Trip Notes
I’ve been back over a week and haven’t had the chance to comment on the trip too much, so here goes.
The taxi drivers that we had in London were great. They were incredibly knowledgeable and loved to chat. Between pointing out landmarks, one of our drivers told us that most of the Brits aren’t very happy with Charles’ marriage to Camilla. He said that everyone thinks that she looks like a horse.
National Anthems, the play at the Old Vic Theatre, wasn’t impressive. Kevin Spacey was good in it though.
The Camden and Portabello markets were a lot of fun. They’re both prime areas to hang out and people watch. I picked up a lot of great souvenirs.
I enjoyed the museums. We visited the Tate Modern, the Louvre, the Pompidou, and the British Museum (where Connie got yelled at for touching one of the sculptures). One of our favorite pieces was at the Pompidou. It was a glass case containing 10 cotton swabs with a brownish, black substance on them. The piece was titled, “My 10 Days of Menstruation”.
Many of my favorite pictures were taken from The Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and the London Eye. Amazing views.
We made friends with Nicolas, the guy who sold us our tickets to the Moby concert in Paris. He didn’t speak much English, but loves America. He currently owns a restaurant in Paris, but plans on moving to Daytona Beach, Florida with his girlfriend. He showed us the tattoo of Mount Rushmore that he has on his arm. Impressive. He gave us the lowdown on all of the best clubs in the city. One of my favorite moments from the trip was when Connie asked him if he liked rap music. Nicolas made the kind of face one makes when they smell something really bad. He said that in France only bad people like rap, illustrating his point by making shooting gun gestures with his hands. Nicolas was a cool guy. He also showed us the one U.S. dollar that he keeps in his wallet for good luck. We were invited to his restaurant to dine for “zero Euros”. Unfortunately, we never made it there. He gave me his address. I’m going to send him a gift package next week. If anyone has any ideas of what to send him, let me know.
I was enamored with the Latin Quarter, the area near Notre Dame. It was my favorite part of Paris. The Seine is beautiful at night.
We saw the Chemical Brothers and the Secret Machines in Brixton. It was an amazing show. Clubbing in Paris was fun too. One night we stayed out until 5am. It was insane.
The cafes in Paris and the pubs in London were all very good. We met a lot of interesting people. The dining was great, especially the wine and cheese in Paris.
It was a great trip. I can’t wait to go back.
Posted by chuck at April 1, 2005 12:32 AM
