Logan, UT 84321

Only recently have I begun to find a profession as a full-time learner. Pursuing this dream of continually satiating my curiosity, I have again found myself in a new home. This time my academic travels take me across the Mississippi River, west to the Cache Valley. I have begun my Ph.D. at the Utah State University and settled in a house that will test the envelope of Maria and my life's experiment: maximizing self sufficiency while maintaining ourselves as functioning members of society. This house is just 6 blocks from the central business district of Logan, UT and 3 miles from USU. We're planning to raise poultry and fill our 4000 sq. ft. garden this summer. Stay tuned for how that unfolds. But in the meantime, enjoy the photos of my new home.





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Stop by any time!

My newest home...

It has occurred to me that many of the places I have written about in my travel journal I wish to keep forever in my mind as once my home, for at least a short while. Although, I haven’t written extensively about my childhood in Guilford, Connecticut or the many places I lived as an undergraduate at the University of Michigan, it is not because I did not consider those places my home. In truth, I have grown even more appreciative of the home and family that I was nurtured by as a child back in the east. It is then that I had never previously truly understood the notion of home. Perhaps it was because I didn’t actually own the place or that I didn’t take the time to think about what home means to me. Regardless, I have come to appreciate the time I get to spend during the week maintaining my new house and filling it with all the objects and memories that make it a home with my new wife, Maria.

We invite all friends and family to join us any time that is mutually agreeable. But until then, enjoy the photos of what we have made of 454 Madison St, so far.



The number preceding the picture corresponds to a triangle on the layout. This is the spot and direction that the picture was taken. Enjoy the tour!

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I ___ ROMA

Salve, pueli! [Greetings, folks]

Being in Rome has brought back a number of my Latin lessons from high school, but before I go further about what I have been doing in Rome, there is plenty of catching up to do.

Last time, I was in Portugal on way to Spain, writing about some things that didn't go quite right. Please don't be sympathetic to our few plights here in Europe, as it is a joy just to be on vacation in a different continent. But of course, it is not all cloud 9 when you are traveling for a month. The bumps in the road have definitely kept the trip exciting.

Barcelona went off without a hitch, once we got tickets out of Spain. You see, the first thing we do when we arrive in another counrty is to book reservations for our next destination. It is one of the many querks of the EuroRail Global Pass. Anyways, we came upon a holiday and were not able to get any reservations to Innsbruck, Austria. Our solution is in more detail later.

There were many great happenings in Barcelona. The hostel where we stayed was the first place that was actually homely. When we arrived we were offered free dinner and a private room for our extra night in the city, which we needed because we hadn't yet aquired a way out of Spain. The paella they served us was deicious especiially when washed down with sangria. I was also amazed in Barcelona by the bohemian atmosphere and the architecture by Gaudi.

So because we couldn't get directly to Austria we thought we would drop in on some of my friends in Basel, Switzerland. On the way, 20 hours of slow trains, we missed a connection and got stuck in this little town in Switzerland. Luckily we picked up a hitch to Geneva where we spent the night. When arriving our driver pointed the fountain in Geneva saying that was all we had to see. So we got to see Geneva!

Finally arriving in Innsbruck, the hut-hopping we were planning on doing wasn't available until tomorrow. Apparently there was too much snow. So instead, we went to this camperland, which is this vamped up comglomeration of camping and a Nantucket vacation resort. We enjoyed the restaurant and the trails that we could take to enjoy the Austrian contryside. As the pictures will show you, it was magnificent.

It is okay that I don't have very long to talk about Rome. It is definitely my least favorite place of the trip. I don't feel safe, welcome, or respected. But seeing the Ancient ruins of the Roman empire was sweet. Anyone who has known me through my childhood knows I love living history. I got to stand on the Circus Maximus where the best chariot races used to be staged. Sneding a postcard from the Vatican City was also an experience. (Check the mail Mom!)

Anyways, Maria and I are getting a little travel weary but are nonetheless safe and happy.

Ciao!

First Frustrations

(16 May 2009)

The first major disappointment of the trip came our way during yesterday's day trip to Tours, France. But as the resiliant individuals we are, we of course made the best of it. Although some of you would tend to agree with Europe on this, I have become frustrated with the time table wih which cities in Europe run business. Merchants don't open until 10a and close between 6-7p. Food is hard to find after 10p. Eerything seems to close just before I am ready for it.

