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Published: November 2nd 2006
Kramer
On the wall in Hannah's room at Guilford College.Well, here I am again. In Europe. I arrived back in Gensac, southern France, two days ago. I have been house-sitting for the Tyler family, as they are still on their vacation in Scotland (or England? I can’t remember where they are). I think they get back today.
I arrived Tuesday night and crashed almost immediately. Slept for sixteen hours. That is the longest I have ever slept in one night. It makes me think of the first time John (my brother) got back from studying in China and he slept for 24 hours straight (!) and the only reason he woke up is because we brought him breakfast in bed.
I woke up remembering that I was supposed to give the cats breakfast. When I came upstairs I found that one of the neighbors had beat me to it (they did not know I was back yet). The bowls were empty, and next to each bowl was a pile of cat throw-up. At first I was a bit worried, but so far they have not thrown up since yesterday morning, and it seems that both cats are fine………
I went to the grocery store to buy some groceries,
Abe
Abe in Somerville, at our afternoon Croquet match. and learned that November 1st is a holiday in Europe, something like our memorial day I think.
I had an interesting ride from the US to Gensac. I flew first from Hartford to D.C. then from D.C. to Munich. The first flight I sat next to a young couple, about my age, and it became apparent that they were not English-speakers. We didn’t speak the whole flight, and much of the time I was trying to figure out what language they were speaking. It was not Russian, but something close to it. Then on the second flight, I found that I was seated next to the same couple. So we struck up a conversation (in English).
The couple is from Poland, they are a figureskating duo who had been in the US for a competition on the World Pro Figureskating Tour that made a stop in Hartford, Connecticut. Pro Figureskaters!! I told them I played baseball in Lithuania and they were not as excited (or maybe they didn’t understand? I don’t know). They were headed to a town in Germany to meet with their coach.
The woman (I forget her name) was very afraid of flying, and
it didn’t help that this was a bumpy flight. They were very nice people, though shy mainly because of the language barrier. The guy was from Russia, living in Poland. He was upset with the stewardess because she didn’t have change for a 100 Euros, which meant he couldn’t buy a beer.
Moving on……I arrived in Bordeaux the following morning. From there I took a shuttle to the train station, then a train to Velines. Velines is about ten kilometers from Gensac, the closest stop on the train from Bordeaux.
From here I began to walk. I knew it wasn’t far, and after 20 hours of sitting I didn’t mind walking. With about two kilometers to go a man pulled over and offered me a ride to Gensac. He was very friendly, he had a noticeably high-pitched voice and was very talkative. Only positive things to say. He drove a small, old car, baby blue, with no apparent brand name on it. We talked about the weather, mostly. And he talked about how it is rare for people in the Acquitaine Region to stop and pick up travelers because they are not common.
It is a bit
Adam, dressed to impress
Badminton was also part of the festivities. surreal to be back in Europe, and the month spent in the US seemed to fly by too quickly. But now I am here, and that is that……
In my little black planner, there is a short quote in the upper right hand corner of each page. Each week there is a different quote. I was just flipping through the pages and looking back on the quotes, and I noticed that the quote for the day I bought my ticket to fly home one month ago was this: “Nothing makes a person more productive than the last minute.”-Unknown
That seems to fit pretty well.
This week’s quote:
“The most perfect technique is that which is not noticed at all.”
-Pablo Casals
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Margot
non-member comment
Whiz
Dear Will, It's fun to follow you whizzing through your travels. Has travelling about Europe given you a new way of looking at home? I especially liked seeing the photo of you and Hannah together. May the wind be always at your back!