Today was my day to fly back home! Dariush and Nouchine picked me up at Bob and Michelle's house around 8:30 am and we headed toward the Dusseldorf International Airport. It was raining and cold; perfect weather for my departure (remember).
We stopped at a great little restaurant and had a nice hearty European breakfast. Breakfast consisted of a heap of scrambled eggs, meats, breads, yogurts, fruits and veggies. After we all gorged and had a few laughs, we headed to the airport which was only about 10 minutes away. Dariush helped me get checked in and saw to it that I made it through security before he and Nouchine headed back to Cologne.
Nouchine helping me with my luggage. :)
Fast forward 8 hours (no sleep). I landed in Chicago and had a 4 hour layover. Talk about maddening!! I was so close to home, but had to sit around and watch the clock tick by before the quick little flight back to my girls.
Finally, I made it home to Jennifer, Lizzie, Jazzy and Daizi @ the Columbus Airport. My plane landed a little before 9:30 pm, which was about 3:30 am by my internal clock. The reunion was AWESOME! The girls met me at the gate and gave me a huge family hug. Each of them made me a 'Welcome Home' card and I read each of them with 100% of my full attention. They had so much detail in them and I simply loved them.
The girls giving me their cards
We left the airport and headed for the CheeseCake Factory @ Easton. I was so happy to be home!!
Today was my day to sleep in and I did exactly that. I woke up around 10:30 am after the commotion on the street below had me wanting to get ready for the day. I opened my windows and let the noise and sunshine in. I just slowly woke up and took my time this morning; no rush. To be honest, I had a bit of a headache from last-nights events with Bob and Michelle. :)
I headed down to their flat around 11:30 am and Michelle had prepared a yummy lunch of cold cuts, cheeses, vegetables, and strawberry's. Bob and I actually worked on a few features today and just stayed busy at our laptops for a while. Around 2 pm, we hopped in the car and was destined to drive the entire marathon course so that I could see what to expect. It was a relaxing drive through the city, but there were SO MANY traffic lights, and we got off course a couple of times. About 15 miles into the drive, we decided to head back to the house and that I could just see the last 11 miles tomorrow during my run. :)
Bob and I got some snacks at a local market and then went back to work for a few more hours. Again, we were on a roll and got quite a lot accomplished in a very short amount of time. Love it! This little bit of productivity today paid off big time and we'll be able to start next week with a bang!
Around 5:30 I headed back down to my hotel and decided to take a brisk walk around the nearby park to get my blood flowing. I felt the sleepy's creeping in, so I thought it was a good way to wake up and get some fresh air at the same time. It worked and I came back rejuvenated and ready prepare for tomorrow's race and catch up on a few things here at the hotel.
During this time, I was able to talk with my Mom the girls for a while. We talked about lots of things and it was great to just hear their voices and their stories. Apparently, they had a slumber party at Grandma's and watched lots of movies. Grandma's house is the best place in the world to fulfill any bucket list Disney movie that you've always wanted to see. She literally has all of them. Many in VHS and DVD. I grew up a "Disney Kid" and have seen most Disney movies that many of my friends haven't seen. I consider myself fairly well cultured in the Dizflix. The girls looked like they were having much fun and were all just being silly for me. It was just what I needed.
Around 8pm, I walked down to the Altstadt for a quick dinner. I stopped at crowded pub and ordered some spaghetti cabonara and a tall Alt beer to prepare for tomorrows race (ie. last minute "Carbo Load"). The food was delicious and the streets were packed with runners. I assume most of them were runners anyway because I saw many running t-shirts and noticed some pretty bright running shoes here and there. I sat outside at a table that looked out onto the cobble stoned street while I ate. It was awesome! Unfortunately I left my camera at home, so I couldn't take pictures of my dish, or my prime seat facing the crowded streets.
I finished my meal and bear, then came to the hotel to prepare for an early bed time so that I could wake up and be ready for the marathon. I'm very excited to run tomorrow. It's going to feel great to just zone out and move forward for 5-6 hours. I am not trying to break any speed records, so I have no goals other than to enjoy myself and cross the finish line with a smile and a medal. I'll be honest though, the last 4 weeks have been train-free, meaning I've been on about a month long taper. :) This is going to be challenging, but I'm looking forward to it VERY MUCH!!
