If you know anything about Jaxon, you know that he loves any sort of creepy-crawly. If doesn't bother me and they keep him entertained for hours so it works well. When we walked out the door to go to catch our flight to London he grabbed two snails out of the flower pot where I have him put all of his snails that he finds throughout the day. I was supportive as I knew he would be fully entertained as we made our way on the tram, then the metro, then the shuttle bus. When it came to getting on the plane I didn't think anything of him bringed them aboard since we were travelling to another EU country. And as Aurélie said later, "What are they going to do to a French snail that crosses over the Belgian border? Stop him so he can't come in?" I figured they share most everything, except a currency in this case. The first time it occured to me that maybe it had been a bad idea to let him bring the snails was when we were standing in the passport line and one of the customs ladies said dryly as he was playing with them (still hiding in their shells from the flight), "I hope those aren't real." Not knowing what to say, I just didn't say anything, but ordered Jaxon to stuff them in his pockets when we were just out of earshot. I was definitely feeling a little nervous and it didn't help when the passport control guy barely let me into the country because I didn't have my residency card. I hadn't brought it for two reasons: 1)they have never asked me for it, and 2) it was expired (that is another story, but basically has to do with the burdensome of the French administrative system). I was a little shaky when I got through it all, but we all made it in the end; that is me, Aurélie, my boys, and two little Marseille snails ready to see the big city. Not wanting them to drool all over our hotel room, we had Jaxon find a home for them outside in some bushes. We thought that would be the end of the story, but no, the next morning Jaxon found one of his smuggled snails and wanted to take him along for the ride.
Here Jaxon is creating a home for his little snail in a plastic container he found in the sandbox at our first stop of the day, St. James' Park. That little snail travelled everywhere with us for a good part of the day, until a fateful moment on a double-decker bus. Jaxon had been putting water in with the mix of leaves and grass in the little snail home. When we were on the double decker bus going from Trafalgar Square to the Tower, Jaxon started saying, "It's stinky." And sure enough, I caught a whiff and it was really stinky, it reeked. Jaxon packed up his little snail home when it was time to get off the bus. I led the way and he followed behind me down the bus stairs, gripping the railing with one hand and the snail habitat with the other. While carefully making our way down the stairs, the bus came to a sudden stop and Jaxon lost his grip. The next thing I knew a whole bucket of snail nastiness was flying on my head and in my hair. A stench filled the corridor of the stairs. Of course I was boiling and Jaxon was freaking out. I hurried to put the snail in the plastic box, leaving all of the trimmings behind. Once off the bus I ordered Jaxon to very quickly find a home in the nearest bush across from the Tower of London. It was a sad parting for Jaxon, and apparently even for Aurélie, who told me it broke her heart. But I felt no remorse. I carried the stinky remnants of that snail in my hair for the remaining part of the day...
