Europe Post-Script
I've been back in Seattle four days now. I've done my post-trip laundry and clean-up, and while I still have a tiny little bit of unpacking and organizing to do (which always seems to be the case when I travel), I am, for all intents and purposes, back home and back in the swing of things. I've gone back to work and my head is fully here.
There were a couple of things I wanted to write about in retrospect, though, ideas that seemed important to me to record.
Reflections
First, everything in Europe is both bigger and smaller than I expected. I know I observed this as I traveled, but it's something I keep coming back to. I noticed this "much bigger" thing in Paris: the size of Versailles, the size of the Louvre, the size of the Eiffel Tower--all bigger than I ever imagined or that can be conveyed without actually visiting the places in question. I'm certain that Versailles was built with grandeur in mind. I know that Eiffel wanted to make a point about France's engineering and scientific advances for the World's Exposition for which the tower was built. Size makes an impression; it certainly did with me.
This "smaller" thing impressed me particularly in Lithuania and Amsterdam. You can drive across Lithuania in about four hours. It's not even as big as some American states. You can walk across central Amsterdam in less than half a day--I did--but it's only one of nine boroughs of the total city of Amsterdam. Of course you can walk across the waist of Manhattan in less than half a day as well, but that's not walking across the City of New York. And Amsterdam's museums are dwarfed by the Louvre. The gargantuan architecture I saw in France was nowhere in evidence in Amsterdam. Even Trakai Castle outside of Vilnius was a tiny thing compared to Versailles and castles elsewhere. The scale of things in Lithuania and Holland was just different. But I think the point of all this was different as well (France was all about military and political power; Amsterdam in its golden age was as well, but its pride really lay in its commercial accomplishments, and everything was driven by its dominance in trade--not symbols of political muscle), and it's not something I ever understood in my bones until I went there.
Second, in books of a certain era, you read about people of a certain age doing grand tours of Europe. I think that understanding all of the above was part of the point of that idea: education, understanding history in context in a tangible way. But also, seeing things in actuality versus learning about them by reading or seeing pictures. One of my key take-aways from the trip, something I've always known but was reminded of again so very effectively, is that the impact of a work of art or of a famous place can't be conveyed secondhand; it must be experienced to fully assimilate the reason for its fame or its importance.
Third, if I were ever going to live in Europe, I'd pick either Paris or Amsterdam in a heartbeat. Amsterdam felt comfortable and appealing within hours of my arrival, and Paris didn't take much longer. Now, that said, I understand that what I experienced was the tourist heart of each city. I never got outside the Centrum borough of Amsterdam, and Elizabeth and I saw perhaps five of Paris' many arrondisements. I know, having lived in two great cities, that the residential areas where people really live and work are often quite different in character from the burnished appeal of their historic, commercial centers. But in my fantasy world, where I could afford to live anywhere, these places rank right at the top of the list.
What next?
I would like to go back to all of the places I visited this trip. I admit that Paris and Amsterdam hold more appeal for me; still so much to see and do. Brief stays in either place aren't nearly enough. Even ten days in Paris wasn't enough. At the same time, I don't know if I'll do an extended trip of more than two weeks again, at least not right away. When I came home, I was really ready to come home; I know that Sophie was ready for my return, despite the best efforts of her devoted sitters. We'll see. I have brief excursions already planned for early 2012, but those are for no more than four or five days and they're relatively local. I also need to allow my finances recover.
As for what's next in terms of big trips, I'm unsure. I've been to many of the places I wanted to go as a child--Egypt, Israel, now France--and places I never expected to go--Kenya, Japan, Lithuania--and this isn't the total list. A cursory glance at my Travel Bucket List (yes, I do have one) shows destinations both foreign and domestic still to be seen: Devil's Tower, Crater Lake, the Grand Canyon, the south of France, Easter Island, Angkor Wat, Macchu Picchu, the Nazca Lines, the ruins of Pompeii and Athens, Rome, the Ngorongoro Crater, and more. I'd love to go back to the UK, to Israel, to Santa Fe. Yeah, there's still a lot of world to see. And I'd still like to do another Earthwatch expedition or two. There's been some discussion of possibly going to the World's Fair in Milan in 2015, which would get me to Italy and possibly enable trips to Rome and Pompeii. My current passport is only good until 2017 and it needs more stamps! :-)
So, yeah, lots to think about. In the meanwhile, though, I'm going to kick back for a bit, live here and now in Seattle, let my finances resettle, and relax. Whatever comes next and whenever it happens, I look forward to it. But . . . not very soon. One trip at a time.
