Quote of the Day

The rest of the journey passed uneventfully and they reached Paris in the early evening. Their first ride through the Paris streets was exceedingly alarming, as the traffic went terrifyingly fast and, of course, on the wrong side of the road. Even Denise, who, much to their annoyance, was sharing a taxi with Fay, Julie and Ricky, was too unnerved to show off her superior knowledge of Paris landmarks properly.

"Yes, well, that the Louvre, - oh help, they're going to hit us - there's the Seine-"

"Of course it's the Seine," said Julie crossly, terror making her short-tempered, "we don't need you to tell us that's the Seine."

"Well," said Denise, rather huffily, "I bet you don't know that there are twenty-two bridges over the Seine in the central part of Paris and I bet you don't know that the Pont Neuf which is French for new bridge is the oldest bridge in Paris-"

People who tell you things like that," said Fay, resolutely turning her eyes away from the frenzied traffic, "are frightfully irritating because they know that you can't check up. You might be telling us the most awful rubbish."

"Well, I'm not," said Denise, "I'm telling you-"

"What's this big square?" Ricky interrupted. "It's lovely! All those fountains and statues and - oh help, did you see that Citröen, it nearly climbed right over our bonnet! It cut right in front, it-"

"This is the Place de la Concorde," said Denise. "Look up there, that's the Champs Elysées, leading up to the Arc de Triomphe-" the rest of her sentence was drowned as the taxi hurtled violently round the Place de la Concorde and she was thrown into Fay's lap.

The taxi turned towards the Place Vendôme and then into the comparative quite of the little narrow street where their hotel was situated.

From CROOKS TOUR, Chapter 7, On To Paris.