Grandiose Versailles.

photo by h.Lo on Flickr.

We woke up early to take the RER to Versailles. Our book warned of the crowds, but there is no way we could have prepared for the madness that lie ahead. Versailles is beyond crowded, and even worse, giant in a way that makes it nearly impossible to tour properly.

Costing around $70 for two of us, the Le Passport combo ticket got us into the chateau, gardens and Trianon palaces. Spendy! The chateau was so intensely crowded with tour groups that we rushed through as quickly as possible. Those kind of crowds just kill it for me. The Hall of Mirrors was quite a sight, though, so I suppose the experience was worth it.

Outside in the gardens, the sun was heating the place up. The fountains were dancing and the crowds swarming. Still, the gardens are undeniably beautiful. If only they were still surrounded by grass...

We took the 45 minute (!) walk to Marie Antoinette's Petit Trianon and hamlet. This is where it's at. If we ever revisit this place, we will skip the chateau and just spend time here. It is magical beyond words, truly like a theme park of sorts. I experienced a Stendahl moment admiring the Hamlet's picture perfect mill. The crowds here were basically nonexistent, as well. Might be too much to ask people to walk that far.

After visiting Marie Antoinette's former home, our feet were throbbing, backs hurting and heat exhausted. We returned to Paris for a nice nap before going to the Eiffel Tower at 7:30. While the views are indeed lovely, the time spent in line at the tower is not. Our reservations got us to the second level quickly, but ascending and descending the summit took over an hour because of the lines involved. Considering the view was not even that spectacular from the top, we learned a lesson here. Stay on the second level at the Eiffel Tower! The sun began to set on the way down and rain came in, so we took off for dinner as soon as we were on the ground again.

A couple of short blocks away from the tower is Cafe Constant. We were able to secure a table within a few minutes. I had the roast chicken and potatoes, Shawn had the steak with mashed potatoes. We also took the artichoke heart and button mushroom salad I tasted with Susie just last year. Everything was so tasty, this place is solid.