"MEMOS."

Tues. 11-11-80

Up about 8 to take one more walk around the old city. Bought beer stein for Don Hodges and gifts for the kids. Had coffee, tea and wonderful pastries at small coffee shop near city hall. Stopped to watch Glockenspiel because Don hadn't seen it. Revisited the open air food market - the variety is fantastic. Back to hotel to pack. Did get laundry back - I messed up that one. We had just 1/2 hr. before we had to leave for the airport and decided to try shop at Hofbrauhaus so Don can get a tee shirt. They were open. Buy shirts for Don and Danny.
Guards at the airport have such nasty looking large guns.
On flight I see the Alps for the first time. We can only see the part that rises above the clouds but they are still beautiful. Arrive in Paris at 3:30. Take bus from Orly airport to Air France station at Invilides, then take cab up the Champs Elysee. The hotel is huge and has its own large shopping center. After 3 telex messages we sent from Munich they still only had reservation for 1 person for 1 night. No problem, room rate is 320ff for 1 and 390ff for 2. Got settled in room and went to shops to buy bottle of champagne. Tom Shoda arrives with red wine, long thin loaf of bread and cheese. After enjoying Tom's gifts in our room we take off for first evening in Paris. It is a national holiday just like it is in the U.S.A. Tom says it snowed in Horseheads today. We walked to the Arc de Triomphe which is all lit up and guarded by soldiers because of the holiday. It is much larger than I ever imagined. We walked up the Champs Elysee past shops and cafes and theaters. The Lido was one of these.
Everything was very busy and very crowded and it was about 8:30 already. Stopped at a restaurant that had a seafood stand outside. We can't communicate very well with the waiter and we can't read the menu. Had onion soup with bread and cheese on top and then we mistakenly ordered a platter of ham hocks, asst. sausages, boiled potatoes and Sauerkraut! The food tasted good but was a disappointing choice on our part. After bread and cheese Tom and I split an order of Crepe's Flambe which were not so great. Coffee is thick and strong. We sat next to a tank of live lobsters - they were large and beautiful. After dinner we continued up the Champs Elysee to the Concorde where it ends. Then we took the Metro back to the hotel. Metro seems to be easy to use. I will try it tomorrow. Back to our room by 12:30. The city is still crowded and busy.