Blog from Paris 5-27-09

Versailles was beautiful. I got there right before it rained, but it ended up clearing up after a half hour. I walked around a lot of little side trails which made me want to go backpacking. The fountains in the garden were really neat, but I didn't get to all of them. Half of the ones I saw weren't even on because they only run for certain hours of the day. I didn't realize this when I first got there because I couldn't really read the French map of the area.

I met up with David last night. We went to an awesome little restaurant called Cav du Vin (I think) which is translated as The Wine Cave. It had a great selection of wines, and we had a Rhone with cheese and meat plates. It was perfect. Then, we went to Sacre Coeur which is the highest point in Paris where we got a great view of the whole city.

Today, the day we had planned turned out nothing like our plan. Our day started off late (big surprise), and at Gare du Nord we ended up meeting a group of three travelers from the States who couldn't get a train to Bordeaux. Their names are Meredith, Robert, and Mike. They hung out with us for the day. This we did in place of visiting a well-known cemetery. We had lunch on the Pont des Arts bridge across the Seine River because another picnic we had planned was cancelled. Then we walked around all day. We then had dinner at Thomas's apartment (not really his apartment, but he's taking care of it for the Plasters). David made quiche and a mushroom appetizer and we had a 2006 Bordeaux from Haut Medoc. It was very tasty. Now we're just hanging out. I think we're going to head to a pub to catch some of the Champions League final. Manchester United v. Barcelona. Fantastic. I've been craving some soccer in my life.

It was really good to see David. First, it was good to see a familiar face. Second, it helped to have someone who could speak French. The last night we talked for a while which was really good for me. And, I was able to go to more "French" places to eat instead of just the sandwich shops I could find (although those sandwiches were very tasty). Hanging out with David was cathartic, and I feel quite refreshed.