After making our way to the train station in Kaiserslaughtern, we boarded the night train to Paris. We planned to get a good night's sleep, so that we would be fresh to explore Paris in the Morning. The ticket counter had closed by the time we arrived, but we were told that we could purchase a ticket on the train. Our American cash was low by this point; we had spent our Deutsche marks carefully so that we would not have extra German money when we left Germany, and to get the best exchange rate, we planned to get the rest of the franks we needed once we got to Paris. Soon after the train started moving a stewardess came by and asked whether we had a ticket. We told her we would like to buy one to Paris, and she told us that she could sell us a ticket as far as Trier, the last city in Germany, but that after we entered France we would have to buy a ticket from the French for the rest of the journey.
We bought a ticket, and had just become comfortable when the stewardess came by again to tell us that the cars on the train would separate at the next station and go to various destinations. The section we were in was bound for Frankfurt, and we needed to go to the section bound for Paris. We rounded up our luggage, and began moving from car to car towards the section we needed. Each car was sealed from the next with a locked door, and to move between cars we had to get the attention of someone on the other side who had a key. Usually, this meant banging on the door and waiting. Soon we reached a car that had a narrow hallway on the left and a row of rooms with bunk beds on the right. We were beat, and ready to find a place to sleep. This car looked promising, and we hoped it was headed the right direction. Before us, stood a man in a uniform. After telling him that we were headed to Paris, he made room for us to pass, and told us, "Go down two coaches." So, we had finally reached the right car, I thought, and there must be a place for us two doors down. We entered the second door on the right, relieved to have found the right place, and began to put our luggage down. Immediately the man in the uniform was upon us, furious, and pounding the wall with a large key. "I think I speak English," he barked, "Go two coaches down!" Well, now I know what "coaches" means. We headed down the aisle, now intent on moving two cars down.
There were several college kids from Colorado waiting before the next door. They also were bound for Paris and needed to get through the doors. After about ten minutes a lady with a key showed up on the other side, and let us in. We got through the remaining car and began looking for a room with space. We wanted to sleep on a bunk on the train, but had been told by the college kids that these had all been reserved. After finding a room with six seats and only three occupants, we put our stuff down and tried to make ourselves comfortable. We needed sleep. The train was to arrive in Paris at 7:00 the next morning, and we wanted to be well rested so that we could hit the sights. A young couple sat across from us, jabbering loudly and playing video games on their cellular phones. After asking, and learning that they spoke some English, Jenny asked them where they were from, and they told us they were Gypsies. About an hour later, they got off the train, and for the first time we were able to drift off to sleep.
We awoke to a loud voice speaking in French. A man in a bright uniform stood before us, wanting to see our tickets. We showed him the ticket we had brought to Trier, and, offering him a credit card, explained in English that we needed to buy a ticket to Paris. He told us that they did not accept credit cards on the train in France, and asked us for a certain amount in cash. Jenny began scrambling through the belt pouch. We gave him the few franks left from our trip to Colmar and Strasbourg, and the rest of our American dollars. The man added the money, performed a conversion, and told us he needed more. Jenny turned to me, wide eyed, and said, "I don't think we have enough." Just what we needed, I thought, to be stuck on a train with no way of paying for the ticket. Glaring at us impatiently, the man asked us for our passports. I imagined the two of us in jail, trying to communicate with the cops with Jenny's high-school level French. We began to rummage for our passports. Suddenly Jenny said, "I found some more. I hope this is enough," and handed the man the deutsche marks she just found. The man counted it, and nodded. Apparently, it was enough. We both heaved a sigh of relief, grateful that it all worked out. Glancing at my watch, it was almost 3:00 in the morning. With the train arriving at 7:00, we would have about four more hours to sleep. We settled down and tried to get the rest we could before our arrival in Paris.
We arrived little rested, but running on adrenaline. Really gross showers were available at the train/metro station for a fee, and these helped wake us up. We dropped our luggage off at our hotel room, and then headed for Versailles.
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