The Hall of Mirrors was way too packed for pirouettes. Shucks =/

We started our day off by swinging past the corner bakery and fruit and veggie stand. The bread in France is delicious, no surprise there, however I have been really taken back by how friendly everyone we have met has been. We have yet to encounter anyone who has given us any sign that they are annoyed with us because we are Americans (or from Finish). On the contrary, when someone realizes that our French is limited to what Kate took in high school, everyone has been really quick to switch to English. And what I find even more astounding is how they react when they find out Kate and I are from America. It is the complete opposite from the stereotypical nose in the air, I don't like America reaction, you guys are dumb for electing Bush twice (fair point ;] ) I was expecting.

I'm pretty sure that little digression started with remembering how nice the bakery owner was =] & how delicious the baguettes were! We grabbed a baguette from the bakery, fruit from the produce store, and then stopped at a grocery store really quick for cheese and waters before heading to the metro. Versailles is about an hour outside of Paris with the RER, and we figured that we could eat our picnic in the gardens before going into the palace itself. The train ride wasn't very long, but holy cow was it HOT. I love Europe so much, but for the life of me I cannot understand why they have not come to love air conditioning. I mean, who wants to be sitting in a crowded train sweating with smelly men when there is such an easy alternative?! I will never understand...

We got to Versailles around 11 or so and followed the crowd of people to the Château. We had to wait in a longgg line, but considering we lucked out so well and didn't have to wait in line to get into the Louvre yesterday, I feel that it was only fair. Because Susanna is from Finland, she didn't have to pay to get into the palace, just to get into the gardens. For a second, I thought I was going to be lucky enough and not have to pay either (which would have saved around 20€), but my visa is for 5 months and it needed to be at least for 6. Oh well...

After we got our tickets, we headed up to the Gardens of Versailles. It was SO hot and we were a little worried about the cheese going bad, so we found a bench and made our picnic before walking around the grounds. Who would have guessed that bread, cheese, and bananas could taste so good!? After our picnic we followed the signs to the mirror fountains. Because we went on a Saturday, the fountains were accompanied by classical music, and that was quite cool! But on the downside, Saturdays are crawling with tourists like you wouldn't believe...

We wandered around the gardens for a couple hours and enjoyed all of the different fountains and statues. I think the three of us were also quite envious of the people out in cute little rowboats on the lake... although we agreed that what we really wanted to do was jump in the water ;]

After we had seen enough of the gardens, we headed to get in line to enter the palace. The line looked ridiculous, but luckily for us it moved quite quickly and before we knew it, we were in the palace. Except the "entrance" we had used wasn't technically an entrance, as we realized when we got scolded for going up a "down" staircase... But everything was okay once we figured out how to enter the palace "correctly." It was absolutely beautiful. Crowded beyond belief, but nevertheless beautiful. & the place was HUGE! Because there were so many tourists, we were pretty much being herded through the place, and it still took us awhile to get through. & have I mentioned yet that it was hot!? ;]

We were exhausted and in need of a bathroom and something cold when we got out of the Château, so we headed for McDonalds. I would be more ashamed of admitting it if it weren't for the fact that we had been there earlier to use their restroom, and they had AC! It felt like Heaven... add a flurry to the equation, and I was once again a very happy girl and ready to brave the sweaty ride back to the city on the RER.

I still hadn't gotten pictures of the Eiffel Tower during the day time yet, so I talked the girls into getting off at a different RER station that was closer to the Eiffel Tower with the idea that I would take pictures and then we could head back to the hostel on foot. Well... on the way, we passed a lot of really cute boutiques. Shops close at 6. It was 5. So it was basically a mad dash from shop to shop, but I was pretty happy with what I came away with. No high heels =/ but maybe that's for the best seeing as how I have a hard enough time walking in heels as it is ;]

It was Kate's last night in Paris, so the three of us decided to get a little dressed up and go out for a nice dinner. We found this cute little restaurant in the same area as our hostel... and the waiter thought that Susanna was pretty cute, too! ;] After he found out she was from Finland, he started talking about how he has wanted to visit Finland for the longest time... then he asked when she would be home from Germany... and then he asked for her number so that he could visit her! I think Kate and I were both surprised when Susanna gave it to him, although thinking about what I would do in that situation, it would probably have been the same thing. But as soon as the waiter left, Susanna told us with this sly grin "Oh no! I think I mixed up a couple numbers..." =] we all started to laugh... She definitely was quicker on her feet than I would have been, that's for sure!

After dinner we headed for the Eiffel Tower so that Kate would be able to see it once more before she left. We brought a bottle of wine along, and we were planning on just drinking the wine and enjoying the view, but then it started to rain. =/ So we headed for the first brasserie for drinks and dessert with our opened bottle of wine that we had barely taken 3 sips out of concealed in an H&M bag and hiding under the table. After drinks and dessert we ventured out into the rain and happily saw that we had picked a brasserie right next to a metro station =] We took the metro one stop back to our hostel, and made it back (almost) completely dry. We decided to drink our wine while watching the Gilmore Girls I had brought (auf deutsch, natürlich), and despite the rain, it turned out to be a very enjoyable night.

PS Jess, Jess and Missy -- I definitely fell asleep watching GG ;]