My last day in France, after a delicious breakfast of fresh croissants, I went to see Versailles. I almost didn’t get to see it, since it wasn’t in the original plan, but I’m so glad that I did. It’s so beautiful out there; it’s pretty much a huge park that’s virtually free to enter so locals come to jog, skate, and teach their children to ride bicycles. Up by the chateau it’s more touristy, but down along the water or through the park it’s all locals, at least at this time of year. We walked Polo around so it was really fun.
Versailles is massive, to put it mildly. It’s so big and done on such a grand scale that you almost can’t get a real sense of how big it is, because every part of it is equally big. Plus, there is so much wealth on display—no wonder there was a revolution, when palaces like this are being built while people are starving! Here come a lot of photos:
It would have taken way more time than I had to do Versailles properly, and I didn’t even go inside, but I’m glad I got to see it.
After Versailles we went back to the house for a delicious lunch and then Nick and I went on a bike ride. He showed me where his school was and then we biked along the Seine, which was beautiful, and also a fun thing to be able to say I’ve done. Unfortunately, Nick’s back tire popped somewhere along the Seine…It was a bit difficult as he walked back and I rode slowly beside him. It was pretty funny, but then we started worrying I would be late. We finally reached the street his house is on, although on the far end, and I rode ahead. I made it back fine, put my stuff in the car and headed out. We actually passed him on the way and I felt pretty bad; I didn’t even get to say a proper goodbye, and he had to walk the rest of the way home since I had to be taken to the airport. Nick, if you’re reading this, sorry about that! I had a really great time anyway!
Unlike the end of my Istanbul trip, where three days was too much, I was very sad to leave Paris and could easily have spent many more days exploring this wonderful city. I will most definitely be back sometime in the future—Paris just has too much to offer that I want to take advantage of!
My connecting flight to Rome got in a little late, and at a gate a little far from the one I needed to be at, so I made a mad dash through Fiumicino to get to where I needed to be, only to discover the gate had been changed and make another crazy run. I began to worry I wouldn’t be able to eat anything but peanuts (which, to be fair, were crackers with sundried tomatoes on Alitalia), but my flight to Thessaloniki was delayed for about an hour and a half due to bad weather. I didn’t have to rush after all.
Now I’m back, going to class living life in Thessaloniki once more. Tomorrow is my first day volunteering at the soup kitchen, where they only speak Greek. We’ll see how this turns out. At any rate, my Paris trip was amazing, I’m so glad I went and recommend this city with five stars and two thumbs up to anyone thinking about visiting!
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