CWT Journal – September 3, 2026 | Paris

Today became an impromptu retrieval mission. We crossed Paris by Métro to the hotel where our CWT began a month ago to reclaim a forgotten hatbox. Success. Then an Uber carried us to another former hotel in search of some abandoned shoes and a jacket. No joy. Traveling indefinitely as a family of four—with clothes, shoes, chargers, electronics, groceries, and assorted possessions constantly migrating between accommodations—some attrition is probably inevitable. Nothing irreplaceable was lost, so onward we go.

We stopped at Five Guys for lunch, where Dad contemplated one of capitalism's enduring mysteries: how does a company selling hamburgers and fries afford such cavernous real estate in the middle of Paris?

Then came the day's marquee event. We headed down the Champs-Élysées to Louis Vuitton's enormous flagship store, where Mom bought her first designer handbag—a particularly fitting souvenir from the city where Louis Vuitton founded his eponymous company more than 170 years ago. After weeks of admiring bags through windows across France, she finally found the one.

We took the Métro back toward the Haut-Marais, stopped for ramen along the way, and called it a night.

Some travel souvenirs are found. Some are forgotten in hotel rooms. And some come home in a monogrammed box.