Day 21: Last Call

On the train again. To Munich. it's all coming to an end. This is the final curtain call. And, I'm comfortable with that. It's gorgeous, green and rolling hills and spotted ruins of castles. We can't do this forever. We both feel pleased, both feel grateful for the trip so far.

We have three full days left (not including today) and each of them should be fantastic. We'll solidify all the plans this afternoon when we get to Munich Hauptbahnhof.

Speaking of plans, Jo and I have sat on trains now for some time and we're tentatively planned out . . . well, the rest of our lives really. What jobs we'll have, what schooling we'll complete, how many children we'll have (and yes, we are planning on having them), what we will do for careers, where we'll live, etc. And it's all quite amusing while simultaneously terrifying. I am frightened and uplifted by the possibilities. It overwhelms me and stifles me and urges me on. All at the same time.

I'm sure I'll look back on this in five years and have a good laugh, because where we are now is not at all where we planned to be five years ago. Not even close. But for the sake of writing it down, and for the sake of having it all as a map and measuring stick, here goes:

Jo will finish her Master's degree, we'll sell our house, I'll get into the MFA program at USC, the three of us (Patches) will move into someone's guest house in north LA. I'll commute to school, we'll have our first kid, Jo will get a good job, I'll be with kid #1 in the mornings and then go to class when she comes home, I'll get a job as a staff writer or script doctor, then I'll get my show with a group of friends, we'll move to [place] to film it for five seasons, we'll have kids 2 - 4, Jo will teach at a university, I'll stop the show and either do 2 - 3 movies and then move on to books or just move on to books, we'll teach at SVU or some school in a beautiful place and look for an incredible piece of property on the eastern seaboard, we'll buy it and open a B&B.

I showed this to Jo and asked if I got it all correct and she said "perfect." So, ok. I guess that's the future.

* * *

We arrived in Munich. And it's raining. Well, more like a heavy, annoying mist. But it's constant and you're very wet if you're anywhere outside. Like walking from the train staiton to a hotel for instance.

We went to the TI and grabbed a map and tried to orient ourselves. We really touched down in Munich not knowing anything but the address of our hotel. It's wild to think about really, but sort of comforting to know we can find our way and take care of ourselves anywhere in the world. Jo said it was very Bourne of us. I said I agree, except for beating people up.

We found our hotel. Our room is tiny but nice. You have to turn a key in an outlet to let electricity in the room. It's annoying because I go to lock the door and all the lights turn off. Even the little red lamp with the little red light bulb in the corner. Weird. Plus it's stupid because it teaches kids to stick keys into outlets. Duh.

We hadn't eaten in awhile so we went downstairs and asked the British guy at the desk for a recommendation on where to eat. We ended up at the Augistiner Brewery. Jo got meatballs and I got half a chicken. Yes. Half of a chicken, with the insides and everything up to half of the neck. Both of us got some disgusting yellow mustard and cucumber salad. And mineral water. We ate it all anyway. Then came the blueberry pancake. It was the size of Jo's upper body. We ate all of that too. Really we ate ourselves sick. All the Germans were watching the two American kids who ordered water in a beer hall try and scarf down their sometimes mediocre, sometimes gross food and we didn't want to disappoint.

We walked back to Atlas City Hotel, watched the German version of America's Funniest Home videos (which was waaaaaaay more graphic and more disturbing than funny). Went and used the internet and got a Fanta. Planned the next couple days. Now, calling it a night.

Day 20: The Measured Self

We're on the train to Innsbruck right now. I'm happy to be leaving Italy. But sad that, no matter how hard I've tried not to count down to the end of the trip, we find ourselves on the fourth and final leg of the adventure.

I wonder what it will be like when we go home. Much the same I imagine. But I wonder if one trip is enough to change a man. To change the way he sees himself and interacts with the world around him; I hope it's enough. I hope I've learned from it and continue to learn. I hope I can assimilate these lessons and solidify them in my range of character. I hope I find myself content with my trying and pleased by the results.

I wonder if I'll remember the Swiss landscape in four months or the touch of Roman marble in the rain. If I'll remember how incomparably happy I was just because the sun came out. Or how grateful I once felt for the size and quality of my house as I slept or showered in the tiniest and most strange of conditions. I hope I will. And I hope I remain religious. That I stay a spiritual man. That I always appreciate the doctrines more than the ceremonies and the culture and that I show it by living a charitable life.

