Stop #4: Part 1

[Let's recap! Rule 1: I'm not going to proofread, and you're not going to care. Rule 2: This may get long, and you're not going to care. :-) ]

We didn't go very far on our day out of London either, but it sure felt like we did.

In planning our trip, we thought it would be extra fun to squeeze an extra country into the running, to make it five countries instead of four. I know, four seems like plenty. Maybe it should've been. But we bought train tickets, the Eurostar out of London (the chunnel, for those who like to call it that) straight to Brussels and a second set from Brussels to Paris, all in the same day.

We'd decided to take the train for three primary reasons:

1. Getting to go through the channel tunnel between England and France
2. Getting to visit an extra country (Belgium)
3. Getting to see the countryside

Unfortunately, one of these things didn't happen, another was painful, and the third... wasn't all that it was cracked up to be.

Now, I'd like to mention that I've never really taken a train before. I mean, I've taken them, but not like this. Not one that's going across borders or anything of the like. And certainly not one that goes beneath a channel of water. Well, the tunnels that go beneath that channel of water, along with a few other tunnels along the way, do something inside one's head. It's called a severe pressure change, and it hurts. If you're not used to it, if you don't like having to constantly pop your ears, I highly recommend getting on a plane rather than taking the train. Seriously. My head hurt. It was incredibly uncomfortable.

But the other thing you should know about trains is that they are incredibly relaxing. I was ready to fall asleep the moment the train started moving. My sister-in-law is like this with cars, and apparently I'm this way with trains. If you need a nice nap and want to go somewhere along the way, get a train ticket! So, though we'd wanted to see the countryside, we really didn't get to... because we were sleeping.

The third thing, really, is a matter of opinion. We didn't enjoy Brussels. I should mention that we were only there for about four hours, but in that time, we didn't get a great opinion of it. The train station was confusing, the people made me somewhat uncomfortable, and there was something in that city that really rubbed my spirit the wrong way and I just wanted to go home. Like, all the way back to the States, home. Lunch was the only good thing about that trip, and really, the best part of that was the potato and cheese croquettes. If you ever find yourself in Brussels and you're looking for something to eat, definitely give these a go. Fried potato and cheese? How can that possibly go wrong!

Despite the croquettes of deliciousness, I wouldn't go back to Brussels, or Belgium in general, if given the opportunity. The rest of the countries we've visited, I'd go back to in a heartbeat, especially now that we've figured this one out.

Paris is only a short one and a half hour train ride from Brussels, so it wasn't far to get here. But Gare Du Nord, the central hub of most public transport, is confusing as all get out. Really, after spending almost an hour in there, we still didn't understand it. We tried going to information, and they pointed us in the wrong direction to find the underground. We tried finding it ourselves, but we couldn't figure out the ticketing system or what train we would've needed to get on. So after much annoyance and much pacing back and forth across the length of the entire station, we got a taxi.

You've heard the phrase "don't take a taxi in Paris"? Well, they're right. Don't do it. I'll just leave it at that. I think at this point it's best for my sanity if I forget the whole ordeal.

The driver dropped us off in front of the building where we're staying, and we followed our host's instructions to get inside... and we couldn't figure out how to work the key. Oy. Vey. Paris doors are confusing, and I'd never seen a key like this in my life. I'll try to find a picture of a similar one so I can show you (can't really send you a picture of my host's key, can I?). Fortunately, he was nice enough to come home early and let us inside, which was utterly embarrassing as it was super easy for him and we'd been fiddling with the door for over half an hour. *facepalm* Oops...

The brightest point of the day was the dinner to which our host suggested us. We walked into this little place round the corner, called Gorilla (in French), and were greeted by one of the nicest people I've met on this trip. Their menu was newly updated and they hadn't yet had time to translate it into English, but he very kindly did his best to describe the specials, and we used Google translate to help us figure out parts of the menu.

In the end, we ended up with a salmon tartare type thing over what I can only describe as horseradish panna cotta, followed by a roast duck breast with a side of roasted root veg. If it hadn't been for that dinner, the whole day would've been a wash. But this meal... Oh, this meal. It was the epitome of amazing French dinners, and we've been talking about it ever since.

But when that day finally ended, we were still glad for it to go, and very ready to take on the next one, which was a great deal more fun. 

If you come to Paris, and you have a day or two that you're not sure what to do with, I have a spectacular suggestion: go to Versailles. If you have two days to spare, use both of them. And get your tickets online ahead of time if you can -- it'll save a lot of time and effort on the days in question.

