Finalmente, un dia bueno.

Last night I went to bed at about midnight, but someone noisily left the room about 2 am... then some people noisily cam in the room about 6am and somone was snoring SOO loud that it took about 7 or 8 to get back to sleep... so I just decided I would sleep in and hope for the best. Sleep in I did! Getting up very refreshed and thirsty (I have decidedly not gotten enough water on this trip) I needed a place with food - cheap.

So, I went out and first got lunch, a beautiful panini with mozzarella, ham and tomato just around the corner, with hard cider. I managed to do all of that entirely in French! I was very proud. Then I walked to Gare D'Austerlitz and had a difficult time figuring out how to find my train, when to expect it and so on... but eventually I made it onto the 'VICK' train to Versailles. When I was getting lunch at that inexpensive local cafe, I understood most all of the menu, except one thing: Thon. I was liavel to think it may live in Valhalla and carry a hammer, but no, the amused cafe owner told me it actually means tuna. How silly of me. While sitting on the train waiting to depart from Austerlitz, two very heavily armed and very dangerous-looking French army-men meandered by. I don't know where they were going, but I don't suspect it's anywhere to surrender....

It took 10 minutes for the trains to depart, very curious, maybe having something to do with those two heavily armed army men. While on the train and really most of the time, I have noticed that the fashion in Europe these days is somewhat old school... very old school - the equestrian woman: riding-type boots (usually leather, up to the top of the calf - BOOTS, not stilettos, haven't seen any of those), very tight minimally-seamed pants, everywhere P-coats, and in Paris, a beret. For the men, most of them seem like fashionable New Yorkers, jeans are extremely normal if not the only non-formal choice, and apparantly the best shoe choices are exactly not what I have. I'm not sure how quite to describe what is common in shoeware. I really like the fashion though, very casual or very attractive. When people say that Europe is more formal, perhaps they mean that noone ever walks on the street with disgusting Ugg boots and floppy sweat pants or anything of the sort, everyone is very well kept and chic.
Another thing that I like about Paris is that all written prices seem to include taxes - you pay exactly what is written and don't have to guess about taxes. Also, they write their number 'one's differently: as if the little clef on the top of the formal American 1 has grown the size of the rest of the number, and minues the funny little platform.
Culinarily, I LOVE the specializatio of Paris, it's very easy to find specificall a bread store or a cheese stor or a meat store or a chocolate store, or an olive oil store, like I found. It's perfectly lovely! I wouldn't mind living here for a while: great stuff, relatively cheap (though I guess everything is, compared with London), interesting and beautiful language - although the land is difficult on my legs. And it's so multicultural! I can speak any of several languages and be understood most anywhere. It impressed me how many people here speak Spanish, I didn't expect that.
Another thing is that contrary to what I could imagine about the French hating stupid Americans, I have had nothing but extremely friendly people to talk to here - all genuinely nice people!

(written later, on the returning train from Versailles) It seems that today turned out very well indeed, mornings can be deceptive, or at least big expectations are easily let down. Today I had very low expectations because I woke up late and got woken up so much last night, but I was blown out of the waters! After my fabulous lunch, I made my way out to the train stop to Versailles where I was expecting a fee of about €12 for the whole trip, but it was just €5, round trip! Not bad, wot? The trip took less than an hour and there I was, in Versailles! So then I went in to get a ticket, which I was expecting to cost €14, but the nice gentleman at the info desk told me that if I were to wait another hour walking through the gardens, it would cost just €11. So I went around expecting a nice garden of reasonable size. NO. Not at all. This was... beyond words, the very scope of it is beyond my belief and I could spend days describing the details. From the back of the palace there is a large staircase after a generously huge courtyard. Then there is a grand lawn which must go on for half a mile at least. Surrounding that lanw is a ridiculous criss-crossing of shrubberies and trees, studded by outrageously beautiful and decorative statues. Those statues also lined the entire exent of the lawn. Simply outrageously extravagant. Beyond the lawn is a mile-long poow, lin the shape of a cross, only the top is as long as the bottom. To every direction surrounding this pool are trimmed and perfectly aligned groves of loely trees. The trees are trimmed to look more or less like champagne flutes. Every single one. There must be thousands. It's insane. Beyond belief. And beyond this marvelous and ridiculous poor area is a plain lawn inclined up, about 1/2 mile. It took the two hours to walk to the end of this pool and return to the Chateau. Absolutely outrageous. All along the way I saw rowers in the pool, bicycles all around and very fit-looking joggers. Security was on bicycles and horses! I briefly talked to the horse-police who told me that the gardens took 2 centuries to build, along I suppose with the palace. I believe it. Louis XIV outdid himself and now I see that his title of extravagance wasn't just French, he was plain old absurdly and incredibly outrageously extravagant. I thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of the palace and could still not beleive the extrent of the extravagance on the inside of the Chateau as well. Beautiful frescoes, paintings, silver-work and gold fabric-work EVERYWHERE. It is beyond my grasp of the English language to describe the place throughly enough. Fabulous visit.
Oh yes, an during the 2 hour (non-stop) walk around the large gardens, I entertained myself of course by admiring the outrageous shrubbery work and I also carved a want of sorts out of a piece of wood I found and then left it perhaps for some child to find and be curious about.
Having done all that, I still have time to see the Louvre tonight! Marveilleax! Apparantly the Louvre is specially open late on Wednesday nights, perhaps to make up for Tuesdays. I think I will go there and then have dinner at Wadja again, yes, that will be delicious.

