HOME

So, here I am. Home. After another 16 hours of plane travel and a long (but clean) 6 hour layover at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, I had a refreshing night of sleep. When I woke up, I brushed my teeth with water from the faucet, had pancakes at Perkins, and drank coffee (coffee!) from EVP. Tonight I will eat a cheeseburger or some Glass Nickel pizza. Andy and I already split a gyro yesterday from Uncle Nicks in Rockford.

It's good to be home and breathe the air (how we take vehicle emissions standards for granted!) and to just be able to have some quiet refuge and time to relax. By the end of the trip I was definitely missing some things from home (mostly food - see above) and I was definitely tired of the noise and the exhaust and the massive throngs of people.

But, I kind of miss it already.

While I was gone, I wondered to myself how I would be able to explain how the trip was. I consider myself well-traveled, but this was so different than anything I have ever seen and have no idea how to speak any justice to my experience. I'm gonna try though.

I've got a bunch of time at work this week in the booth, and I still plan on writing about the trip and posting pictures...it will just be a couple of weeks later than I had originally intended.

If you have any specific questions, email me and I will try to answer them. It's easier to know what to say if I'm asked.