To an unknown person (on a train to Prague)

He stood on the platform
Raised his arm, waved good-bye
and watched your train depart
Love filled his face
Tears magnified his eyes
He hesitated, turned and walked away
He's going to miss you

Munich

Saturday, I was in Munich. Saturday, I visited Dachau. On Saturday, I cried.

Embarking

Tomorrow is the beginning of my first free travel.

First we go to Munich. Getting there may be a mess. We waited to long to make our reservations so instead of one train, we have to take three, which costs more money.

Next we will go to Prague, for two days I think.

Our final stop will be Vienna.

These are just plans, the reality is that we may go other places too. I bought I train timetable book today, so we can plan on the go. I am just going to make sure my info is right before I get on the train. My understanding is that my brother Steven, may have taken the wrong train a few times. That would be an adventure though.

A Gate

Heartfelt

Daily I say things I don't really mean
things to others which only demean
Venturing to realms, I simply don't know
drifting in currents, where I can't row
Be swept up, swiftly carried away
as if falling, without a belay
Reaching out, desperately, trying to stop
my weight, my PRIDE, I know I must drop
Pride creeps in and sulks as a thief
loosing friends I search for relief
Saying, "I'm sorry." what will it do?
I humble myself, before God, and to you

Almost Missing the Train

It was a pleasant day, and we were going as a group to Lucca for the afternoon. I needed to pick up a phone in Florence so I got instructions for the train and ventured ahead into Florence alone. Having developed a good feel of the streets, I took my bus into town and quickly walked to the cybercafe that had my phone. Then I went directly to the train station because I only had about 20 minutes until the train was supposed to leave. It was at the train station that my troubles began. Lucca was such a small stop that it was not listed on the board, I actually need to be looking for another town, also I had the wrong time written down by two minutes so the train I was looking for was non existent. This information was all on the schedule given to me; therefore, not something I had copied down wrong. Ah but I have a phone now, so I called Kyle and he said, "Look for Lucca 1:10 the rest of the group should be on it already." Kyle was reading from the same schedule. By now my time was running out, so I called Robbie, "Track 5," he said. With a minute to go and the track on the opposite end I sprinted towards my track and jumped through the closing doors of my train to Lucca. Ah what and adventure.

Under the Tuscan Sun

Agrigento

Palace Wanderings

The Night Train (An Adventure to Southern Italy)

Following a strenuous day of education, the HUF group embarked on adventures to southern Italy. The first leg of this trip was an overnight couchette. Such trains rides were not new to me, as I had experienced at least one when in Greece. A few things did come as a surprise to me. First of all, I was the only couchette, to be a mixture of guys and girls (I had intense nightmares of being expelled from Harding), secondly, we were joined by a young Italian man. An Italian man, who really spoke little English (I guess that should be expected), but that talked to us for four hours anyhow, even after we tried to sleep. These are the things that I learned (it took all five of us with two dictionaries to interpret), his name was Orezzo, he was 19 years old, and did not go to a university because he is a sponsered cyclist. In fact he claimed to be the champion cyclist of Sicely. My new freind also had two girlfriends, one in Florence, and one in another town. He seemed to have a sense of humor. When asking our ages he discovered that I was at least two years older than every member of the room, at which point he nicknamed me Molto Vecchio, which means very old. He called me that the rest of the night. Other than that, the train ride was rather unadventerous; although, I did discover that I need to attempt not to end up on the bottom bunk in the future, I don't really fit.

On Listening to Mark Twain

At the beginning of my adventures in Italy I posted a Mark Twain quote on this blog. As I travel I have been attempting to follow his advice, and so last Sunday I got lost. Not only did I get lost, but I got lost on purpose. In a small way, it was an attempt by me to explore and discover interesting things in Florence. The following information is the best way I have found to get lost on purpose.

Step One: Get on a bus, any local bus, preferably one of which you know nothing of the destination.

Step Two: Get off said bus, and a random unknown stop, and wander deep into the streets.

Step Three: Hopefully by this time you are lost. Now find your way back to the bus stop home, while enjoying the city around you. Hopefully you will discover, something new and interesting.

The results of this experiment were somewhat mixed for me. I did learn how to get to the train station, that is a good thing. Then I somehow ended up at the Duomo, which was slightly disappointing. I do believe that in the future I would like to have a compass to accompany my map, so that I can get my bearings easier. Although, it would be more of an adventure without one. Sunday roles back around in a few days, I can't wait to get lost in Florence again.

Album of the Month

Recorded in 2003 and released in 2004, Riot on an Empty Street, has a great sound. Kings of Convenience brings joy to my ears whenever I partake of this album, which in this case is every few days.
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=14569620

More than Chess

in a cozy little town,
with little to do
look to the hills
this way, that way,
what do you see?
perhaps castles,
of medieval days
protectors of the lands
standing tall, boasting strength
defying all, even time
stand on their foundation
scale them with your eyes
think, imagine living there
the smells, the sounds
can you feel, can you sense it
does it become reality?