Today was an extremely fun day!! I woke up around 8am after a long night sleep. The plan was to meet Dariush upstairs so he and I could go to some fund raising event and I could see where he worked. We were to leave the house at 9 am sharp.
I came upstairs around 8:45 to find only Nouchine playing in a dark / quiet house in her pajamas. I realized at that moment that our plans had changed. I just enjoyed the morning with her and her amazing knowledge of the German language. :) I'm convinced that she still doesn't realize that I don't understand her. Regardless, I just go with it and think she is the cutest thing ever! I'm like her Pet-American that she likes to sit next to at meals and pull around by my finger everywhere we go.
We played the game "Memory" where you had to flip over cards and match the pictures. She was clearly making up the rules as we went and I (again) went along with it. :) Who matches a mushroom to a bird and gets a second turn? Nouchine! :) During this time, she also taught me the German number system: ein, zwei, drei, vier, fünf, etc... She got a pretty big kick out of my "accent" and we had a blast! :)
Around 9:30 or so, the rest of the house started to wake up. Nouchine took me next door to the bakery with a piece of paper filled out by Rita and Dariush that described exactly what to get. I felt like royalty walking into the bakery with Nouchine in her urban-hippie get-up attached to my finger. She jabbered the whole time, but I just smiled and agreed with her on everything. I handed the paper to the baker and we left with a lot more than we were supposed to. I think it was my fault, because I tried to improvise when I learned they were out of plain croisants. Whatever!! :) We all enjoyed a fun breakfast of breads with various spreads and some cappuccino for the American.
After breakfast, Nouchine and I took Dariush for a train ride to downtown Cologne so he could pick up a rental car for the day. We were all going to be taking another adventure out to the countryside again this afternoon. None of us knew where we were going, and it couldn't have been a better plan. These are always the best plans; no plans.
Dariush got a really cool car actually!! It's a new Ford Focus and it's decked out to the nines. It has all kinds of sensors and computerized aspects to it. The coolest feature is that when you are at a stop light or something, it automatically turns off to save gas. It starts back up as soon as you put your foot on the clutch to put it in 1st gear. Perhaps this is standard these days, but it was the first time I'd seen anything like it. Literally, everything on this car was computerized though, very cool!! +1 for America. Go Ford!
We came back to the house and picked up Jonathan and Rita, and then headed to the south down the Rhein River. Our first stop was an old castle on a hill named Drachenfels (ie. Dragon's Rock). It was amazing! The climb was kind of tough, but the delivery at the top was well worth the 30 minute climb. About half way up the hill, Rita took Nouchine and Jonathan back down. It was pretty cold and was beginning to rain. Once Dariush and I reached the top, it was pretty cold, wet, and windy. However, the view from the top, was simply amazing and I was blown away by how high up we were.
The ruins were built in 1138 and was built for protection for Cologne from the south. It was strategically built here for the unobstructed view of the Rein River in both directions. Simply amazing!! Check out this clip I took from the top:
From the ruins, we headed further south down the Rhein to a very old village by the name of Linz (aka: Linz am Rhein). This was an old village that was built back in the 800's (~1200 years ago!). It was simply. Awesome. Around every corner, I felt the history of the place. I could picture people living in the little houses, and I could also picture the town square filled with market people and all the stuff you read about and see in the movies.
We ate at a really cool restaurant which was literally a cave. We descended a bunch of steps from the street into a cave, and then we went to the "lower" floor (down more steps) to another cave where I got to try an authentic German dish by the name of "Sausage Blood". It was... ok. :) I ate it, but... it was ok. :) After eating we walked around the village for about an hour and enjoyed the day. We walked up and down all the streets and went into a few souvenir shops.
At one point, we all sat in the village square and ate ice cream. I know that the village is all decked out for tourists, but I couldn't get past the fact that it used to be a thriving village. The clocked rang at every 30 minute interval, and that sound alone threw me back to the midieval times. :) Sounds silly, but I was really intrigued by this place.
Around 6 pm, we headed back home as it was getting to be close to the kids bed time and we were all pretty well spent from walking so much. I went to the basement and passed some time by talking with Jennifer for a while and surfing the web. This gave Dariush and Rita some time to do family things (ie. get the kids to bed, power nap, etc..).
Around 8pm, I headed back upstairs and wanted to see if there were any plans. The plan was to go to a night-club (invite only) near Dusseldorf. Rita had planned to stay home with the kids and relax, while Dariush and I went to experience some nightlife. Apparently it was "80's night", so that was exciting. As it turned out. Neither of us were really up for the 45 minute drive to get there, nor the 45 minute drive home... again, it was already 8pm and we'd had a full day.
