11:30 am

Okay. I'm home. It's been all right. Just another new adventure. It was pretty weird waking up in the middle of the night Friday -- wondering where I was. I couldn't figure it out. Then I realized that I was home. I wasn't traveling anymore! I was settled. What a strange feeling! I already went to the library and took out travel books on Spain and The Sun Also Rises. I've talked to Paul, Bonnie, Steve and Bettie about moving to Spain. Could I really be serious? Things have been busy. Went to Marcia Wasung's wedding last night. It wasn't too bad. Talked to some cousins quite a bit. Cousin Michael Krakowski died on Friday. What a shock. Going to the funeral home today and the funeral tomorrow. Not looking forward to seeing the aunties in this situation. Doubleheader softball game today. It's been so hot and humid! How can I stand Detroit's extremes? It's been rough sleeping. Keep waking up at 4 or 5 am.

8:00 am

I'm going home today! How tragic! I can't believe I've reached the end of my journeys. On the train to Gatwick. I love this ride -- seeing all the chimneys! That's the distinguishing factor to me: England's chimneys. Suddenly, I can't think of anything to write. I've gone blank. I ended up walking around London yesterday. It was nice, but not as nice as I remembered. A lot of exhaust. I felt sick for the first time in a month! But I recovered. I did some window shopping at Carnaby Street and bought a shirt and some shorts at Mister Buyrights. Then I went to Covent Garden and Leicester Square. Just to observe. Very nice. I still felt a pressure to buy gifts. I did get a sweatshirt for Mike. God knows he deserves something for taking care of Dingo. Yay! Dingo! I miss him! I can't believe I've been gone a whole month. But then I can't believe it's been only a month! I'm glad I visited with Keith and Raj last night. Keith and I talked about film and video. He's a really good guy. They bought dinner for me -- Chinese. Great food.

7:00 pm

Just when things seem at their worst... I meet some more nice people! I got to Menton at about 8:30 pm. Three guys looked like they were Interrailers, so I joined with them to try to find the hostel. Good thing. It was very hard to find. And I had no francs, the exchange was closed. And the hostel was full -- after climbing a mountain with full rucksacks. Well, we were out in a tent. Paul offered to sleep on the floor, Andrew paid for me, Andreas loaned me 50 francs for dinner and beer! They were so nice! Paul and Andrew are from Yorkshire. Andreas is from Stuttgart. They saved me from a very tragic night! I didn't eat because I felt bad spending Andreas' money. Bread, water, dried fruit and beer is all I had all day. Today we went to the beach. For lunch, we got some fruit, croquettes and pizza. I love French pizza. They make it the best -- the crust is flaky or something. It was so hot in the sun. The water was beautiful. I actually did quite a bit of swimming -- for me. Swam out to a platform with the guys, but I was exhausted. I really need to improve my swimming skills. And my climbing skills! Walking up to this hostel is very exhausting! But the view is breathtaking. The Mediterranean Sea in front, mountains to the right and rear. I went to Nice late this afternoon. Bought a ticket to the Nice Jazz Festival tomorrow night. $20 -- I hope it's worth it. I'll take the 11:30 pm train to Barcelona. I'm thinking of parasailing tomorrow morning. $33 -- worth it? Many of my friends back home will be on their way to white water rafting tomorrow. I'd like to see Monte Carlo and Cannes, too.

10:00 am

I hate meeting people, having a great time with them, and then leaving them -- without even getting an address or a proper good-bye. This is what I hate about traveling alone. I already miss Mark, Linda, Karen and Brandy -- my Florentine friends. I didn't even get a picture of them! I had to dash to get this train, so I didn't say good-bye to Mark. He was so nice, So were "the girls." So often, things just don't work out. I'd like to join up and travel with people, but they're going another route. I'm glad I stayed two nights in Florence. Last night, a group of Spaniards was singing and playing guitar, drinking. Mark and I sang along when we could. After Mark went off to bed, Linda came up and we danced to "The Bird." What fun. Wonderful friends who I'll never see again! How depressing! Mark and I went to the museums yesterday. Very expensive -- 10,000 lira each ($7.50) But the David statue is so incredible. We had lunch in the Boboli gardens -- after running into the girls at the Vivoli Gelateria, which serves "the best" gelati in the world. We came back to the hostel at 4:30 -- hoping to go back out to the American Express office, but we took showers and naps instead, then had dinner at the hostel. After dinner, Mark and I walked to the stadium in search of a Communist festival, but it was over. Partied at the hostel from 9:30 - 11:30. Florence is beautiful, but hot. And not very active in the evening. Motor bikes are everywhere! I'm surprised there aren't more accidents. the sight of the red tiled roofs from the Duomo is incredible. Mark is a vocalist. He's going to music school in Manchester next year. Works at the theater in Leicester. Very attractive -- or did I mention that? Nice personality.

