The Puppy.

Today I saw a little poodle puppy standing on the street by itself looking around for love. It had no collar and it looked at me with such big eyes.

Saddest thing I have seen since I have been here.

Catacombs.

Dead bodies. Everywhere. Went down 130 steps and was in a tunnel 45 minutes long. It was a lot of fun going with friends, because we were able to make jokes and we had people to talk to. But I think that if I had gone by myself I would've been thoroughly creeped out.
Bordering the passageways of the tunnels were skulls arranged in a pattern and bones piled up according to type of bone. It makes you wonder who arranged them in the hearts and crosses we saw. Very cool experience.

The Fairytale Garden.

The garden of Versailles and Marie Anotoinette's village honestly felt as if it had come out of a fairytale. It was very weird that I had seen this type of thing before... at Disneyland, and here it was still running as a farm and garden. We met up with some friends and then shared some wine by the huge canal that Louis had built because he admired Venice.

 I hate pictures of horses. So I took one.

 Plants growing out of the roof.

 As a wedding photographer it's hard to get over these cheesy bridges.

 I am pretty sure that is where Cinderella or Snow White lived.

Some Photos of Versaille.

Photos of the Garden to come.


Segways at Versaille. I gave up on not looking like a tourist and brought my SLR.

Stupid tourists. I waited a good 40 seconds for them to move then gave up.

I am trying to find a balance between photos of the palace and photos that I just liked as photos.

Coolest part of the tour. The Opera house built for Louis's wedding to Marie Antoinette. It had moving floors so that it could be used as a ball room or dining room and it took 500,000 candles a night to light.

For Julie: Madame Pampadour's Chamber.

Bright Idea: Let's put Japanese "Modern Art" in the middle of Versaille.

It's not enough to have your image painted... It needs to be painted by Gods.

The gang in the morning.

The Castle of Versaille

My feet ache. My back hurts. I have a headache. And I had so much fun today it is all worth it. We went to Versaille today, Kashia, Monika and Julien and I (Couchsurfers: Polish, Bulgarian, French) and we took a tour of the private bedrooms and of the usual spots. The Hall of Mirrors etc. It was great, we by[assed the huge line by buying a tour ticket for only one euro more, we explored on our own then took a tour with a very well educated French woman and we were able to go to the bedrooms and the Opera. I learned amazing things and it made it clear that things are much more interesting when you know more about them. As soon as I got back I started reading about the rooms we saw in my Rick Steves guide. I won’t relate what I learned here because  this isn’t a history blog but rather about my experiences.

            After our tour, our two French friends met up with us and we did a tour of the extensive gardens. I will wait to describe the area until I have some pictures up, but will say that we explored a lot, hopped a fence, drank wine, fed a swan, and did cartwheels and handstands (and back flips for one) until we got on the train and came back. A very well spent day off.

September 18th, 2010

Dear _________,

I am so sorry I have been unable to write you. I know your feelings are hurt when I neglect you but there hasn’t been enough time in the day. That… plus my internet is out again so I am writing this tonight and will post in tomorrow.  Anyways, it’s midnight and I am tired, but I thought I should let you know that the Coushsurfing picnic today was delightful and I met with all sorts of people: au pairs, travelers, parisiennes etc., and that after we all went on a nice 30 minute stroll to the Notre Dame where we wine tasted along the Seine, danced to a Tuba playing “Tequila,” and where I had my first escargot. I just finished reading what Rick Steve’s wrote about Versaille, because we are going there tomorrow for the free day. It will be crowded, and I will look like a tourist, and I will enjoy it.

            Yours truly,

M

P.S. You may not believe me, but I honestly feel like my English has gotten worse from only speaking with people who speak English as a second language.

Check it out.

Katzenjammer. Girl Band. Really like it.

A sum-up.

I haven't been able to blog in too long so everything has been building up. I guess I will quickly just go over what I have done recently without too much detail. Everyday there has been something so exciting, that by the time I get free time to write it down either online or in my journal, I am just so tired that I just crash instead. 

Went to a Puppet show with the boys, all in French, on the Champ des Mars. It was very cute. All the kids in the audience were great, yelling at the stage and participating. It was a cute little theater with tiny benches. I may try to get the boys to go again so I can take pictures of the stage. It was too cute. Yesterday I had all day off so Kasia and I explored a bit. We went to the musee Branly, a musuem with collections of ancient civilizations, a collection of African, Oceanic, and American tribal art. It was very interesting, and the museum layout itself was artwork. We then came back to my place and had lunch on my rooftop before leaving for Montmartre. 

When we got there we checked out the cemetery where we saw the de Gas family's, and Rodin's gravestone/chapels. We then walked up to Sacre Coeur and we past Amelie's market from the movie. We went up top and saw the very crowded Church. It was cool just stumbling upon the Carousel from the movie. I will definitely go back with my camera and be more of a tourist, I wanted to hang out longer, but as it was we just wanted dinner. So we bought some beer and some sandwiches and sat on the Seine by Notre Dame and watched the Cathedral as it faded to dark. It was a great day, and we have made plans to keep ourselves busy for quite some time. Tonight we are going to a quiz game at a bar hosted by Couchsurfers. And tomorrow we are going to La Defense on the outskirts of Paris.

Lastly, the other night I wanted to blog but couldn't, and I wrote this:

 "So I haven’t blogged in a while. Even though the most exciting moments have been in the past week.  As it is: I wish you could be here with me. Whoever you are, you’d love it."

Today I plan on picnicking on the Champ de Mars, and working on my college essays. (...KG) 

The First Night In Paris.

Technically, it was last night, but I didn't have internet connection so I am copying what I wrote last night and am placing it here:


In the past 30 days, I have traveled by car, bus, train, boat, metro and airplane. I can't think of any other real method of travel. Qucik, tell me what I have forgotten so I can go do it.

White Bed Sheets
My room is all white. White sheets, white blanket white pillows, white towels, white walls and white bed. I don't think I can keep it clean. I have already spilt choclate crumbs on the bed spread.

Home at last
I finally moved into my room. It is funny, amazing, tiny and perfect. I did get my hopes up when someone siad I might have a few of the eiffel tower, but that is my only complaint. The Tower is just hidden behind a chimney to my left. But my view is quite lovely and I can see city lights. Oh, and the room makes lots of noise. It's alive for sure.

Tonight I got dressed in a black henly, my hair was tied in a cute but unintential pony, and I put on makeup and I went for a walk around the Eiffel Tower. I has in such a good mood that I was on a roll. Two old women were asking a frenchman about a builing that was lit up, I heard him saying that he didn't understand so I turned around and explained to them what I knew about that building,all three thanked me as I walked away. Vendors kept talking to me and I answered brightly and friendly but kept walking without buying anything and I took pictures for families who had an odd person out taking the photo. All in all, a vey good day.

Two More Days.

Two more days till Paris. Two more days till Paris. Two more days till Paris. Two more days till Paris.

One more day here then a train ride to my new home.