| Versailles & Paris |

After a long day of traveling we finally arrived in Leuven and spent a couple of days just relaxing and showing my family around the pretty little city we have been living in for nearly a year. I chose to put the camera away for a few days so that we could concentrate on spending some quality  time with my family and just being present with them as we walked to some of our favourite spots in Leuven. On our second day us girls went shopping and from what I've been told, Kyle and Dad wandered around the city and spent some time at the Capitol (which boasts collection of more than a thousand beers). Kyle and I both agreed that our best night of the whole trip was when we had everyone back at our place for dinner. Mum and Dad were very pleased with the wine they picked out at the market and I made one of our favourite dishes, a vegan fettuccine alfredo with oyster mushrooms and an avocado tomato salad on the side. Everyone pleased with the outcome! For dessert Kyle and Faith whipped up a batch of these chocolate peanut butter cookies. And we spent the evening in the best way I know - passing the guitar around, singing songs and sharing stories.

the mumsie in her natural setting, relaxing with red wine in hand.

Radagast was around too, being adorable and amusing and a bit cantankerous as usual

Following our sweet few days in Leuven we all traveled to Brussels where Mum got on a plane back to the UK to spend the next couple weeks with her British friend in England and Scotland. Meanwhile me, Faith, Dad, and Kyle rented a car and took an unexpectedly pretty drive down to Paris to see the Palace of Versailles and take Faith to see the City of Light. She was keen on finally seeing the Cathedral of Notre Dame, which of course is stunning. Paris' real gothic gem however, in my opinion, is Sainte-Chapelle. Don't worry, I warned Faith in advance about its capacity to melt your face off with its beauty...but first! Versailles!  

I think most Canadian people learn about Versailles in their high school history class, which is where I fell in love with history (thanks to Mrs. Swann*shout out*), so the palace has been on my travel list for a long long time. I think it was especially interesting for Faith, who just graduated high school in June, and for whom the history of the palace was probably a little more fresh in her mind. Luckily they have a history of the palace exhibit which took me right back to my high school classroom. Before Versailles was a palace it was a hunting lodge built by Louis XIII (1601-1643). The transformation of the great palace to what it is today was undertaken by Louis XIV, who made Versailles the seat of his court and France's government by the time of his death in 1715. The grandiosity of the palace is owed to Louis XIV's obsession with styling himself as the "The Sun King" - the source and centre of all power and vitality. The late 17th-century court of the Sun King was absorbed by elaborate daily ceremonies that basically involved following the king around, no matter what he was doing (waking up, falling asleep, getting dressed, eating, thinking, pooping...) because the king was the nucleus of the kingdom. These ceremonies and rituals also kept all of the king's relatives and courtiers so busy kissing his a$$ that they had no time to plot against him - at least that is one of the ideas proposed by historians.  

we still managed to have fun waiting in the exorbitantly long line to get in! Scenery wasn't bad neither ;)

Oh yeah, and Marie Antoinette lived here and stuff. She liked cake or something. I wonder how many times she looked out this window.

or this one.

You walk into rooms like this in Versailles Palace and you think "okay, this is just stupid. stupid. stupid." Marble and gold and classical paintings alluding to Louis XIV supposed semi-divinity etc. its just ridiculous! 

stupid.

Me and Faith in the famous Hall of Tourists, I mean Mirrors. 

fancy busts looking down their noses at the unwashed masses

In the Hall of Battles! Kyle Dase ft. Charles Martel and the Battle of Poitiers! 

didn't realize the French had won this many battles XD

The fountains! The gardens! 

notice the danger sign..........^ ... at this point it was very hot outside and we had been walking for a long time and Faith was getting hungry....

Oh! Its so pretty but Faith is so hungry! Alas!

Oh! Happy Faith with a crepe.

In all seriousness we had a really lovely time at the Palace of Versailles. It is an astounding place with a very interesting history. Unfortunately we didn't have time to make it to Marie Antoinette's Hamlet, and we barely saw a quarter of the gardens I'm sure! More to see whenever we return someday perhaps!

The next day we ventured into the centre of Paris from our hotel which was located on the outskirts of the city. On the way into the city centre Dad (who was driving) and Kyle (who was navigating) swore that they were going to avoid the Arc de Triomphe at all costs... you can understand that it was both terrifying and hilarious when at one point we turned a corner and Kyle said "wait... is that the.. what I think it is..?" I am very proud to say that Dad braved his fear and managed to drive into and safely exit the lane-line-lacking, spiraling vortex of vehicular doom that is the arc de triomphe. Well done, Dad. Well, done. *claps hands in a round.* 
We snagged a parking spot right next to this weird pile of stones and bells:

After seeing these medieval ecclesiastical landmarks we sat down at a lovely little street-side cafe and had some lunch. Then we wandered over to the Musee de Cluny, also known as the National Museum of the Middle Ages, which is full of treasures from my favourite historical period and was built atop Roman thermal baths!

In front of the Musee de Cluny, formerly the townhouse of the powerful abbots of Cluny, started in 1334 and rebuilt in the 15th century. 

On our way to our planned destination for supper we stopped by some of the Seine-side purveyors of old and new prints, books, and paintings. I got myself a botanical print for our new house in Saskatoon!

For dinner Dad and Faith let us take them to a cute little vegan burger place! The burgers were good, the coleslaw was great, and the carrot cake was delicious! 

On our way back to the hotel Dad successfully navigated the arc de triomphe the second time! He and Kyle had a celebratory beer at the hotel restaurant and then we all tucked in for the night since it was planes trains and automobiles early the next morning.

Once again, a fantastic trip, although we were all a bit sad Mum wasn't there to be the glue of the family as usual. It was hard to say goodbye to my sister and my papa before they flew away across the ocean, but of course I took comfort in the fact that it will be a but a very short time until we are back in the homeland! In the meantime, Kyle and I might have one more trip in us before we let this travel blog and our wandering feet rest.


-m