The next morning Sheila wanted to take Lianne and I on a tour of Versailles so once we got all ready we left the house. Pulling up to the Palace of Versailles both Lianne and I were gazing forward and upon seeing what we thought was the palace we were amazed and commented on it only to be told by Sheila that we were looking at the stables and the palace was behind us. After parking the car we set off to explore the immense grounds of the palace where we planned on spending the rest of the day. Our first stop was to wander around the huge gardens which made the gardens at Schloss Schonbrunn in Vienna look tiny in comparison. We spent a couple of hours wandering around the paths, almost getting lost a few times, admiring all of the different trees and flowers and the spectacular fountains which were unfortunately mostly turned off. After admiring the beauty of the gardens for a while we enjoyed a quick bite to eat in a small cafe in the gardens before getting our tickets to tour the interior of the palace. Inside the palace we got to enjoy a great audio guide while wandering through several different rooms, all furnished from the time when they were used, including: meeting rooms, bedrooms, the newly renovated hall of mirrors where the Treaty of Versailles was signed after WWI, dining rooms, studies, and many more. The tour through the palace was fantastic and we enjoyed spending a few hours wandering the magnificent rooms of the palace before we made our way to visit the Grand Trianon and the Petit Trianon where we hoped to visit the gardens but were told our ticket didn't work so we just set off to return home. That evening we enjoyed a delicious home cooked meal for the first time in a long time and spent the night relaxing and watching a movie with Celine.
The following day was our one day tour of Paris which was to be given by Celine. So after an early morning and a quick breakfast we set off to explore Paris. Our day in Paris was absolutely jam packed and we tried to see absolutely everything there was to see in only the one day so we started off with the Jardin des Plantes which was a beautiful garden located in the heart of Paris before moving off to see the Arenes de Lutece, an ancient Roman theatre. We then proceeded to wander around some beautiful streets and stopped to enjoy a french pastry outside the unusual front of the Pompidou Museum. We then made our way to see the Hotel de Ville before making our way to Notre Dame. Notre Dame was the first building that we entered on our city tour and the interior of the church was even more spectacular than the outside. From Notre Dame we crossed the Seine to the entered the ground for the Louvre where we walked around the glass pyramid of the entrance hall but due to time constraints we decided not to enter it. Instead we went to a nice park just in front of the Louvre where we were able to sit down and enjoy our packed lunch. After enjoying our lunch at in front of the Louvre we proceeded to walk down the shop filled avenue of Champs-Elysees before finding ourselves at the Arc de Triomphe. After admiring the Arc de Triomphe we hopped on the metro to head to the Eiffel Tower, Paris's most famous landmark. We spent a while wandering around the Eiffel Tower although we elected not to join the enormous lineup to ride to the top as there were still other sights that we wanted to see. Leaving the Eiffel Tower we got back on the metro and made our way to the Sacre Coeur, a church that sits atop the highest point in Paris. In the neighbourhood of the Sacre Coeur we also saw the Moulin Rouge burlesque palace and wandered around an artsy area of Paris. By this point it was getting fairly late in the day so we made our way to the Opera House for a quick visit before heading back to the train station to catch a train back to Plaisir. That night we again enjoyed a deliciously home cooked meal and relaxed at home with a movie before heading to bed.
The next morning was our last day in Paris and so for the morning Celine gave us a short tour around Plaisir including several of the places she used to hang out while growing up. After the tour of Plaisir we returned back to Celine's house for lunch before Celine set off to Dijon for university and we started to make our way south with my aunt and uncle south to Narbonne. The majority of the afternoon was spent driving south but towards the end of the afternoon we made a stop in Vichy to wander around the city for a while. Vichy is a picturesque city that contains some medicinal thermal springs which we saw. After wandering around the town we found a place and enjoyed dinner before continuing down the road a bit more to find a hotel for the night.
The next morning we set off again nice and early to get to Narbonne. We spent most of the morning in the car and stopped only for a short lunch break and sightseeing stop at the Millau Viaduct, a large bridge that was recently completed. That afternoon we continued to Narbonne where we met Claudine, my cousin, her husband Phillipe and their son Alexandre.
Lianne and I standing in front of one of the fountains in the garden at the Palace of Versailles.
The newly renovated Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles.
Our tour guide Celine and myself standing in front of the Notre Dame.
The Arc de Triomphe.
Lianne, Celine and myself standing in front of the Eiffel Tower.
Sacre Coeur, the highest point in Paris.
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