Paris is a moveable feast and all that jazz

He would go to Europe. That's what he would do. Spend some time in Fort Dodge then take off for a tour of Europe. He would learn French. Learn French, then take off for Paris, and when he got there he would drink red wine in Cacciato's honor. Visit all the museums and the monuments, learn the history, sit in the cafés along the river and smile at the pretty girls. Take a flat in Montmartre. Rise early and walk to the open market for breakfast. He would eat very slowly, crossing his legs and maybe reading a paper, letting things pass by, then maybe he'd walk about the city and learn the names of places, not as a tourist but as a man who comes to learn and understand. He would study the details. He would look for the things Cacciato would have looked for. It could be done. That was the crazy thing about it – for all the difficulties, for all the hard times and stupidity, for all that, it could truly be done.

– Tim O'Brien

Going After Cacciato