Spring has SPRUNG

So we've dove headfirst into springtime, although you wouldn't be able to tell by stepping outside...we're currently in the midst of a surprising cold spell at the end of the global warming-style winter. However, in honor of the change of season, I offer you a few unrelated items, i.e. "what's been on Curtis' mind" this week...

AT THE RISK OF SOUNDING UTTERLY BOASTFUL: Packed Magazine arrived last Friday, featuring my Czech travel piece. The second Post article will appear in the issue out April 7, if all goes according to plan.

SCORED A SECOND DATE WITH: Budapest, Hungary! That's right, Molly & Co. found a fantastic train fare deal for Easter weekend. Since we'll be a group of 7 people in total, Eurocity Railways gave us a great discount. European travel can definitely be affordable when you do the legwork. I wouldn't ordinarily choose to return to a city so soon after an initial visit, but seeing as how we've discovered a whole list of things we missed the first time around (as well as things I wouldn't mind seeing again), I figured it was a no-brainer. Thermal baths, Fisherman's Bastion and Tokaj...oh my! Top of our itinerary this time around is the Hungarian Wine Museum, where one can sample 55 different local wines for a whopping 10 bucks. Turns out Easter eggs aren't the only things that'll be turning red that day...

SCORED A FIRST DATE WITH: Copenhagen, Denmark! For those who don't know, I have a good pal who'll be taking a graduate course there over the summer. After much hemming and hawing, I bit the bullet and planned a long weekend there for August 17 through 22. I've decided to set aside a certain amount of koruna each much, in anticipation of the "pillaging and plundering" that is the Scandanavian currency exchange rate (guess some of those Viking traditions have stood the test of time). But how could I pass up the opportunity to visit a world-class friend in a world-class place, as well as resist a city that has the Little Mermaid as their official mascot? (Of course, Lonely Planet lists the mermaid statue as "the most overrated tourist attraction in Europe." Granted, I doubt most Lonely Planet writers have "Part of Your World" and "Under the Sea" on their iPods, and I doubt that they've cited various points in the Hans Christian Andersen tale as extended metaphors for events in their own lives now, have they?)

VISITORS A GO-GO: Jenn arrives in mid-April, followed by Lisa in early May. Woohoo!

CURRENTLY WORSHIPPING AT THE ALTAR OF: Chuck Palahniuk (that is, when John Irving, Margaret Atwood and David Sedaris are out of town). Just finished Invisible Monsters, my second Palahniuk novel this year, which was full of sick, despicable characters and one helluva twisted ending. That is to say: brilliant, just brilliant!

SPEAKING OF SEDARISES: Strangers With Candy finally opened in Prague as part of the Febio Film Festival, starring Amy alongside SJP and Matthew Broderick. Sigh...why can't the Sedaris family just adopt me??

BABY, I CAN'T STOP: boogie-woogie-ing to the new Nelly Furtado and Justin Timberlake CDs. I tried to resist, I swear to God I did! Don't hate me, please!

Sham-a-zon

There are some times when living overseas gives you hassles that you seem unable to resolve. Case in point: my credit card balance is actually in decent standing at the moment (notice that I didn't say "good standing." I said "decent standing") so I thought I'd treat myself to some books...as many titles are often difficult to locate in the shops here, I figured I'd order a few from Amazon. I chose my titles, filled out the billing and mailing information, planned to pay an arm and a leg for shipping and handling. I figured that would be that.

What followed was a week-long series of e-mails, faxes and phone calls between me and a barrage of different Amazon customer service representatives, all of whom failed on their promise to "expedite the issue." Apparently, they can't ship to a foreign address without proof of address. OK, fine. Certainly it didn't help matters that my billing address is currently listed as my mom's place in Connecticut.

So, in order to complete my order, they needed a copy of my driver's license, a copy of my credit card (front AND back), a copy of my passport, a copy of my credit card billing statement (an online version would not suffice) and a legally notarized letter of consent. Mind you, it took about $40.00 worth of telephone calls with customer service reps just to get this across. They couldn't accept e-mail; it need to be FAXED. This required tracking down a fax machine somewhere in this city, which was easier said than done. Don't get me wrong, we're not living in the dark ages - my school, in fact, has one but I couldn't justify asking my boss to use it to order books for "pleasure reading."

