Monday September 1:

This morning we woke up a bit earlier than usual at 6:45 so that we would have time to stop by Boulangerie Kayser for breakfast. Unfortunately, when we arrived, it was closed! I should have double-checked to see if it would be open rather than just assuming, so my fault there. We decided to just grab something for breakfast along our way instead. We made an about-face and walked back down Blvd Malesherbes in the general direction of Gare Saint-Lazare. We made a left turn onto Rue de la Pépinière and soon the Metro entrance was in sight.

Today’s journey would not go beyond “Zone 5” of the RATP map, so we returned to our favorite green ticket machine within the Metro station to purchase two “Mobilis” passes for Zones 1-5. Each pass cost 16.10 euros and would allow us to travel anywhere within Zones 1-5 for that day without limit. The passes looked exactly like a regular metro ticket in size and design, so we took extra care to keep them separate from our other metro tickets. We took Line 14 to the fourth stop- Gare de Lyon.

From the metro area, we climbed up several levels of stairs to reach the main train platform. We were doing well on time, so we stopped at a Bonne Journée in the station to purchase a few raspberry cream pastries for breakfast. As we ate, we went over to the Departures board to see which train was ours.  We knew that our destination- Fontainebleau-Avon was not the terminus, so instead we looked for the 8:19 train to Montargis. The train was waiting, so we hopped on and sat down to wait for it to depart.

Even though we bought our Mobilis passes at a Metro station, they were still valid for above-ground train service- as long as the trains were Transilien trains and our stop did not exceed the Zone 5 limit. Fontainebleau-Avon was safely within Zone 5, so we were just fine. The train left on time- of course- and only took 37 minutes to arrive at Fontainebleau-Avon. There were more stops made on this train than the one we took to Vernon the previous day, but the stops were very brief. We exited the train and found the 9:00 bus that would take us to the Château de Fontainebleau- our first destination for the day. We used our Mobilis passes to take the bus, which was very conveniently timed with our arrival at the station. Unfortunately, we exited at the wrong stop. If we stayed on the bus for a few more stops (I think), we would have arrived at the entrance to the Château. At any rate, this was NOT the right stop, and we found ourselves walking through the Jardin de Diane with no way to access the entrance to the château!

After returning to the bus stop, we walked along the main road a bit further until we saw the correct entrance. The Château courtyard was very impressive in the bright morning light. The building itself looked as if there were several additions and expansions over the years because not all of the architecture completely “matched.” Another oddity was the complete lack of people around. We were joined in that expansive courtyard by only 4 other people at the time!

The entrance to the château was on the right side of the courtyard when looking from the street. We were able to use our museum passes to walk right in. Our first stop was a museum devoted to the life of Napoleon I. Napoleon made a large impact on the history of the Château de Fontainebleau (among many other things). The château had its origins as a royal hunting lodge as far back as the 12th century. However, after the revolution, the château was looted and fell into disrepair. However, new life came to Fontainebleau when Napoleon chose it as the location for his palace. (This was a political move to separate himself from the old French Bourbon royalty that was associated more with Versailles.) The Napoleon I museum itself had many artifacts from Napoleon’s reign such as his chess set and even his camp tent from military campaigns.

We continued through the château (well, really a palace during Napoleon’s reign) where we saw many beautifully-decorated rooms. The strangest thing was that we rarely saw anyone else, and in fact we usually had an entire room to ourselves during our self-guided tour. So many interesting tidbits of history took place here. The Papal Apartment was where the Pope stayed on two separate occasions- one of which lasted two years under heavy guard. (More of an imprisonment and less of a “visit”) Also, the site where Napoleon gave up the throne (he later went into exile on the island of Elba) can be seen in the aptly-named “Abdication Room.” Nearly every room was a surprise. You would turn the corner and find yourself in an impressive gallery- completely alone- or in an apartment room that was so ornately decorated that you could spend a half-hour just looking at each individual item found within. It was truly a magnificent place to visit.

The chateau had opened at 9:30, and it took us about 90 minutes to see the interior. However, we were not yet finished with our tour. We followed the signs that led us around to the château grounds where we had planned to take a leisurely stroll. We first found ourselves in a courtyard that looked over the lagoon. From here, we walked around the other side of the lagoon to admire the château from a different perspective.

