There is a Rick Steves Paris 2010 in the apartment and we used it and France magazine that we brought from home to plan a trip to the Chantilly Chateau on Friday. TT's knee has been bothering him (we both have a little arthritis) so we sprung for a cab to the Gare du Nord and from there it's about a 25 min train ride to Chantilly. Once there we look for the Tourist Office which Rick recommends as well as a shuttle to the Chateau. The friendly lady in the T.O. says there is no shuttle so we decide to walk through town to the Chateau. We have a very nice lunch at a bistro called Sylvia and see cute shops along the way. We take lots of photos of the grounds as we approach along side the huge stables. We walk further in the gardens and tour the chateau which has a beautiful two-story library. By now RT's back is starting to hurt. It's time to head back to the gare and we ask at the chateau entrance about a shuttle . . . RT ends up helping the young woman read the schedule and it seems there is no shuttle today for some reason. So we walk back to the gare on a path through the woods about 2 kilometers. We are hurtin' now. We finally end up at the gare and the kind SNCF gentleman directs us to an earlier train and voila we are back in Paris.
At the gare du Nord we take a taxi to Angelina on the rue de Rivoli for a "photography assignment". We thought about eating there but the wait looked long. So we went to the food court under the Louvre. We're tired and just want some dinner and to head back to the apt. We missed that there is a Paul cafe near the pyramid or would have eaten there--we ate at one in Prague and it was quite nice. Dinner at the Louvre was mediocre but we were too tired to care.
We came out of the Louvre and headed to the Batobus stop and after waiting awhile realized it was past 7pm and our brochure says the service stops at 7. We wait a little longer because we saw a Batobus on the other side of the river but finally decide to cross to the left bank and hope for a taxi at the Musee d'Orsay or we will walk home. Usually not a bad walk but we are sore and tired tonight. After we cross the bridge, there it is, the Batobus just at the Louvre stop. Sigh. We wait at the stand and a man ahead of us gets a taxi so we have hope. After a few more minutes a taxi comes! We are home shortly and it is worth every Euro.
Chantilly was lovely but I liked Vaux-le-Vicomte (which we visted four years ago)better. It was nice to get out of Paris for a day especially on a beautiful day that shows off the fall colors.
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