For instance, Maria and I were looking to taste some wines of the Loire Valley during our over night stay in Tours. Restricted by the train schedule, we finally arrived in Tours at 3:30p. It wasn't until about 6p that we found the bus out of town to the vineyards, having also had to find and check into the hostel. Even though signs for tasting indicated opennings until 7p, at 6p we were being told wine tasting was over. But we continued to wander by the chateaus and community vegetable gardens to find a peaceful retreat overlooking the valley. Surrounded by grape vines, it was quiet except the wind for the first time in a while. O knew the days disappointment would not linger and I could be happy not to rush even if we don't get to experience some things we inteded to on this trip.

We didn't miss out on the wine tasting, either! Shops were keen to make good deals for their local wine. Maria and I enjoyed two different wines over a delicious take away meal at the hostel.

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(19 May 2009)

It has happened to us again. The bus to Sagres from Lagos, Portugal left 15 min before we got to the station. It is okay, though. I have finally gotten an opportunity to get to some internet and write to you. At this point in our trip we are on the Algarve Coast of Portugal. The water here is the bluest I have seen this far north in the Atlantic. We are off to Sagres in about an hour now to get to what used to be considered the end of the world. It is now just the southwest corner of Europe. I look forward to spending the next two days just relaxing on the beach. It is about time to slow down and enjoy the opportunity not to have an responsibilities but to myself and my fiance.

Love you all,
Zack

Update in brief.

Hi all,

I have three minutes left on the internet meter in order to catch up on all of the places we have been this last week. In Belgium we ate some waffles and viisited the park adjacennt to a palace. In Paris, we saw the icons andhad a romantic dinner to celebrate our engagement on the good graces of my parents. THANKS! In Tours we drank some wine. more to come soon. bye.

XXX

The three crosses is a symbol to designate the city that persists in the canal system created on the third dam in the river Amster, known commonly as Amsterdam. That factoid comes from a a free walking tour that is the source of most of the historically relevant information I now know about Amsterdam. Most of what you will hear from usbout this wonderfully small city are those stories told to Maria and I about the continued tolerance of Amsterdamers and random anecdotes of wandering about the town that will invariably start, "When I was in Amsterdam..." If you're lucky one of those stories will continue on to describe an experience we had strolling through the red light district or lounging at any one of the myriad of coffee shops in the city. One of the more politically correct activities we I experienced was our visit to Keukenhof. Be assured we took a number of beautiful pictures with the tulips and windmill. They will be put up as soon as I have access to a USB drive. Well, people are waiting to use this free Wi-Fi. I better go. Next we are on to Paris through Belgium. Hopefully we can catch up there. Love lots, ~Z

Heidelberg, Germany

(7 May 2009)

Although it was a challenge to stay awake today through the jet lag, it was great to finally see where Maria spent the majority of her childhood. It was also wonderful to see Julie once again and be welcomed into her home. Highlights from today include getting my instalation access pass into the military base, touring Heidelberg Castle being rebuilt from WWII distruction and housing the largest wine barrel I could ever imagine,

the solar boat tour down the Rhine,

Hauptstrasse shopping,

and my first encounter with doner kebabs and snitzel (pork cutlets with any fixing you could imagine).

I am only in Europe a day and have already been awed by the sites, flavors, and opportunities of small town Europe. What will happen when we reach the big time?

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(8 May 2009)

It is a German / European tradition to relax in the thermal pools. In Baden-Baden, the Caracalla Therme is filled from natural mineral water and then heated to various degrees. Folks go to bath, get rid of the impurities in the saunas and take therapy lessons in the specialty pools. It was certainly relaxing, but also extremely dehydrating. I drank so much apple juice when we got home. Dinner was spent in St. Lucious, where Maria's house was during high school. The Akropolus was delicious. I have never had liver and onions that melted so readily in my mouth. We then went to the Lengends bar on base to participate in line dancing. It was fun, but that new country song "Lord of the Bible Belt" was a bit much for me, a little America to remind the troups of home.

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(9 May 2009)

Today was spent preparing for Maria and my graduation / engagement party. It should be a great time meeting all of the most distinguished families on base while enjoying fajitas, margaritas, and some drinking games Julie has contrived. Tomorrow we celebrate Mother's Day and then catch the 14:15 train to Amsterdam. I have no idea when I will get to a computer again, but in that time I am sure to come up with some more great stories.

Until next time,

Zack

P.S. German beer gets an A!!!

