Hello from Venice!

(shortest post ever)

We arrived in Interlaken, Switzerland today. The beauty of the land here is nearly beyond description!

Webb and I made it to Germany. Frankfurt, to be specific. We were fretting that the Air India trip would be horrifically memorable. Well, it was memorable, but in a suprisingly good way. I’ll say more about that in the future because…

Internet access is not free over here. Besides, I’m in Europe and I should take advantage of the time I have here. I am writing a paper journal that I plan to eventually post in electronic format — but not within the next month. Nonetheless, I will post periodic summary updates to this web site.

Tomorrow, we leave for Munich (by way of Stuttgart).

I wish I could communicate in German…

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
          ~Mark Twain

The next time I post, I’ll be on German time.

I returned tonight from House’s wedding to Nikki. House was, of course, my freshman roommate. Nikki was a good friend of Martin during my freshman year, during which time Martin was House’s and my SA. Back then, I never would have guessed that three and a half years later I would be at their wedding.

The wedding itself was traditional (in a church) with all of the usual suspects present. I was honored to be one of the groomsmen, a role I have heretofore not played in a wedding. The ceremony was nice; the reception had great craic.

I hope that Nikki and House enjoy many years of happiness and love with one another. It was a privilege to see them joined in matrimony.

—–

As I write this at 3:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, I can’t help but notice that I will be landing in Germany in 49 hours. I think I’m prepared; if not, I can deal with just about anything so long as I have my plane tickets, rail pass, and credit cards.

People have told me that having a book along for the trip is useful. After much thought (and, admittedly, some help from the proximity of the “bargain books” table to the checkout at Barnes & Noble), I chose The Sun Also Rises. The connection? Pamplona: running with bulls!

And, should you (and by you I mean my family) feel obligated to point out the danger inherent in bulls, let me go on the record now as saying that if I get gored, I vow to eat a steak from the culprit bull. Yeah, it’s hazardous — that’s part of the appeal!