Dovidenia

It has been 4 years since we returned from Bratislava. I had some time today (May 30th of 2016) and thought I would go ahead and complete this blog. It was short two blog posts: one of our visit to Barcelona and a final post to wrap it all up. I had already started this in draft 4 years ago. I took what was already there and finished it up. It is hard to believe it has been 4 years since we got back to the US. We really miss our time there. We would happily pack our bags and go abroad again, even now that we have a child. We would love for him to experience living and traveling internationally.

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I sit in a half empty flat (with only the furniture that was here when we arrived two years ago) waiting for the car service to pick us up and take us for the all too familiar ride into Vienna. To me, the flat is empty. Besides the few kitchen and other household items that we're leaving, there is no real mark that we were ever here. There are two years of memories and a king size mattress pad that says "Jenn and Joey were here". To our landlords, they probably have a more positive view. There is hope that the flat will be filled with new tenants who will bring new energy and make new memories here.

As we depart Bratislava and head back to the US, I've been thinking a lot about my world view. I don't think I'm a negative person, but I'm definitely not overly or proactively positive. I'm pessimistic, generally looking at why things won't work rather than how they will. I want to attribute part of that to my job as an auditor because I'm paid to look at things and identify risks, weaknesses, and failures, but in a conversation last week, my boss reminded me not too subtlely that maybe this is my personality more than it is the job. I know he's right.

We've had an amazing two years. We've gotten to do things that most people don't get to do in the lifetime. We've hiked the Great Wall of China, stood in awe of Da Vinci's the Last Supper, strolled past the Roman Coliseum and Forum, skied in the Austrian Alps, ate our way through Provence, walked on the D-Day beaches in Normandy, hung around in Red Square, I went to a British Open at St Andrews (the home of golf), and we were in the grounds at Wimbledon. None of these moments or experiences did we take for granted. We know we are lucky, and I would like to think we took advantage of that luck. It's a lot like taking advantage of a good run in blackjack. You try not to think about why the cards are coming your way and just get as much money on the table as possible to capitalize.

We had a great going away party at a restaurant overlooking the Danube the other night. It was very cool to look around and see all the new faces and personalities that are now a part of our lives. We made a lot of new friends, learned a lot about ourselves individually and as a couple, and expanded our world view. We leave Slovakia as better people.

Given all of this, I don't know if I'll turn into a more optimistic person, but I hope to do a better job of at least acknowledging the positive outcomes and aspects of a situation. There is always going to be a downside risk or possibility, but there is upside too.

So, we leave behind the furnished apartment on Gorkeho exactly as we found it when we arrived, as if untouched for two years. Besides a few minor things we picked up along the way, we really are only going back with what we brought. This chapter closes and another begins as we make our way back to Austin.

We will continue to seek out opportunities for new and different experiences and take advantage when we can. We will travel and expose ourselves to new things.

We will live life to the absolute fullest and leave no room for regret.

Volver

It took us two years, but with one last weekend before we were to move back to the US, we took a return trip to Barcelona. It has been almost seven years since we lived in Barcelona for four wonderful months during my last semester of business school. There was a lot familiar as we walked the streets of the city we used to know very well, but it still took us a day or so to get comfortable again and know our way around.

We were bothered by rain for only a short amount of time and had beautiful weather the rest of the weekend. We focused our time on doing what we love best when returning to a city we've been to, which is just walking around, eating good food, and taking it easy. In other words, we've already done all the touristy stuff, so we didn't waste our time.

WIA: We wanted to go to the much talked about Tickets from Ferran Adria of the world famous El Bulli, but we ended up at Ciudad Condal because it was the only place we could find that was still open at around midnight when we sat down to eat. We'd eaten there before when we lived in Barcelona. It's a bit touristy, but there is a large selection of tapas and everything tastes really good. We had huevos estrellados, which is basically a fried egg over french fries, with some bacon thrown in for good measure. It's a fantastic late night dish. We also had patatas bravas and a crema catalana for dessert.

For lunch the next day, we ate at Bo de B, a small, but extremely popular sandwich shop. Jenn had chicken, I had steak. Both were very good, but to be honest, I wasn't blown away. It's definitely good if you're looking for a sandwich when in Barcelona, but there are other things I would rather eat if given the choice. My vote...overrated.

We pulled up to the swanky Hotel Arts for dinner at Arola. As we walked in, we realized after seeing Russell Westbrook waiting for a taxi that the US Olympic basketball team was in town and staying at the hotel. We heard from others that we just missed seeing Lebron and Kobe. We waited around later to see if we could see anyone else from the team, but there was no one around. At dinner, the ambiance of the restaurant was a little strange. It was definitely nice, but we expected more of a trendy crowd. It was more of a touristy family crowd. Either way, the food was good. The make your own bread with tomato was a nice starter. We then had their version of a fancy huevos estrellados. We had a few more small plates and something called a Barceloneta Bomb. The citrus dessert with a nice sweet plate with macaron was a nice way to end it.

We walked up and down the beach several times trying to find Xiringuito Escriba, which was well worth the frustration. It wasn't just that the paella was outstanding (and I mean outstanding), but it was a perfect setting right on the beach.

WIS: We used Starwood points and free suite upgrades to stay at Le Meridien nicely located on La Rambla, right in the middle of the action. The hotel was pretty nice, but being walking distance from everything was great. We stayed in a room facing La Rambla and it was much quieter than I expected. 

WID: We walked a lot through the various neighborhoods and along the beach. Besides eating, we really didn't "do" anything. We did spend some time at La Boqueria which is still going strong as the best market in Europe. We walked over to Sagrada Familia, which holds a special place in my heart, but the line was way too long to go inside. It looked the construction had made some progress, but I'm not sure it will ever actually be completed.

WAM: We stopped in for hard candy at Papabubble. It was right around the corner from Bo de B. We went in while we waited. Barcelona's winding streets didn't come back to me right away, but once we strolled around a bit, it all seemed familiar again. 

WTF: We very rarely go out when we travel, but since we were in Barcelona and our Europe adventure was just a few days from coming to an end, we figured, why not? After dinner Saturday night, we walked down to the complete other end of the beach where the W towers over the beach and ocean. We took the elevator up to the bar, which is on the top floor. It was crowded, hot, and loud, which are all characteristics that many people would find quite appealing in a night club. I am not one of those people. I tried to be a good sport (not one of my strengths) since Jenn was enjoying herself. It was a pretty international group up there, which was kind of cool. The views were also amazing looking out on the beach and the city. After a while, Jenn sensed and succumbed to my misery and we left to head back to the hotel.