Versailles on Vendredi (Versaille on Friday)
Oh, how we wish we had another day in Paris! We never got to the Louvre, the Arc de Triumph, or St. Chapel, but that will have to be another trip. Tonight we met a couple from Mississippi and Florida, and they told us how awesome their tour was to Normandy, too, and that sounded awesome. In any event, we all agreed that the things we did see we saw well and pretty much did most everything we wanted to do at each stop. And we did that today on our first rainy day. However, the rain was on and off, and it seemed like everytime the rain came, we had to change our plan, but in changing our plan, something serendipitous happened! We kept noticing these little coincidences all day long and actually celebrated them. I guess it was truly a "Carpe Diem" kind of day. In fact, while waiting in line at Versailles for ice cream and crepes, we noticed a type of soft drink for sale called "Carpe Diem"! Carina wanted to buy one for me, but there was no way the bottle would make it all the way back to the USA, so we took a picture of the bottles instead!
Oh, before I get too far, I have to mention that the internet connection has been on and off here ever since we got back tonight, so I may get disconnected for the duration of the narrative at some point and may not be able to even finish our day's story until a much later date. You see, we are having a transit pick us up at 7:00 a.m. for the airport to fly to Copenhagen at 10:00 a.m. Then we get on a train to Malmo, Sweden, and another one for 3 hours to Kalmar on the east coast where Maja's parents (Maja, or Asa, worked with me at Sjolunden Swedish Camp two summers ago) parents are going to meet us and take us touring the area as well as boating and fishing and lots of fun stuff. On Monday afternoon, June 25th, we are scheduled to meet up with Katie Wallenberg, my brother Scott's daughter, who has been studying at Kalmar University this semester. Together we are traveling 7 hours north to Dalarna where the majority of our Swedish relatives on my dad's side live. She has not met them yet! Anyway, we may not have Internet access for a while, and if we do, it might be on someone else's computer--so we can add to the Blog still but not import pictures. :(
So, here was our day. Get ready, it might go on for quite a bit. We slept in a bit and enjoyed breakfast ("le petit dejeuner" explained Carina) at our terrific hotel. We then headed for the Metro which took us to a train station, and we got on a train headed for Versailles. We checked the weather report on the Internet, and it said "stormy" all day, but Robby decided not to take a raincoat, and the backup umbrella didn't stay up when opened. Needless to say, we all, and especially Robby, got drenched! The rain got worse and worse as we left the train and headed up a hill, along with crowds of tourists and French children, and the street vendors' prices for an umbrella got steeper and steeper. Pocket "emergency" umbrellas were nearly $20 at the lines to get into Versailles.
There was so much confusion, especially with where door 2B was. There were long, long lines to get into a door "A," but that was for people who already had tickets. The door 2B was supposed to be a privelege entrance for the museum pass holders (us!), but I looked and looked for it while Carina and Robby waiting in the line for regular tickets just in case and they hovered and shivered together under the umbrella, and it got colder and colder. Finally, when we got in the front of a line, we met up with another museum pass holder equally frustrated. When we got to the information desk, they informed us that there no longer existed a door 2B after all. They had gotten rid of that door, and we could just get into the "already purchased our tickets" line which was equally as long as the first one we had been in (for no reason we now found out!) to now get into the door. There was NO way we could have known that.
Regardless, we opted for a short line to see the Dauphin's quarters, which with no audio headsets (pardon moi--not included with the museum pass), was incredibly boring. We were just about to go back to Paris, and you could just see how disappointed Carina was. This was a day she had talked and talked about as well as sharing all the fond memories she had had here when she came in 2005 with her French trip. We saw a trolley, and so we decided to try one more thing--a visit to Marie Antoinette's special section of the estate. Louis the IVth, her husband, had given her a portion because she loved flowers, and it was, indeed, a treat.
The kids had a blast, even as soaked as they were, wandering in the rain (which was lightening up, thank goodness!) exploring serpentine trails which led to little caves and waterfalls and temples and Marie's own private theatre and a round gazebo type of music "hall." We were so filled with joy when the sun broke through and we realized that this day might just turn out very special. Carina's moccasins were drenched and stained a rust color, but she loved taking them off and dipping her toes in the waterfall, and Robby skipped and dunked large rocks in the water there. I smiled a lot seeing them so playful and enjoying the simple joys of childhood. CARINA AND ROBBY MARIE ANTOINETTE'S PETIT TRIANON IN ACTION
I was a bit sad that we opted to forego a long walk over to Marie's "hamlet"--12 buildings making up a little farm she apparently had built, but we were watching the clouds and decided not to push our luck. I was still reluctant; I saw a preview in a brochure of the little buildings, and they looked so charming, but the kids won out, and it turned out to be a good decision.
The timing was perfect! When we arrived at the canal (a virtual cross of water in the front of the palace), it started drizzling again, but that gave us time to buy some lunch and nestled under a large tree with enough thick foliage to stop the dripping above us. As soon as it cleared up, Carina spotted the place she knew from her last Paris adventure to rent bicycles. The kids had a great half an hour on the bikes going up and down exploring garden paths until Carina's bike chain broke, and Robby fixed it for her.
