Part I (with the class)

My trip started as a class that involves six Universities including mine, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. Three of the other Universities are state universities in Missouri (SE, SW, & Central), one other from Illinois (Western), and the finally University of Northern Colorado (UNC). The class is basically an international marketing class. The class is offered as both an under-graduate and graduate class. The idea of the class is to visit various business's in Europe to gain an insight on their marketing strategy and concepts as well as a general methods of operating their business.

My trip started for my friend Suzyn and I on May 17, 1996. We spent the entire afternoon, evening, night, and next morning, moving Suzyn out of her apartment, finishing off school work, and packing. Nothing like waiting till the last minute! Amazingly we got everything done and my parents dropped us off at Lambert Intl. Airport in St. Louis at 1:30 p.m. to meet Jennifer (who was also staying after the class with us). We waited forever for the organizers to get everything together and get us oriented into groups. Then we had to endure a couple hour lecture by TWA marketing reps. Finally at 7:30 p.m. it was on the plane! My friend and I slept until we arrived at Gatwick Airport outside of London. That worked out perfectly seeing how it was 9:00 a.m. when we arrived. Everything went smoothly through the airport and it was on to the charter bus to London.

We stayed in the Hotel Croftin right by Kensington Park and Palace. That day we went out for a traditional English breakfast and took a bus tour of London where we were dropped off at the Tower of London. I went toured through there and saw the Crown Jewel and various torture devices. The rest of the day I spent just walking around the streets and exploring London. Many of the streets tell you which way to look before you cross as the British drive on the wrong side of the road! The next day started with a morning walk where my friend and I ran into a girl from NCU, Julie. (I was able to stay at her place later that summer when I rode my bike from Montana to Colorado.) We walked around to Kensington park to find the Peter Pan Statue. The rest of the day was spent touring the Parliament building. We talked with one of the members of the House of Commons to conclude our visit there. We received all sorts of insight to British politics and his own views in our conversations. Other than their long lived traditions, their "inside" politics were not much unlike the US's. That evening was spent dining, going out to the clubs, trying figure out which bus to take to get back. We just ended up taking a taxi in the end. The next day was spent walking around London. That afternoon I departed my friend's Suzyn and Jennifer (we took separate classes) and it was off to Harwich to catch the ferry to Denmark.

The next 24 hours were spent on the ferry. The ferry was much more like a cruise ship with a disco and all. The ferry was relaxing. I just sat back and relaxed. We arrived in Esbjerg, Denmark the next day and drove on to Ribe, Denmark. I loved this little town. I was even more relaxing than the boat! It was small with cobble stone streets and a big cathedral in the center of it with a huge stork's nest on top. We stayed in some modern apartments just outside the town. I could spend my summer's there! That afternoon we went to Ribe Commercial College where they hosted a lecture for us. We met a few of their students that were to come to Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) that fall. We spent the evening hanging out with the students. They brought more than enough to drink of which our party crowd to full advantage of it! The next day was spent at Danfoss. This is a company in Nordborg, Denmark that makes thermostats. First we were given a presentation, then a tour of the factory, and finally the highlight of the tour, the museum of thermostats! That evening we spent eating out with the College group and walked around the town some more. After dinner, I watched a little TV and saw a show that was an exact clone of the Late Show with David Letterman. I couldn't understand a word since it was in German, but it had a top ten list and all. The next morning it was back on the coach and off to Frederikshavn, Denmark where we boarded the ferry to Goteburg, Sweden.

We arrived in Goteburg that afternoon. I went to toured a Viking ship and went to a mall to see if it was any different from the US. It wasn't any different than the US's other than an extra language or two! It was surprising to me how many people throughout the Nordic countries spoke fluent English. A definite bonus for me! I felt somewhat bad for only taking Spanish and not being able to even speak it fluently. The next day, it was off to Orebro, Sweden.

Orebro was a great city. The people there were more than friendly. The University of Orebro had us over for a tour of their University and a barbecue. The next day the University and the City gave us a tour of the their city and hosted us lunch at the Orebro Castle followed by drinks and hors d'oeuvres at their city hall. They are very proud of their city which is respectable. They even showed us their new hospital. I stopped by a 7-11 that day and they never heard of a slurpee or big gulp. They had slurpee's in England! I thought that slurpee's and big gulps were the base foundation of 7-11 (not in Sweden!). The next morning it was off to Stockholm, Sweden.