Airport Reflections

(6 May 2009)

Sitting in the airpirt, I am entirely exhausted from my excitement of traveling to Europe. The next month I will experience and learn things I could only previously imagine from afar. I am as excited to be bringing along my finace, even though I may be unprepared for what she has to offer as a travel companion, a guide, and as my soul mate. But I am confident, as I was before traveling in New Zealand, that I will have the opportunity to grow and reflect on my personality, of course with the additional benefit of the same treatment for my relationship with Maria. Follows is a list of destinations we intent to encounter. I hope you can share in my excitement so I can have some energy left to enjoy the journey.

Thanks for tuning in.

Love you all! ~Zack

Heidelberg, Germany
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Paris, France
Tours, France
The Algarve Coast, Portugal
Barcelona, Spain
Innsbruck, Austria
Florence, Italy,
Venice, Italy
Rome, Italy
Budapest, Hungary
(Somewhere), Poland
Berlin, Germany

Euro Trip

ATTENTION: Maria and I have arrived safely in Frankfurt, Germany and are now preparing to get out to see the town of Heidelberg with Maria's mom, Julie. It's starting. Yay!!! Details to follow. ~Zack

College Undergrad:Complete

Wow, so I might have mentioned that I would have a few moments this last semester every so often to tell a story or relay an important revelation of my undergraduate career at the University of Michigan. When I say "I am not sure at all what I want to be doing in the future" that is a complete lie. To sum up the future:

-I leave tomorrow to CT for the holidays (Anticipate some catch up blogging).

-Return to Ann Arbor with my lovely girlfriend Maria.

-"Relax" similar to how it went this summer, which means not at all.

-Gig with my bossa band.

-Officiate intramural sports at Michigan

-Write and publish a manuscript on the research data I helped compile last year.

-Do related experimental procedures.

-See my Grandee & Grandpa this February (and go to Disney World and Islands of Adventure)

-Backpack across Europe.

-Return to CT for July 4th, D.R.A.M. and the Ancient Mariners 50th Anniversary Muster

-In the fall, hopefully get paid to continue my education to acquire a Ph.D. in ecological theory and related scientific research.

-Through my research spend summers in beautiful places, etc.

I think I have said enough for now. I am so excited...I am getting winded having not gone blogging in so long.

Here is a preview of some of the exciting things I will tell you about from this fall. The embedded video is the Michigan Marching Band's halftime show, aired on NBC. I get great airtime during the Backstreet Boys number. And just after during 98Degrees they show a shot of my hands. That cross at the end is a visual. The drumline held them above our heads and were the puppeteers of the band while they posed as manikins. Sweet!

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NZ Video I

Since I have been back in the states, my life has certainly returned to the hectic and rushed nature of this country. I have had no lack of activity since being home. I work 40hrs a week in a theoretical botany lab at the University of Michigan, while taking a poetry class to fulfill humanities credits to graduate in December, and have spent the weekends playing drums, attending the Michigan Energy Fair in Onekama, parading and camping in Connecticut. I feel a bit flustered not having quite readjusted to the speed of all this activity, but I can remember how I once did it, and am slowly reigning in on sanity.

This is the first video in the promised series from New Zealand. Just before we arrived in Kaikoura, we pulled over on the side of the road to observe this flurry of natural activity that is a seal colony. Enjoy!

[Hint: Pause is a very good tool to get a chance look at something you think is exceptionally picturesque, although the quality of the video is far from exceptional.]

Fran's First (and Probably Last) One...

Along with Zachary's request for me to insert a few photos from my side of the trip, I thought I could also give some of my input.  I feel like I've already told these stories a hundred times, but now putting them in writing will make it official and allow any to enjoy.  Throughout the 24 hour trip over to New Zealand, I had many thoughts running through my head.  As Zack mentioned, one of them was literally praying Zack would listen to my request and make it to the airport on time, along with a few other worries that friends and family put into my head (what was I going to eat, where would I stay, would I be provided with bathing facilities...)  However, I tried to push these anxieties to the back of my head and focus more on the adventure.  According to Zack my will to attempt new things and be spontaneous and willing may not have shown as much as I think it did.  There are many things that I did in New Zealand on vacation that I would never even imagine doing in my everyday life.  For those of you who know me well, not planning the trip step-by-step and not knowing where my next destination was, is a big leap out of my comfort zone.  But knowing my brother, and trusting him to care for me and keep me safe, I completed the unnatural for Fran's normal life.  To start our trip, we promptly went bungee jumping without hesitation 5 hours after arriving in a new country.  What a great way to see the amazing sights...from above.From here you can see the whole gondola that brought us up the mountain to bungee and the green cover in the trees is "The Ledge" we jumped 47 m from!  From what I recall, I don't remember feeling that nervous about our first hitch hike.  I was more curious about how the process actually worked and how open the locals from New Zealand, the Kiwis, were to strangers feeling they could be part of this certain transportation method.  Luckily, this first journey brought us to the cutest town of Wanaka.  Zachary and I watched the sunset form atop a hill and then proceeded to the quaint movie theater. 