I sat along the canal and had a cup of coffee and some much needed quiet time. I reflected on how amazing this whole experience is and how much gratitude I feel for having the opportunity to share such a special time of learning, exploring, helping each other, working through squabbles, and making some awesome family memories. We all agreed today how much we love new cultures and languages and how much it ultimately teaches each one of us about ourselves and what we value and deem important.
So, when the kids came back, we began to realize there was no way we could rush back to Paris for the last open times to visit the Louvre and have any kind of quality experience. So, I told Robby about the fish. The fish were HUGE in the canal. I watched many children feeding the fish while Carina and Robby were biking. He loved it.
ROBBY FISHING
We had some croissants with us from breakfast, and Robby made a make-shift fishing pole, and he was entertained for close to a half-hour. The fish, probably carp, were at least a foot long. They would nip and nip, sometimes five coming over to Robby at once fighting for the croissant morsels. Meanwhile, Carina was having her own great time giving the geese a feast. Lots more smiles from the mom!
Fishing and feeding the geese on the grounds of Versailles!
We walked up the path towards Versailles in beautiful sunlight and truly appreciated it. Robby was in the picture taking mode with his camera phone and was fascinated with taking the odd pictures of things you'd never see on the Versailles postcards in tourist shops!
WHAT A GREAT DAY!
Finally, we braved entrance A again, and it being so close to closing, there were no lines! We whisked into the private apartments with no waiting and a free audiophone from an attendant who decided to give us a gift when she saw I had a museum pass. That was great to have because as we visited some really cool rooms, we shared the audiophone and reported to each other some of the highlights--the hall of mirrors, a room devoted to Napolean, Marie Therese's amazing gold bedchamber.
CARINA AND ROBBY HALL OF MIRRORS at VERSAILLES
On our walk back to Versailles station, we looked in little shops and bought fries at McDonald's--talk about an experience of juxtaposition! One minute we're in drawing rooms from the 17th century up at the palace, and the next minute we're ordering American fries at McDonald's.
The train ride back to Paris was smooth. We got back to a Metro station and switched trains a few times to end up at the Hard Rock cafe in Paris.
We decided when we got to Hard Rock that we would try to visit the ones in Copenhagen and Stockholm, too, and maybe Oslo if we get to Norway! We had a great meal, and Carina and Robby hit the gift shop. Carina got some t-shirts and Robby a Zippo lighter that said "Hard Rock Paris" on it. He was really happy because he had been looking for a Zippo all over Paris, and the ones we had seen averaged about $90. This one was about $40--and no "silly" (Robby talking here) Eiffel Tower on it either. Another cool bit of synchronicity happened when we set off to find a cash machine for Robby to withdraw money for his lighter. All of a sudden, Carina yelled "Look!" There was a shoe store called "Carina" right across the street from the ATM machine! Pretty cool considering every time we stop in a French souvenir shop which has items with names on them, she looks for something with her name on it, and there's never a Carina (she needs to wait until we get to Sweden for that!)
Several changes on the Metro got us back to our hotel, and we noticed the new Harry Potter film will come out while we're in Europe. Carina told Robby there'd be no problem understanding it since it'll be in English! He's game, then, to see it when we're in Denmark, the last week of our trip.
PARIS METRO STATION
HARRY POTTER ADVERTISEMENT ON MANY METRO WALLS
Once back at the hotel, we met some folks from the United States who were previously mentioned. They were in Paris for the air show--apparently the largest aviation show in the world--this weekend. We exchanged stories about our visits to Paris so far, and they told me they were on their way to London next. Wow! More synchronicity! They had never been to London and wanted to see Stonehenge and many of the things we had seen. So, I got to fulflll the wish of my Canadian friend from a couple of nights ago; he was the one who gave me the map and only asked that I pass it on to the next tourist when we leave. Well, I didn't pass on his map, but I did pass on my map of Central London and the Tube map and a Golden Tours brochure. They were delighted, and I was happy to to a good turn as well as eliminate a little weight in the suitcase. We're, in fact, a bit worried about the stringent Sterling Air weight restrictions tomorrow (33 lbs for the ONE allowed check-in luggage rather than Northwest and British Air's 50 lbs. We do not want to pay the extra $10 for every 2 lbs. over! So, we're all wearing layers and stuffing our rain jacket pockets with some of the heavier items. Once we get past security, we'll rearrange! Cross your fingers! I'd rather spend the money on a nice meal than pay the airlines for something like this.
Well, it's time to turn in. I do so rather late but happy listening to the tandem breathing of the kids in this quiet, comfortable room. I think I will remember this moment of peace and gratitude for a long, long time.
VERSAILLE FRONT SIDE
HELLO, FOLKS AT HOME!
PARIS IS COOL!
ABSOLUTELY COOL!
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