19 Days - Lessons

On this 19 day journey I have learned much. Some has been purely informational, but much of it has been experiential. Some are slightly profound, some seem like things I should have known before, some are useful, and some... I will let you decide!

• Not all London airports are actually in London or even very close to London
• Uber beats taxis, and it's not even close
• Europe knows how to do public transportation... The U.S. doesn't
• London shuts down early, except for the pubs
• Standing where history was made, and seeing the real things of history, makes history seem much more significant
• Big cities all have this in common - lots of people in too small of spaces
• Big cities are stressful, no matter what country you are in
• The English and the French still have issues
• I never get tired of waterfalls and Iceland has a lot of waterfalls
• Colby can get stressed
• I can get stressed
• Most of the time Colby and I recover from stress quickly and we can actually help each other recover

19 Days - History

It is becoming apparent to me that this trip is mostly about history. Each place has a different history to tell, but it is all history nonetheless. In Washington DC it is, of course, all about United States History. There are memorials to the great men that shaped our nation. There are memorials to the men who fought and died to preserve what our founding fathers began. There is art that has shaped our country's culture. There are tributes to science, to government, and much, much more. Many times in DC Colby said, "I feel like we are walking by so much history that we don't even know!" The history oozes from every crack and crevice in this place from the preserved Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence and the Constitution to the meticulously placed tombstones in Arlington National Cemetery.

19 Days - George Washington Hospital

We are off to an incredible start, in many ways. All the stuff about looking at every anticipated bump in the road as part of the adventure... well... we already have a pretty good adventure going. After a full day of walking (about 11 miles according to Colby's phone), his foot was not looking good. Redness was creeping up his ankle, which is never a good sign, so we decided an urgent care visit was warranted. 

Our insurance told us where to go, only to find out, after a taxi ride there, that the urgent care didn't like our insurance. They advised us to go to an emergency room. With the pain increasing in Colby's foot, the security at the urgent care called for another taxi...twice. If you are traveling in a large city, forget about taxis (a lesson learned) and instead set up an uber account. Finding out that no taxi wanted our fare, Colby downloaded the Uber apps, set up an account, and had a car in front of us in less than ten minutes. And the cost was cheaper than a taxi! Thank you. Uber!

19 Days - Departure

Nineteen days! This will be the longest I have ever been away from Sandy. As I sit in the plane starting the first leg of this trip, it all feels very odd, especially in light of so many other firsts that will be wrapped up in these nineteen days. My first time to Washington D.C., my first time to Europe, my first time to meet my cousin Marinus, my first time staying in the homes of strangers in another country. It all is very strange. I'm sure there are some unexpected firsts, as well, and lurking in the nineteen days will be twists and turns that will shape this adventure in surprising ways.