
If This Is Tuesday…
I have
discovered many interesting things on my adventures. One of the most unexpected has been that
adventures come in different shapes and sizes.
People don’t usually think of adventures in this way. They only think of “where”, especially if it
is an exciting new place to see. It is true that I’ve had adventures like this,
but I have also had ones that don’t fit this pattern at all. You can visit a city
that you think you know, only to discover you really didn’t know it at all,
because other areas of the city are so different. The second visit is like a new
adventure. Then, if you visit a city
often enough, you eventually see it all, and even begin to know the people. It
almost feels like you are living there. When
this happens, it becomes a new kind of adventure. And of course, you have a
completely different type of adventure if you actually move to a
new city and make many new friends. All of these are adventures, even though each
one is different. However, they all have
one thing in common; they revolve around a single destination. That all changed with my latest adventure.
When
my traveling companion told me we were going on another adventure, I looked him
straight in the eye and said “it’s about time”.
The first year after I left Geneva was filled with many
adventures. When summer came, and we
took a break from our travels I was surprisingly pleased. It was great to just sit by the pool, relaxing
in the sun. When I began to get bored,
there were always video games in Duncan’s room. It was a welcome change. But I began to have second thoughts when days
stretched into weeks and finally into months.
The final insult was when my traveling companion forgot to wake me
before his trip to Philadelphia. He said it was my fault for sleeping in. He even tried to convince me I really didn’t
want to see the Liberty Bell, since it was cracked anyway. I was still furious, and when I had the chance
to go to Vancouver without him I jumped at
it. Two can play that game. So when he finally mentioned a new adventure,
I pretended to ignore him. Then he
mentioned that the trip was to Paris, and suddenly all was
forgiven. I told him that I’d never been
to Paris, even though I’d grown up in
Geneva. I’d always wanted to see the
Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triumph, the
Louvre… My traveling companion stopped
me, and said it wasn’t just a trip to Paris. When he told me that we were also going to
London, I got even more excited. My mind was racing with the
possibilities. The tower of
London, Big Ben, Banana Quick – I
could hardly wait. But when he told me
that we were also going to Boston, I began to be concerned. I asked him how long it would take for an
adventure that included all these wonderful cities. When he said we would only be gone for five
days, I gave him my best “you must be mad” look. He assured me that it would only be five
days. I assured him that he was mad. But I smiled when I suddenly realized I had
discovered a new kind of adventure – the “whirl wind tour”.
When I
told my friends, they all said I should just stay home. I have to admit that part of me thought they
might be right, but it really wasn’t an option.
I decided long ago that if I wanted adventures, I should be willing to
have all kinds. In the end I was pleased
to discover it isn’t as insane as it sounds. That’s good, because it definitely
sounds insane.
I
slept soundly on the plane. There aren’t many things where being small is an
advantage, but flying is definitely one of them. I made a comfortable bed in my
traveling companion’s computer bag, and settled in for the night. Unfortunately, it was a very short night, and
before I knew it we were waiting for our luggage at Charles de Gaulle
airport. From there it was a short train
ride into the center of the city.
Paris is a beautiful city, with the
Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, and many other
well known sights. There are even
wonderful signs for the Metro. When I
saw one, I loved it, and decided to do the tourist thing and have my picture
taken in front of it.

Even
with a bit of time spent playing tourist, we were still at our hotel by 10:30 in the morning, so of course
our room wasn’t ready. Fortunately, I
wasn’t tired, and suggested we spend the day seeing Paris. I wanted to see was the
Eiffel Tower first, and it wasn’t long
before we spotted it.

The
sun was shining and it really didn’t look like the
Eiffel Tower was all that far away, so I
suggested we walk. Actually, I suggested
that my traveling companion walk and that I ride on his back, but you know what
I mean. It turned out that it wasn’t as
close as I thought, and it took quite a while to get to it. When we finally got closer, I realized that
it was actually a lot taller than I had thought. Looking up at it, I felt a strange sensation,
but I couldn’t quite put it into words.

My
traveling companion was tired and wanted to take a break, but I felt restless. While he caught his breath, I went to have a
closer look. Suddenly I knew why I’d
felt that strange sensation. I realized what a great view of
Paris you would have from the top of
the Eiffel Tower. It was very tall, but I was confident that I
could climb it. I’m sure I would have
made it too if my traveling companion hadn’t stopped me.

