Achtung Munich!

From Gabe:

I think we will spend nine hours in the air to Heathrow London, and another 2 hours to Munich.

When your night becomes your day, you start feeling like you're in the Twilight Zone. Some of the best moments visually were looking out and seeing Greenland, and the luscious greens of England and Germany.

But when snacks become meals and the stink you smell is your own, you know its time to get off.

Heck, after 11 hours on the plane, I actually can't wait to get on the RV that I once dreaded.

And the kids, well, they just bounce back like a basketball. Its great to see and amazing. At least for now. We are still waiting for Rick and Laura to return with said RV.

But we've been delivered, and I got to eat an Enlgish breakfast (with BBQ pork and beans--YEAH! And I mean YEAH, I loved it. I want to do this when I get home) and I got to say danke once.

To be continued....

The Wages of Air Travel

When you go into a situation with no expectations there is both blessing and curses. At first when you don't realize just how long your flight really is, there is bliss. Then somewhere over Greenland when your night is becoming there day, thus begins the wages of air travel!

The spaciness, the hunger, the food. In general it went fine, but man it took so long. We were spared by a Barrackite from San Francisco who showed us mercy in sharing her fruit with a very hungry Ellie. A blessing. Then 2 minutes before touch down, this same woman decided to stretch and do a yoga performance in the aisle for all to see. A curse.

Full lavoratories.

Full bladders.

Watching 27 Dresses 27 times

Kids not sleeping, preparing to save meltdown for a foreign land.

Getting so hungry that you eat like an animal.

Realizing when the air turns un-fresh that everyone on the plane did too.

My name is Gabe Acosta
and this is the longest day of my life.

To be continued.....

Technical Difficulties

So, with less than 24 hours until our flight departs, the sylvester/acosta clan is already experiencing technical difficulties. Indicative of our trip? Perhaps....

1. My dear friends who had agreed to loan us their TomTom programmed for Europe plugged it in today and it started smoking. Sadly John Cleese will not be directing us from country to country, but rather we will be dependent upon maps. Having driven with my family long distances on numerous road trips, I foresee multiple arguments over which road to take and how to get from place to place. These arguments will occur between my father, my mother, and my sister. Blissfully, I have downloaded the entire first season of Wonder Woman and the most recent season of My Name is Earl so at inappropriate times, I will burst out laughing, which may not help matters, but that is the joy of being directionally-challenged: no one ever asks me to read the map!

2. My phone will not work in Europe. In the same way that the United States has rejected the overwhelming use of the metric system, the United States has decided to go their own way with phone service. Apparently, the rest of the world is on a GSM network, while the United States is on a CV something or other system. Now some phones (those whose price range is over $400) come with a system that is compatible as do some networks, however Verizon has not seen fit to convert.

So not only will we be lost, but we will be unable to communicate with one another......But maybe if I bring my Obama books, the residents will be kind enough to point us in the right direction.

So until tomorrow!

Heather

"Just Tell Them You Love Obama!"

So when anxieties hit you, its usually because of fear of the unknown. The best remedy is to talk to folks who've gone before you to Europe and pick their brains about what to expect.

So I was talking to my work friend Jason about Europe. He allayed many of my fears just by sharing his own experiences. Fears about getting mugged, or hustled, or feeling lost quickly fell away:

"Oh, there's plenty of other tourists around"

"They all pretty much speak English over there."

"We didn't have any problems."

And finally, the best advice I've gotten so far:

"Just tell them you love Obama!"

My friend made the point that, well, Europeans are very excited about Obama, and they love him. And by the same token, they could love you for loving him.

I guess that could really smooth things over. "Tell them you love Obama...."

Yeah, right.

Well, I guess if I get in a bind, I could fake it.

Gabe