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My trip to Paris and Italy (May 2002)

Paris and Italy

Domz
2004-04-06 17:41:30

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the young men and women in the Italian cities were gorgeous, glamorous, and very physically fit.

Interesting geographic factoids I learned: Paris is at the same latitude as Canada. Rome is the same latitude as New York City.

Having sampled so many high-quality wines in my travels in Paris and Italy, my appreciation for drinking wine every day grew by orders of magnitude.

Interestingly, like Charleston, which I believe is the most walkable city in America, the outstanding, highly walkable cities in Italy (and Paris) contain a large number of NARROW sidewalks.

As a city planner often involved in city design, my expectations for my first trip to Europe were high. I had heard, for many years, about the quaint, walkable wonders of European cities, which made me quite exhilarated about the trip.

I was not disappointed. Paris and the Italian cities we saw were stupendous. Stunning. Spectacular. Europe is a cultural and culinary feast, and we greedily gobbled it up. A good nights' sleep comes easily after a full day of walking the streets in Europe.

Bored to tears in the Chicago airport on the flight back to Florida, I find and start reading the headline news on page one of USA Today. After getting numerous complaints about noxious air on flights, the cover story says that a study of Boeing jets finds that airborne chemicals from the jet engines are emitted into the cabin of the planes. A group of airline flight attendants, who were experiencing headaches and other ailments, are now suing Boeing and Honeywell over these allegations. The problem is noticed on Boeing MD-80 jets. The aircraft for my flight from Chicago to Orlando: Boeing MD-80. On the plane, I ask the attendants about today's news. Oddly, they have not heard...

An amusing discovery I make when returning home: I look in all my bags and pockets, and cannot find my keys anywhere. ...