Adventure. Memory-making. Or, maybe…. freezing off our fingers and noses. That is a succinct explanation of our trip out to Versailles.
The high for the day was not much above 30 degrees and there was a biting, strong wind with a steady heavy drizzle. As we got off the train the wind whipped right through our coats and the 10 minute walk to the palace seemed to stretch forever. Once we made it to the palace, despite the fact that we had pre-purchased tickets, there was a line that extended from the palace down to the gates and back up again in a U-shape. There was no getting out of the fact that we had to wait in that line and do our best to comfort the miserable younger kids. Eventually, we reached the security checkpoint and were thrilled to experience the relative warmth of the palace. Versailles is stunning in its grandeur. The amount that was spent on this residence is astounding. As is the number of tourists who showed up to gawk at it on such a horribly uncomfortable day for sight seeing!
After we finished the tour it was back to the train station where it was announced that the next train would be 14 (or 40… we weren’t quite sure. It ended up being about 20 minutes) late. Another session of trying to shelter children from wind and rain and then we were finally on the metro back home. The penguins are from the Happy Meals the kids earned. Despite the fact that I was somewhat heartbroken to resort to McDonalds in Paris, I was quite won over by the fantastic touch screen ordering system.