(written later at dinner) The Louvre is beautiful! Walking around any corner is a piece of art that one could spend hourse looking at and admiring. Unfortunately I did not have hours to admire every piece, although I might like that sometime. I managed to get pictures of all the Spanish works in the Louvre and a couple others that interested me, before the battery died in my camera. I did get everything I was interested in and will post as soon as I can in Spain all the Photos I have accumulated here in Paris! I love this place.
Speaking of love, among other things or people (Hi Bethany!) I love food. A lot. It's kind of wierd but no matter what I'm doing or what might be happening, I can think of the amazing power of food and I'm happy. Wadja makes me happy. Very happy.

I have never really liked olives. Every time I tried them, they tasted like salt mixed with snot that has grown a skin. But as I sat down again in Wadja, the very nice owner who now knows my name put before me a little bowl full of olives that appeared to be marinated in front of me. With full trust in this place and very nice man that have given me fabulous food, I took a bite. It was incredible. I didn't know that olives could taste like that! It had a very silky feel and tasted more or less like olive oil, except maybe a little stronger. The marinade had in it rosemary, but I'm not sure what else. Then a lady sat down beside me and I went about drawing the plate of olives in my book (remember my camera's battery had died) and I heard her mumble something in clear American English, so I began to talk to her. Looking rather professional, about 35 I'd guess, her name is Nicole! Having lived in LA and Las Vegas, she now lives with her husband in London and is in Paris for work. I told her who I was and where I had been and she was incredibly nice and shared her wine with me! You all must know that I have had a recent obsession with wine tasting and getting out there to try wines. This may be my favorite wine that I've had yet. It was a Côtes du Rhône from Granache, 2007. It was actually just the house wine - it was very smooth, fruity - not too sweet but lovely feel and great strong but refreshing taste. It had the color of a mature rose I'd say. Very beautiful red wine. Nicole and I continued talking about dealing with the language without actually speaking it (she is much better than I, having taken it in college) and about how to get lost in London (no bloomin street signs!) and she recommended to me a book store just south of Notre Dame called 'Shakespeare and Co.' so I will definitely need to visit that. For my meal, I ordered the Pigeon with Potted Leeks while she ordered the cuisine du jour - sole with potatoes. My pigeon was just perfectly cooked - very much like duck except perhaps more tender, it had a nicely browned skin an the leeks... oh man... so sweet and soft, they just fell apart - I wish my leeks would do that! Nicole's beautiful sole was very much not overcooked, on the contrary just perfect, very moist and flavorful. It is a beautifully done very French restaurant. After we both finished and VERY much enjoyed our meals, she was further beyond nice, friendly and polite, and shared about half her dessert with me - a kind of sponge cake with candied orange peel, an orange creme in the middle and swimming in a very strong rum sauce. Before saying goodnight, we swapped blogs and promised to visit the suggestions of the other in Paris and then she was gone. It was finally a very pleasant walk back to the hostel - extremely full and warm despite the cold weather and my student condition of broke-ness. My right ankle still hurts a lot - it has been hurting for several days now without relent, and I have no choice but to keep walking on it - I have found that tying my laces on that show very tight around it help my tendons to not have to work too hard, like a rubber band of sorts. My calfs are growing pretty big, and are still pretty painful, like my shoulders. All that carrying around of my very heavy backpack (I never carry it during the day anymore, although I tried that for a day in London... terrible idea). I still hurt, but now I'm happy and full and feel good about the world.

Bonjour a vous de Paris,
Kip