We arrived in Stockholm that afternoon. I walked all over until I realized I was well off the map the hotel gave us. I was able to make way back in time for dinner though. The next day we got dressed up and visited Sparbanken Sverige. Sparbanken Sverige is a large bank with locations throughout Sweden. This turned out to be one of the more interesting business visits where we learned the in's and out's of banking in Sweden. We then headed back to the hotel to get changed for dinner where RD (R&D) and I made the mistake of following fearless leader Visch back. That was a long walk! The next day we headed off to Copenhagen, Denmark. We made it about half way when our coach broke down. Conveniently we were right by a train station. We grabbed an overnight bag of the coach and boarded the train. It was interesting taking the train over the ferry. We made it to Copenhagen that evening a little late!

That first day was not the best of days. Our night of staying in decent hotels was over for over for the time. We stayed in the Hotel Absalon, which may have had some nice rooms, but not ours! The place was a total dump. I got settled in and then decided to go down to the Tivoli with my Thai friends that go to Southwest Missouri State University. The Tivoli was great! It is an amusement park of sorts with cheesy rides, but gorgeous gardens. There were thousands of tulips of all different colors set in different schemes all over the park. There were fountains and pools scattered about as well that were lit up in the darkness. The next day was spent at the US Embassy in Copenhagen which Tracy and Leslie from UNC already visited about a week before as being the first two to lose their passports in Esbjerg, Denmark. There we were given a presentation by the Department of Commerce. That afternoon and evening were spent walking around the city and once again back to the Tivoli. The next morning we were off to Hamburg, but were somewhat delayed thanks to our third loss of a passport by Amy of SEMO.

We arrived that evening in Hamburg. Once again we were located in not the best part of town. It wasn't a far walk to explore the more "exotic" nightlife of Hamburg (we had strip clubs on both sides of our hotel!) Just down the street was a street closed off to women and children that had store windows all up and down it where prostitutes would display themselves in lingerie. It was pretty degrading. Nonetheless some of the guys pulled money together to buy one of "less experienced" kids on the trip (will call him Harry or maybe Barry!) a prostitute. He gave us a full report the next day on the coach! Our stay there was one whole night, when we then headed the next day for Amsterdam, Netherlands.

We arrived in Amsterdam that evening where I walked around and explored the city some. The next day I got up early and set out for the Anne Frank House. It was interesting to see the actual house she stayed in and depressing at the same time. They had several excerpts from her diary throughout the house as well as her actual diary. The most depressing part was a letter at the end written in English after the war by her father to a friend in the US. It told how he had pretty much given up on ever seeing his daughters alive again. Later that day I made my way over to the Van Gogh Museum. There are over 10,000 pieces of his work located there including several huge theater back drops that he made. It also explained the process of making them which I found interesting. There were two guest artists featured there as well. That night a few of us headed down to the Bulldog to sit back for a while. The next day we headed off to Zoeterwoude, Netherlands, home of Heineken! We were given a presentation, toured the factory, and finally got to sample the product. I don't care for the taste of beer and that's including all six of the brews Heineken produced. Sorry Heineken! We then were off to Brussels, Belgium.

That day in Brussels, we walked around the city sightseeing. It seemed to be a rich town. I never saw so many Porsches, Ferrari's, and Lamborghini's driving around including a brand new Diablo. That night we headed down to the Grand Place to see the light and music show. I felt sorry for my group leader Charlie and his wife Laura. They bickered about how to set the date on their video cam all the way down there and ran the battery out by the time we got there. Then when Charlie went to take a picture, his film rewound (last picture)! Well, not too sorry because I thought it was pretty funny! It was then off to Paris the next day.

On the way to Paris we stopped at Waterloo, where Napoleon fought one of his many battles. There was a great hill with a lion on top of it constructed in the middle of the battle field so as to see the whole thing. It was a good climb up there. I about died of asthma after decided to run up the stairs! We then made it to Paris, France. We got settled in and I went down to the train station first thing to get my reservation on the train to Nice. I ran into some girls that were traveling around on a Eurorail pass and they kindly explained the whole train riding process as well as a few tips to make things go smoother. Always don't hesitate to ask others for help in traveling over there, it can save you a lot of time and trouble! After that I was too late to make it back for the boat tour, so I went down to the Eiffel Tower instead, I didn't go up then, but just laid out in the field below it. The next morning I said all of my good byes to the people from the class and was off to Nice on the TGV to meet up with Suzyn and Jennifer who were in the other class that ended a few days before mine.

