If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Patience Warren. I believe that is what Zeus tried to teach me as we visited what his followers considered his most sacred sanctuary. This hill was the birthplace of Zeus and where is father, Kronos tried to eat him and prevent him from taking over the family God business. By visiting, I unwittingly subjected myself three trials that he administered by using my willing teenage daughter, as you shall soon see.

I always understood the high priority the ancient Greeks placed on spiritual and mental development (hence the temples, shrines, and Greek schools of philosophy). What I never realized is that the Olympic games weren’t anything like sporting events we have today. It was the Romans who changed and commercialized the Olympics. To the Greeks, the games were a deeply ritualistic, highly spiritual event held to honor the Father of the Olympian Gods, Zeus. Ancient Olympia is where the games were held and one of the most sacred, spiritual locations in Greek Mythology.

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If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Today was a long, exhausting day of travel. It started with a sad goodbye to the bay that had been home for four days. Of course, we couldn’t go anywhere until after Mikayla had her morning coffee. Rather than rush us by trying to convince her to skip her morning ritual, I finally just accepted the fact that she doesn’t fully wake up until she gets her dose of caffeine. Once that happens, her eyes light up and she is non-stop chatter (which is fun). If Jack Bauer ever needed to interrogate her, all he’d need to do is give her coffee.

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If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

My original agenda for today had us taking a drive up the northern part of the island, up the mountain, and to the eastern coast and the “Mini-Riveria.” The thought of more driving, however, seemed to turn Mikayla’s face green. Her preference was to go back to Myrtiotissa beach and have an easy relaxing day. So that’s what we did.

We took our time in the morning, had an extended chat at breakfast, and then left late in the morning for the beach. I wondered all night if I’d drive down the steep hill again. The angel on the right shoulder said, of course, “Don’t do it.” The little devil on the left didn’t say a thing, just smiled a wicked grin. I’m sure you know by now who won.

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If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Last night Mikayla commented that she missed playing the piano and I suggested she go play the one in the lounge. The thought must have worked her over during the night because after breakfast she took a break and made that old out of tune monster sound really good. I sat in a nice comfy chair looking out at scenery that never gets boring, and she played some of my favorites. Several peeked in to see who was playing and one lady even clapped and yelled “Bravo!”

We left bright and early to explore the south end of Corfu. Our first stop was a beach that I had heard could be one of the best in the world, Myrtiotissa. It was actually pretty tricky to find. I felt like I was driving on a neglected, deserted road to an abandoned farm rather to a world class beach. Finally the road doubled back and dropped almost straight down to the ocean below and I could see I was in the right place.

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If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Jet lag forced me awake during the wee hours of the morning, again. At least this time the Internet worked but even if it hadn’t, I wouldn’t complain about sitting in the dark five stories above the sloshing waves in my swimming suit surrounded by tropical warm air. I checked email, typed in my journal, posted photos on Facebook, and watched the sunrise slowly light up the ocean.

When I went to bed last night mosquitoes buzzed my ears like Tom Cruise and his fly-by in Top Gun. Mosquitoes always find and torment me. I can be in a place where mosquitoes don’t even exist and get bites all over my body while everyone else stays untouched. Mikayla wanted to sleep with the large sliding door open to hear the ocean, which was nice, but meant no AC. To keep safe from the little vampires I covered my entire body in the sheet and spent the night with a constant layer of sweat covering my body.

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If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Wide awake at three in the morning seemed like a great opportunity to get up and go online, but no such luck. The gateway was down. Nothing is more frustrating than choosing a hotel because it has Internet and then not having it when I want it. It’s bad enough to wake up too early knowing I’ll be tired later), but tack on not being able to get online and jet lag is that much worse.

I sat on the balcony and wrote in my journal. At about 5:00 I heard bells ringing from the monasteries up on the cliffs. Shortly after, roosters around the town started their crowing (in Greek, of course) and, finally, the sky became lighter. I woke up Mikayla and we got an early start on the long drive. Seeing the monasteries last night meant we could get in several extra hours of driving during the early morning hours and make it to Corfu in one day. Mikayla had been eager for the beach since Day 1 so she was excited. We left early and grabbed breakfast at a fruit stand down the road.

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If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Our first Greek breakfast was simple but tasty. Plain yogurt with honey, deli meat, boiled eggs, and cold cereal were pretty standard everywhere we went. And when it is free with the room, I fill up.

We loaded up the car (which was squeezed against the side of the building, half on the sidewalk and half on the street) and then walked to the archeological site. I had heard there were lots of cats in this area but I didn’t remember until I saw cats…everywhere. As we walked up to the gate several kittens ran up to Mikayla and, of course, she couldn’t not spend a few minutes playing with them.