We continued to walk around the grounds which were expertly maintained. We were completely surrounded by colorful flowers, immaculate lawns, and elegant fountains. The château itself served as a magnificent backdrop for our sightseeing. Combine all of that with perfect weather, and we had a truly memorable morning.

We concluded our time at the Château de Fontainebleau by walking along the Grand Canal towards the residential area of the town. The gardens are publicly accessible, so along the way we saw people relaxing by the water’s edge or taking advantage of the landscape for a morning jog. We had seen an off-the-beaten-path restaurant that we wanted to try in this area of town, so we went to go check to make sure it was open. When we arrived at El Selva we noticed it was closed that day, even through its website said it was open on Mondays- womp womp.  Not to be deterred, we continued on through the town in the general direction of the train station.

It was not quite yet noon, so we decided to continue walking past the train station. We crossed the main road and followed a smaller road that led us up a steep slope. The road ended at a parking area with signs notifying us that we had reached the Forest of Fontainebleau. Judging by the map, we had just climbed a plateau. There appeared to be an overlook of the town of Fontainebleau not too far ahead, so we followed the paved trail in that general direction.

The journey to the overlook was not very difficult or long, but it had a very nice payoff. It was easy to locate the overlook because it was marked by a small monument- the “Croix du Calvaire.” From this viewpoint, we could look out and see all the way to the Château and beyond. There were many other interesting places that we could have hiked to in the forest, but it was now well past noon and we were hungry. So, we walked back down to the train station.

At the train station, we had a decision to make. It was past 1pm now, so it was definitely lunch time. However, none of the restaurants nearby looked very appealing. So, we decided to catch the next train to Paris at 1:27 and get lunch in the city instead. To tide us over, we purchased a bottle of Orangina and some snacks from the train station vending machines. The train was not very crowded at this time of day, and shortly after 2, we came to a stop at Gare de Lyon. With our Mobilis passes, we still could take advantage of unlimited travel on public transportation for the day, so we took a Metro ride with a final destination of the Odéon station in Saint-Germain. Since we had enjoyed such a nice (and inexpensive) meal at Cosi before, we decided to return there. After getting a bit turned around near the Eglise de Saint-Sulpice, we found our way back to the small restaurant.

After our late lunch, we walked along the Boulevard Saint-Germain and took a left onto Rue Saint-Dominique. We passed by several government buildings and foreign embassies on our way to a large grassy area known as the Esplanade des Invalides. This open space offered a very nice view of the Hôtel National des Invalides with its resplendent golden dome.

In fact, that was our next destination. We crossed the street and passed through the gates into a large courtyard that was noticeably under construction. From here, there were various entrances into the Musée de l’Armée that we could access with our museum passes. We first visited the medieval arms and armor exhibit.  It was an interesting historical collection, but it was not Megan’s cup of tea. Actually the whole Musée de l’Armée was not really her thing. The only other exhibit that I insisted on seeing was the Great War (WWI) and World War II exhibit. I was not disappointed. There were many interactive and entertaining displays that followed the world events from Pre-WWI buildup to Post-WWII aftermath. It was especially fascinating to learn about the two wars from a French perspective.

After a while in the museum, I could tell that Megan wanted to get out of there. So, we exited and walked around the building to the entrance to the Tomb of Napoleon. I was not really sure what to expect here. I knew that the building itself was originally built in 1676 to serve as a military hospital and chapel for veterans. Years later, it became Napoleon’s burial site. Well, it is obvious that Napoleon’s gigantic casket is now the centerpiece of the building- it is quite impossible to miss. Overall, I thought the building was very beautiful but also somewhat whimsical.

Since it was such a nice day, we thought we would take some pictures from the top of the Arc de Triomphe. To get there, we first walked across the Alexander III Bridge- perhaps the grandest of all Parisian bridges. The Pont Alexandre III is guarded by four golden statues on pillars and offers stunning views of the Seine.