I
enjoy seeing the famous sights of a city, but what I really love is finding the
little surprises that every city has.
After my traveling companion stopped me from climbing the
Eiffel Tower, we walked over to the
Trocadero and took a moment to sit and just enjoy looking at the
Eiffel Tower. I was thinking about the wonderful view I
would have had from the top, when suddenly I thought I saw the Statue of
Liberty. Even if I’d managed to climb to
the top of the Eiffel Tower, I didn’t think I would have been
able to see New York, so I asked my traveling companion what
it could be.
Everyone
knows the Statue of Liberty is in New York City. Quite a few people know that it was a gift
from France to the people of the United States. However not very many people know that there
is a smaller Statue of Liberty in Paris, on
Grenelle Island, in the River Seine. This statue was given to the people of France by Americans living in
Paris. When my traveling companion told me this
story, I thought he was making it up, so I insisted we go and have a look. Sure enough, there it was, right in the
middle of Paris. He told me that the statue in
New York is over four times as tall,
but I kind of like the one in Paris. Maybe that is just because I’ve never seen
the one in New York. I
told my traveling companion that he really would have to do something about
that, but he pretended he didn’t hear me.


When I
say that I love finding the unknown sights in a city, this is exactly the kind
of thing I mean. Here I was in
Paris on a sunny afternoon, enjoying
a perfect view of the Statue of Liberty.
In a way it was very strange, but that is what made it a perfect,
unexpected, adventure. We sat for a long time on the small island in the middle
of the Seine, just watching the
people. We saw couples, young and
old. We saw students studying for exams
by the river. We saw artists, painting
the bridges and the river. It was
wonderful.
After
a while I suggested we go onto one of the bridges, to have a look. The river is beautiful from the bridges and I
took more time to sit and enjoy.

Next
we went to the Arc de Triumph, and of course I wanted to climb it too. I was all set to run across the traffic, but
as usual my traveling companion wouldn’t let me. I
think he needs to lighten up.

The
day was still young, and I still wanted to see more, even though my traveling
companion was beginning to look a little worn out. This time we took the Metro, and before long
we were at the Louvre. They seem to have
a thing about Pyramids at the Louvre, because they are everywhere. I’ve heard that Pyramids have magical healing
powers, so I thought I’d check it out. I
told my traveling companion he should see if it would help him stay awake, but
he didn’t want to try it.


I was
still feeling wide awake, even though it was late afternoon. However, I began to feel sorry for my
traveling companion, so I suggested that perhaps we should call it a day. I was surprised when he said there was one
more place he really wanted me to see. As
we headed for the Metro, I had no idea where we were going. After a short ride, we left the Metro station
and began climbing a very steep hill in the middle of the city. I kept asking where we were going, but my
traveling companion refused to tell me.
As we climbed higher, we could see more and more of Paris, and then suddenly we headed
down an alleyway, and found ourselves in the square of Montmartre. I’d never even heard of it, although I was
assured it is a very famous place. It
was full of artists painting people’s pictures.
They call them Caricatures. I was
watching one artist drawing a boy’s picture, when someone asked me if I wanted
to have my Caricature drawn. I hadn’t
even thought of it, but I liked the idea a lot.
My traveling companion could see what I was interested, and he nodded
for me to go ahead.


I
think it turned out rather well, and I’m going to have it framed and hang it in
my room.
When
we finished, it really was time to head back to the hotel and check into our
room. I was pleased that we made one
more stop at a lovely park near our hotel.
Paris is a city that has many
wonderful parks right in the middle of the city. This park had grass and trees and quiet
places, but it also had many statues of animals. At least I think they must have been
statues. Sometimes I see animals
standing very still, and people think they are statues. I don’t think these were real though, because
one was a dinosaur, and another was a dragon.
I don’t think I’d want to sit on the paw of a real dragon, but a statue
of a dragon was ok. I’m sure it must
have been a statue, though now that I stop to think, it did seem strangely warm
when I was on his paw.