* * *

So we arrived in Innsbruck, Austria. We're staying in the Weisses Kreuz (White Cross) where Mozart used to stay. We walked around the main square and tried to get bratwurst and big, hearty pomme frittes. We ended up getting hot dogs and mushy french fries. We also got gelato for the 25th time. We've spent over 100Euro on gelato alone. Worth it.

We walked to the main bridge and just hung out for awhile and enjoyed the beauty of the surrounding area. We listend to the full blown orchestra playing Mozart in the middle of the town square under the Golden Roof. Innsbruck is a very short, quick stop. But quaint and totally worth it.

we're trying to see whose mouth is bigger with oreos in both cheeks

i think i win

on the way north of venice

now in austria

crap. look at that snow.

cool architecture in Innsbruck

main square

main square, the other way

innsbruck was nothing but indians, chinese, and us

told you

the 25th time

innsbruck sits at the foot of gorgeous mountains

the golden roof

hotel weisses kreuz and the cool covered walkways

nice bathroom for a change. too bad it was one floor up and several 100 feet away.

Day 19: Let They Feet Guide Thee

There are over 2000 alleys in Venice and over 400 bridges. We may have seen more of them today than anyone has or anyone should in a 24 hour period. We walked toward the fish market early in the AM. Of course, we didn't get there for awhile . . . because we got lost.

It was low-key and uncrowded. But even not being a fish lover or fisherman, I couldn't help but think seafood enthusiasts would be in heaven in this small, covered, dank space compared to some of the more expensive fish food . . . places. Shops? Fish delis? Fish food aquariums? I have no idea. Anyway, there were eels, crabs, rays, every kind of fish you could want.

We walked toward the Rialto and watched the ships come in for the morning market. They bring all the farm goods in on small motor boats from the surrounding cities and farmlands. They don't grow anything in Venice. Except for pigeons.

We crossed the Rialto Bridge and just got lost in it all. In fact, we spent probably 95% of the time in Venice without a map. Just getting lost in the back streets and the main streets and the far out parts of the islands. And how could you not get lost? The city is mad in its layout and traffic flow.

We made our way to St. Mark's Square (which actually is a square) and ate it all up. Then we made a decision. It was so nice out, the sun just blazing through a completely blue sky, that we stayed outside. We didn't do St. Mark's Basilica. We didn't do the Campanile bell tower. We didn't do the Bridge of Sighs or the Doge's Palace. Or the Accademmia. Nothing. We didn't want to spend the day in lines or waiting, so we just kept walking.

We stayed on the southern pier/boardwalk of the main island and walked along the water to the east. I bought some cool-guy mirror shades. We ended up on the eastern shore of the island. We found some empty park and walked around. We walked north. Wound up at the old fortress and current military/police base of Venice. We found the old Venitian residents' market, totally different than the one by the fish market. No tourists whatsoever (except us).

We found our way back to the Rialto area, ate some panini wraps and had gelato stop #24. I'm not kidding. And Venice has nothing on Rome when it comes to gelato. We went back to St. Mark's Square and people watched. Then we had to go back to the hotel because I was stupid and wore sandals and got a blister. So we took an afternoon siesta at the hotel and then went back out.

Got dinner at a cafe on the water in the Jewish Ghetto. Got lost again. Wound up at St. Mark's again. Walked the southern boardwalk along the water westward and in the sunset. Sat on a pier with our feet hanging over the water. Tried to walk back to our hotel, wound up at the complete northeast corner of the island. Went back through the Jewish Ghetto and, sufficiently beat and extrememly tired, found our hotel.

Jo went right to bed. I watched V for Vendetta on the ipod. I love that movie. It acutally made me think of Rome and Europe and how they used to be grand and now they're in ruins. Really, Europe has amazing sights, but it's pretty dirty and smelly everywhere we've been. And there are beggars and street peddlers everywhere.

There have been beggars, all the same ethnicity, on every train, in every subway and train station, and outside of every major tourist attraction. Many of them carry a little piece of cardboard and ask "You speak English?" so if you say yes they show you the card and if you say no they show you the card because they know you understood them. The card says, and I'm not making this up: "Hello, my name is [something]. I have a brother (or father on some of the cards) back in [place] that has cancer and/or pneumonia. Please help, etc." I kid you not. "Cancer and/or pneumonia." I told one of them, "Well, I mean if I had to, I'd pick pneumonia if I were him." They didn't get it.