We decided to drive into Cologne and get some burgers and then stroll the "Bevarian District", which was basically an active strip of Cologne full of night life. There were all kinds of different clubs ranging from high-class to no-class. We walked the strip one way, then back the other and then decided to call it a night. We arrived back home around midnight and called it a night!
Tomorrow is my last day with Ghobad's and I can't begin to thank them enough for having me in their house. I know exactly how difficult it is to keep a routine of "school, lunch, nap, dinner, bedtime". Honestly, I do!! It sounds very strait-forward for some, but I know first hand that it can be extremely stressful and draining to just go through this process every single day. Notice, I left out "family time" and "time for yourself". Again, it's tough... especially with an active toddler.
Here, I showed up on a Monday evening right in the middle of this process and they seamlessly weaved me into their days without any stress or signs of strain. I never felt like a burden, and they went out of their way at every step to see to it that I had everything I needed. They assured me that I had complete freedom to do as I pleased. With this freedom, I tried to help out as much as I could, while also making sure that I gave them their own space when I knew they needed it.
Dariush and Rita have built a beautiful family that is based on love, kindness, patience, and understanding. Kisses and hugs are an everyday thing around here with the kids and each other. While some might consider me a young "veteran" in the marriage department, I've absolutely learned a lot from this family. If all families shared their values, then this world would be a much better place.
Thank you Ghobads for a wonderful week here in Cologne. You showed me exactly what I wanted to see in Germany, and I didn't even know it at the time. You're wonderful hosts, and amazing parents! Stay happy and stay funky.
Rita, Nouchine, Jonathan, and Dariush (aka. The Ghobad's)
Wonderful day! I woke @ 9 am (after only 4 hours of sleep) and did some last minute computer stuff before starting the day. I snuck snack out of the fridge that I bought the other day, and "borrowed" a bottle of water from the cabinet. Did some chores in the basement, and then headed upstairs around 12 pm and had lunch with Rita and Jonathan.
My intention was to simply take a quick shower and then head out for some lunch. I knew Rita had a full day and would probably want to take a nap. The last thing I want to do is get in the way and be a nuisance. She asked me if she could make me a cappuccino or cook me a pizza or something. I insisted that I was just fine, but she insisted that I had to be hungry and that she would figure something out. To my surprise, she made me a full course lunch with a heaping bowl of tortolini with ham and some italian sauce and a piping hot cup of cappuccino. Way too kind. It was delicious, but I could only eat about 3/4 of it.
After my mid-day feast, Rita laid Jonathan down for a nap, and I was going to go out for a walk around the neighborhood. To my surprise, I found my girls were online and I was able to talk to them instead. Awesome trade-off!! We talked about everything and nothing. It was great! They were all getting ready for school and Jennifer was taking turns getting one ready while the other two would talk to me. It was almost as if I was there, but I wasn't.
Daizi, Lizzie, and Jazzy getting ready for school
Once the girls had to get off the computer, I headed back upstairs. Rita and I were were going to pick up Nouchine from school and Dariush from work. We got "Johny Boy" packed up and headed to the Kindergarden to retrieve Nouchine first. When we got there, Nouchine was eager to show Rita her fancy art projects that she did. It was so cute to see her show off her art and get so excited about it. She was very proud of them, and rightfully so. On the drive to pick up Dariush, I really got to looking at the painting and it was actually really (I mean, really) good, with some pretty cool details!! They may have an art prodigy on their hands here. :)
We picked up Dariush at his office around 2:45 or so. It was at this time that I found out that we were all going to take a nice leisurely drive through the countryside of Bergisch Gladbach. This is an area that is exactly north of Theilenbruch and consumes a pretty vast area of countryside. The drive was beautiful and I took a lot of pictures. However, the pictures do it no justice and it was impossible to capture the beauty of the countryside in a digital picture. I just loved seeing all the little german villages scattered throughout the rolling country side.
