Class One...and How I Got Here
I first set foot in Paris the summer after I turned 16. I was traveling with a choir on one of those whirlwind bus trips that take hordes of teens across some limited piece of the continent. Paris was the second stop of the trip, following London. I, along with three girls that I knew at least a bit before the trip, missed the bus (this will surprise no one in my family or close friend group, though in retrospect I'm a little surprised I was this scattered away from home). Rather than catching a taxi to the next place the bus was supposed to stop, which would have been highly unusual for four girls from Kansas, we simply pulled out a map and walked. It was a long walk but we made it right as the evening's concert was ending - so that was good. (This piece is a little surprising to me in hindsight. I'm a little shocked I had a map or a schedule, so I'm guessing I can thank a traveling companion for these handy items.) Also, yes, to anyone who might wonder, in the 1990s...