Cousin Oliver

Dear Katie and Tigey,

Today is our last day! We had a relaxing day, roaming around the city. Here’s me and Rachel with one of London’s famous telephone booths.

Then we went to a wax museum. There were rooms and rooms full of famous people… but they were all made of wax! We had fun taking pictures with them, pretending we were famous, too.

Then we all went to a football game. Two American teams were playing in London and we went to watch them play. Rachel and Josh were sad to leave tomorrow, but they were happy that their trip was so much fun!

Tomorrow, I am flying back to the U.S. with them… hopefully I will see you guys while I am there!

Dear Tigey and Katie,

Today is our first full day in London. Rachel is feeling sick, so we’re taking it easy.

We hopped a bus and went on The London Eye. The Eye is a giant ferris wheel that is 900 feet tall and gives you a view of London from really high in the air.

It was a long line, but it was fun to go up so high.

After we rode The Eye, we walked across the Thames River to say hello to Big Ben:

The tower behind me and Rachel is called “Big Ben”, and it’s a big loud clock that chimes in London. It’s got a 14-ton bell (that’s as heavy as 10 cars!) inside the tower.

The we went to see Buckingham Palace, which is where the Queen of England lives.

Dear Katie and Tigey,

Today we went to a church on a mountain that juts up out of the ocean off the coast of France. It’s called Mont. St. Michel.

A long time ago, a bishop dreamed that God wanted him to build a great cathedral on top of an island nearby. The only problem was that there wasn’t enough flat room on the island’s rock to put a church… so the builders had to do some very tricky things to build it. They actually built three churches on top of each other, just so they could support a third church on the top! You have climb lots and lots of stairs to get to the top.

The churches are very big and pretty… and they’re more than 1,000 years old!

Today is our last day in France. Tomorrow, we take a train (under the ocean!) to London for a couple days, then Josh and Rachel get on a plane and head back to their home.

Dear Katie and Tigey,

Today we went to a place in France that is several hours from Paris. It is in a part of France called Normandy and it is very famous for a battle that took place there. Years ago, Americans helped France when it was taken over by a very bad man named Hitler. The US and Britain invaded France to take it back… they succeeded, but a lot of men died.

France gave America some land where the battle took place, and we have built a memorial to recognize all those brave men that fought in that battle. Some of the men’s families thought they would like to be with their fallen friends, so many stayed in France. The cemetery where they are buried overlooks the beach where many of them died.

The statue below is called “Spirit of American Youth”.

Today was a sad day, but a good one. It’s important to remember that freedom is not free.

Dear Katie and Tigey,

Today was relaxing and fun. We went to a cafe for breakfast. We had coffee, croissants, and omelettes. They serve salads with their omelettes, because it isn’t just a breakfast food here, it’s an all-the-time meal.  Josh really likes French bread.

We walked around, and had a nice lunch later in the day. At the end of the day, we went for another walk at a public square called Place des Vosge. I supervised Josh doing some sketches.

Dear Katie and Tigey,

Today was a very pretty day. We all got up early and took the metro. The metro is a collection of trains of that run underground and carry people all around the city. When we left the Metro, we were on a whole other side of the city, and it only took five minutes.

At the exit of the Metro, there is a replica of the torch that America’s Statue of Liberty holds. Did you know that the Statue of Liberty was a gift to the US from France? The statue is also right above a tunnel where a beloved Princess from England died. English people have left flowers and messages on the torch showing how much they miss her.

The Eiffel Tower is the most famous building in France. You can see it from very far away, but it is so much bigger up close!

There are three levels. We took giant elevators to get up to the tippy top. It is very tall, and Rachel and Josh got nervous being so high. From there you can see the whole city, and it is HUGE. There are buildings in every direction, as far as the eye can see. Many people come to the Eiffel Tower: we heard people speaking Chinese, German, Dutch, Spanish, Russian… all sorts of languages from all over the world.

We rode the giant elevators down for the top two platforms, but then took LOTS of stairs down to the very bottom. It was a great day!

We got up super early today and were out the door at 8 am, Paris Time (that’s 2 am for you guys — the middle of the night!). Today we were excited to see the Musee du Louvre, which one of the biggest museums in the world. It used to be a King’s palace before they turned it into a museum. It is HUGE. Even though the building is very GIANT, the French added some new elements to it: you can see a giant glass pyramid behind me and Rachel in this picture. You go into the pyramid to get into the museum.

Rachel and Josh were amazed by the museum. It is really big, and full of lots and lots of paintings, sculptures, old furniture and artifacts from ancient cultures. While we were there, I said hello to some new friends:

…and scared some new ones.

The museum is so big that we had to take a break in the afternoon for some coffee and the best ham and cheese (jambon et fromage) sandwiches we’ve ever had. Then we walked all the way back to our apartment… and stopped for ice cream on the way there! It was such a fun day.

Josh and Rachel slept ALL MORNING! Their journey must have worn them out.

We left the apartment to go get lunch at a restaurant that was all about America - they had an Arizona burger with fries, and lots of cowboys and indians on the wall. Josh has discovered his new favorite drink. It’s called Orangina. It tastes like Oranges with Sprite, but not as sweet, and it has pulp in it. So good!

We went walking all over the Marais district, which is where we are staying. There were lots of arches and pretty buildings. There were also lots of pigeons and traffic. Paris is a busy city!

Then we went to a grocery store and bought some food to take home with us for snacks. In Paris, there are two ways to buy food: at a supermarche (pronounced “supermarshay”) which is like a very tiny Krogers; or at a bunch of different stores that specialize in cheese, bread, and veggies.

We are making some pasta and yummy toast for dinner tonight, and getting up super early tomorrow morning.

I took Aunt Rachel and Uncle Josh on the train to France. We went under part of the ocean, and finally arrived in Paris. Paris is the capitol of France.

We took Paris’s metro to an apartment in the Eastern part of the city. We got a little lost, but Josh found the way. It was very mysterious, with a door that led into a courtyard to a hidden set of stairs, but we finally got inside and settled in.

We found a place nearby and had pizza for dinner.

Tomorrow will be a big day of exploring.

Dear Tigey and Katie,

I picked Uncle Josh and Aunt Rachel up from the airport this morning.

They were very tired when they arrived, but I bundled them onto London’s Underground and got them to their hotel. They were recharged after some lunch (and some very delicious coffee), and we decided to go for a walk. We found a cute little park near the train station.

All that energy didn’t last long, though, and they were really tuckered out.

I’m taking them to Paris tomorrow, so they should rest up now. It’s going to be a very fun couple of weeks! Meanwhile, I’ve got a lot of planning to do…