When I arrived in Montpellier I had as one of my goals tracking down the baseball team here and finding their stadium. My first encounter with the Montpellier Barracudas came last summer in Amsterdam. They were competing in the same European Cup that the Kaunas Lituanica team was, and we were to play them on the final day of the tournament if bad weather had not prevented us from playing the games. In fact Kaunas needed to win against Montpellier to earn a rebirth in the A pool European Cup, and the cancelled match meant we automatically would drop down to [View Full Entry]

---

---

My travels from Lithuania to Paris, France, took me first to Dublin, Ireland. Our departure from Lithuania really felt like a 'big' departure, given that Viktorija would not return until after our trip to South Africa, and I would be back only for a few weeks to play baseball, only to leave again for three months in South Africa. We flew from Lithuania on Wednesday but not before a quick visit to the vaccination clinic for Viktorija to get her final Hepatitis vaccination before heading for the airport. Viktorija does not like getting shots; the first time we went to the [View Full Entry]

---

---

Now I know I have been rapidly posting entries the past few days, and it may be too much for you to read. But bear with me--we have almost arrived at the present. I am almost 'caught up.' Here is something I came across in my little black book that I thought was interesting. It is quick: Simply my observations of the bikes that pass by me as I sit on a bench, waiting for my AM chinese tutoring session. All of these (and much more) passed by me in 20 minutes!! 12:30 PM, December, 2007: Liudaokou, Beijing, China. -a big [View Full Entry]

---

---

Just a couple of snapshots from two other weekend excursions: the first to Juodkrante, a small fisherman's village on the Curonian Spit, and the second to Birstonas, a town not far from Prienei that, in Soviet Times and still today, was and is known for its hotel spas. It is right on the Nemunas River, the largest river in Lithuania. [View Full Entry]

---

---

In my family tradition, it is Thanksgiving that generally attracts the most number of family members to come together and celebrate. For as long as I can remember the whole family would meet at the mountain house in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and spend several days and nights together eating, hiking, and sitting by the fire. Some years as many as 25 people would cram into one house to stay the night and celebrate Thanksgiving. In Viktorija's family tradition, it is her grandfather's birthday that draws the big crowd. My second weekend in Kaunas we travelled to Prienei, a [View Full Entry]

---

---

Uzgavenes Today was a special day in Lithuania. It was the day where ‘Uzgavenes’ is celebrated—the day that we chase away winter and welcome in Spring. Though the actual day of ‘Uzgavenes’ will be on the 5th of February, the large festival was held on a Sunday in Rumsiskes so that working folks could attend. Though there is also a festival held in Vilnius, the major Uzgavenes festival is the one in Rumsiskes park. We left much later than we should have, headed to Rumsiskes which was about 20 kilometers outside of Kaunas on the road to Vilnius. We hit traf [View Full Entry]

---

---

Here is an entry I wrote on February 20th. An update on baseball in Kaunas: I have now been back in Kaunas for over two weeks, going to practices with the Kaunas team about twice per week. My first day back, we arrived slightly early to catch the tail end of the youngsters (10-12 years old) practicing. I was very pleased to see that many, if not all, of the kids who I was working with in the Spring for the first time were still coming to practices. After the Lithuanian Finals in September, Kaunas Lituanica takes about a month break [View Full Entry]

---

---

I am writing this latest blog from Montpellier, France, having arrived here several days ago from Kaunas, Lithuania via Dublin and then Paris. It has been over a month since I wrote and there is much to write about. My six weeks with Viktorija’s family was wonderful. Since I was not working, I spent most of my time staying at home—helping out around the house, sometimes helping with/learning how to make Lithuanian cuisine, going on runs or doing yoga……I learned how to make Cepeliniai, a traditional Lithuanian dish made from potatoes through a long process of ma [View Full Entry]

---

---

My trip from Efland, North Carolina, en route to Lithuania began last Monday. With the help of my brother, I packed all of the things that I would need from now until October when I return to New York. The packing process was not much different from my last two big pr-trip packs, but the difference this time was that I did not necessarily know what I was packing for. The past two times I packed for a baseball season. But for what am I packing this time? First I will be in Lithuania going to baseball practices, then two months [View Full Entry]

---

---

White Oak Residency This Spring and Summer will be much different than past spring and summers in that I am not preparing for baseball and I am not playing this summer. Instead I will be doing other things, including taking part in a dance performance this Fall in New York City. After being home for about three weeks over Christmas, I caught a flight to Jacksonville, Florida, where I was met by a Chevy Suburban and a jolly guy named Frank who drove me from the airport to White Oak Plantation. On the way there Frank told me the story of [View Full Entry]

---

---