We personally only had one day open, but I really wanted to see Versailles, so I bought the one-day passport ticket that let us into the entire place.

The tour starts in the palace itself, which is just as ornate as you'd think it would be. The French don't like to be outdone in anything, and they never have. Everything is filigree and gold with paintings on the walls and the ceilings, mirrors on the walls and tapestries hung from on high, chandeliers of crystal hanging as far as the eye can see, and people's hands holding cameras that block your vision.

*sigh*

If you go at the time's suggested by Versailles, you'll do well here. Try to get to the palace by nine in the morning (when it opens) to see it before things get crazy. We weren't able to do this, due to some confusion at the train station, but we got there as soon as we could. Ten wasn't soon enough.

However, everything was still just as beautiful, and neither of us really wanted to mess with taking pictures inside in the first place. The camera wants to use flash, but flash makes it look weird, but it's dark so you can't see anything, and it's just a mess. I took a few, so we'll see if I have anything worth sharing with you when the time comes.

The palace was beautiful. We'll just say that. Everything was gorgeous. Honestly, neither of us really knew where to look at any point in time, all because literally everything is beautiful. Literally, in the literal sense. Everything. Is. Beautiful.

And then you go outside.

If you thought inside was amazing and jaw-dropping (literally -- Mum and I stood there with our mouths hanging open in some of those rooms), just wait until you get to the gardens.

Before you get there, however, I highly recommend taking a breather and going to Angelina's. It's in the palace, shortly before the exit toward the gardens. They have the best hot chocolate in Paris (or so I've been told -- it was sublime, though) and all sorts of pastries to suit your desires. It was also a great pickmeup after the pushing and shoving inside the palace. I don't remember what our pastries were, nor could I spell them if my life depended on it, so we'll just say it was delicious and leave it at that. I think mine had caramel in it, and Mum's had grapefruit. 

We went on musical fountains day, which I believe are Tuesdays and Thursdays? It was a Tuesday when we went, but it's October so it's not as busy as usual. Most people recommend not going to these days, because things get very busy, but it was chilly and October, so there aren't as many tourists around. We were in the gardens from a little after noon until half past two.

Classical music plays all around the gardens as you follow the suggested path to cover all the best things in the area (which we did, and which means we skipped about half of the gardens -- we probably could've spent an extra two hours in there, if not more), and fountains play at various times along the path. It is stunning. Everywhere you look, there's something new to see. I read before we bought our tickets that even in Octorber, things will be in bloom in the gardens because the French make sure there's always something blooming at Versailles. Remember how everything was ornate and highly detailed inside? Yeah, it's the same out here.

If you don't have a ton of time, follow the path they lay out for you (be sure to pick up the gardens map on your way in), otherwise, I highly suggest taking your time and going through every single area. There's so much to see, really, that it's hard to fit even the gardens into a day. And those aren't the only gardens in Versailles!

Once we finished there, or, once we'd walked along the whole suggested route and then some, we made our way to the Grand Trianon. Don't know if I spelled that right, but it's late and I don't feel like checking. ;-)

Everything inside, once again, is utterly ornate and fascinating to see. We even got to go down into the kitchens and see a little bit more than they usually allow visitors to see without a guide. Not really sure why that was, but I can't read French and all the signs were (you guessed it) in French. Still, very pretty. It was a short go, but we enjoyed it.

Back outside, we really didn't know where to go. It's a little bit confusing in this area, but if you just keep walking in the general direction of away-from-the-Grand-Trianon (whatever direction that is), you'll end up at the Hamlet and the Queen's Estate. I don't know which one we were at, because we were a little confused in there. But there's a farm, and cottages, and a little lake with fishies (!) and goats and chickens and sheep and grape vines and pumpkins and all sorts of farmland in the middle of palace grounds. It's great fun to walk through and get pictures of, and there are places where you can pick up food and take it to a picnicking area, which looked like a lot of fun if we'd had time... but we didn't.

We wanted to pack as much of Versailles into one day as we possibly could, and I think we did a good job of that. My feet aren't so sure that it was a good idea, but they've been saying that throughout the whole trip, and they've been fine. ;-)

The moral of the story is: go to Versailles, even if you only have a day to do it. You won't regret it, I swear.

