Vaux le Vicomte et Cafe de Flore

Finally able to sleep at 4am in the morning, I got up at 10 to get ready for the day. I went downstairs to the lobby at 12pm for a meet-up, but no one was ready and I just kind of stood awkwardly around, talked to Paul (kid I took the RER and got lost with) a bit, and then we buddied up to take the RER and Metro to school. Along the way I met another kid Emmanuel, who would join me on a later adventure.

We arrived at the Paris Center, which was very small and new. We had a small introduction and met with our language assistant, a nice grad student named Juliette. My group consists of myself, Sarah, and Benny (he also joined me on tonight's excursion). My group meets every Thursday at 7pm for a language outing. This week we will be meeting in Saint Michel at a bar to learn how to socialize or something. Haha. We had cocktails, consisting of red wine (simply one cup has led to a day long headache) and a variety of appetizers. I had one with guacamole and red pepper, a few with a nice soft cheese, some with yogurt inside, some with raw fish, and a chocolate mint one. All were okay, but not great, and before I could eat more Paul and I realized our tour group had left without us and we had to run to catch up.

We got to see a few cafes and stores, but there was nothing that interesting for we were really in the business part of town. Anyways, after this we toured the rest of the center and waited for our bus to go to the Vaux le Vicomte (a chateau). After the forty-five minute bus ride all 52 (?) of us toured the inside of the chateau. (By the way, several movies were filmed here including a Bond Film, the Man in the Iron Mask, and Valmont!) The inside wasn't the most amazing thing, but it was interesting. Vaux le Vicomte was the former home of Nicolas Fouquet who was put to death by Louis XVI who couldn't stand him being more powerful than him. The main point of the tour seemed to be the squirrel emblem of Fouquet and Colbert's emblem of the snake. Don't ask. The weirdest part was that one of the mannequins had a moving face...eyebrows and mouth and all. Creepy.
My favorite part was the 'dungeon' part...all stone and stuff and really cool. There was a tunnel with candles that was amazing (picture didn't turn out too well though) and a prison with a mannequin of the man in the iron mask...also insanely creepy. There was also a hologram of Fouquet in a prison, which was...egh.
After a lengthy tour came the best part - the back of the chateau, the mote around the chateau, and the best of all - the gardens! Now I didn't realize this till I was leaving, but there were tall hedges that might have been a very small labyrinth thingy to the side of the chateau. I love labryinths so I wish I had explored this. However, there were small hedges that were layed out like a labyrinth, statues, ponds, fountains, trees - all beautiful. Now, I didn't have anyone to hang out with, so I just explored a bit on my own, which was nice, but also a little frustrating. However, things were so beautiful and calming!

After walking around for an hour or so I learn from my senior coordinator (who called me of all people to tell everyone when to meet...) that we weren't leaving for another hour. Well, I'm kind of tired and maybe sitting by the group already starting to form I'll be able to start a conversation with some people or something (I hoped!). Low and behold, a few minutes later a group of four kids sit down across from me (the fifth person, left for awhile to see other things, and although she is part of this group she did not join us on our excursion) and I strike up a conversation with two of them, Alex (guy) and Emily.

Long story short I walk back with them and sit on the bus ride home with them (although with an accident on the road the bus ride took home took 2 hours). We got to our reception dinner about an hour late, but it wasn't a dinner at all! Just more wine and more appetizers! Sure there were good cheese/bread mini thingys but this was just not working for my little group (Benny, Lloyd, Emily, and Alex). So we headed out and explored downtown Paris to find a restaurant! Cafe de Flore. Now I remember once reading about this! We have to wait a little to sit down, but once we do most of us, including myself, order Quiche de jour et salade. A little salad, some bread, a glass of tap water, and an amazing piece of quiche hit my palate for 13,50 euros. The quiche contained tomatoes, red pepper, perfectly cooked zucchini, and goat cheese (with some pesto sauce on the plate to join it all in amazing after amazing mouthful). (Complements to euro-travel for this photo, btdubs)

(Wow, I just read this online: It's the most famous cafe in the world, still fighting to maintain a Left Bank aura despite hordes of visitors from around the world. Sartre -- the granddaddy of existentialism, a key figure in the Resistance, and a renowned cafe-sitter -- often came here during World War II. Wearing a leather jacket and beret, he sat and wrote his trilogy Les Chemins de la Liberté (The Roads to Freedom). Camus, Picasso, and Apollinaire also frequented the Flore. The cafe is still going strong, though the famous patrons have moved on and tourists have taken up all the tables. According to the spokeswoman: "We will never change the decor." The menu offers omelets, salads, club sandwiches, and more.)

So after this we 'think' we know our way to the RER, we meet up with another group (half who stays with us - Joe and Emmanuel - and half which take our directions and leave), only to find out we're going the wrong way...but that's okay because we were closer to some other station. Haha. Then, while exiting the RER, the RER hated on me for a third time and wouldn't let me out, so I jumped over the turnstyle...with police across the tracks (yet they were busy stopping a fight or something). Whoops.

Crossing the street we immediately entered our building and went our separate ways toward bed...or in my case toward a chat with Adam, Patty, and my mom, waiting forever for pictures to load onto this blog, blogging, and etc. I'm just going to tie up some loose ends and then head to bed. It got late quickly...almost 2am. I don't know what I'm going to do tomorrow. I guess I'll see what people are doing or I might explore the city....we shall see.

Night night!