Oh and we actually drove through Heidi Klum's hometown on our way there. She's kind of a "home town hero" around here I guess. Jazzy would be pleased to know this, as a fashionista herself... <3
We stopped at a delicious restaurant in a nice residential area in the hills and ordered some delicious waffles. This area is actually known for their waffles and I now know why. They were probably the best waffles I'd ever had. I topped them with chopped up strawberry's and vanilla ice cream, and then chased them down with a nice black coffee. You can take the boy out of the states, but you can't take the states out of the boy. :)
From the restaurant, we spent some relaxing time at a really cool church by the name of Altenburg Cathedral. The church was built in 1259. It was built in order to replace another Romanesque building which had been consecrated in 1145. Pretty neat knowing that this Church has been around for about 800 years. Wow.
We really relaxed and took our time here. The weather was great and the kids were playing so cute. We literally just soaked up the day and had nowhere else to be. These are the best days in life. No schedule, no tasks, just soaking in the fresh air and listening to the birds chirping... Deedle daddle doodle (ie. this is a Yoe-nah-ton bird). :)
After the church, we headed back home and decided it was a great evening to have another cook out. Dariush fired up the grill and we all feasted on meat and bread. The grown ups also had some red wine. It was a great dinner and I walked away very full.
While Dariush and Rita put the kids to bed, I went downstairs and killed some time checking email and stuff. After about 30 minutes or so, I retrieved Dariush and we headed back out to the Eis Cafe to get some authentic Italian Gilato. :) When we returned, we tried to watch another episode of the Pink Panther, but I was spent and kept dozing off. I ended up going to bed early. I was actually in bed / lights out by 10 pm. What a great day!!
Today was another great day! I'd chalk this one up as an awesome "Ghobad Family Day". I woke around 8:30, only to hit snooze and wake (officially) at 9:20 am. The idea was that Rita would be home a little after 9:00 am with some breakfast, so I set my alarm for 8:30 to try and be ready... when I woke @ 8:30, I realized that it required zero preparation and gladly fell back asleep for a while. :)
Around 9:20 I stumbled upstairs and joined Jonathan and Rita for some bread with various spreads. She also made some filtered coffee from a french press coffee container for us to enjoye. It was perfect! Oddly the French Press coffee reminds me of Russia. This was the last time I had seen or used a "french press"(ie. "frencheski press") coffee container, and in Russia I drank from this every single day. We sat around the table and laughed at Jonathan being silly, and then we got ready for a nice relaxing walk through the local forest.
The walk was great. It actually started to sprinkle a bit, but we didn't mind. Jonathan was very relaxed and didn't make a peep the entire time. Rita and I talked about all kinds of things and just enjoyed the nature around us. This morning (breakfast and the walk) was really the first time I'd ever spent one-on-one time with Rita. Typically we are surrounded by a herd of kids or other chaos. She and Dariush compliment each other very well. They are both so relaxed and genuinely great people.
Upon returning, Rita and Jonathan decided to take a little mid-day nap. This was a great time for me to change into some running clothes and try to get lost again. :) This time, I tried to stick to the nature trails as much as possible and avoid the city streets. There are so many forests around here, and they are all open to the public. This is very much unlike rural America. Most times, when you see woods in the states, they are somebody's property. Here they are open to the public, which (as a trail runner) I simply LOVE!
At one point, I realized I was lost (again). It was my goal, and I'd accomplished it. I tried to keep my bearings, but the further I went, the more I realized I wasn't quite sure where I was anymore. I eventually stopped and asked a lady how to get back to "Theilenbruch"... She said "Oh, wow... go maybe 1 kilometer this way then turn right, then left, then right". I tried repeating it to her and then she suggested to go until I wasn't sure and then ask somebody else. We shared some jokes and I was back on my way through the trails. So much fun!
My German Trail Run
When I returned, I took a quick shower and then Dariush came to pick me up so that we could pick up Nouchine from Kindergarten. In Germany, Kindergarten is the same as our "pre-school", whereas Pre-school is the same as our "Kindergarten". It's exactly backwards, but makes more sense in Germany than in the States if you ask me. "Kinder" means "child" and "garten" means "garden", therefore "kinder-garten" is a "child garden". Whereas "pre-school" is "before-school". Duh. America is wrong, Germany wins. :) All the way back home, Mila and Nouchine held a little conversation where I understood nothing but cuteness. At one point Dariush had me telling Mila that my name was also Nouchine (ie. "Ich bin Nouchine"). She wasn't buying it... :)
After dropping Nouching and Mila off back at Dariush's house, he and I headed to the grocery store (Aldi's) to pick up some food for a cook out. We got lots of stuff and brought it back to the house where we began to prepare for the evenings event. Dariush and I were in charge of the kids and the meat; Rita was in charge of everything else (the salad, the fries, preparing the table, drinks, plates, etc..). I had another pot of french-press coffee and a nice beer to assist me with entertaining the kids.