The ancient site (from about 2,500 years ago) honored the God Apollo, son of Zeus. Apollo had the job of carrying the sun in his chariot across the sky each day. He was the god of prophecy, truth, healing, and the arts. In the picture is the theater and, below it, the remains of the Temple of Apollo where ancient pilgrims conferred with the Oracle. The other ruins are what is left of the Forum (where you might have found a trouble maker by the name of Socrates) and several monuments.

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Several years ago I promised each of of my kids a trip (Aubree chose Italy and Curtis went to Africa). Two weeks, one-on-one with each child exploring a foreign country. It is an idea I developed with our therapist (I think his exact words were “these trips will save you thousands of dollars in therapy down the road”). My wife, Sandi, has been very supportive and patient (her trip is next and looks to be either Germany and Switzerland or Costa Rica). The problem is she only gets 2 weeks of vacation a year, which means giving up an annual trip to see family in Utah or Minnesota. So far she hasn’t wanted to do that. In two more years she’ll get 3 weeks of vacation and that should do the trick! I plan on following up the trip blogs with a summary of what I learned and the effect these trips had on my relationships with the kids. Mikayla and I had a total blast in Greece (Sept 12th – 27th) and and I will try and post a new entry each day for the next two weeks summarizing our adventures.

I would do myself a huge favor by not stressing myself out so much as I prepare. Because we do our own thing there is no tour group, no itinerary, and no personal help as we plan and travel. For months I research the how’s, what’s, and where’s. The pressure to plan the ideal trip at the lowest possible price helps drive me in the planning but also causes a fair amount of stress. If there is an upside to the stress, it helps me consider nearly anything that could possibly go wrong. My problem is I can’t seem to turn it off. Until I am in the plane and my fate is sealed, I second guess myself and try and figure out what I have forgotten to do. The night before we left I laid in bed thinking, Argh…here I go again. End the end, everything always goes just fine. Even the problems (like when Aubree and I were stranded at the train station and slept on the sidewalk in France) end up as fond memories.

Leaving early for the airport doesn’t help either because on top of worrying I forgot something, I’m tired and know I am not thinking straight. It’s actually amazing I am ever able to get out the door on these trips. Mikayla and I flew Air Canada to Toronto where customs harassed me because we didn’t have a letter from her mother and seemed to question that I was even her father.

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Mikayla has spoken: Greece and Turkey.

It’s a lot of work planning out these trips because we don’t do an organized thing. We do the whole thing from scratch, something I think can be compared to building your own house without a contractor. We are on our own…which is quite intimidating. But I’m getting better at it. Experiences like sleeping on the sidewalk in France and getting chased by an elephant in South Africa have helped me realize that things will work out. One way or another, things work out.

This will fulfill the promise I made to my kids several years ago, a one-on-one trip with each of them to wherever in the world they wanted to go. It has turned out to be one of the best ideas I ever had. The times spent with Aubree in Europe and Curtis in Africa are beyond words…and pictures. Two solid weeks alone with each of my kids, experiencing new things, learning new things…it’s an amazing opportunity. I am so grateful to be in a position where I can do this with them and to have a supportive wife.

So for any of you that have been to Greece or Turkey, please pass on your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions. We’ll be heading out in September!

This movie put my head in a strange place. It started out normal enough, interesting and funny with a hint of despair. As it went on, it got harder to understand, downright confusing at times. There were scenes I found myself tired, wanting it to just get over already. But for its existentialistic theme, it was perfect.

I don’t think this type of show is for everyone. I would even bet most people will hate it. But for those of us who often see life through bland colored glasses, I think it makes some sense, teaches a few things, and even offers hope.

The movie was sometimes sweet, sometimes sad, often sardonic. At times it seemed to drag on way too long. Caden spends so much of his time trying to understand himself and figure out “why,” that he forgets to live. His efforts to make sense of his life are so extreme (he stages a grand play to reenact his entire life in an attempt to understand it) that it robs him of new experiences. He lives life by looking in the rear view mirror, searching for meaning and answers. And the answers are dismal; we are alone, there isn’t a higher purpose, and there isn’t rhyme or reason to our existence. But what else would you expect from this type of movie? The irony, however, is that these particular answers exist only because he wants more from life than living. When living isn’t enough, it’s a bitter road. Wanting more is either an insatiable and disappointing quest or a delusional existence.

(The next section has spoilers and harsh language in the movie quote)

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