See you later Europe.

I leave for India tomorrow.
My time in Europe has been fast, mind opening and wonderful. I have visited probably 20 cities over the past week and have witnessed some amazing things in a mere 7 days. Martin, my German host, gets the award for best tour guide ever, as he took me by to France, the Netherlands and any and everywhere of interest in between. Today he took me to the ruins of a bridge in Remargen. This particular bridge is interesting because it represented the last bridge the Allied forces needed to take in World War II to cross the Rhine River. Tragically, it was destroyed after a few days of bombardment and nearly 30 American soldiers died as the bridge crumbled. On top of the bridge sits a German and an American flag, a symbol of peace and prosperity in the decades to follow.
I am overwhelmingly grateful for this opportunity to visit so many wonderful places. I have never heard the echo of a cathedral built in the 1200s, never seen a typical European street and never eat my weight in the Turkish imported (and thriving!) Donar Kebab business (speaking of Turkish....i just sat through an hour of Turkish German conversation about Gangsters in Hollywood....yup...).

For my third novel, of which I am in the process of brainstorming, the research I did in Europe will be invaluable. From the color of the train seats to the American restaurant in France called Flunch…it would have taken me quite a bit of research to put together what I learned and experienced in a week. I was really looking for small details, like license plates, and found more material than I could possibly imagine.

So now…or rather at 7am on Thursday morning, I am off to India! There I will finish my second novel, Honey Dripping from the Barrel of a Gun, continue to learn Tibetan and teach English to Tibetan refugees. On April 20th, my wonderfully gifted girlfriend Kaiting will join me in India—which I am pumped about. From there we will visit Amritsar and both do volunteer work in McLeod Ganj. It’s funny to think that I arrived in India around the same time last year as this year (last year april 7th this year april 1st). I worked quite hard for this trip and am excited to see what it brings this time!

Finally, I will have hard copies of Armageddon Skills available soon! Yipppeee!