Final thoughts

Sorry for the delay in making a closing post. Variety of reasons for it but don't need to go into that. Part of it was that I wanted to gather information and my thoughts on the past 6 weeks. First...some of the numbers of the trip. It totaled 37 days I believe and took me to 10 countries (if you count Northern Ireland and Scotland as separate from the U.K.). When I got back, I had lost 10 lbs and my best guess is that I walked between 400-500 miles. If my counting is accurate, my methods of transportation included: 68 trains, 24 buses, 5 airplanes, 4 ships, 4 subways, 3 cars, 1 riverboat, and a bicycle that broke down on me.
Looking back on the trip, I'm so glad that I took it. It's not only the adventure that takes place as you travel to the various places, but there's also an adventure that takes place from within. You get a tremendous sense of accomplishment when you're able to navigate your way around the various places and figure your way out of some of the situations that always seem to arise. I felt a great sense of accomplishment a number of times along the way. Getting to Avoca, Ireland by walking was probably the first one. Using what little French I know to board the correct buses to both St. Mere Eglise and Carentan was another. Riding that bike to Normandy, hiking to Eltz castle, and getting to Bastogne were others. The research I did in advance proved to be pretty valuable to me. Those 75+ maps that I copied from the internet were a big help, though I wish I had a few more in some cases. Recent research also brought my attention to a few things that otherwise I doubt I would have experienced. That restaurant in Cesky Krumlov and the Lipizzaner stallions come to mind. Other experiences, I'd researched along time ago so have known about for some time like the "Jack the Ripper" tour and the chance to raft the Vltava river at Cesky Krumlov.
It's hard to come up with single answers to some questions that I might be facing when I get to the classroom, but I think I'll try right now with what might be a few:

Highlight of the trip: Getting together with Bill and then going to the British Open those 2 days.
Favorite Country: Probably Ireland.
Favorite City: Probably Prague. I was also very successful in Paris this trip.
Favorite People: Ian, Darrah, Dirk, and Angela, everyone that worked at the Dublin hostel.
Most stress: It's always stressful finding a place to stay...I experienced it finding the Glasgow
hostel on that Saturday night after the golf tourney.
Low moment: My roommates in Prague?
Luckiest moment: When we found the room in Troon, Scotland to stay in.
Least favorite place: Hard to say...Munich wasn't that great this time around so guess I'll go
with that.
From rags to riches days: From the one hotel in Prague to the other.
Worst days: The rainy Sunday in Vienna...I kind of just waited for hours for the train.
Grand Slam Days: Scotland, Normandy, the castles in Germany, Avoca, and Bastogne.
Most beautiful place: Naturally it's either the Rhine river or the Austrian Alps
Most beautiful city: I think Prague edged out Vienna on this trip.
Most scared: Wasn't really scared anywhere to be honest. Maybe when I was trying to
find the campground in Metz, France not knowing if they'd let me in.
Worst luck: That bike breaking on me in Normandy wasn't the greatest luck.
Failures of the trip: Not getting to Zell am See cuz I didn't get off at the right stop, and missing
the World War I tours in France.
Most fun: The British open, Dolphins, crawling through tunnels, and the Austrian toboggan.
Wierdest place I slept: The alleyway on the night train from Berlin to Paris.

Generally speaking, I'd say I was over 95% successful in seeing and doing what I had hoped to when I first went over. I did have some injuries but that was to be expected. All the walking took a toll on my legs. I had a terrible case of shin splints in one leg from Bastogne to Prague which was like 7-9 days. My knees also swelled up some so was glad I had packed some ibuprofen. Otherwise, I stayed pretty healthy which I was very thankful for. Oh, I did get some "face time" at the British Open also I discovered. My brother DVR'd it and I picked myself out pretty easily. If you copied it, you need to watch Stuart Cink play the 18th hole. Right after he hits his approach shot into the green, they show him walking down the fairway. I'm right along the fence as he passes by.
I brought back a few souvenirs this time which I haven't done much of in the past. I liked buying refrigerator magnets because a bunch were very creative and they also pack pretty light. I did bring back quite a bit of stuff from the British Open which really blew my budget....oh well. I also brought back some miniature, Medieval weapons from Castle Eltz. Included were two "sword" letter openers, and a tiny, Medieval maze. Since getting back to Broken Bow, I've been spending alot of time uploading, organizing, and labeling the many photos I took on the trip. I took over 1300 photos and have over 9 hours of video I think. I'm not sure but I might be able to include some websites to go to so that you can see them even if you're not a member of Facebook, so I'll check into that and if I find out that it works, I might have to publish one last blog with those address...we'll see.
One post trip experience has been my dreams. It's kind of funny actually, but I'm still travelling in my head. About four nights ago, I dreamt I was somewhere in Russia looking for the correct ship to take me somewhere. Another night, I was looking for a place to stay. Two nights ago, I was in Scotland again going to the British Open again, though this one was at St. Andrews instead of Turnberry. There was more last night also, though I can't remember what it was now. In closing, I'll just say it was a great trip!!! I've got lots more information that will make me a better teacher and I'm looking forward to sharing it with my students this next year and years beyond. Simply speaking, it was a great adventure and just tons of fun!!! I'm very glad I did it!

God Bless Always,
SNorris
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