So, Black Friday - but another nice day in Paris.
I have taken on board the criticisms about lack of paragraphing (easy to fix) and lack of photos. Photos not so easy as have been using the camera and can't transfer them to the tablet which I am using till back home. But tomorrow we're planning a less strenuous day so will take the tablet and use it for photos. It has been invaluable for daily planning and maps plus a great app that gives directions for using the metro and RER.
It was invaluable today as we decided to use our tickets and trek out to Versailles.
You get a false sense of security in the apartment and stepping outside in the cold is a shock! Still, we have plenty of warm clothes so just rug up outside and peel off layers in the overheated indoors.
So we set off relatively early and walked down Rue Montorgueil to the Les Halles Metro. Had to change a couple of times which proved challenging, particularly at Chatelet Les Halles which is vast and confusing, but eventually arrived as planned at Versailles along with a million other people. Would hate to be visiting in high season.
It was a five minute walk to the palace and no queues to get in so set out on the standard walk through tourist route to the royal apartments and theSalon of Mirrors. All very impressive but after room after over the top room you began to understand why the peasants revolted. Let them eat cake indeed!
After a couple of hours Geoff began exhibiting his inner-French leanings, ie planning the where and what of the next meal!
We decided it was probably more enjoyable to head back to our own territory first and after very, very nearly catching the wrong train we made it back to familiar territory, perplexed, nonetheless, that it required one less section on the train.
By now it was nearly 2 and a bit worrying as many places close at 2 and I was keen to try a place recommended by the people we had booked through called Le Cochon a L'Oreille (not sure if this has something to do with silk purses and sow's ears, but whatever).
It was, as we had been warned, tiny, and was very full, and very noisy. There were four or five other people waiting but people were leaving and despite Geoff's grumpiness at having to wait it was only about five minutes before they found us a (miniscule) table.
As it happened it was well worth the wait. There was a small blackboard menu with a choice of about five entrees and five mains for a very reasonable 15 Euros for two courses. Wine came by the bottle - left at the table and charged by what you drank.. The food was totally different from what we expected but totally delicious and by the time we finished the bistro had closed and all the family were wandering in for their meals including an elderly guy with a long white beard who looked like a bit of a derelict.
It turned he was probably the owner and the father of all the staff in the place (though we had thought him the grandpere). He came over for a chat and, having discovered we were Australians, roared downstairs for his daughter Juliette the chef to come up and chat to us as she had spent a year in Australia.
So she duly came up and turned out to be a very sweet girl and we were fed complimentary cognacs while we chatted, so quite a fun dining experience and afternoon that was quite unexpected.
What I didn't know about yesterday's lunch till I read up a bit more last night, was the place we went yesterday - L'Escargot - is quite famous and has been patronised by the likes of Marcel Proust, Salvador Dali, Sacha Guitry and Jackie Kennedy. So maybe we can dispense with a visit to Les Deux Magots!
But given a choice I'd go back to today's place. It was 'much funner' (to quote some people from the past!)
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