My job was very easy; I simply pushed Jonathan on the swing and jabbered with him, while Mila and Nouchine were making a "Baum Salat" (ie. "Tree Salad"). Basically they were picking tons of leaves off of a helpless tree in the back yard and were throwing them into a small wheel barrow full of water and sand. I was the "wassen-mann" (ie. water-man) who was in charge of the spigot. Every minute or so they would come up to me and jabber in "kinder-German" asking me to fill their water containers. How could anybody say no!? It was fun for everybody and the salad looked delicious. :)
Dariush was in charge of the grill and the food smelled amazing. I'm sure the neighbors would agree. He had a large array of different sausages, some chicken, some beef, and some pork. At the dinner table, we had amazing salad (no, not Tree Salad) with some feta, fresh bread, french fries, fresh cut vegetables, and this huge selection of different meats. We all had a great time and everybody ate enough to walk away miserably happy (the only way to cook out).
Best yet, we actually just beat the rain. As soon as dinner was finishing up, the skies let loose and it poured "buckets" for about 10-15 minutes.
Sometime after dinner, Mila's mom came to pick her up and she and Rita talked for quite a while in the foyer area with all the kids running around. Shortly there-after, Dariush and I picked up the house while Rita put Jonathan down for bed. Once all the kids had gone home / fallen asleep, Dariush and I put on our walking shoes and headed out for an evening stroll. He took me down his street to a nice little Italian Ice Cream parlor near his village. From there we took a back-road home past a beautiful cemetery and past some nice farm pastures before getting back into his village. I got to see what a quaint little German village actually looked like; small cars, narrow roads, quiet / friendly people living simple lives in simple houses. The walk took us about 20-30 minutes and it was exactly what we needed after a fun-filled day.
When we returned, Rita, Dariush, and I decided to sit down and watch the Pink Panther (the old one) with a small bag of chips, some chocolates, and a bottle of red wine. The movie was hilarious and I can't believe I'd never seen it. A few times, I thought we were going to wake the kids from laughing so hard. :) After the movie, I came down to my room and talked with the girls for about 20 minutes or so before going to bed.
Tomorrow, Dariush has taken the day off of work (so cool) and we're going to play "tourists" in downtown Cologne all day after dropping Nouchine off at "kindergarten".
Today was another great day. Excuse the length of the post! I took a lot of pictures today, so just ignore the size of your scrollbar on the right... :)
Anyway, it started off rather slow actually. I slept in until about 11am after a solid nights sleep. My room was very quiet and very dark all night and all morning. I was actually quite surprised to learn that it was already 11am when I woke up. I've not had this much solitude in a long time, even at home.
Immediately, I put on my running clothes and headed out the door to see if I still remembered how to run. I haven't ran since the slow 4 miler with Volli a week ago. Needless-to-say, it felt great to get my legs moving again. Around mile 2 I realized I was lost and decided to turn around and retrace my steps. I actually ran outside the boundaries of Koln at some point...
These are the best runs most times; the ones where you just go out and discover a new place. I do it everywhere I travel to and it's one of the highlights of travelling for me believe it or not... I plan to do this again tomorrow and the next to try and run through some trails around here. There are actually quite a few nature trails in this area and I can't wait to see some of the German beauty off the beaten path.
When I returned, I took a quick shower and then joined Rita, Uda, and Nouchine for lunch. We had rice with meat and juice to drink. Afterwards we all sat around and enjoyed ice cream bars for dessert. By this time, it was a little after 1:30 and everybody in the house was going to lay down for a nap since they've all had a long day already. Since I'd slept the day away, I decided to take my train ticket and head into downtown Cologne by myself. I think Rita was a bit surprised, but I felt confident I could navigate the rail system by myself. Also, Dariush had found an extra cell phone (with some free minutes on it) that I was going to keep in my pocket in case I get really lost or something.