And then the peddlers. Always one of two ethnicities, these people know what they're doing is illegal. A cop will show up and they'll all scatter like ants. And then when he turns his back, they'll all take one or two steps backtowards their turf. Then he turns again. They run again. It's a ridiculous third-grader game of cat and mouse. I realize they come from a bad place where their lives sucked, but I dunno. Some of the beggars use their kids. One lady came up to Jo and me in the Jewish Ghetto while we were eating and asked us for some of our pizza. I was dumbfounded so I just stared at her and said, "Seriously?" Jo, of course, gave her a piece of pizza. Anyway, just thinking at the end of a long and beautiful day.

noooo! crabs!

she's in heaven right now

dude bringing in the goods in the morning. the wine comes off the boats first.

the rialto bridge and the jo

see what getting up early gets you? this place was a mad house later on in the day.

the fleet before taking off to charge poor tourists an arm and a leg

St. Mark's Basilica, under construction like everything else

the Campanile

st. gregorio something, an island to the south

i'm no architectural expert, but doesn't it look like that white building is going to fall over?

the southern boardwalk area

part of jo's "cats in funny places" series

i look . . . awkward. the park looks cool.

same park

every day is laundry day!

old fortress, new police base

narnia

there are these yellow signs with black letter everywhere that direct you to the main points of interest so you can sort of tell where you are. some punk kid painted over this one and made the arrow point the wrong way. funny.

that gondola driver ran into that wall

Doge's Palace

parking in port for the night

what i want for Christmas

Some Things I've Learned So Far (cont'd)

28. Typecasts and generalizations exist for a reason.
29. Much of the world has lost the skill of pondering.
30. Europe has had its competitive back broken. This is both good and bad. There isn't near as much crime as America, but laziness and an acceptance of circumstance is inescapable.
31. People cast aside common sense when they think their opportunity in what they perceive to be a zero sum game comes along. And decency. They push and shove and snap and spit when they think their one chance to get on the bus/train/plane has come or if their food is incorrect, etc.
32. Fame is meaningless. Some kid on the train to Venice was talking about these uber-famous cricket player in India. He said, "Everyone in India knows [the dude]." That puts our celebrities - who think the world revolves around them (and let's face it, most Americans think the world revolves around those same Hollywood celebrities) - to shame. A billion people know this goofy cricket player. They probably can't tell Beyonce from Brittney Spears.
33. Sometimes I say a lot without really saying anything.
34. Sometimes I hardly say anything, even though I'm talking a lot.

Day 18: Trains, Trains, and . . . Train-o-mobiles

Every day we travel it's goregous outside. Be nice if it was nice for the rest of the trip, but it was beautiful today and I'm not complaining. It is kind of funny, though. The train ride to Venice took like 7 hours with all the stops. 10:00 - 4:45. Long. We slept for some of the train ride. PLayed around for most of it. The following has made for a perfect travelling soundtrack, by the way. A soundtrack for our adventure:

* Ray LaMontagne
* Iron and Wine
* Owl City
* Passion Pit
* Pete Yorn
* John Mayer Trio (only the live stuff)
* Coheed
* Damien Rice

We arrived in Venice and stepped out into the most incredible, warm blue sky scene. The water wasn't near as dirty as I was expecting (expectations = bad!). And there weren't too many people. Not like Rome.

We dropped our stuff at the hotel. Conveniently close to the train station. We walked to the Rialto Bridge. At least, we tried to. I am 100% sure that everyone gets lost in Venice. It's impossible not to, and it's great when it happens. We ended up eating at a little cafe with all old Italian people. We finally got to Rialto, got gelato for the 19th and 20th times and got lost again on the way back to our hotel. Once we finally found our way, we kept going.

We walked through the Jewish Ghetto and found a very soft cat by an all boy's school on the waterfront. We fed and pet the cat as we listened to the boy's choir from underneath one of the windows. We took pictures of the magnificent sunset and finally headed back to Hotel Santa Lucia for the night.

All the rain and cold of the trip would have been worth the past two days alone. Glad there's more on the way. And I'm happy to note: Must remember sunblock tomorrow.

the view south, from the Rialto Bridge

the view north from the Rialto, blocked by a dude

jo's turn on the Rialto, right after gelato probably

two houses james bond didn't sink

this is why everyone gets lost. this is a street. not an alley.

another cool view

sunset from the northern tip of the main islands. our map actually says "best place for dramatic sunsets."

soft cat that likes ham. and jo, who also likes ham, but not as much as me.

cool sunset, glowing armpit. must be from radioactive i've-worn-this-same-stuff-for-the-past-17-days stink

beautiful

walked away from the crowds and found this all boy's school where a beautiful choir was singing