if you haven't guessed, it's a twist tie. i love these things. they have, for me, so many uses. one of the things i use it for is to keep battery charger cords in order. i just loop the cord around like a garden hose and then twist tie it together. i remember when living in france, one of the few things that bothered me were their twist ties. whatever it is made from does not do a good job of staying secure. not that it comes undone, it just doesn't secure tightly enough. now i know for any future trip to france, i need to pack some twist ties from home.

old memories

I found these souvenirs in another souvenir (a tote from edinburgh). yup, i pretty much saved everything, even receipts. notice the mcdonalds logo? i was told macdonalds had gone green in parts of europe. i think germany (probably the greenest european country) started it. although i'm not sure how they are green.

the last image is of my expense booklet. i think the booklet was made for teachers but it works well to record expenses, too. i was on a tight little budget so this helped me stay within it. i loved recording my expenses in there and it's one of my fondest memories.

view of fourviere cathedral with book market in the foreground.  lyon, france.

aug 12

paris

a memory.

this is lyon, france.  this is the color of the city:  all shades of peach.  it is what i knew for the five months i lived there.  not to mention all the cool traboules or passageways.  lyon is nothing like paris but it still holds a place in my heart.  i suppose it was a good thing i ended up in lyon.  though it's france's second city (or third or fourth, depending on who you talk to), it is very small.  i felt like it is closer to the size of a los angeles suburb.  for that reason, i was a lot more comfortable there than i was in the one month i lived in paris.  lyon is manageable.  plus its lighter on the tourists.  it's a good place to open up an american/british company there as there isn't much right now.  lyon will surely love for that to happen.