So today was the dreaded bike tour. The item on the itinerarymy parents read with a mixture of amusement and horror: “Are you aware you’re going on a bike tour??”
Well, ye disbelievers, I survived!!
We woke up a bit early and met Mme Spina downstairs at 10:20. She led us on a series of metro trains to the big train stain, St. Lazare. There we waited a while for our tour guide, excited to find a small bakery stand nearby, which provided us with breakfast. After a long while, a girl in a red t-shirt and a boy in a white t-shirt rolled mountain bikes up to us and introduced themselves, both blessedly American. The girl, dark complexioned and bright-eyed, said her name was Eliza and she was our guide for the day. The boy was introduced as Dimitri, and Eliza explained that he was just along for the day. This information as well as his undeniable good looks left us girls to speculate about him. Amanda seemed to voice a popular sentiment when she quietly said, “He’s hot. And I’m sick of French boys.”
Eliza proved to be laid back and sensible, having us wait until the mad rush onto the train had slowed down before leading us to one of the last cars – more likely to be open. I sat in the aisle across from Stephanie and Kristen. No one sat next to me, thank goodness. Dimitri sat right in front of Stephanie. During the train ride, we got to talking. Kristen was extremely intrigued by the possibility of landing a job here. Her major is hospitality, and she’s loving our time here. We interviewed him and Eliza during the ride about how they got the job (an application and a successful interview), how many tours they give (about 5 different types), how much money they made (they break even), and how much information they had to memorize (a LOT, in only a week). It made the 45 minute train ride seem like a short trip.
Once off the train and in the town, Eliza led us to an open air market, which was also conveniently located next to a Monoprix. We were instructed to buy supplies for a picnic, and then meet back up to head out. Although I am positively charmed by the IDEA of an open air market, I prefer one shop where everything is kept properly cold, the aisles are labeled, and I can buy the brands I like. I know, I am a dirty, demanding, picky American.
Everyone met back at a pre-ordained time with their picnic supplies in hand (or in bag, as the case may be). Then we walked down the road for a little while. On the left hand side beneath a little archway, there were rows of long, white storage sheds. From them, Eliza and Dimitri pulled our bikes, each one with a special name and in either blue or red. I got a red one named Serendipity. It was way too high for me, which was annoying, and the handles seemed set oddly far back. Everyone giggled as they struggled to adjust to the tricky situation. And then we were off, straight into traffic, wobbling and joking and yelling, getting honked at by tiny European cars, following our Mother Duck Eliza.
Once over a bridge, we reached the bike path, and a nice grassy bank of the Seine. We had our picnic there, enjoying simple lunches of bread, cheese, meats, and a few fresh strawberries. The view was lovely, and we learned about the ruins of a 12th century bridge, destroyed in WW2. The remnants, a large stone support, rose out of the clear water and allowed you to imagine days gone by.
Eventually clouds began to move in and the wind picked up, so Eliza decided it was time to head out. Thankfully the weather seemed to pass almost as soon as we hit the bike trail. We rode along a wide, smooth path. It ran between a thick Forrest and the back of people’s houses. I was still tottering along, but I hadn’t fallen yet. We also stopped several times to take some pictures.
Eventually we rode into the town where Monet was staying. We left our bikes across the street from the Bawdy hotel, and regrouped. Eliza told us that the Bawdy hotel was originally just a residence and a cafe, owned by the Bawdy family. An American artist came to stay, and the Bawdy’swere kind enough to give up their room to him for the evening. They also told him that Monet lived down the street, which of course excited the American artist quite a bit, and he went and had a nice chat withMr. Monet. He then returned to Paris, to tell all of his American artist friends about this great hotel and this great little town withMonet in it. So of course the quiet village was flooded with American artists who expected room and board. The Bawdy’s wound up adding on to their house to cater to the American artists, and thus, the Bawdy hotel exists today. Next to it is a museum of American art, due to the fact that sometimes the artists were too poor to pay the hotel’s bill, and traded a painting instead.
The Monet house is a stroll down a picturesque street. The group entrance opens right up to the exquiste gardens, which we spent some time walking through. We took tons of pictures and admired the complexity and richness of the place. Monet himself began the garden, despite his neighbor’s protests about his plant importation. It’s positively beautiful, and positively huge. But it’s amazing to see the actual place that Monet painted. His waterlilies live on, both in reality and on canvas.
The house is odd, with several rooms all in one color. There’s a blue room, a yellow room, a green room. It was crowded too, so we soon left, to bike up the street and pay a short visit to Monet’s grave.
Then we biked all the way back into town. It was actually quite a long way, but it was sunny and cool and most of us had gotten used to bike riding by that point. And then the train ride back.
I was so tired I didn’t do much at night except head down to the basement to hang out with my friends for a little bit. The ping-pong table saw the rise of a new champion: Spratt. He’s a really nice army boy, and we all love him because he finally ended RJ’s winning streak. Illey’s a little disappointed though. She wanted to be the one to finally beat him. Now I suppose she’ll have to work on beating Spratt.
Pictures of the Monet Gardens (and some other pictures from Thursday and Friday as well) are located here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/PixieSticker/MonetGardensPlusSome
