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I ended up in Versailles, more or less, due to bad planning. It was a classic example of how really screwing things up can lead to something wonderful. I had planned to go from New York and stay in Rayjevick(sat, sun, mon) for a few days, and hit Paris during mid week, get situated, and party through the weekend. When I went to change my ticket, though, I was told that there would be a $100 change charge and the only 2 flights they had out of Iceland were on Sunday or Thursday. CRAP! I guess that I was going to Paris after all....I had no time in NY to consult the net or guidebooks for lodging information, so when I got to NY, all of the Hostels were booked and I hadn't any time to inquire with SERVAS. So there I was, jet lagged, 3 hours sleep in the last day and a half, 11 in the morning on a Saturday, at the airport, no friends but the woman at the information counter, few language skills, with no clue of where I was sleeping. I looked up a few phrases that I would need, and started calling the people in the SERVAS book that indicated that they would be ready at a moment?s notice. Of course, no one was home, it was mid day on Saturday. Finally, I got a break of luck and contacted Claude and Anne. They gave me directions to their place in Versailles (2 hours of changing subway trains), and we finally met up.
These guys were great. They were in the middle of entertaining another couple, and welcomed me to join in their dinner and conversation, with Claude translating. After dinner, I was stuck in the awkward position of being really wiped out from travels and tribulations, but not posessing sufficient language/culture skills to politely excuse myself from after dinner socializing. And man, do the French socialize! I just figured that we would be there for a few hours, but it was about midnight when I vaguely realized that everyone was giggling. I was still awake, but literally could not keep my eyes open. The were very understanding about my little faux pas, and showed me where I could sleep. The next day, they dropped me off at the palace/gardens of Versailles. You see that water stretching out towards the horizon.......that's their rowing pond. This place is collossal, with lush gardens all over the place and more pink marble than I have ever seen in my life. If you could build it these days, (and I don't think you could) I think it would cost at least $5billion. Deliciously obscene. |
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