 

The first "city-type" area we went to was Christchurch.  Not at all what I expected to see in New Zealand.  Most places are quite rural and full of friendly people.  But the few busier places we went to felt out of place, like we weren't in NZ anymore.  Like Zachary said, he was not in the mood to go out and hang at all that evening, so instead I went out with a girl from the Kiwi Experience Bus who I met in our hostel.  She introduced to many of her friends and helped me learn the proper ways to order drinks from a bar.  She got a hoot out of the fact that although she was a year younger than me, she could drink at home (Scotland) legally and I sadly, could not.  Our next stop was Kaikoura, which for many reasons became both our favorite parts of the trip.  We did fun, and somewhat cheap stuff during the day, saw the greatest views, and had a grand time at night with other travelers and many village natives.  I too found my favorite beer at the Strawberry Tree Beer Garden..it is called Mac's Sweet Red Cider (mmm mmm good!).  I had a ball meeting so many different people with different backgrounds the night of Zachary's jam session.  Well, to start from the beginning the whole day was one to remember.  Starting with the night before at quiz night, then the sunrise in the morning, then our meeting with Tai to learn of the culture, our tour and tasting through the winery making us feel mature and learn many interesting facts about the process of making wine, the cave tour, and finally our night of festivity at the bar.

You know those vibes you get from people and situations that make you feel uncomfortable and know something is just wrong.  (Mr. Spiritual should understand this...)  While waiting for a ride to pick us up from Kaikoura, I got that vibe.  I just knew it wasn't going to work.  So I got anxious, so Zachary got frustrated and there began our main tiff of the vacation (but what kind of siblings don't argue and have their differences).  Finally, Zachary gave in to his sister's will and we went and hired the bus and then ferry all the way to Wellington.  Oddly, uneventful for a Friday night.  Surprisingly, and opposing to our culture, Kiwi's tend to work hard and party hard all week, and then completely isolate themselves from the world on the weekend.  It is truly 2 days of rest and time for family together at home.  For a bit Zachary and I occupied ourselves with games (my favorite!) at the hostel's bar.

Rotorua was also a lot of fun.  Probably number 2 after Kaikoura...giving us a great mix as a touristy fun spot with a dab of culture and education.  White water rafting was a blast!  And, under the circumstances I was put in, I am not humiliated or horrified with the fact I was the only person out of about 14 to fall off the raft.  The rear steerer misjudged the fall and had us go down with the starboard side (where I was located) too close to the edge, Zack and I were able to laugh more than ever while Zorbing, and then also learn a ton at the Tamaki Buffet dinner and show.

The final leg of our trip returned us to Zachary's EcoQuest campus to see some people once again and pick up the remains of his possessions.  One night we spent at the Miranda Hot Springs Campground where we were able to swim in a naturally heated pool by the springs even though it was their autumn.  We also got the biggest bag of chips (french fries) for dinner, for wicked cheap.  The next night Zachary's chef/friend from EcoQuest was nice enough to put us up.  And I apologize publicly for not liking fish...my reason for choosing chicken figers, which by the way were superb.  We then headed into Auckland for the last 2 nights before coming back home.  We found a few things to do in town before our final excursion of heading to Tiritiri Matangi, the bird sanctuary.  It was a very beautiful place and I learned a lot about what Zachary is interested in.  It was a fabulous way to end our time together.  

This trip was definitely an experience of a lifetime.  I am so glad that I took this opportunity, because I am sure it will not come up again anytime soon.  After meeting all the other travelers on my journey, it makes me want to tour the world, including our own country, more.  I am already beginning to plan a few more trips abroad throughout my young life.  I want to be sure to do all I can before it is too late.  I feel there is no better time to travel than when I am young, jobless, and already in debt!

Thank you Zachary for allowing me to join you at the end of your travels.  I truly appreciate all you showed me and allowed me to explore.  My only hope is that I can return the favor in  a similar fashion and open your eyes to some of my likes and desires.