Backpacking Through Europe

Paris, France, Part 2

They started to walk side by side to the Metro. Louis paid for a ticket while Harry used one of his pre-bought. They arrived and spent 40 minutes looking at sculptures and pictures while they were trying to get to know each other.
"What's next on your list?" Louis asked when they left the museum.

"Notre Dame," Harry informed him after checking his notebook.

"Cool!" Louis smiled.

They went to see the impressive cathedral. Louis pretended to be Quasimodo and Harry laughed.
"Dinner plans?" Louis asked as they headed back to the Metro.

"Not really." Harry shrugged.

"Well, can I surprise you with something that isn't on your list?" Louis suggested.

"Sure." Harry easily agreed. He liked Louis' company.

Louis smiled and they took a train. Harry had no idea where they were going but that was exciting. They got off and Louis guided him down to the river Seine. He let out a surprised gasp when he saw the boats. Louis turned to him.
"Wanna take a boat trip and see Paris from the water? That one is about 40 pounds. Too expensive? We can just go for a burger somewhere. That's totally fine."

"I wanna go on a cruise! Are you kidding me? Sounds amazing!" Harry said, stumbling over his words.

"Alright, come on then!" Louis smiled.

They paid for their tickets and got on board. They drank champagne and ate a delicious three-course dinner while they watched illuminated landmarks pass them by.
"The Eifel tower looks so different from this view. This was a great idea, Louis!" Harry smiled. The Champagne had made him a little tipsy.

"I'm glad you joined me. It would feel a little awkward to dine here by meself." Louis said and returned the smile.

Two hours later they were headed back to their Hostels. Louis' accommodation was located one station after Harry's.
"So I thought about going to Disneyland tomorrow. Any chance you want to join me?" Louis asked just as Harry's station was coming up.

Harry had planned to go shopping but a chance to spend a whole day with Louis at Disneyland sounded so much better.
"I'm in!"

"Quick, give me your number!" Louis stressed and picked up his phone.

Harry gave it to him and waved goodbye as the doors opened. He hurried to his Motel and went to bed. He has trouble falling asleep. Today had been a perfect day and Louis was great! He was looking forward to spending another day in his company. He made a quick head count to make sure his budget was on track. He had more money than he had calculated that he would need so it was fine.

He woke up early and took a shower. He might have spent some extra time on his appearance before he headed down for breakfast. His phone rang and he answered breathlessly.
"Good morning. It's Louis. Still wanna go to Disneyland?"

"Absolutely!" Harry immediately replied.

"I'll pick you up outside your Hostel in half an hour?" Louis suggested.

"Sure." Harry agreed.

He shoved the rest of the breakfast down and hurried to the bathroom to brush his teeth. When he walked outside Louis was waiting for him. They headed to the Metro and jumped off at Marne-la-Vallée-Chessy to get on the train to Disneyland. Harry couldn't stop smiling. Louis was chatty today, telling him about his life in Doncaster, asking him questions about his life.

They bought a one-day ticket to Disneyland and headed inside. Louis took his hand and dragged him to Space Mountain. They rode the rollercoaster before they headed to the next attraction.

Harry enjoyed every second of it. It was the most fun he had in ages. As they sat down to eat he asked Louis about his traveling plans.
"Which countries and cities are you planning on going to?"

"I have a rough plan, like, I wanna see Italy, The Netherlands, Germany, and Spain but who knows? Maybe I'll jump on a train somewhere else if I'm in the mood. I have a month to experience as much as possible. How about you?" Louis answered.

"Spain, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg in that order." Harry replied.

Louis let out a loud whistle.
"In 30 days? That's crazy."

"It's doable." Harry shrugged.

"Yeah, but you only get to spend a day or two in each country and you've been here three days already." Louis pointed out.

"I'm leaving tomorrow." Harry replied.

"To Spain?" Louis asked.

"Yeah." Harry smiled.

"Me too, but I'm taking the night train. Then I'll save money on Motels and travel while I sleep, you know, waking up in a new country all rested." Louis grinned.

"That's brilliant! Why didn't I think of that?" Harry grunted and dragged a hand through his hair.

"Well, wanna spend another day in Paris with me and take the night train together?" Louis suggested.

"Where in Spain are you going?" Harry asked.

"I thought Madrid for starters, Barcelona on the way to Italy." Louis said.

"That's my plan too. Yeah, let's take the night train!" Harry smiled.

They spent a couple of more hours at Disneyland before they headed back to town. They ate an authentic French brasserie at Bouillions Pigalle for dinner and stopped at an ice cream place, I'île de la cité to eat some of the best ice cream they ever tasted before they parted ways.

The next day Harry brought his backpack and met up with Louis. They found some lockers to put away their heavy backpacks before they hit the town for some shopping. Harry looked at high-couture suits but he didn't buy them. He couldn't afford it and they would just take up space in his backpack. One day he would go back to Paris and buy them.

They ate Kebabs for lunch and did some more sightseeing. Harry had googled something last night. Louis had talked about how much he loved musicals yesterday when they were at Disneyland.
"I have an idea, Louis. Wanna go and see Grease at this theatre I found? Mogador?"

"Absolutely fucking yes!" Louis grinned excitedly.

They walked around town some more before it was time to buy tickets for the musical. Harry couldn't stop smiling, watching the musical, and how much Louis enjoyed it. When it was done they picked up their backpacks and headed to the train station to catch the midnight train to Madrid.

His journey had taken an interesting turn. He was no longer alone and he absolutely loved Louis' company. He was sure that he had made a friend for life. They got along so well.