June 19, 1999

A funny thing happened yesterday while eating lunch at McDonalds with Franca - though it wasn’t funny at the time. First I must give you a bit of background.

Some people believe that the industrialized nations of Western Europe and America are taking advantage of the third world nations by loaning them money and making them pay it back. They would like for the well-to-do nations to forgive the debt and let them start over. In fact Italy has done just that. It forgave all the debts that third world countries owe to it. Why they did so I’m uncertain. It could have been out of kindness but I suspect that there were other reasons - aren’t there always? Here in Britain they decided to have a march through the banking area. While Franca was in the library I went on a photo expedition. I was unaware of this march until I arrived in the banking district. While a bunch of drug-takin’, job-needin’, welfare-livin’, uneducated, tattooed, middle-class wana-bees were blocking traffic and being a general nuisance to the eyes, ears and noses of decent workin’ people I was taking pictures of the splendid architecture of the area - pictures will be coming soon.

So, I went back to the library to collect Franca for lunch. Off we went to McDonalds. While we were downstairs looking at the pictures I had taken earlier we heard some banging and crashing coming from upstairs. One of the employees came over and told us to put the computer away and come with them into the back. “What’s going on,” I asked? “You know about the riot, right?” “You mean the march?” “It was a march. Now it’s a riot and their coming in.” Into the back we went. All of the employees took off their uniforms so that they wouldn’t be identified and therefore singled out in case there was violence. In the end all the rioters did was crash in the front windows, destroy the computers and cash registers - though they didn’t get any money - and make a mess. I told one of the cops that they should give the rioters a tear-gas enema. That elicited a chuckle and a nod.

That was our adventure of the day. Hopefully today will be a little quieter. Tomorrow we are going to the Science Museum which is rated as one of the best in the world and Friday after next we are going to see the “Power of Myth” show. It is put on by Lucas Arts and covers the mythological influences of the Arthurian legends, Wagner, etc in the Star Wars movies. It is only showing in Europe and it is just luck that I happen to be here in London while it is showing.

Hopefully I will be on American soil sometime the 3rd of July.

Ciao, dan