August 11, 2011 -- Paris

Yesterday did turn out to be a beautiful day, sunny and warm enough in the afternoon to walk around in short sleeves. Some brave people even donned their swimming suits to sun themselves along the Seine.

I must look much more infirm than I picture myself. In the past several days, people have twice jumped to their feet on the subway to offer me their seats, and yesterday, as I was about to get off the subway, a young woman held out her hand in an offer to help me up out of my seat. Although I would have been delighted to hold hands with her under different circumstances, we were about to fight our way against the flood of people trying to get on the train, and so felt I needed both hands free.

I purchased my train tickets from Lille, France to Brussels and from Brussels to Luxembourg City online yesterday. I have to pick the first one up at any French train station and the second one at the Brussels Central Train Station, because I don't have a way to print them out here. The first ticket only cost me 17 euros! Being able to access the Internet is a big help in planning as is being able to read the sites in the various European languages. Train tickets in some European countries are like airline seats: they come in all prices with all sorts of special deals. If you wait too long, the cheap tickets are gone. It usually pays to shop online in advance so you can browse the different possibilities and find the cheapest.

My crazy roommate informed me yesterday that he is moving out at noon today. I asked him as a special favor if he could make his bed before going out for once so as to not keep me awake so long when he comes into the room after midnight. He accused me of "restricting his rights". We got into a warm discussion about it, which I didn't think I was capable of doing in French. Finally I left the room in disgust with his still insisting in a loud voice that I was being completely unreasonable to ask him to make his bed earlier. When I came back, he was gone, and low and behold, his bed was made!  Even more astounding, when he returned to the room after midnight, he was quiet and went to bed promptly and quietly.

I don't know if his having to change rooms is good or bad. He says the administration asked him to change. There are four beds in this room, and if there is no room for him, that probably means that all four beds are going to be occupied tonight. The more people in a room, the greater the chances that someone will have some bad habits.