The driver assured me that our two hour return journey back to our chateau from Versailles wasn't due to the strike, but due to regular Parisian traffic. Considering my sat nav confidently informed me that it would take just over 30 minutes, the driver's assurance that the strike wasn't to blame was somehow not the comfort I felt he intended it to be. Still, after all our walking around Paris and Versailles, everyone was ravenous, and we arrived just in time to deposit the bags into the rooms, and into dinner. No waiting! The fact that it didn't take even longer was largely due to the skillful driving of Andy, our chauffeur. Driving in and around Paris is tricky at the best of times, but during rush hour with a group of 45 children entertaining themselves on a 2 hour trip, the job he did was nothing short of miraculous.
Dinner was a choice of kebabs or meat pie, with the usual salads, vegetables, bread, and desserts.
After dinner, we decided to start our evening activity at the slightly later time of 8:45, in order to give the chlidren the free time which they had requested. The evening activity was Eiffel Tower building, where the children had to use a vaiety of pieces of cardboard, sello tape, straws, and any natural items they could find around the grounds. Their task was not only to build a structure, but also to create an advertisement and sell the 'product' to an investor. Not an easy task in 45 minutes!
The children all took to the activity with great gusto, and worked well together as teams. Many of the ads were more intricate and structured than the actual buildings!
Everyone seems good and tired tonight, and barring any near death experiences tonight, I really do think everyone will sleep well, and be rested for our trip to Disneyland tomorrow.