Part II (after the class)

I made my way over to the train station, found my seat, and was on my way to Nice. The other three people sitting at my table did not speak a word of English which made the train ride interesting. We had some communication through body language and pictures! They were nice people and were patient with me. The train ride was great! It was smooth and very fast traveling at speeds of over 300 kilometers per hour. When another train would go by the other way it was just a loud noise and a flash. It definitely beats the US's Amtrak. I got off at the station in Nice, unfortunately I should of got off about 10 kilometers earlier at Antibes! Nonetheless they were able to pick me up in Nice. We (Suzyn, Jen, and I) stayed with a family that is Jen's, Aunt's best friend (whatever works!). We arrived in Biot which is up on a big hill overlooking the Mediterranean. After some relaxation we had cheese, some sort of egg appetizer, and aperitif, followed by a large dinner.

The next afternoon my friend Suzi and I walked up to the market area of Biot sent to retrieve some wine for dinner. We got up there and decided to pass getting the wine until we were ready to leave. We stopped in a few shops, and were then ready to head back. We went to the market and the store was closed! It was only about 3-4p.m.. It would look sort of bad if all we were supposed to do is get wine and come back with none. We finally found someone who spoke English and she said that all of the shops close down this time for about an hour or so for the owner's to rest or eat. We were relieved and walked around some more until they opened to get the wine. It was relaxation time after that. Sit out in the hammock in the hot sun by the pool with that cool Mediterranean breeze blowing over me. Everyone talked about traveling being too much stress. They must have been going about it the wrong way! That night we made our way down to the train station to hop on the night train to Rome.

The train ride was an interesting one. First of all it showed up 45 minutes late! Thank goodness our connecting train to Rome was an hour late! We got a bottle of wine and took turns sleeping as we heard that you really have to watch your bags on the train, especially at night. We arrived in Rome and met up with some kids from the US that new their way to the Vatican City. We went with them onto the metro and ended up meeting this monk who leads us the rest of the way and even stopped the traffic for us to cross the street. The Vatican City was great. We followed along with an American senior citizen group lead by Ricardo the guide to get the full tour. It was absolutely incredible. Michelangelo did all of the paintings in the Sistine Chapel if what I heard is correct. Jen had been getting sick and didn't want to stay in Rome any longer so after many hours in the Vatican City we got back on the train and headed up to Florence. Jen had not wanted to go to Rome to begin with.

We arrived in Florence and since we didn't have reservations we ended up following this guy from the train station to his mother's hotel. It was pretty nice, located right next to possibly the only cathedral in Florence that we did not go into! We still figured that we could find a cheaper place that night we walked around and found a pensione that was a little cheaper and made reservations for the next day. To get around, we used the only map that the hotel had left which was in Japanese. We knew most of the historic sites as number 23 etc.. We walked around the city and called it a night. The next day Jen was too sick to go out so my friend Suzyn and I decided to walk around which turned into an all day journey throughout Florence and out into the countryside. Even in my days of Boy Scouts I don't think I walked that much in one day! We made it up to the top of a big hill and saw a castle a few hills over. Suzyn was determined to go see it, so we made a long journey that direction. I'm not quite sure if the castle-like building we found was the same one we saw from a far, but oh well the building we did find was real interesting! We saw a wedding along the way and were sitting resting on top of a hill at an intersection when all of the people from the wedding came zooming through. Half of the would apparently go the wrong way and come zooming back. A few of them I would guess were asking me for directions as I don't speak Italian. I took a safe guess and would point down the only road that I didn't see cars coming back from. That seemed to work. If they only knew that Suzyn and I didn't have a clue where we were! We made came down from a big back to the city just before it got dark.

The next day Jen was better and we toured nearly every cathedral and one synagogue in Florence. They are all huge and are incredible. They have put a lot more effort in their work than what you will see in the US. They also had next to nothing to free labor as well as a large supply of gold as well though! We toured most of the city by blending in with a tourist group once again. The next couple of days were spent walking around the city and eating lots of ice cream, pizza, calzone, and Chinese food. We visited the oldest bridge still standing in Italy (Ponte Vecchio, completed 1356) that had several little shops built on to it. All of the shops were jewelry shops, apparently because they were the only ones that could afford the rent. On our last night Suzyn had to get a picture of her next to the Statue of David, so we ran down there to get it before curfew at the pensione.

