Today was one of our greatest adventures. We slept in a little ... like 7:30 :)
Went and got breakfast, it was a little busier than at 6:45, but there was still
food available. Had the usual cold cereal, croissant, and coffee.

After getting ready, we were determined to get into the Catacombs this morning.
We walked there, waited for 5 minutes and GOT IN! It was 4 Euros to get in ...
but it was well worth it. We went down a super long spiral staircase, and then
through (what seemed to be) 10 miles of tunnels before the actual catacombs
started. The best part about it, was before you walked in there was a sign that
read "do not enter if in a nervous disposition" ...

Our guide on the bike tour told us that during the 1800s at the markets there
would be piles of unclaimed dead people... And you would look to see if you
could recognize any. Unclaimed bodies were then placed into the catacombs... (I
hope this is the correct story ...)

Anyways... it is PILES & PILES & PILES, UPON PILES of bones and skulls. Which
seems really morbid, but it was set up in a really neat artistic way... and you
would never expect that this existed below Paris.

So Meredith and I were wandering through the tunnels... that only lead on way
(keep this in mind) ... and we came across to what appeared to be an offering
table type structure. Meredith and I and one other guy were the only ones in
that exact tunnel at the time, so I whispered for her to go lay on the offering
table. She was just laughing and whispering back that she would once the guy
left. So we kept whispering back and forth how funny it would be once the guy
left.. and then he was like
"Would you like me to take your picture, I hear you whispering and I speak
English, I am from Australia" ... totally not what we were talking about... but
we agreed and then we started talking to him...

Totally skeptical of every person we meet Meredith and I just started wandering
through the other tunnels (which like I said only lead in one direction... so of
course he was there the whole time too.) We were all just making small talk and
what not and conversation was good... We didn't get the creeper vibe.

While we were leaving the tombs, they check your bags and make sure that you
didn't steal any of the bones! So gross... I wouldn't have even touched them if
Meredith hadn't dared me too...

Anyways, we kept talking to Jason (the Australian guy) and turns out he had
planned to head out to Versailles as well ... So we all headed towards the metro
station to hop on the next train to Versailles!

We ended up getting on the wrong train or missing the connecting stop (I am
still not exactly sure what was the case) ... but anyways we ended up about an
hour outside of Paris, in the wrong direction. Which totally wasn't a big deal
because we hadn't had anything else planned except for Versailles ... so we took
the wrong train back to the city and then got on the right train :)

The train rides went quick because we were so caught up in great conversation.
Jason is from Melbourne, and is traveling around Europe for the next 4 months
before starting work in London. It was really interesting talking to someone
about accents and stereotypes and slang... Jason totally thought Meredith was
ghetto... and she appreciated that :D

Anyways we eventually made it to Versailles ... and it was absolutely
MINDBLOWING.... The detail on the palace was so extensive and just the size of
the palace was amazing. Although we were interested in the actually building,
the grounds of Versailles is what we were all more excited for! There are
honestly about 30 gardens, all that are kept in tip top shape. Walking out the
back of the palace you see for about 2 miles... and that two miles is filled
with fountains, statues, plants and then a HUGE long and narrow lake.... where
you can rent boats and take romantic boat rides. On each of the Palaces sides
are designed gardens that make different shapes and spirals ... the upkeep of
them must be crazy! Because there was not a single leaf out of place.

Then there were mazes of trees, where you could just walk in and about ... The
sheer size of the grounds was impressive, let alone how details and tailored
everything was...

We walked around for about two hours and then decided to sit down by the lake.
Meredith and I had packed sandwiches, while Jason got a quick sandwich from one
of the nearby vendors. Lunch was spent with good (cheap) food, amazing
conversation and unimaginable scenery. (Sidenote: Dad I decided that I am going
to get married in the Versailles gardens... so start saving :D :D :D)

After lunch we just laid around and people watched for a while. There were so
many different people all enjoying the beautiful weather and grounds. Not to
mention Meredith has been dying to catch a few sun rays ... so she fully enjoyed
just laying out for a while!

We eventually decided it was time to head back into the city. So we headed to
the metro station (only to find out our metro tickets were not valid for return
and we had to purchase additional tickets) ... but that was just a small bump in
the road. We bought the correct tickets and headed back towards the city.

It is such a different environment and feeling in the city... definitely more
hectic. We said our goodbyes to Jason (who was honestly so nice & a great person
to travel with) and then made our way back to the hostel. But on the way back
we got some slushies! None of the drinks here are served cold, so it was
refreshing to have something icy... And then to top off the day we bought
WATERMELON! We then stopped by our favorite local grocery store, picked up some
cheese & bread for dinner and just got back to our hostel!

The internet is working again! (not on my phone really, but in the hostel
lobby)... so hopefully all my blogs will be updated!

Today was definitely one of my favorite days yet. It was great to meet another
traveler and share our different experiences and to see the absolutely gorgeous
grounds of Versailles... I would completely recommend them to anyone!

Tomorrow we are going to Monnet's Garden, which should be another great relaxing
day. We are also hoping to go to Saint Chapelle in the morning to see Jesus's
thorns!

-brooke.