Let them Eat Cake!

​July 19

We got to sleep in a bit this morning and Alastair made eggs for breakfast again. We packed lunches (sandwiches, water, chips) for our day trip. Around 10am, we left the apartment and took 2 metro rides and a train to get to Versailles. Dagny put my hair up into a really cute updo while we waited to get in!

We started with a self-guided tour of the palace of Versailles which is massive! We visited on a Sunday and it was unfortunately packed. 

We were eager to explore the gardens and once outside, we had a picnic lunch. We also found some chocolate cake and tables where we could play cards. I had this chocolate cake 2 years ago while visiting with Palmer and our friends. I remember it being much better.

After cake, we walked to the Queen’s Hamlet and everyone was starting to get sleepy. Mags wanted to lay down in the grass and while she napped, the three of us walked around and found many farm animals, including some goats who head butted one another. 

We collected Magnolia and then walked back through Le Gran Trianon on our way back to the train station. Overall a successful, but sleepy, day trip.

Once back in Paris, we made our way to Bastille to La Fée Verte to try absinthe. A trickle of water is used to slowly melt a torched sugar cube into the glass of absinthe and the whole production is fascinating.

After lots of cards, we made our way to Bouillon Pigalle for dinner and again, waited in a long line. This was a much later dinner than our usual and the restaurant was packed. Unfortunately, the food and service were both laughably bad. We waited in line for well over 30 minutes, and it took another 20 minutes at least before our server made any attempt to take our drink order. When he did, it was to jokingly decline my order of still water, which I didn’t find funny. We watched him shatter at least 4 dishes, he blurted sounds at us, and charged us for soups that we didn’t order. His behavior was so erratic throughout our whole meal, we decided he must be high on some substance. Our food was also less than amazing so we skipped dessert and moved on.

Our last stop of the night (Alastair was dragging us all along at this point) was to the Sacré-Cœur Basilica. The stairs that we climbed to reach the top of Montmarte were brutal but the sunset overlook was worth the effort.

It’s always a blessing to travel with my family and the four of us laughed all the way back to the apartment. Alastair even wrote a little song about Magnolia to the tune of “Bella Ciao.”

Adelaide

The Great Equalizer

​July 18

We tackled a lot for our first full day in Paris! Alastair woke us all up this morning with homemade breakfast in bed which was incredible. He likes having his own kitchen in an AirBnB and we all benefit.

We took the metro straight to the Eiffel Tower and raced to the entrance (slightly late) for our 11am tickets. After a very long security line, we climbed to the 2nd floor of the tower which is 674 steps! The views are beautiful and we walked around and around. I was missing Palmer because he was with me last time I was in Paris.

We grabbed some Nutella crepes before climbing down and chugging a bunch of (free) water. We took the metro to the very popular Bouillon Chartier. I’ve never been to a Bouillon before but Alastair’s got a whole food tour for us in Paris, obviously. 

After waiting in a long line, we were seated in what feels like a fancy cafeteria. The low prices meant that we got to try many appetizers (escargot, pâté, etc), main courses (duck, sausage, etc), and desserts (apple sauce, chocolate mousse, cream puff, etc).

We had planned to walk around and see some things, but we had such a slow lunch that we headed straight to the Paris Catacomb Museum. I’d never been to the catacombs before and it was absolutely worth the extra stairs for the day. As someone who’s studied human anatomy, I was fascinated by the bones. As a person, I was touched by the mass burial site.

Dagny and I walked through the catacombs together and were equally affected. The quote that stood out to me the most in the museum comes from a visitor in 1809: “I visited the temple of true equality.” We’re all the same in the end.

We headed back to the AirBnB for a pasta dinner and some downtime after such a big day and so many stairs climbed.

Adelaide