Some needs for future travels: good sandals, learn German, research more beforehand work on assertiveness, stay at hostels more, watch with band. More thoughts: the peaks and valleys that you encounter emotionally can really be distressing. Great highs, tremendous lows! I was glad to meet a Swedish woman, traveling alone, who said she got depressed. Mark said he doesn't.

1:00 pm

Things I've learned: More understanding of the homeless. The pain of trying to find a place to sleep, not having roots, carrying all you own. The stares from people, especially children, when you speak a "foreign" language. How must foreigners in the States feel? I met two Torontonians at the Tourist Info office in Pisa and walked with them to the tower. They were really nice -- Jeff and Steve. The tower is pretty impressive to see. I'm going right on to Menton, France tonight. Not spending the day in Milano and taking an overnight.

4:15 pm

A little too exciting. These darn Italian trains. My train to Genova was late, of course, so I had to run to just barely make my connecting train. Luckily, it was at the next binario. But now I can't spend my last 3500 lira. And I have no French francs. Not good when I'm getting into Menton after 8 pm. I hope there's a cambio open and the hostel isn't full! The Italian seaside is beautiful!

6:30 pm

It was really tragic leaving Mark. We had boarded the bus, not talking beforehand because he went down to get his washing. I never told him that I was going to try for the 10:00 train, so I was getting off at the station. He got off at the Duomo -- our eyes met through the window. His questioning why I wasn't getting off. We waved. That was it!

5:00 pm

I'm getting into that complacent mood again. Just sitting around at the Kays without a care in the world. I'm feeling a lot of anxiety towards going to Berlin and Poland. Such a challenge once again. I'm glad I at least had the chance to recharge my batteries -- my body's as well as my shaver's!

11:10 pm

I'm at the Fulda Banhof waiting for the 11:32 to Berlin. On the road again. What a nice visit I had with the Kays. I miss them! I'm feeling anxious again. My stomach's bothering me -- or was it Lark's cherry pie? My sleeping berth reservation says car 699, but the sign here says there is none. There's a 299. Hope it's not a problem. Just what I need! It's coming from Frankfurt, so it'll be packed. It was fun playing Dr. Mario with Lark and Rhys. What a buzz. Good-looking guys on base! We went to the Volksfest for a while. Not very big, but the kids loved it. It was a nice day today. I went out to the park with the kids earlier. I'm starting to have doubts about quitting my doubts about quitting my job and traveling extensively. I'd have to do it with someone, I think. Someone who's very free-spirited. Must keep a positive attitude towards it. It can be done. This is a very quite station. I can't see anyone else. Very eerie. I wish I had filled up my wineskin with water before leaving. Everything's closed here. I tried calling Becky, but the MCI number has been busy. Probably a lot of GIs calling home. I hope everything's okay with Dingo. I try not to worry -- actually, I rarely think of it! Just when I see other dogs. Ten minutes until the train's here.

9:00 am

On the Rhine River cruise. Too bad it's overcast. If it's too dreary, I may get off in Koblenz. I did stay at the Jundenherberge in Mainz. I met a guy named Scott from Louisville and Patrick from Sherbrooke, Quebec. We went into town last night and celebrated the Sommersnacht (or something) with thousands of others. Then it began to rain. And rain and rain. No coat this time. We all got so soaked, but it was definitely fun. Scott can be a real ugly American sometimes. But mostly, he's just assertive. I should take lessons. Anyway, I thought Mainz would be a sleepy little town and I would take it easy and get to bed early. Hah! We got on Bus 22 to go back to the hostel, but it was going the other way! We found out when it came to the end of the line and the driver told us to get out. He was pretty nice, though, when he figured out we were totally lost! He called us a taxi. Cost us DM2.50 each to take a bus to a taxi that cost DM23. We managed to get back to the hostel by closing time, though.

