Time to travel to Fontainebleau, I hadn't realised at the time zi booked my accommodation there that it would have probably been easier to just do a day trip from Paris, it would have meant one day less of unpacking and packing again, but oh well, this just adds more story to my travel adventures. I said farewell to my parents, as well as Mike and Gill and made my way to the train station, it appears there has been some train delays today as the trains are mean to come every half hour, and I haven't seen one yet after 45 minutes.
My initial plan was to catch a train from Beaune to Dijon, then to Paris and back to Fontainebleau, but that was not going to get me there until about 5pm, so found a couple of other trains from Dijon which should get me to Fontainebleau by 3:30, provided I catch each one correctly.
The first train arrived and left right on time, but would just be a 40 minute ride to Dijon where I could catch the next train. Upon arriving in Dijon, aim got off the train and waited on the platform I was on waiting for the board to update before I decided which direction I needed to go, I didn't want to walk all the way to the main board to find I only had to come all the way back. After about 10 minutes it still hadn't updated, so figured ok, aill start making my way, I got to the bottom of the ramp, to see another board had updated with my departure platform... wouldn't you know it, it was right next to where I got off, so back up I go.
I caught the next train to Laroche-Migennes, unfortunately sitting on the side of the train in the direct heat of the sun, shortly after that, someone came and sat right in front of me, smelling of either BO, or cigarettes, I can't tell... they are both pretty bad right... could have even been a combination, so... for the next hour I would get this odour flowing my way. Arrived safely in Laroche-Migennes where I had 10 minutes to find my next train, aibwas a little worried this train may be hard to find, but no, it was thankfully only a couple of platforms over. Hoping on I recognised one of the guys from the last train. He along with another were rather noisy on the last train and on this train they were even worse, starting to smoke on the train before we had left, they were both asked to get off while they smoked thankfully, which they did, before putting out their cigarettes, once the train started up again, I could smell the cigarettes start up again, and then them cracking open a beer, thankfully they got off at the next stop.
After arriving at Fontainebleau I went to leave the train station only to find that the only way out was through some gates which required a small tiny ticket, different to the one that I used to get onto the train, after some very confusing attempts to try and get out I asked a local, they also had no idea and tried the speaker box (kind of like the ones you would have in an elevator in case of an emergency) well, no one answered that, eventually the lady in the ticket booth who's eye I had attempted to catch several times finally spotted me trying to get out and she opened a side door for me to get through, even though the temperature was 35 degrees, and my hotel was over 30 minutes away by foot, I decided to walk to try and see a bit more of the city. I had moments of regretting that decision, but eventually I got to my hotel where I was able to offload my heavy bags.
It was getting a bit late now to do a tour through Château Fontainebleau, but aim thought I'd head down to see if I could take a look at the gardens, last admittance was 6pm, I arrive at 5:57pm... so I got in before they stopped letting people in, although I did see one of the security guards just standing there with a grumpy look on his face, shaking his head side to side. The gardens were defiantely worth a visit, especially seeing you can at least get to see the outside the Château Fontainebleau. Apart from that, they were prettybflst, thalerenwere a few ponds and a couple of fountains, but combining that with the stunning view of the Château, it defiantly made the visit worth while. I couldn't help wonder what it must have been like as a child having access to that building as a playground.
There were a few people getting wedding photos done, and to be honest, I totally understand why, it would make a great backdrop for any wedding photo... I had to dance around a little to try avoid getting into the photos and videos they were filming, but managed to avoid them all... I think, who knows. Decided to go get something to eat and walking down the streets there were a lot of restaurants and cafes, which was great as there were so many options, and prices actually looked half reasonable. I decided to just get a burger and fries, my goodness, ainwasnt expecting a burger so large, but it was very tasty, and the fries were actually really nicely cooked, not ones out of a pack that have been deep-fried, but actually cut fresh and I think possibly air-fried.