THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 21, 1994 TAG: 9408210176
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PARIS LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines
The ham-and-cheese sandwich came on French bread slightly larger than a hot dog bun. The Coke bottle must have held all of 8 ounces.
The price: 50 francs, or roughly 10 bucks.
``Oh-la-la,'' Old Dominion assistant coach Jim Corrigan said of the skimpy, pricey lunch at a Paris sidewalk cafe.
The Monarchs played the role of Americans in Paris on Thursday and Friday before heading off to Gravelines on Saturday for the last of five games on their foreign tour. Today they will bus back to Paris for one more day of sightseeing before boarding a plane at midday Monday and returning to Norfolk on Monday night.
Although it's been a productive, enjoyable trip, Monday night can't come soon enough.
``I'm ready to go home,'' guard Corey Robinson said. ``It's been a nice little trip, but I think 11 days is a bit long for me. Nothing against France, but I miss America and some of the things back home.''
Things like English-speaking shopkeepers and waiters, fast food on every corner, shower curtains and decent-sized beds.
``Everyone is enjoying themselves and having fun, but deep down inside I think everybody is ready to get back home,'' center Odell Hodge said.
Hodge was one of the Monarchs who took the subway into the heart of town during ODU's first two days in Paris. The Monarchs' hotel is not in a shopping area - in fact, it's not in a particularly good area. When the bus drove up,
coach Jeff Capel warily eyed the place and asked trip organizer/ translator Philippe, ``Is it safe?''
It's been safe, but it's not the place to walk around at night. If you want to see Paris, you don't hang around the Hotel Mercure.
The most popular pastime in Paris has been shopping.
Hodge bought perfume, Paris T-shirts, key chains and other souvenirs for his fiancee and family.
Assistant coach Mark Cline plunked down well over $100 for about eight T-shirts.
Mario Mullen bought gifts for his mother and brother he wouldn't identify, explaining, ``They might read it in the paper before I get home.''
Capel bought some perfume and another item that assaults the olfactory senses - a big Cuban cigar he chomped on all night Friday.
It's a luxury he can't enjoy at home.
``My wife hates 'em,'' Capel said.
He also pulled off one of the gutsiest moves of the day - venturing out into the huge traffic circle around the Arc de Triomphe to take a picture. The way Parisians drive, that's akin to venturing onto the track during a NASCAR race to take a picture of Ricky Rudd.
Mullen and some teammates went sightseeing and saw ``a few cathedral buildings and stuff like that.''
Corrigan, Cline and your intrepid reporter watched a pickpocket working at McDonald's, saw a man playing a saw as a musical instrument on a street corner, and went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. They also went to the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa, and the consensus about the famous painting among the admittedly uncultured trio was, ``I don't get it.''
While there are those like ODU's Derrick Parker - who has done the shopping and the sightseeing bit and calls Paris ``the best place I've been so far'' on the trip - there are also those like Robinson. He summed up his two days of experiences in Paris thus: He walked 15 minutes up the street to Kentucky Fried Chicken a couple of times.
Robinson promises to broaden his horizons a bit more today, but he isn't interested in looking out over the horizon from the Eiffel Tower.
``Seeing it from the bus was enough for me,'' he said. ``I'm scared of heights.''
The French aren't scared of heights. They have readily approached the Monarchs, whose size tends to make them stand out in a crowd, for autographs and conversation. ODU's team has attained mild celebrity status during its tour and has been received warmly by the French people.
On Friday, the Monarchs learned part of the reason why. The trip promoter divulged that the French pro league is helping to underwrite ODU's visit to show that basketball in France is played at the highest level, so the Monarchs are being billed as one of the best college teams in America.
Oh-la-la. ILLUSTRATION: Map
by CNB