Sunday, November 11, 2007

Back to Reality



I can't believe it's over. Home so soon. If the sign of a good trip is not wanting to come back, this one was excellent.

New York feels a little different. Cheaper (who'd have thunk it?), messier, a little bustlier than usual. The subways especially struck me as filthy, crowded and poorly lit. We live like animals! Seriously, while we will never have a return to the crime and grime of the '70s, we haven't lost all of our controlled chaos, or sketchy characters, or the feeling that anything can happen (good or bad).

Vienna and Budapest were both pretty rad in their own ways. Chill. Clean. Classy. I'll probably hold a softer spot in my heart for Vienna, though, mostly because through Kristina and Lilian, we got to experience real life there. Sitting at the kitchen table, sharing stories and thoughts about the world over several bottles of wine (and, yes, the hookah) was definitely one of the highlights. And the next night, plunging into a tiny cafe with all these artist types, and students smoking hand-rolled cigarettes (what a great affectation!) -- it was a very transporting experience.

Does it have to end so soon?


See ya!

1 comment:

Yvonne said...

you forgot to write the line:

"It was so great to see Yvonne."

Although "Yvonne is the greatest" would have been sufficient.