There were a couple of things I wanted to write about in retrospect, though, ideas that seemed important to me to record.
Reflections
First, everything in Europe is both bigger and smaller than I expected. I know I observed this as I traveled, but it's something I keep coming back to. I noticed this "much bigger" thing in Paris: the size of Versailles, the size of the Louvre, the size of the Eiffel Tower--all bigger than I ever imagined or that can be conveyed without actually visiting the places in question. I'm certain that Versailles was built with grandeur in mind. I know that Eiffel wanted to make a point about France's engineering and scientific advances for the World's Exposition for which the tower was built. Size makes an impression; it certainly did with me.
This "smaller" thing impressed me particularly in Lithuania and Amsterdam. You can drive across Lithuania in about four hours. It's not even as big as some American states. You can walk across central Amsterdam in less than half a day--I did--but it's only one of nine boroughs of the total city of Amsterdam. Of course you can walk across the waist of Manhattan in less than half a day as well, but that's not walking across the City of New York. And Amsterdam's museums are dwarfed by the Louvre. The gargantuan architecture I saw in France was nowhere in evidence in Amsterdam. Even Trakai Castle outside of Vilnius was a tiny thing compared to Versailles and castles elsewhere. The scale of things in Lithuania and Holland was just different. But I think the point of all this was different as well (France was all about military and political power; Amsterdam in its golden age was as well, but its pride really lay in its commercial accomplishments, and everything was driven by its dominance in trade--not symbols of political muscle), and it's not something I ever understood in my bones until I went there.
Second, in books of a certain era, you read about people of a certain age doing grand tours of Europe. I think that understanding all of the above was part of the point of that idea: education, understanding history in context in a tangible way. But also, seeing things in actuality versus learning about them by reading or seeing pictures. One of my key take-aways from the trip, something I've always known but was reminded of again so very effectively, is that the impact of a work of art or of a famous place can't be conveyed secondhand; it must be experienced to fully assimilate the reason for its fame or its importance.
Third, if I were ever going to live in Europe, I'd pick either Paris or Amsterdam in a heartbeat. Amsterdam felt comfortable and appealing within hours of my arrival, and Paris didn't take much longer. Now, that said, I understand that what I experienced was the tourist heart of each city. I never got outside the Centrum borough of Amsterdam, and Elizabeth and I saw perhaps five of Paris' many arrondisements. I know, having lived in two great cities, that the residential areas where people really live and work are often quite different in character from the burnished appeal of their historic, commercial centers. But in my fantasy world, where I could afford to live anywhere, these places rank right at the top of the list.
What next?
I would like to go back to all of the places I visited this trip. I admit that Paris and Amsterdam hold more appeal for me; still so much to see and do. Brief stays in either place aren't nearly enough. Even ten days in Paris wasn't enough. At the same time, I don't know if I'll do an extended trip of more than two weeks again, at least not right away. When I came home, I was really ready to come home; I know that Sophie was ready for my return, despite the best efforts of her devoted sitters. We'll see. I have brief excursions already planned for early 2012, but those are for no more than four or five days and they're relatively local. I also need to allow my finances recover.
As for what's next in terms of big trips, I'm unsure. I've been to many of the places I wanted to go as a child--Egypt, Israel, now France--and places I never expected to go--Kenya, Japan, Lithuania--and this isn't the total list. A cursory glance at my Travel Bucket List (yes, I do have one) shows destinations both foreign and domestic still to be seen: Devil's Tower, Crater Lake, the Grand Canyon, the south of France, Easter Island, Angkor Wat, Macchu Picchu, the Nazca Lines, the ruins of Pompeii and Athens, Rome, the Ngorongoro Crater, and more. I'd love to go back to the UK, to Israel, to Santa Fe. Yeah, there's still a lot of world to see. And I'd still like to do another Earthwatch expedition or two. There's been some discussion of possibly going to the World's Fair in Milan in 2015, which would get me to Italy and possibly enable trips to Rome and Pompeii. My current passport is only good until 2017 and it needs more stamps! :-)
So, yeah, lots to think about. In the meanwhile, though, I'm going to kick back for a bit, live here and now in Seattle, let my finances resettle, and relax. Whatever comes next and whenever it happens, I look forward to it. But . . . not very soon. One trip at a time.