We got up early the next morning and it was back on the train to Venice. We arrived in Venice and took a boat from the train station to San Marco's square. The place we made reservations was just off of San Marco's Square which was a huge open area that at night had three chamber orchestras playing at restaurants about the square area. The woman at the hotel/pensione was more than nice to us. She gave us a map and showed us all of the places to go. We were glad that there were little bridges that made it so you could get everywhere by foot. The map wasn't the greatest as several streets/sidewalks (no cars and no bicycles, not even roller bladers!) that were shown to be straight were far from it. They would take so many turns that you really had to keep track of the signs to make sure you were in the right place. At least our map was in English! There was also no direct way to get from one place to another. Don't plan on being in a hurry in this town! There are more dead end streets in this city than any other I have seen. It will look like the street will go through, but then you hit a canal. All in all this added to distinction of this city.

That first full day we walked over to the other side of the city and just relaxed. All of the cathedrals charged money to get in so we avoided most of them as we had already been in about 20 Italian cathedrals in Florence and Rome. One thing we noticed while walking around that it seemed that the tourist way out numbered the Venetian. It's obvious what there main industry is! When we got back to the hotel we met a guy that worked there named Francesco. We talked with him for a while and he invited us to his friend's cabin at the beach on the Island of Lido the next day. Jen hung out with Francesco for the evening and Suzyn and I went down to see the famous Rialto bridge. It was just as you see in all of the pictures though I had never seen what's in the middle of the bridge. There are many shops in the middle of the bridge, mostly jewelry as on the bridge in Florence.

The next morning we took to boat over to Lido to meet Francesco. When we arrived, Francesco took us out in a little boat on the Adriatic sea. After that, we laid out in the sun and swam for a while. Later Francesco's friends and family came by. They were all real nice and gave us this green colored drink and some Nutella. The Nutella is a chocolate spread that we put on crackers or whatever. The green stuff that they all seemed to like tasted like mouthwash to us but we all smiled and said "good"! Later we played volleyball (a bunch of people in a circle in the shallow water) with Francesco's friends. Most of them conveniently spoke English. We walked around the Island for a while and caught the boat home. After dinner we spent the rest of the evening down at the San Marco's square listening to the music.

The next day we went to Doge's Palace and toured all throughout it. We crossed over the Bridge of Sighs (Ponte dei Sospiri) to enter the dungeons. The bridge was used for passage of prisoners to be examined by the Inquisitors of the State. We seemed to be the only people in the dungeons, it was sort of creepy! May be we passed a "do not enter" sign along the way, Oh well! We walked around for a while and Jen met a man. It turns out that the guy she met lives in Chicago not too far from her. We didn't see a whole lot of Jen throughout the rest of our time in Venice! The next couple of days were spent walking all over the city. The air around us either smelled really good (because of the food) or really bad (due to the canals). If you look around you can find really good deals on food or water. Water costs about 3000 lire ($2) a liter. If you know where to go you can get it for 1000 lire ($0.66) for the same. All throughout Europe you have to make sure to say no gas or you get carbonated water. I could never get used to that stuff! The last night we spent down there we got a blanket and some wine and laid out in San Marco's square listening to the chamber music again. The next day Jen said her good byes to her man and Suzyn and I went in search of a spiral staircase that I bought a postcard of before actually seeing it. It was the neatest staircase so I had to get a picture before I left. It turned out it was right near where we were staying. The boat we were to take to the train station was going to be 45 minutes late so we ran across the whole city to make it to the train station in time to make our train to Salzburg.

We made the train and had one lay over at 3:46a.m. just across the Austrian border. Our train didn't come until 6:00a.m. and we had to wait in the station with all of the freaks! We met some Swedish students that helped us keep and eye on our stuff while we took turns sleeping. Our train finally came and we arrived in Salzburg shortly after. We checked in at the YoHo Youth Hostel. This is the first hostel we stayed in as it was usually cheaper or about the same for three of us to stay in a room at a cheap hotel or pensione/pension. There were six people to a room here. We had different people in our room almost every night. There are advantages to both the pensione and the hostel. In the hostel you have more kids and can get advice on where to go and what to do. In the pensione you don't have to worry about your stuff being stolen and usually have a toilet and shower in or near your room that is free. If the bathroom is not in your room, it is usually only shared with a couple other rooms. Some hostels you have to check out for the day and have to take all your stuff with you until check-in that evening. Also, you have to bring your own bedding in most hostels or rent it.

