From June 19th to July 19th, 1984, I was traveling through Europe on a trip set up through my school. I think they took trips like this every three years, and to my recollection, the only kids that could go were kids in the language classes: French, Spanish and Latin. This is probably the only real tangible good thing I can say about taking Latin in high school.
At any rate, we landed in London and then spent the rest of the trip on buses. We spent a few days in London, drove to Dover were we took a ferry ride across the channel to Calais France. We drove through France, Belgium, into the Netherlands, traveled around Amsterdam, then drove to Arnheim where we spent the night.
Next was down the Rhine through West Germany to Heidelburg, where we spent the night. Next day we made it to Switzerland, spent a few days there, traveled to Innsbuck Austria and spent the night.
Then down to Venice, where I think we stayed overnight and then onto Florence for an overnight. (Mind you in all these overnights, we did some touring of the city we were in too, so I got see Michelangelo's David in Florence!). Then we were off to Rome, where we spent several days.
Next, up through Italy, stopping at the Pisa for the Leaning Tower and then to town called Sienna, where I accidentally left my journal and lil notebook of all the photos I was taking in a drawer. I really wish I had that journal now, to read about how I felt as a 16 year old.
Anyway, into France, through Monaco and to Nice, where we spent I think two days. Loved the promenade there along the Mediterranean. Then through France to Montpelier where we spent a night. And then into Spain, to Barcelona, where I think we spent more than one night, but I'm not sure. After this, onto Valencia for a night, and then to Madrid, for a few nights. Then to a town in Northern Spain, whose name I don't recall. It was a small town and we were only there for an overnight. Then, back into France.
We stopped at Biarritz, a town along the Atlantic Ocean. Some of us rolled out pants up and took off our shoes and went into the water, just till it covered our ankles. we took pictures. And then we could say that we've been in the Atlantic Ocean on both its West and East edges. After an overnight, we made it to Paris.
Spent several days in Paris. Happened to be there on Bastille Day of all days. So, even though I'm deathly afraid of heights and I have fireworks, I and a few others went to the first level of the Eiffel Tower (most of our group went higher) and watched the fireworks from that height. I don't know that I can say that I enjoyed myself, really, but I can say that I did at the time appreciate how awesome an experience it was to be able to do that. The subway afterwards, we packed to tightly, we couldn't even get ahold of any handholds...but we didn't need to, cause were packed in to tightly, no one moved when the train swayed. Not a pleasant experience, that. Oh, and riding in a taxi through the Paris streets was such a horrific experience I'm pretty sure it took a year off my life. Despite all this Paris WAS a fun place and a fun time, and I'd like to visit it again sometime,
After this, we went back to Calais, across the Channel by ferry, back to London for a few more days before flying out.
It was, as you can imagine, and amazing trip. It cost $1800 in total back then (I checked, that's the equivalent to $4500 now!) But I got to see London, Paris, Rome, Venice, Madrid...and Big Ben, The Eiffel Tower, Versailles, The Colosseum, the Alps, the canals of Venice. I saw more cathedrals in 30 days than I have in the 35 years since. I had my first taste of goat's milk. And an amaretto and Coke. One of us on the trip had a birthday there. Two couples (who weren't couples back home) hooked up with each other. It took three of us and an umbrella to get a pair of pants out of tree after they fell out the hotel window. I got horribly homesick, and mom sent a letter to the hotel in, I think Barcelona, that I got when I arrived. She told me to call her, and I did....making my first, and only, trans-Atlantic collect telephone call. I got to eat at the original Beef Eaters, and wander through the Tower Of London (waiting in a long line to see the Crown Jewels behind a thick partitian of glass. I also, at Buckingham Palace, witnessed Prince William as a toddler walking from the building into a limousine, holding someone's hand. When we were in the Vatican in St. Peter's Square, we were there when the Pope came out on his balcony and gave a sermon...in Latin, or Italian, or his native Polish, I don't know but it wasn't English. And afterwards, he blessed us all, the entire crowd. I crossed the Thames, The Rhine, The Seine and the Tiber. Our group was included with other schools from around the USA and we rode in two buses, so I got to meet kids from Yuma Arizona (they were on our bus) and somewhere in the Midwest (don't remember much, they were on the other bus and we had limited interactions with them). the two guys that I started rooming with, who I thought were my friends, actually turned out to be kinda assholes, so in Switzerland, I had had enough and complained to the chaperones, and they moved me to being roomed with two other guys. It just so happened, I found out later, those two guys were a couple, sleeping with each other. They weren't happen I was interrupting their ability to do so, but they were polite to me nonetheless. I never knew they were screwing each other, and I assume they never knew I was gay too.
Anyway, it actually amazes me I can still remember the route we took three and a half decades after taking it. I remember everywhere we went (except for that one small northern Spain town).
I took four photo albums worth of photos. I wanted to scan some, but they were so old, and I was afraid there would a problem with the adhesive in getting them out, or if I took them out, I wouldn't be able to get them back in to stay. So i DID scan some....but they're very blurry cause they're scanned through the plastic covering. Sorry.
Parliament and Big Ben.
Some of the game from our school (that's me, in the back in the middle, with the fucked up hair and smiling stupidly.
Leaning Tower of Pisa
Taken from inside the Colosseum (my mother, bless her, wrote all the captions)
Arc de Triumph, along the Champ Elysees in Paris, flying the French flag for the upcoming Bastille Day.
The entire blurry busload of us in front of the Eiffel Tower. I'm in there somewhere....
The back part of Versailles. Inside those windows is the beautiful Hall Of Mirrors (no photography in there, please).
That's me, on the right, stylishly posing with waterfalls as the backdrop. Next to me is one of our chaperones.
Upon my return, my parents threw a small party for me: pizza, cake, neighborhood kids and my two favorite cousins. That's me on the ground, with another kid's hand on my head.
And finally a clear scan! My passport photo. Yep, that's 16 year old Polt, with the 80's glasses, messy mop of hair, peach fuzz mustache, and no smile.
POLT
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