Europe wrapup

Having recovered from jet lag, here are a few additional pictures. Click to enlarge:

Along the Amalfi coast in Italy. We passed through the arch on the left.

Also on the Amalfi coast.

First view of Notre Dame.

Terrible picture, but proof I was there.

My favorite spot in Paris. Between the two islands in the Seine.

In Belgium horses are allowed on the beach after 7:30pm

Square overlooking the sea in Tarragona Spain.

The road cutting through the middle of the Roman Forum. Built by Mussolini for reviewing his troops, proving dictators can fundamentally change countries quickly.

Rome street vendor with an eye for artistic presentation.

Finally, some personal thoughts and impressions on our 3 months in Europe.

Europeans, like the people in the western hemisphere countries we have visited, are different from Americans. I have read that Americans are aggressive, and considered sometimes rude. It was still surprising to see this heretofore abstract idea actually true. The mildest, laid-back American would be considered a bit brash in many other countries. I tried my hardest to have a mellow attitude but still managed to make De Anne cringe a few times.

The overriding principle in America is "I have rights" and "I can do anything I want". Nothing wrong with that - my father always said that rights entail responsibility. We kept the rights, but somewhere lost the responsibility. In other countries the expectation of rights seems to me to be much lower. I saw a couple police incidents in Paris that would have drawn a screaming crowd and a lot of cell phone cameras out in America; however,  the folks on the street moved away and made no eye contact with the police.

In Spain the week after my little run in with the train thieves we were on board again and some very tough looking police were at the station where the gang had boarded. In Tarragona women could walk the street at night alone and safe. One night about 11:00pm, looking off our balcony, I saw an elderly woman shuffling by on the other side of the street. She paused, pulled a small wad of bills from her purse, counted them, stuffed them away again, and shuffled on. Try that in an American downtown.

I think we must visit a few more countries to reach a definite conclusion of cause and effect, but Americans are different.