11^th October, 2013 – 2 Paris icons and the start of the long trip home.

After our last hotel breakfast for the trip, we checked out of the hotel but had our luggage put into the store room while we went out for the day. By now we have the transport system pretty well sorted out, but the Metro stations in Paris often have multiple entrances with few or no connections in between – we went into one we hadn’t used before and found that they didn’t have a ticket window or machines to buy tickets! Up to ground level again, couldn’t see another entrance, went into a shop and asked the shop assistant where to buy tickets. We could make ourselves understood but couldn’t make head or tail of her response! Another shopper took pity on us and explained in (mostly) fluent English where to find another Metro entrance, where we could buy tickets. She didn’t know the word for traffic lights - told us we had to walk to the thing that is red and green, which baffled us briefly!

We found ourselves at a different entrance to the same station, but the stations are often so close together that it could just as easily have been a different station, on a different line, and we would have had to re-plan our route. Overall though, the train system is very clearly marked and easy to use. We never really had to change trains more than once to get where we needed to go, and we never had to wait more than 3 minutes for a Metro train and they generally go pretty fast. In fact, probably the most time-consuming part seems to be when you do have to change trains, having to walk quite long distances (usually underground, not always) between platforms.

Anyway, we found ourselves in a bit of a rush after that, but still made it in time. We had a big plan for this morning – we were doing the Eiffel Tower!

We booked our tickets months ago over the internet. With a bit of planning, we were on line at the exact time that bookings opened for today’s tickets, and managed to get the highly coveted tickets to go right to the top level! Although it still would have been worth booking on line even if we’d missed out on tickets to the top, because the queues at the Eiffel Tower ticket windows were huge, and we just went straight through a separate entry for pre-booked tickets with no queue at all. By the way, we had tickets for 9:30, which is the earliest available time, and a lot of people must be late (trying to work out where to get their train tickets perhaps) because there were not many people going up to the top level at all at that time. It was getting much more crowded by the time we left.

To get to the top, you take a lift that goes diagonally, rather than straight up, to begin. Quite similar to the funicular we went on yesterday, really. This goes about half way and then you change to a regular lift to get to the very top. It was a bit scary going all that way up but it was worth it! At the top, there is a room with windows all around the way around and the lift in the middle. There is then a short flight of stairs to a top deck which has wire mesh rather than windows, so it is open to the weather. It’s a bit scary but well protected – you can’t lean out over the edge or anything – and the views are just incredible.

Just the views of the tower itself from the different levels and from the lifts are worth a look.

The weather was grey but not actually raining while we were up there – it would be even more spectacular on a clear day.

(Yes, those are people walking up the stairs. Not to the top level, you can only go about half way by foot).

Back down to earth and under, to the railway station – the same one we arrived at for the Eiffel Tower, but a completely different part. It’s strange to walk so far underground from one part of the station to another, and quite baffling since the stations are so close together. There are 4 stations within a short walk of our hotel, so how can it possibly be so far to walk around the 1 station?

This time we were catching a RER train, not the Metro – these go overland, outside the immediate city area. After only 25 minutes or so, we were in Versailles, home to the palace which housed the French monarchy from the 17^th Century until the French Revolution. Amazing place, it really sets a new standard for over-the-top luxury. You can see why the revolution happened; building yourself a place like this is really no way to behave!

It was sunny but with rain on the way when we arrived, and the gold on the buildings was lit up in the sunlight with black clouds behind... spectacular.

When you enter, you see long, empty rooms with columns and statues. (It was much, much busier and more crowded than these photos make it look – some of these rooms were roped off).

We moved through to the royal apartments – this is where it gets really lavish.

The Hall of Mirrors – well, it’s a hall, and there are mirrors. Also chandeliers. It’s all quite magnificent.

Going through room after room of gilded splendour becomes overwhelming after a while, and we felt ready to go out to explore the gardens. It had been raining heavily while we were inside and there was still a bit of drizzle as we strolled around. The gardens are huge, and it was already well after lunch time so we didn’t plan to stay long. We ambled along paths and lawns, through avenues of trees and past lakes and fountains.

Just as the rain started back up in earnest, we noticed a small restaurant tucked away in a shady grove. There was outdoor seating with rain covers, and the food was reasonably priced, so we stopped for lunch. And wow, what a lunch! If you are ever at Versailles, find the Brasserie de la Girandole, and see if the duck confit is on the daily specials blackboard.

By the time we’d finished, so had the rain. That worked well! So, back through the gardens, out of the palace and we were soon on the train back to Paris. Then, sadly, it was time to collect our bags and head to the airport. Now there is nothing to do but hang around airports and planes for the next day and a half!