I love Smart cars! The Eiffel Tower was cool. We didn’t go to the very top, since it was crowded and I’d read the views are best from the 2nd floor. We took the stairs from the 2nd to the first as well.
Last pic in the group is from Luzern. We’re staying in a jail. 
Check out http://www.jailhotel.ch. Today, it’s off to Germany.
Happy Bday, David!
We’re in Luzern, Switzerland today, until tomorrow afternoon.
I had some pics from France, but the phone mail thingy seemed to go haywire, I’ll try again tomorrow.
Switzerland is nice, charming, and (like most of the rest of Europe) expensive. Tomorrow, we ride the train to Köln, Germany, and spend a day there before heading to Düsseldorf for the flight home on Friday morning.
It’s been fun, will send the rest of the pics later when I get the mail thing figured out.
Auf Wiedersehen.
We’re enjoying our time in Paris. Our first night we did laundry at a laundromat (do we know how to have fun, or what?) and took a nice stroll to see the Eiffel Tower. We didn’t go up — we’re saving that for today.
Yesterday, we visited le Centre Georges Pompidou, a modern art museum. It was suitable wacky — the exterior has to be seen in person to be believed, but I’ve included a picture here.
I write this in our room at the Hotel Astrid in Caen, France. (I highly recommend it, BTW).
The ferry ride was splendid. It was the Pont-Aven, a new (2004) ferry, and the nicest I’d ever ridden. It felt like a small cruise ship, with many fine appointments and wonderful cabins. Granted, the only other ferries I’d ridden were the Newfoundland ferries… not the most modern fleet in the world. Still, it was a great boat ride,
with a pleasant night’s sleep.
We’re at the ferry terminal in Portsmouth waiting to board for our overnight crossing to St. Malo, France. Here in Portsmouth, we did indeed find a nice pub right across from the train station. We both had a lovely feed of fish and chips (which also seems to include peas here), and I had a couple of pints of Abbots Ale. Oh, is it ever good. I’d love to find someone in Chicago who sells pints like that.
More from France!
For the second time since moving to the United States, I’m having a non-traditional Thanksgiving. Specifically, spending it on a train, but more on that later.
After writing last night’s entry, we wandered off to find some food. Near the hotel were many pubs and cafes, as well as Indian places. I’d heard the Indian was good in London, and wasn’t let down. We ate at Spicy World, and had a fine feast of poppadums, samosas, tandoori paneer and chicken tikka masala. Yummy.
Following that, I made it my mission to have a real pint, and not of some super cold Guinness. All the pubs were packed… turns out there was a football match that night everyone wanted to see, but we found a pub that had some room. While they had their ‘Extra Cold’ Guinness, I also ordered a pint of ale pulled in the traditional style. No real carbonation to push it, it’s pumped by repeated pulling of the handle. The temperature was just right, and it was delicious! Finally, a true British Beer!
The restroom sign is from Brussels Zuid (South) station. The pic of me is on the London Eye, and the other pic is… well… self explanatory.
No pics in this post, writing from a net cafe in London near the hotel (Westminster, about 6 blocks from Buckingham Palace).
This is going great, despite my cold getting worse (boo) before it started getting better (yay). Tisha seems to have caught it (boo), but my foot’s all better now (yay). Why do I feel like talking about cursed frogurt?