I left a little before 2:00 pm and was in downtown Cologne in about 20 - 30 minutes. I did a LOT of walking today. I actually got off the train a few exits early just so I could see some new sites and walk the streets of Cologne. Once I got near the Cathedral area, I saw that the city was alive and crawling with tourists and shoppers. I tried to blend in with my big peace sign tie dye t-shirt. Though, I'm sure I could be spotted from miles around. This shirt rocks! :)
The weather was beautiful, so all the shops had their front doors open for business and the sidewalk cafe's had their tables mostly filled. I stopped for a pastry and a coffee at a nice little cafe and sat out on the sidewalk for a while myself. After that, I hit a few souvenir shops and mostly just walked around soaking in the day. I had no schedule and nowhere to be, so I just turn down a street and followed it for a while to see where it would take me, then I'd turn down another street and see where it would take me, etc... Every now and then I'd pop into a souvenir shop and look around, but mostly just walked around outside and took lots of pictures of the area:
Around 4:30, Dariush had made it home from work and called to invite me back to the house for dinner with the family. I made my way back to the train station and took the "18 train" back to Theilenbruch (their village). The entire trip takes about 20 minutes once the train leaves the Kolner Dom train station. I just looked out the window at all the scenery the entire time. We went through big stations, under the streets, through tunnels, over the Rein River, and through lots of little villages all the way back. It was neat to see so much of Germany without any effort. I literally had my leg propped up on the seat in front of me with my chin in my hand while looking out the window the entire time. Others would get on at one stop and get off at the next stop, but I was there until the train stopped at it's final destination.
When I got back to their village, they all met me and we walked back to their house together. We actually walked through a small park and it was very peaceful. Nouchine was a ninja on her little bike. She's only 4 years old and rides her bike like pro. Jonathan was very quiet the entire time in his stroller; much like me on the train. :) We all talked about the day and I told them about everything I'd seen in Cologne. Dariush plans to take me to the top of the Cathedral sometime this week, and I'm very excited about that!
Before dinner started, I gave them all some gifts from the states, and it was so cute! Jonathan and Nouchine really opened up to me once I started handing out gifts. :D I sat and played with them in the living room while Dariush and Rita prepared dinner. It was so much fun to just hang out with two toddlers where none of us understood the other. Really, I loved it so much and was bummed when we had to actually get up for dinner. I think that Jonathan gave me every toy he owned, and Nouchine talked to me like I understood German like everybody else. :) From time to time I'd just say "Yaa, good" or "Ahh, Danka" with a smile. :) They were so cute!!
For dinner we had the Ghobad special of rice and meat again. It's actually quite delicious, and I was looking forward to it this time! This time with bread, salad, cheese and other meats. The grown ups had red wine as well. By this time Nouchine was very comfortable with me and actually wanted to sit by me. I felt honored! I sat between my two new friends: Jonathan on my left and Nouchine on my right. Dinner was delicious of course, and then it was time for my two new friends to get ready for bed. I read a few English books to them while Dariush and Rita cleaned up, and really enjoyed it. Jonathan jabbers a lot and gives me lots of toys to let me know that I'm "ok" in his book. :)
At one point, Nouchine and I were having a "conversation". This means that she would rattle off a bunch of German and laugh, at which point I would then laugh too. Somewhere in the middle of these stories, Dariush came in the room and I asked him what she was saying while she was in mid-sentence of story # 7... He politely interrupted her and asked that she tell him instead, and that he could translate it into English for me me. She looked at him and said (in German) "No, it's ok Daddy, I spoke very loud and clear!". :) Too funny!!
After the kids laid down for bed, Dariush and I headed to a local pub for some beers. This pub is about 3 or 4 buildings down from Dariush's house and was bustling with locals enjoying beer and football on the television. Dariush FORCED ;) me to try a special German dish called Curry Waurst, and let me tell you... Wow! Not to say that it beat Rita's Rice and Meat, but it was pretty darn good! The sauce should have come with a straw, but for health purposes, I'm glad they forgot it.
Once we were done there, we came back to the house and I was able to chat with Jennifer for a while, and then I wrote this post. Tomorrow, I get to do a few fun things and I'm anxious to post the pictures at the end of the day.
Stay tuned... Oh yeah, thanks for reading and commenting (on Facebook and in my comments). I mostly put this up here for my own journal to look back on and to let my family know what I'm experiencing in real time. Hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them!
Today was my day to fly back home! Dariush and Nouchine picked me up at Bob and Michelle's house around 8:30 am and we headed toward the Dusseldorf International Airport. It was raining and cold; perfect weather for my departure (remember).
