mondays are apparently the french “Sabbath” as most museums and shops are closed. so, like we did the previous day, we figured that at least the churches would be open. so we decided to take a little day trip to Chartres, which is about an hour southwest of Paris. we got up, got dressed, and set out for Gare Montparnasse to catch our train. we barely missed the one we had planned on taking (mostly because we couldn’t figure out how to work the self-ticket buyers because they were in french), so we had to take the next one which would be leaving about 45 minutes later. the train arrived and we set out for the Centre “county” of france. once we got out of Paris, the scenery was very beautiful. we went by the Versailles area, but couldn’t see the chateau although we did see some of the grounds.

perhaps the best part of the train ride was discovering that a couple of rows behind us there was an american family traveling! more than that, they were southern! it was really funny, and slightly bizarre, to hear thick southern accents (we found out that they’re from Savannah, Georgia) in Paris.

when we got to Chartres, we could immediately see the famous cathedral towering over every other building in the city. we started to make our way towards it and discussed how quaint the old medieval town is. when we came upon the main plaza in front of the cathedral, we were able to fully take in the front edifice of the cathedral. ever since 9th grade, when i took my first humanities class which included architecture history, i have always loved Chartres cathedral. it was one of the things i was most looking forward to on this trip. but when i finally saw it….i wasn’t disappointed…..but i guess i thought i would be more impressed or something when i saw it. i guess some of the awe might have been taken away the previous day after having seen Notre Dame. however, the cathedral is still beautiful and impressive. the two vastly different spires have always been something that i wanted to personally see and i am very grateful that i got to see them “up close” (as up close as i could get to something a few hundred feet in the air!).

before going into the cathedral we found a small italian place to have lunch. we each got our own pizza (we didn’t know how big they’d be, but surprisingly we each finished our whole pizzas) and a carafe of wine to share. even the pizza in france is wonderful. but not the german food. remember, don’t eat german food in Paris. or anywhere.

Chartres is famous for its stained glass, and rightly so. so famous, in fact, that there is even a color named after the unique blue glass that is found in many of the windows. the pieces in the cathedral were just gorgeous. it’s hard to even really describe them, they’re that beautfiul. much more beautiful than the windows at Notre Dame. one of the most interesting things within the cathedral is the floor. we thought the floor was made up of big circular stones or something, but later found out that the floor is one giant labyrinth that pilgrims and congregants would walk in the days that there were no chairs.

after wandering around inside a bit, we went outside and to the back of the cathedral. behind the cathedral there is a small garden area and then the city seems to just drop off about 100 feet and continue from there. closest to the wall on which the cathedral sits was a fairly large manor house whose garden was arranged in the same design of the cathedral labyrinth, kind of like a maze-ish type thing. there were children running around in it and it was funny to watch them. we then just walked around several of the streets to see what was there and what was open. disappointingly, most of the shops were closed, including the stained glass shops that i was told would be open. but oh well. we’ll just have to come back! we did find the stained glass museum, but it was largely unimpressive and not worth the admission price.

satisfied with our afternoon trip, we made it back to the train station……and again missed the train we wanted to take. this time by about 15 seconds. stupid ticket agents that take FOREVER to print two tickets. so we had to wait about an hour for the next train. we passed the time walking along some other streets, but made sure to get back to the station in plenty of time to ensure that we’d be on the train.

when we got back to Paris, we decided to do a little shopping, so we headed to the Louvre mall that we had noticed the day we spent in the Louvre museum. but first, we needed to eat dinner. across the street from the museum was a very familiar spot, a McDonalds. i know, i know. we’re in Paris. why on earth would we want to go to McDonalds? you’d be surprised, though. after so many days of strange and new food, it’s nice to have something that you’re used to. however, you definitely pay for it. for both of us to eat there, it cost about 13 euros, or between $15 and $16. and that was just two combo meals. ridiculous. but it tasted the same and was a nice comfort (that was the cheapest meal we had, as well). after wandering in the mall a bit, we decided we had had enough excitement for a day and headed back to our hotel.

but not without a stop at our pastry stand.