2:30 pm

The weather has improved somewhat. So has the company. I joined a trio of sorority girls playing cards. They're from Indiana University. It's so much nicer to meet up with people. Makes time pass -- not really faster, but better. The scenery along here really is beautiful. Castles all over the place! And cute little towns, as well as very touristy towns. This was such a good idea. My feet and knees are aching so bad. It's nice to have a day off. I'm thinking about going to Warsaw. Yes, Poland! Both Scott and this girl, Katie, are going. You no longer need a visa, so I could do it. Scott says it's so cheap, but I don't know. Man, wouldn't that be great? I should call Auntie Ann and find out where my relatives are! I'll think it over when I'm at Lark's. I could easily do it by cutting down Berlin and Venice to one day each. May be worth it! I hate having money be a determining factor, but I'm running so low. I'm spending too much. You know, people think that a month traveling is a lot, but I've met so many people traveling much longer. Two women from Australia have round-the-world airplane tickets (with four stops allowed) and are spending five months traveling. Scott is traveling three months, then will stay on in London working for 6 months. Patrick is traveling for an entire year! He'll be working in France picking grapes in September, then going down to Spain and Portugal for the winter! What fun! I could do that, you know. What an incredible experience it would be. There's so much more to life. Too many experiences waiting to be tried. I've got to learn some other languages. German would be helpful right now! That would make things even better. Why can't I be a linguist when I grow up? A traveling video linguist. Really, though. There are so many stories to be told from around the world. So many people, so many cultures, so many lifestyles.

6:00 pm

I'm so glad I made the decision to take the entire trip from Mainz to Cologne. Just the Koblenz-Cologne part can't compare! We're nearing the end of the day's voyage. Playing a bit more euchre and laughing about the Australians. These two Australian girls who I talked to earlier have just been sitting and writing for 9 hours! What could they be writing about? Not us, I'm sure. This was a wonderful, relaxing day. No hurry, no concerns. Just sitting and watching and taking it easy. A true vacation. I hope my feet and knees have recovered. Ashley, Katie and Paula are pretty fun. Still the sorority type, but cool. I'm glad they "took me in." I could've spent the whole day with the Australians instead! There's this great hotel on a cliff near Bad Godesberg. I'll have to go there when I'm rich!

11:15 pm

Such a wonderful day. We wandered around Cologne from 7 - 10 pm. Not much to do here. The cathedral is incredible, though. When you walk out of the train station, it looms above you. Not much pubbing going on, though. Not like Mainz, which was a party town last night. There were these two guys dressed as a bride and groom walking on stilts through the rain-soaked crowd. Anyway, now I'm at the Banhof waiting for an overnight to Munich. I don't think I can take the 11:36 because it only has sleeping cars and I'm too cheap to get one. The next train's at 12:48. I'll wait. I'm not tired anyway. I really haven't been tired much -- except after smoking!

2:30 pm June 20, 1991

The Museum of Moving Images in London is incredible. I'm watching "The Seven Samurai." Now it's a look back at 100 years of film. Great stuff. This is the cinema exhibit. There's so much great stuff here -- from Eisenstein to television (which is coming up.) I just hope I can stay away. Not away -- awake! I guess I'm losing it. So sleepy! I had a very long morning at Victoria Station -- trying to call a hotel in Amsterdam, unsuccessfully. Then trying to see which train and ferry I should take out of here. I've decided I'm leaving tonight instead of staying overnight. I'll get to see my friend, Keith for two hours. Oh well. I'm pretty overwhelmed. If I feel this way in London, where I've been twice and where I understand the language, I can't imagine how I'll handle the next month! Very intimidating. I'd better be up to the challenge. I hope Amsterdam is as great as I think it will be. I just hope I can find a decent hotel. I'm already spending too much -- in only six hours!