That first day we walked all over the city and out in to the countryside some. Once again we found a place to get some great ice cream. The ice cream just gets better and better as we tour Europe! That night we walked to the "old town". There were several squares and beautiful fountains. There was an almost life-size chess set in one of the square areas that was fun to watch people play. The next day we walked down to the Maribella gardens and wondered around there for a while. We then went to the Mozart museum and learned all we needed to know about Mozart and his family. That night we went to a marionette theater to see a performance of The Magic Flute. The marionettes seemed very life-like and were enjoying to watch even though it was in German.

The next day we got on the bus and made our way out to Hellbrun. There we visited the Hellbrun palace and gardens. The gardens were a lot of fun. There were all sorts of water powered contraptions that portrayed animated 1/8 scale life scenes. There were also hidden fountains all over that would squirt you as you go by. It was a hot day outside so the fountains were welcome. The gardens as most gardens in Europe were beautiful with all sorts of colors and landscaping. That evening Jen went to see a concert that was a little to pricey for Suzyn and I, so we went up to the Salzburg castle (the one in the Sound of Music). It was a huge hike up the hill, but we made it. We hung out up there enjoying the view of the city way down below. We ended up taking a nap on benches outside the monastery while listening to the monks do their chant. By the time we got up the Castle gates had been closed. We thought that we were locked in for the night, but then we found a small trap door that we could crawl through.

For our last day there Suzyn and I decide to rent bikes. Jen had a bad knee and had made other plans. If you have a Eurorail pass you can rent bikes from most train stations real cheap ($5 in Salzburg) We biked along the river through the city and out into the countryside. Next thing you know, we were in Hellbrun. After waiting for some rain to stop we biked back into the city and followed the river out the other side of the city until it was time to return the bikes. The next day Suzyn and I headed off to Munich, Germany. Jen thought it was too expensive in Munich and opted to stay in Salzburg with some guys she met. She was supposed to meet us in Munich later to head on to Frankfurt with us, but that never seemed to happen.

We arrived in Munich and checked into the Hungarian Pension (pension in Germany, pensione in Italy). It was about $20 a piece, which was cheaper than even the hostels when you figure in bedding and showers (plus we got free breakfast). It was run by a really nice old woman who gave us maps etc., and even brought us tea. We decided to head downtown to go on a Mike's Bikes tour. Mike is an American that loves Munich and now gives tours on bikes to English speaking people in Munich. The first session was all filled up so we decided to go to the Deutsches Museum for the morning. It is a science and technology museum. All of the information was written in German and English (bonus!). We took the tour that afternoon which took us by many sites and told us much history. We also patronized a few beer gardens along the way where Suzyn and I tried a new beer that I thought was half bad. It was a half 7-UP, half beer mixture. The evening ended at the Hofbrau Haus where we had dinner and drinks with some Australian's. Mike's Bikes is definitely worth while in seeing and learning about Munich. A lot of fun too! The next day we got up super early and went down to the train station to wait for Jen. After waiting for three hours (three trains as the come every hour from Salzburg) we finally decided to go on to Frankfurt to meet Suzyn's cousin, Robyn.

Robyn was stationed in the army in Darmstadt, Germany. She came and picked us up and took us down to Gleishiem where we stayed at one of her friend's place that was out of town. The place had a washer and dryer, no more washing our clothes in sinks here! Robyn was more than nice. She bought us food and everything. That night we walked around the town. We found an Italian place to get some ice cream ( there's big surprise!). Also that night Robyn got a message from Jen saying that she overslept and was going to stay in Salzburg with some people she met. Jen was leaving Europe earlier than Suzyn and I anyhow and only had a few days left. The next day Robyn and some of her friend's took us down to Heidelberg to see the Heidelberg Castle (Robyn had her car brought over). The castle was great. There were large parts of it missing thanks to the reign of Louie the 14^th of France. It seemed like a great place to have a wedding as the tour guide told us they host a few weddings throughout the year. We ran into some Germans that insisted we have a drink with them. They were students that had a class project to see how many different nationalities they could get to drink with them. They brought their own keg and mugs!

For our last day there Robyn and her boyfriend took us back to Frankfurt where we went to the top of a huge water tower to see the city. After that Robyn and boyfriend had to head back so Suzyn and I stuck around waiting for our train to Paris. We spent the afternoon at a big festival downtown that had lots of music and food. This is also where I found my romantic interlude as you can see in the picture! Then it was on the overnight train to Paris.

