Who Could View Me As Suspicious?

I checked out of my Haarlem hotel, stepping with my backpack into the brisk Dutch morning and eschewing the generic breakfast. Today was a Sunday and as I wended my way down the gold-illumined streets, I quickly found there was little open. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been so confident. Still, after some meandering I found […]

In Which I Finally Slow Down

I walked onto the train platform at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, and the agent in a yellow coat urged me quicken my pace. There was no time for question or clarification, she insisted. “Go. Go now, or you will miss your train!” And I hurried into one of the nearest, neatly packed cars, to begin my […]

I Somehow Forgot This, But Remembering Feels Great

I realized today how much I’ve missed traveling abroad. I have things that I want do this fall and winter, however, so have had to set that time aside at the cost of my travels. As a result, it’s now November and I haven’t had a trip overseas since I got back from Italy in […]

The Pianist In the Piazza

The night was swarthy in the piazza, and small groups of us sat, scattered about on the baked stones listening to the frantic notes played by the pianist on an electric keyboard. There was an urgency in their high pitched trill, like time slipping away as we grasped at its ethereal tendrils. And my days […]

A Place Where I Belong

Navigating my way out from deep within the caverns of Bologna Centrale involved getting lost. The train station has now been much redone from my initial visit a decade ago, and they need to work on the signage here. But the misdirection only added to the anticipation that resonated through my bones and into my […]

Conferences Aren’t Great Fodder For Travel Blogs

I’ve decided to post one long post for the conference days. These were long days that stretched from 7:30 until 6, almost entirely in talks, so there isn’t necessarily much about which to write. I’ve been in this situation before. May 29 The conference began today. This is what has brought me to Italy in […]