The next day, we did what every good American tourist in Paris should do. We visited Lady Liberty's little sister. (not where you thought I was going, was it?)
If you didn't know, New York's very own statue of liberty has a couple of sisters here in Paris, one of which Mum and I went to see today. Amusingly, neither of us have seen the one in New York... but at least now we've seen one of the ones in Paris! It's a start, right? She's pretty small, but I think we got some decent pictures. We walked along the Seine and photographed her and some of the architecture around the area, and decided that Dublin was nicer for bridges. There was one every five minute walk or so. Paris, not so much. Our feet weren't very pleased with us, but we pushed on. It helped that we came across a creperie and purchased two ham and cheese crepes. Yeah, yeah, doesn't do much good for my feet. But if the stomach is happy, everything's happy. ;-)

The best thing, really, was that the Statue of Liberty was only about a twenty minute walk from none other than the Eiffel Tower! (that's where you thought I was going earlier, wasn't it?)

Just like with Versailles, we'd gotten our tickets ahead of time, for three in the afternoon. That meant we could get in to the underside of the tower whenever we wanted, but couldn't go up into the tower itself until three. Which nothing really said online, so if you were wondering, that's how it works.

Due to the tickets not working until three, we hung out for a bit in the park and looked up some shops in the area. Oh yeah, and it was cold.

When we looked up the forecast for this trip, during the planning stages and even a couple weeks ago when we were packing and getting ready to go, it was supposed to be sunny and in the upper sixties while we were here. It's not. It's chilly, in the mid to high fifties, windy, foggy, and it's supposed to rain. Not cool, weather. Well, I guess it's too cool. Grr... Anyway, we were cold, and we thought shopping might warm us up. That will make sense if you're an avid shopper. Trying on clothes is not a cool event.

There's a street called the Rue Du Commerce, only about a twenty minute walk from the Eiffel Tower, and it's not a very touristy area. It's more of a locals scene, with venders selling meats, fruits, and cheeses, alongside shops of every shape and size selling pretty much everything you could ever want. We had about an hour and a half to spare when we got there, so we fit in as many shops as we could, and I ended up with a wrap to keep my ears warm and a pair of fingerless gloves so my hands wouldn't freeze and I could still take pictures. Woo!

Now, if you ever go shopping in Paris, there's something you should check for. A lot of the stores, even the ones claiming to only sell stuff made in France, are selling things that are made in China. So if you're looking for some authentic Parisian stuff, you'll need to read the labels. A lot of what we saw this day was made in India and China, and for what I got it really didn't matter, but I'll certainly be looking for something more Parisian before we leave.

Before we'd had our fill, it was time to head back to the tower.

I'd heard, before we left, both sides of the spectrum as to how big the Eiffel Tower is. Some people told me that it's way bigger than you'd expect. Others said that it's dinky and not worth a visit. If you've heard both of those and you take both opinions into account, you'll probably be expecting about the right size. It's not huge, but it's not dinky. It's exactly the size that I thought it would be. And it's also a lot of fun.

There are a couple little shops and eateries down on the ground, but the fun stuff is up above. (also, never buy anything from any of the guys right outside the doors -- a lot of them are pickpockets or are working with pickpocketers, so it's very dangerous to event attempt getting anything from them)

If you come with a reservation, as soon as it's time, they'll let you up into the tower itself. Wait in line for about five minutes, and an elevator will take you to the middle level. Here, there are souvenir shops, a macaron shop, an eatery, and some great views of the city. The macarons are amazing and you should definitely get one. We were going to take a picture of us eating them, as evidence that we ate macarons on the Eiffel Tower... but instead we just ate them, because they're delicious.

When you're getting your tickets, make sure you get the ones that will take you all the way to the summit of the tower. It's really not that much more expensive, and if you're going to go, you might as well go to the top. It can take up to a half hour in line to get up there, but I think it's worth it just to say you've been there, and of course to see the views. Pictures when we get home -- I promise!

All in all, the tower was a great deal of fun. We enjoyed ourselves, took many pictures, and ended up spending about an hour and a half there in total. There's not a ton to see and do, but there's enough to fill a couple hours if there's a lot you want to see from up there.

When we'd had our fill, we went back the way we'd come and walked along the Seine once more, this time closer to Notre Dame (which is beautiful, by the way, and which we'll go to later in the trip), and found a place for dinner. Charcuterie in Paris is just as good as you'd think it would be, and you should certainly get some while you're here. Also, get the duck, and eat the fat. Duck fat is as good for you as it is delicious when it's done right, and the French know their duck. Yummmmmmmm... I'd tell you where we ate, but I honestly don't know. I suggest just walking around and reading menus until you find something to your liking. Most restaurants in tourist areas have menus in both French and English, so it shouldn't be hard to find something. :-)

[love and macarons]

{Rani D.}