Château Fontainbleau, Crepes, and Randall Fights a Cougar

By Lucas Gillespie

Unlike previous days in Paris, the Tudor England 2013 crew trekked out of the city limits today with their destination being Château Fontainbleau. Situated 55 kilometres outside of Paris, a morning coach took the group to the small town of Fontainbleau, dominated mostly by the famous château. This château began to be built in the 16th century by Francis I, and has been added on by additional individuals since then. Used as a wartime sanctuary by Napoleon Bonaparte, a meeting place, and a hunting area, Château Fontainbleau can be found in numerous history books, known for its majesty, grandeur, and simple elegance.

The Tudor England crew ventured out of the coach and into this well-known palace, seeing all of the rooms, furniture, decorations, and tapestries it had to offer. This included rooms of Francis I and Napoleon himself. Seeing this area showed these students the French side of things during the Tudor era of England's history, particularly the buildings and grounds in which French nobles lived.

After a couple hours, the group walked a short distance into the heart of the town of Fontainbleau to find a much needed déjeuner. Many students ate crepes in a lovely local's café, and perhaps a pastry or two afterwards. The students also had the opportunity to venture out into the gardens and fields surrounding the château, and many took this opportunity to view what so many nobles of the Tudor era had the chance of seeing themselves. Meeting up again in the mid afternoon, the crew jumped back on the coach to head back to Paris, but first making a stop in the tiny French village of Barbizon.

 A bit of snow at Fontainbleau (rhyme intended).

 Braving the cold, for history's sake.

 One of us might have succumbed to another's wrath...

 Viva la France!

 The beauty of Barbizon.

This village was home to many artists in centuries past, and the group had the pleasure of walking the streets for a small amount of time to see what a true French village was like. It was nice to walk the cobblestone streets and see the wintertime flowers, and also have a brief respite from the fast-paced bustle of Paris. But alas, hopping back on the coach, the group traveled back into the heart of Paris, back to the Hotel Ronceray, back to a brief time of rest once again until another full day begins tomorrow.