Song of Salzburg by Jen Geigle Johnson

Author:Jen Geigle Johnson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Covenant Communications, Inc.
Published: 2021-07-13T10:27:20+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

The next day, Freya was happy to forget about her violin audition. She never predicted she’d ever think such a thing, but she was in great need of diversion and amusement, and the Paris Exposition was just the thing.

Lord Bouchet arrived full of smiles, which she readily returned. His mother sat in the front seat near him and Freya and her grandmother in the back.

“I feel thrice blessed today.” Lord Bouchet grinned. “For I am going to the exposition with three of the loveliest ladies in all of Paris.”

Her grandmother giggled, and Freya shook her head.

He adjusted his hat. “Where shall we go first? The Camp de Mars, the Trocadero, the Esplanade des Invalides, or along the banks of the Seine?”

“Could we see the Palace of Electricity?” Freya would be pleased to see any of the exhibition, all of it, really.

Lord Bouchet raised a finger into the air. “Yes! She’s done it. She’s picked the best first spot. And then how about we see as many of the different countries’ pavilions as we can.”

Freya couldn’t agree more. “I should very much like to see the Rue des Nations. Perhaps China, Sweden, Hungary.”

“And England, naturally.”

“Certainly.”

As soon as they were out on the street, walking in the crowds, Freya felt even more free from her cares. Young families, people in love, the elderly all walked past them. The exposition was for all people. Everything around them had been built up, created—even full structures—to celebrate the exposition. The Eiffel Tower rose above them, still as yellow as she’d ever seen a monument but impressive all the same.

“And now I’ve found a spectacle we shall all enjoy.” Lord Bouchet led them across the square to something Freya had never seen before.

“Is that . . . ?” She furrowed her brow, trying to make sense of what she was seeing.

“A moving walkway.” He rubbed his hands together. “Come. Let us try it out.”

His mother reached for Grandmother’s hand. “Certainly not. I don’t want anything to do with that nonsense.”

Grandmother shook her head. “That won’t sit well with me, not at all. You two go on.”

“Yes, you two go on, certainly.” His mother waved them on after they made plans to meet again in two hours.

As soon as Freya and Lord Bouchet were out of earshot, he breathed out. “And now we can really get somewhere with our conversation. Come. Let’s try this ridiculous moving walkway.”

“It does look rather interesting, don’t you think?”

“I’ve never seen one before at any rate.” They stepped onto a platform and then onto the moving path.

After a moment, Freya began to think she could walk faster than their current pace. “It moves rather slowly, doesn’t it?”

“I suppose.” The path moved forward, taking them across the plaza. Freya found she could not look at the sights around her long enough. Everything held such beautiful details that she would need a week to capture it all.

Lord Bouchet pointed up ahead. “Oh, here we go. Now it gets faster.” He led her to the next level.

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