Bonsoir!

Where did we leave off? Ah yes, our first full day in Paris. 

Today our first stop is the Palace of Versailles.

First we had to figure out the metro. It looked a bit different than the underground in London (as in it was above ground) so we were a little thrown off. Add in that they have trains (as in regular trains) and metro trains (as in subways). To get to Versailles we needed to do both a train and subway. 

Our station was a 5 minute walk, VERY convenient. We gingerly inserted our passes, I was praying that they would work since I ordered them online, they were very small and I had my doubts. But they let us enter, we studied the map and got on the subway (above ground), transferred to a train (also above ground) and soon we were in Versailles. 

It was a short walk from the train to the palace. And this was a palace. You could see the gold trim on the gates and buildings from far away. We got our tickets and got into a very long line to enter. Again, our bags were checked and we had to walk though a scanner. 

We got our audio headsets and began our tour. Did I mention "this was a palace". It was beautiful. From the furniture, to the rugs, to the wall coverings, to the art work, to the chandeliers. There were many chandeliers. 

Yes, I became a little obsessed with the chandeliers.

We toured the massive gardens and walked down to Marie Antoinette's home on the estate where we saw even more chandeliers. Touring the palace and gardens took the better part of the day. We did experience some funky weather here, clouds, rain and even some hail.

We took the train back to Paris and headed back to the hotel to freshen up for dinner.

Dinner was at the Cafe Cambronne where we were greeted with a lyrical "bonsoir" by the hostess/ waitress. It was the second of the three restaurants at the end of our street. She spoke a little English so language wasn't a problem here. The food was delicious and the service excellent.

Off to our evening activity, we were going to the Musee 'd Orsay. This was one of my favorite things we went to on the trip. The museum is housed in an old train station. Not only was I surrounded by more Monet paintings, the architecture was incredible. No photos were allowed in the museum but I was able to sneak one in. How cool is this?

We were at the end of another exhausting day, again our feet were not happy campers. Tomorrow the weather report shows 90% chance of rain, not what I was hoping for.