June 22, 1997

I first learned last fall that I would not be allowed to take the educational trip of my dreams, the trip I had planned for over a year with verbal sanctions from school personnel. I considered fighting the decision (made by a new regime), but felt that it wasn't worth the battle. After all, I was asking a favor, and perhaps some day I would need to ask an even bigger, more important favor, and for that I would save my energy. Instead, I considered my options. I had a round trip ticket for one to Scandinavia, good for one year, but I couldn't go during school time. That left two choices: give it up and pay a heavy penalty or use it in the summer and pay a heavy penalty. I chose the latter. It doubled the cost, but now I am heading for Europe!

My flight leaves on June 25 from Seattle to L.A. I fly from L.A. to Amsterdam and Amsterdam to Stockholm. Not my idea of a great flight plan, but, hey, it gets me there. My first leg of the trip will be meeting an old friend for the first time. Oxymoronic but true. Boris and I have been friends for ages, but this will be the first time we meet face-to-face. He will show me Stockholm, one of my husband's very favorite cities, and I'd better take notes, because I KNOW Bill will grill me on all the things I see there.

After a few days I will most likely take a train to Copenhagen, hopefully getting a brief moment in Malmo to say hello to Paul , another unmet friend and fellow member of an Internet study group, the Scribblers. Once I hit Copenhagen I'm in familiar territory and ready for two weeks of wonderful old friends and tons of fun. I will visit people I haven't seen for two years, one year, and one month! I could easily stay for weeks, traveling around and partaking of the hospitality of so many people I know who have visited with me in the past. In three years I have accumulated an amazing number of Danish friends, and all of them are fun, friendly, and welcoming. Best of all, they speak English. Could I ask for more??

Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I will miss Bill and Meg and William, I know. But I also need to travel on my own. I should have done this as a young person, but I was not as fortunate as my husband and my own children, so I didn't have the opportunity to explore the world alone and expand my horizons. But I firmly believe it is never too late. I may not be hitchhiking and bicycling across Europe like Bill, but perhaps you could say that I'm an over-aged exchange student, eh? I like that idea.