We arrived in Paris the next morning and then caught to train to Versailles where we would stay with my friend Nathalie's (from SIU) family. We made it to the station in Versailles where we just happened by chance to run into Jen. She was waiting for a friend of hers to pick her up where she would stay for a night and head back home. Nathalie's brother Edward picked us up just when we ran into her so we only talked for a brief second we had to leave. We arrived at Nathalie's home which is a beautiful home up on a hill down the road from the Palace of Versailles. Her family was more than hospitable to us. They fed us and gave us a key letting us come and go as we please. We visited with the family for a while and then went back into Paris to see the Louvre. There I saw many of Michelangelo's sculptures and of course de Vinci's Mona Lisa. I also saw the medieval part of the Louvre where part of the original structure still exists. After the Louvre and walking around the city we went back to Nathalie's for a wonderful dinner with wine from their family's vineyard and relaxation.

The next day we spent the entire day at or around the Palace of Versailles. We borrowed some bikes and rode through the gardens and around the area out in to the countryside. I toured through the Palace which was incredible. There was so much detail and history that you would have to go through it more than 20 times to get it all. We spent the entire day in Versailles relaxing out in the beautiful gardens. That night we had our last French dinner with the family. The next morning the family saw us off and we headed back into Paris. That day was my birthday and I got to spend most of it in Paris. Not too shabby of a birthday! For my birthday we went all the way to the top of the Eiffel tower. Suzyn is not real fond of heights and told me that I was lucky it was my birthday or she would of never gone to the top with me. She also got me a jacket as she wanted me to get rid of my dying sweater! We then hopped on the train again for the last part of our journey to the Czech Republic.

Our train was constantly stopping and we were not sure why as we couldn't understand French. It turned out that the man in the cabin with us spoke French and English as well as about seven other languages. He told us that there were problems with the signals and this would cause to be about an hour late. This in turn caused us to miss our connecting train Frankfurt. After some persuading with the information people at the train station they finally provided us with a free hotel room since it was their fault we missed our train. The next day we had our free continental breakfast and then were on our way to Prague.

We arrived in Prague and rented an apartment for a little over a week from a private individual. The apartment was great. We had a kitchen, bathroom, and all for only $12 each a night. It was in a residential part of town away from the main tourist seen so food was dirt cheap. For about $5 we got two large pizzas and drinks. Affording food etc. was not a problem in this town. The entire city was great. Almost all of the original buildings still stood since they were left virtually untouched by WWI and WWII unlike Paris, Berlin, etc.. We went to a ballet in this gorgeous theater that had a chandelier about 20 feet in diameter for only $2. We saw a number of musical concerts (mostly chamber orchestra) while in Prague. We also had one of the nicest dinners I think either one of us ever had at a fraction of the price of what it would of cost in the US. We could of easily spent an entire month there or more. We went all over the city from its huge castle to its open markets. We crossed over the famous Charles bridge over the Danube that has 30 distinct sculptures on it.

The week went by so quickly. The last day there we bought most of the gifts we had planned on buying for our friend's and family. We both bought crystal for both of our mother's and went through the biggest hassle trying to ship it back to the US. We finally found the main post office in town and after a long wait to buy boxes etc., they told us we needed to go way out to customs. We finally made it out there right before they closed and only had enough to send Suzyn's package by ship since they didn't take credit card. A man there that hardly spoke a word of English helped us out a great deal. He saw what we were doing and started saying "no, no." He told us to write down that the items we were shipping were gifts and were only worth about $40 or so. This would make things much smoother and assure that we would not be charged any additional fees. It worked as Suzyn's mom received the package about six weeks later.

I ended up carrying my stuff in two boxes along with my backpack and duffel bag on the train back to Versailles. We stayed with Nathalie's family one more night and the next day Nathalie's father, René took us down to the Air France bus that took us directly to our terminal. We boarded our plane and were on our way back to St. Louis regretfully. Suzyn's father told her that staying so long would cause her too much stress. That was about as relaxing as it got especially for Suzyn with her last semester of school that spring before. We both didn't miss a thing about home and could have stayed longer if we had the money and time. I can't wait to go back as I plan to work over there eventually.

These are just some extra pictures I scanned: They are Street in Paris, Paris Sex Shop (who's that girl coming out, better not tell her mom!), Palace of Versailles gardens, Sacré Coeur in Paris, The Coach rode whiling touring with the class (Driven by Ken Buckley, call him if you ever need a European tour bus, he was really great).