Feature Story Rough Draft

Getting to travel different parts of the world is a dream of most. Whether they are able to act on that dream or not, there is a place in the world everyone wants to go.

Laurie, Michael, and Martha Clark were able to live and experience that dream on a European tour in March of 1997. They went to 5 countries total: France, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, and England.

“We had a tight schedule with the tour because you had to get up when they said, leave when they said which was frustrating and you weren’t free to do what you want all the time,” Laurie said.

Paris is a very popular place to go especially on a European tour it cannot be missed. Michael said why they wanted to go to Europe and a reason why they were excited for Paris.

“All the history that is there in Europe and Paris especially with the Arc de Triomphe,” Michael said.

The Arc de Triomphe is a beautiful monument that honors the ones who fought and died for France in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. It started being built in 1806 and was finished in 1836. It is around 178 years old.

There was a tight schedule of being able to make it to the places they wanted to go but they were able to make it. They went to the Eiffel Tower, Champ de Mars, the Louvre, Montmartre, and the Arch de Triomphe.

The first night they got there they went to the Eiffel Tower and got to go up in the Eiffel Tower and look over Paris.

“My favorite place was the Eiffel Tower because it was so beautiful to visit,” Martha said.

There are so many different places to eat in Paris. When it comes to food Laurie told a story about her first meal in France.

“I was scared to eat the food at first, so my first meal was McDonald’s. We ended up going to cafes and eating breads, cheeses, wine, and more,” Laurie said.

There are so many different kinds of food to try and enjoy in Paris.

“The mushrooms were the best because they were different and the sauces were really good with them,” Michael said.

There was some different things that Laurie and Michael found out in Paris that they didn’t know.

“There isn’t a lot of air conditioning in hotels and people would open windows. I was shocked when we got there and our hotel didn’t have air conditioning,” Laurie said.

“Since everything was older there were no escalators and no elevators to use. I realized Paris was cosmopolitan and was pretty diverse, definitely not what I had imagined,” Michael said.

Paris is known for their shops and of course their fashion. Champs de Mars is one of those places people love to shop at. Laurie tells us about her shopping experience.

“Champs de Mars. It was fun to window shop because there were lots of expensive stores to look at,” Laurie said.

Champs de Mars is a famous shopping center with many stores that are very pricey to people. It is a big place that has many stores for people to shop in.

There was something that surprised her about Paris that she wouldn’t have thought was true prior to her trip.

“What surprised me was how close the countries were and the different languages and cultures around us,” Laurie said.

There is many different ways to travel in Paris. The ones they took aren’t the only ways to travel and sight-see in Paris. There were difficulties in Paris and they told us about transportation.

“There was a lot of traffic and very narrow streets which wasn’t the best,” Laurie said. “We had a tour bus and but would also take a taxi and even the subway.”

Laurie talked about what she liked best about Paris.

“I loved the architecture and how old it is because it is so beautiful and we don’t get to see that in the U.S,” Laurie said.

“The food is very excellent, the museums are very interesting, and the Buddha Bar which is a popular restaurant/bar/lounge,” Michael said.

These are some fun places that he thought people who have never been to Paris would enjoy. For example going to museums if you are into Paris’ history, the Arc de Triomphe, The Louvre, and the Montmartre.

The Louvre is one of the world’s largest museums and is also a historic monument. This monument is located right by the Seine River, which is the river that flows right through Paris and is a big tourist attraction to go by boat to tour Paris completely.

“The Louvre was my favorite because it is a museum of art and all the history in it is amazing,” Michael said.

"The architecture was wonderful and just seeing all those places were amazing." Martha said.

Architecture was a big hit for them in Paris. Paris is a beautiful city that is the most visited place in the world. It is a very touristy place for people to go.

When they were at the airport ready to head home, they hit a little speed bump because they were late arriving to their flight.

“We missed the flight home and was frustrating but turned out awesome because we ended up flying business class,” Laurie said

So even though they were to late to catch their original flight they got to fly in better seats, business class seats.

After being on the trip they were all asked 2 other places they would like to go. They were allowed to pick anywhere they want

“Florence and Barcelona because I haven’t been there and they are well known to be beautiful and rich history to learn about,” Michael said.

He wants to go to Florence, Italy and Barcelona, Spain, which are also in Europe along with the places he already went.

“I would love to go to Rome and Athens because they are both filled with history and wonderful places to visit,” Martha said.

Martha chose another place in Italy and then Athens in Greece. Rome is a very popular city to go to that many people visit and hope to visit.

“I would love to go to Rome and Berlin because I didn’t get to go there on the tour,” Laurie said.

They went to Koln in Germany on their tour but never got to go the Berlin. She also wanted to go to Rome, Italy like Martha. Her final thoughts for the best time of the year was to go.

“It wasn't crowded or touristy but I would prefer to go late-spring or early-summer when it's warmer,” Laurie said.

Even though they didn’t go the best time of year, they still got to go and do everything they wanted. Paris is a really history rich, beautiful place to visit. There is the Eiffel Tower, a big part of what they are known for and what everyone knows. There are many places to learn about their history and just get to try everything out they have in Paris.