Anyone that saw me hobbling around today probably would have thought I was injured. I wasn’t, but the cobblestones and my feet I think were having a serious argument. I wear a lot of barefoot sandals and sneakers. These have proven to be my favorite walking shoes all over the world. Apparently I should not have been wearing them so much on cobblestones. Yesterday’s marathon walk was followed by a rainy walk this morning, and the rain shoes I brought with me have a similar thickness (or lack thereof in the sole). I was trying not to wear any shoes I couldn’t easily dry since I knew I needed to pack. Thankfully, the rain stopped and I was able to change my shoes to something with a thicker sole.

I’m anxious to get home – I’ve been gone for a little over 3 weeks and stuff piles up that needs to be dealt with once I get back. I am sad to be leaving here though. We’ve been based in Vilnius and Kaunas, Lithuania, and Warsaw, Krakow, and Gdansk, Poland. Except for Gdansk, I’ve visited the other cities several times, and spend enough time just walking around each of them to feel comfortable there. Three days into Gdansk and I’m just getting a feel for how to get around. I need another couple of weeks here!

I spent a couple of hours early this morning during the worst of the downpour working – catching up on emails, getting into some proofreading. By the time the rain had tapered off I was ready to get outside, after all, it’s my last day here.

The Motława river runs through Gdansk and there are many bridges crossing it, For several hours I wandered from one side to the other.

The mixture of centuries-old buildings and new construction is wonderfully integrated. Occasionally in this packed tourist destination I could pick out a word or two from the conversations surrounding me. I’m sure though that whatever I thought I heard, did not mean what I thought it did – I don’t know any of these languages. There are words that sound like other words and the best I can say is that I didn’t try to converse with anyone!

In addition to conversations, there are hawkers trying to bring customers into their restaurants, musicians playing guitars, accordions, trumpets, and more on the streets, canned music playing from restaurants, laughing children, yapping dogs – a cacophony of the sounds of people enjoying themselves.

The alleys here aren’t really alleys – they are thick medieval walls from the old city walls that allow passage into (and out of) the city

So much here that needs, demands, to be investigated. I guess the only thing to do is to return. Someday.

Oh, all these photos while I’ve been on this journey? About 1100 of them. I’ve only shared a few! Some of them will form the outline of presentations I’ll be designing over the next few months for upcoming programs.

Back to the U.S. tomorrow. Heading for home long enough to deal with laundry, unpacking, and repacking, and then off to NY on Monday to take care of family stuff. After seeing the Motława and the Baltic, I decided that before I head back to the desert, I need a bit more ocean sights, sounds, and smells, so I’ll be staying at a hotel on the beach!

Onward to the next adventure.