We walked up the Champs-Élysées until we reached the great traffic circle/roundabout that surrounds the Arc de Triomphe. We came in from the left side of the avenue, so we had a bit of trouble locating where we needed to go to access the entrance. I knew we had to go underground, but where? We found the stairs that we were looking for on the other side of the street. Once underground, we easily located the ticket office. Here we flashed our badges (read: Museum Passes) and emerged directly below the monument.  After a quick security check, we began the climb to the top. We were surprised at how many steps there were, but the Arc de Triomphe is deceptively massive! We did not stop at the museum/shop near the top (although we would another time…stay tuned!), and we continued up the last set of stairs to the viewing platform.

Wow! The views from the top were amazing. We had all 360 degrees to work with as we surveyed the city of Paris. We could see all the monuments- the Sacré-Cœur, the Eiffel Tower, Place de la Concorde, but we also had our first view of La Défense- the business district of Paris (complete with another grand Arch). We spent the next half hour marveling at the indescribable beauty that is Paris in the sunshine.

We were pretty tired at this point, so once we climbed down all the stairs, we made our way back to the outside of the roundabout to look for the entrance to the metro. We found it only one street over (Metro Charles de Gaulle- Étoile). We took Line 2 to Villiers, quickly switched over to Line 3, and then exited one stop later at Europe. The Europe Metro station was very close to the hotel- we just did not use it as much as Saint-Lazare Metro because it had far fewer connections.  Back at the hotel, we took a break for a little while until about 6:30. We had early dinner reservations for 7 that evening (Yes, very early- I know. However, we had our reasons for such an early meal time….) We returned to the Europe Metro station and reconnected with Line 2 at Villiers. However, this time we took the eastbound train towards Montmartre.

We exited at Blanche station and followed the winding Rue Lepic through Montmartre to our destination: La Mandigotte. Since we arrived at 7, we were of course the first people there. We were seated by the very friendly owner by the window so we could watch the lively street action. We ordered and bottle of wine and- wait for it- escargot! We had never tried snails before (and I really was not keen on doing so), but Megan convinced me to do it. Well, after getting over the squishy texture at first, I really actually liked them! They tasted to me like some combination of shrimp and mushrooms. Very interesting, but very good.

While we ate our snails, more people began to arrive. We also noticed a handsome Labrador Retriever greeting every passer-by outside of the restaurant as if he knew them all. We learned that the dog belonged to the owner, and his name was (I think!) Gaspar…or maybe Gabar? Anyways, that dog was hilarious. One man sat down outside and had the looks of a regular. The owner quickly brought him an appetizer (entrée), and immediately the dog went over to get some pieces of the man’s food. It appeared to be a standard routine for them. Well, it seemed that Gaspar went a little overboard with the begging and went to another table for a treat. Apparently this was unauthorized, so the owner made him go downstairs….But every minute or so, Gaspar would climb up another stair until he was almost to the top- and then he would be ordered back down again. Poor Gaspar!

Needless to say, we were quite entertained. Our dinner soon arrived, and things got even more entertaining. Megan had the prawns, and I had the steak. Both were really, really good. As we ate, a few couples from Australia sat down at the table next to us. We started talking and learned that one of the Aussies was originally from Italy and was the second cousin of Frank Sinatra! It was just that kind of evening, I suppose.

We finished the meal with crème brûlée and tarte au citron. The crème brûlée was one of the best I have ever tasted, but the tarte au citron was definitely the best I have ever tasted. The great food, the friendly service, and the fun atmosphere really made our dinner at La Mandigotte one that will never forget. I hope to return there the next time I am in Paris.

It was about 9:30 now, and night had fallen. Our plans for the morning called for an early wake up, so we were tempted to just return to the hotel. However, clearer heads prevailed, and we set about discovering the nighttime version of Montmartre for the next hour. We wandered all about the charming hilltop neighborhood. Most restaurants were still full, but many were starting to slowly empty as the patrons made their way into the delightful evening. We stopped to admire the Sacré-Cœur once again before begrudgingly starting on our return trip to the metro.

We arrived at the hotel around 10:30 after a metro ride that retraced the path we took earlier that evening. I reluctantly set the alarm for 5 am (Yes, 5 am!), and we tried to fall asleep. Despite my tiredness, I had trouble drifting off. Maybe it was because I was too wired from such an enjoyable evening, or maybe it was due to my excitement for what was planned for the next day. What was becoming more and more apparent however was that I was past the point of no return- Paris and the villages and towns of France had their hold on me, and I had no intention of escaping.