There were a LOT of sculputres in the Orsay, which isn't really my "artistic" cup of tea. After battling the crowds for a bit, we headed back to the hotel for "le nap" before dinner.
Another side note- what people say about smelly people in Paris isn't false. At all. Honestly, take a shower. Use some deoderant. The Metro is already small and crowded, but when you have to lift your arm up towards the bar and your pit is in my face... you hygene becomes my problem. Ugh. And, people here are kind of pushy. Not in a "I'm in a hurry" kind of way, but when it comes to the Metro, they will shove you onto the 3rd rail so they can get onto the train in time. I will be learning to shove back :)
While the other 3 relaxed, I went to the laundromat to wash my filthy pairs of jeans and a hoodie. This was the most "townie" experience I've had in Paris thus far. I sat in the laundromat, pitifully reading the French (and later realizing that the directions were in English RIGHT underneath the machines), dong a puzzle and eating a half of baguette. It was calming- though I was underdressed. Since I was washing my jeans, I had to wear sweatpants to the laundromat (I know, Maureen, I know!). People were coming in there with their clothes already wet (??) just to dry clothes, and were wearing dress pants, heels, etc. What the heck!? I just avoided eye contact and stared at my puzzle... since I was washing some of my stuff, I offered to thow in some of Pam's jeans. She forgot to clean out the pockets and realized, after I returned, that I had washed her 3 day Metro pass and her Paris Museum Pass (our pre-paid pass to get into our Paris sites). I felt really bad- I always check my pockets, but didn't even think to check hers. Oops.
Dinner was nice- we stayed local, since we were all still a little whooped from the day prior. We found a little restaurant where the staff barely spoke English and where there was a singer performing. I felt like I was in a movie-- until the cook came out and told Pam she couldn't have dessert because she didn't finish her dinner. They all got sweets (the chef relented and let Pam order her chocolate lava cake) and I got the cheese plate. There should have been a warning that the cheese plate was for multiple people- awesome cheese, fresh bread, but holy hell, too much cheese! That's a phrase I never thought I would say...!
Day 3 is the big Paris day- the Arc de Triumph, the Eiffel Tower, and the Louvre. Wish me luck!
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