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.]