Versailles

On Wednesday we decided to go to Versailles. I went there on my last trip, but it was January and snow covered the ground. We saw the chateau, but not the grounds. This time my focus was outdoors. Marie was fine with that. We did go through the chateau at what some would consider a lightening pace. I had been there, done that, and Marie found it to be way too over the top and not to her taste.

To save our poor, aching feet for more important walking, we took the Petit Train down to the other locations. The Petit Trianon, the place that Marie Antoinette preferred to stay, did not open until noon, so we had some time to kill. We wandered around the Grand Canal and took a lot of pictures.

We then walked to the Petit Trianon, arriving just before they opened. It was good timing, because we avoided getting too many people in our photos. I can see why M.A. preferred it there. It was so much less fussy. We then started exploring the immense grounds and gardens. That was the best part of all! We found the little village of houses that looked like they came straight out of a fairy tale. With thatched roofs and fanciful designs it was almost like something that Disneyland would use as a model for a village, but better! The little houses surrounded a pond with ducks, water lilies and of course a swan to make the picture complete. Under the little bridges were dozens of large catfish. I don't even know how many pictures I took there. Let's just say a lot!!!

We had to be back to our apartment at 6:00 p.m., so we left Versailles, taking the train back to Paris.

We had some time after returning to Paris, so we went back to the Pere Lachaise cemetery. This time we were successful in locating Jim Morrison. There were over a dozen people there when we found it. The cemetery is huge, with many tall structures (I don't really know what the word is for that kind of headstone), so it is impossible to see anything in the distance. We just followed the pot smoke until we found it.

We got back to the apartment just in time to meet my French 'son', Philippe. He is the exchange student we hosted over the summer. We had dinner and chatted. It was so good to see him again. I wish we had more time to spend together. He is a really great kid. Well, he's 19, so I guess he's not really a kid anymore. It was sad to say goodbye, but he assures me I will be seeing him soon!!

Tomorrow is our last day and I am so excited about what we are going to do...