An American Rogue in Europe: The Journey Begins...

Well, hello there. My it's been a long, long time.

Yes, I know that's a song. A great one, by one of my personal favorite artist, Willie Nelson. But it is also a very appropriate way to start this post. It's been quite a while since the Rogue spoke to the faceless millions (alright dozens) that follow his exploits through the magic of cyberspace. I've gone to the farthest reaches of the globe (well, the Czech Republic), have braved horrific conditions (sometimes, I went a whole day without seeing a McDonald's) and have returned to tell the tale. So without further ado...

Chapter One: Walking Away

I believe the proverb is something about a journey of a thousand miles beginning with one step. That's bull. A journey of a thousand miles (or in my case several thousand) begins with a half dozen false starts, a handful of surprises and a lot of self-analysis about how completely unprepared you are for this journey.

Most people take a vacation to Europe as a brief respite from the daily grind of the real world. We took ours as an exclamation point at the end of our college sentence. This had its advantages and drawbacks. On the one hand, we are the prime age for backpacking and hostel-staying. We looked like all of our fellow travelers and were already used to sleeping in less than pristine conditions. This "end-of-an-era" travelling also meant that we had longer to travel. Most vacationers are lucky to get more than a week away from work. Since we were technically (and in my case, literally) unemployed we could just move to Europe (although the scarcity of McDonald's would bother me). We had allowed ourselves a full three weeks to crisscross "the old country". Thank you, unemployment!

Vacationing in a transition period is not all roses and butterflies, however. The biggest issue is where to put the junk you're not carrying halfway 'round the world. We could have moved into a new place before traveling, but we really couldn't find anything and the money we would have to pay for deposits and such could instead be applied to the trip. We could have stayed in our current house, but then we'd have to have spent the first two days post-vacation moving. I don't know if you've ever moved before (it is possible that you are Amish and you and your family have lived in your house for generations. Although, if you are Amish, what the hell are you doing on the Internet?) but it's not something you want to do when you aren't well rested.

Regardless of wisdom or folly, we decided to move out of our house and into a lovely storage unit. In case you were wondering, my life is roughly 10'x20' minus my television which is vacationing at my Aunt's house. It's an interesting thing, seeing your life boxed up and locked away. Unnerving, how easy it is to count up. "Six boxes of DVD's, two computers, two suitcases of clothes and a guitar case." What does it say about me that I have literally three times as many movies as clothes? I'm not sure, but I think I like it.

Coming Soon -- Chapter Two: The Big Easy, The Hard Way