Last Words in London

Dad gave us some money, and Mark and I walked around the block. We stopped in a pharmacy. We then got a lecture from some stuff-butt, for taking a shoebox off the shelf. So I said, “Good-bye,” and we walked out.
My evaluation of the cities we’ve been in:
Paris – Very kind and good-looking people. I want to go back next summer for a month. Beautiful city.
Rome – Dirty, hot. Icky people. History and art: Fantastic!
Florence – Similar to Rome, but quieted down a bit. Again, very excellent art and history.
Venice – Tourist trap, polluted, but canals are unique.
Lucerne – Beautiful, beautiful – I will go back to Switzerland; that can be guaranteed! Clean, fresh, and natural!
Amsterdam – Polluted, so-so city. Wouldn’t mind going back – a lot of “hippies.”
London – Snobby people, but tons to see. Great rock groups; definitely coming back!
Our flight leaves at 2:00 tomorrow. I’ll be glad to get back home. I have a lot to do:

An Evening in Paris

I had a wonderful time with Maya and Emmanuel last night. Emmanuel was born in Paris, but speaks good English; he is super nice. Maya is a native Californian (right on) and very big in Women’s Lib; she also is really nice. They showed us around the apartment, which is nice, but certainly not worth $100 thou.

Parisian apartments

We had a couple of before-dinner drinks, and then ate an exotic and rich veal dish. It was good, but I was getting very stuffed. I drank four or five glasses of wine during dinner, so I got pretty drunk. (Everyone was drunk.)
About 11:30, we all piled into the Safarik’s Peugeot and Maya drove us to the hotel. They went into the bar, and Mark and I came to my room. Mark broke into my automatic bar and got a bottle of champagne. I opened it, and the cork hit the ceiling, making a really loud pop. We laughed so hard! He only finished off one glass, and I didn’t want any, so he put it back! I hope to hell he doesn’t have to pay for all these Cokes, beers, champagne, etc. that he’s been ripping off from my automatic bar!
I’m finding out what a passion I have for Paris and the French. The people are very good looking, and I especially notice the guys - wow! I really want to come back next summer!

Paris - Up, Down, Sideways

We got let off on some side street, and ate lunch in some lousy café. For ten francs each, we had shitty submarine sandwiches and wine – UGH!
Mom, Dad, Mark, and I then took a taxi to the Eiffel Tower, and an elevator up to the 2nd landing. Paris is beautiful from up there. I took quite a few pictures, which I hope will turn out good.

View from Eiffel Tower

When we got down, we taxied to the Louvre, which is the biggest palace in the world. At one time, Louis the 14th lived there; now it is a very famous museum. We saw a lot for the amount of time we were there, of course including the Mona Lisa.
We then walked to the metro (a long distance), and had to change lignes three times before we got to our stop. Mom and Dad wanted to buy a cake, so Mark and I decided to walk to the hotel. Well, we got lost. Finally, we turned around and made it back. My feet are still killing me.
At about 6:30, we’re going to take the metro to the Safarik’s apartment, and eat a meal cooked by the young couple living there.