For purposes of symmetry, after a cross-country trip along latitudinal lines and a jaunt down the West Coast Amtrak-style, I needed to balance out my movements with some north-south train travel on the East Coast as well. I ventured down to Baltimore and Washington D.C. to kick off August in capital fashion, visiting with friends and family (and the free Smithsonian museums filled with awesome knowledge), and quadrupling my collection of silly bands! And then for good measure, I flew across the Atlantic to the Italian countryside with my family -- throwing my symmetrical plans all asunder. But the pasta was good.
Trips to such historic places as Pompeii, Roma, and the ever-dramatic isle of Capri left me feeling inspired by great figures of literature, and I decided to embark on an odyssey to Ithaca, in homage to Homer. But I chose the city in New York, not in the Mediterranean to drop in on once I returned to the States. And so, with trips to several states & multiple continents under my belt by the last day of the eighth month, I considered my summer travels to be a success.
This summer, I traveled. And I learned. These two great ways to love often transpire for me into appreciation of my two greatest loves, Science and Art. As I continue in my ever-elusive quest to unite my disparate passions, I certainly have traveled and learned a lot on the way. But most of all, I have loved every minute.