By
this time, even I was getting tired, and we headed for the hotel and a good
night’s sleep in our comfortable, but very small, room. Once again I was very glad that I am such a
small bear.
The
next morning we had breakfast, checked out of the hotel, and took the Metro to
my traveling companion’s meeting. He
spent the day in a conference room. The
only view he had of the Eiffel Tower was on the Internet (http://www.paris-live.com/ ). Sometimes I feel sorry for my traveling
companion on these trips. He visits such
wonderful and interesting places, and then spends most of his time in a
conference room talking to people who are also visiting from somewhere
else. He could stay home and do
that. It is true that he takes time to
show me around, and I’m grateful for that.
To be honest, I think he uses me as an excuse to see more of the city,
but I don’t mind. He still doesn’t see
nearly as much as I do. While he was in
the conference room, I spent another pleasant day wandering around
Paris, outside in the fresh air.
I went back to meet him after his meeting,
and we took the Metro yet again to Gare du Nord, where we caught the train to
London. I know what you are probably thinking –
London is on an island. That’s right; we took the train through the
tunnel under the English
Channel. They call it the Chunnel.
As the
train pulled out of the station, I took one last look at Paris. I can hardly wait until I have a chance to
see it again.

I have
decided that the train is the best way to travel. We had large comfortable seats with a
wonderful view. A light haze covered the
countryside, and you could see villages and forests through the twilight mist,
as if they were in a fairy tale or a dream.
While we were looking out at this fantasy landscape, waiters brought
dinner to our seat. It is a very
civilized way to travel. Before long we entered the Chunnel and then we were in
London.
It was
dark, but my traveling companion said that he would show me around. After checking into our hotel, we headed for
the Underground. The London Underground
is a lot like the Paris Metro, except of course it is called the
Underground. We didn’t have nearly as
much time as we did in Paris, but we did manage to see some
of the sights.

First
stop was the Tower Bridge. I asked my traveling companion if that meant
it was a bridge to the Eiffel Tower, but he laughed and said
no. It was a bridge to the
Tower of London, which sort of made sense once
he explained it to me. The only problem
was that I couldn’t see a tower anywhere.
He told me that the “Tower of London” was actually a castle. I though I finally had it straight, until my
traveling companion told me there is another confusing thing about the
Tower Bridge. It is the most famous bridge in
London, and is always shown on
postcards. Because of this, many people
think that it is London Bridge, but it turns out that
London Bridge is a completely different
bridge that no one ever shows on postcards.
My head was beginning to hurt as my traveling companion was explaining
all of this to me. He looked like he was
going to explain something else, but I asked him to please stop, and just show
me the bridge, no matter what it was called.
Once
he stopped trying to tell me the history of every bridge in London, we headed back to the
Underground, and went to see Big Ben.

I’d
heard of Big Ben before, but I really didn’t know what it was. I discovered that it is just a clock, at the
top of another tower. I was going to ask
my traveling companion why the Tower of London was a castle, and Big Ben was
a tower, but then I remembered how much my head had been hurting, and decided
not to ask.
The
next day while my traveling companion went to another meeting, I went in search
of my favourite English treats; Banana Quick and Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles. I know you probably think I’m strange, but
these are two special things that I’ve discovered you can only get in England. I love both of them, so whenever I visit England I make sure I get a good
supply.
Less
than two days after arriving in London, we were on our way back to
the airport, where we caught the flight to Boston. I’d intended to sleep on the flight, but as I
was settling in I saw another bear hiding under the seat next to me. I went over to say hello, but he seemed very nervous. Finally he told me that his name was Engelbert
Arthur Hope the third, and that he was off to see the world. His first stop had been a comfortable shelf
in a shop at Heathrow airport. That
wasn’t working out too well, because Engelbert had been seeing lots of people
from all over the world, but not too much of the actual world. Then one day, a man in the shop stopped, and
invited Engelbert to join him on his travels.
Engelbert wondered how this man knew he wanted to see the world, but
after a moment’s hesitation he decided it didn't matter, and he accepted. I
told Engelbert that something very similar had happened to me, and for the rest
of the flight we talked about the adventures I’d already had, and the many
future adventures we were both looking forward to. I hope things work out for him. Maybe we’ll meet again on some future
adventure.

We
arrived in Boston very late, and I was tired because I
hadn’t slept on the flight. As soon as
we got to our hotel north of Boston, I headed straight for
bed.
When I
woke up in the morning, I couldn’t believe we were just outside of
Boston. There were forests everywhere, and hardly any
buildings. I thought about going for a
walk, but after everything I’d done that week, I was too tired. In the end I decided to join my traveling
companion for his meeting. To be honest,
it was pretty dull. Most of the time I just
relaxed and read until it was time to head for the airport and fly home. That night, my own small bed looked awfully
good.
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