Normally I wouldn't go through all of this trouble and would've cancelled the order. But eventually I got to the point where I just wanted my damn books already! Sheesh! This'll be the last time I order anything for a while, that's for sure!

My love affair with Europe

So, after several failed attempts at travel in the past few months, I was finally able..to the hit the road again this past weekend! Throughout the trip, I recalled the fifth season episode of "Sex and the City" when Carrie announces that she's giving up relationships with men in order to "date the city."

I wondered, if..it's possible to date a single city, is it also then feasible to be dating an entire continent? After pondering the metaphor, I decided that European travel is a bit like having a series of relationships with a variety of different men, each special, stylish and unique in their own way.

Of course, Prague..must be mentioned first. You could say Prague is like that all-out decent guy you've decided to be in a long-term relationship with. He's charming, sweet and cute. You're aware of his flaws, and you've decided you can probably live with them if he's willing to work on them (building a decent English language bookshop might be a good start -- ha ha). You've introduced him to your friends, and your mother; he gets along well with both. Your love life is absolutely adequate, if getting a tad monotonous; maybe you're secretly hoping he'll find some ways to spice things up a bit. However, after almost 2 years, you're starting to ask questions. Where is this all going? Does he love me for me, or is he just in it for the nookie? Is he in this for the long run, or is it just a way to pass the time? OK, so you're living together...eventually you're going to want some sort of an extended commitment...the equivalent of a metaphorical engagement ring, perhaps.

Which brings me, of course, to Amsterdam. Amsterdam is like that..incredible guy you've spent..one glorious weekend by the beach with. You had a great personal connection from the onset; you really "get" one another...you stay up until 4 a.m. talking about your intimate secrets. He's amazingly smart, talented and gorgeous; he knows how to dress, treats you how you want to be treated and he even drives a great car (or canal boat, as it were). You hate to use the word "soul mate" at the risk of sounding like a needy housewife, but if forced to choose, you'd name him. However, there are obstacles. Maybe it's simply the distance factor. Maybe he's used to dating high-profile attorneys and guys with country club memberships, in comparison, you might seem a little junior. Regardless, you cling to the hope that you'll find some way to work it out so you can be together in the future.

Of course we can't forget Paris. Paris is a bit like the David Beckham of cities -- he's waaaaaaay out of your league; he's arrogant, a bit of a pretty, high-maintainence boy who spends hours shopping at Versace, primping his hair and plucking his eyebrows. However, he'll still let you go with him and the memory of that rendez-vous gives you *ahem* pleasant dreams at night. You're kind of amazed someone that drop-down-dead gorgeous would go for you.

You'll always cherish the memory of Munich, your very first boyhood love. There's Berlin, who's trendy, stylish and modern, but he's got a lot of baggage. There were also those dalliances with Vienna, who's a bit like a rich older man looking for that consummate boy toy, and Sighi-Soara in Romania, who's sort of a low-status, unconventional guy who turns out to actually be not that bad after all.

Which brings me, of course, to Budapest, my most recent destination. I'd admired him from afar for quite some time, like a high school crush on the star soccer player. I'd heard mixed reviews from previous partners -- some told me he was decent, others told me he was a bit of a bore and others warned me not to..put my relationship with Prague on the line, as Budapest wasn't that much different. Regardless, I was undeterred in my quest for a first date. Our..experience was brief and maybe just a tad superficial, a bit like mingling at a co-worker's cocktail party or something. Still, I've decided he's really sophisticated and cool. He's got me really intrigued, and I want to know more...

On the road again!

So, after several failed attempts at travel in the past few months, I'm about to the hit the road again this coming weekend! The destination is Budapest, Hungary...a.k.a. "Paris of the East."

I must say I'm VERY excited about this trip and have been meaning to do it since I arrived. The main reason for the delay: it's one of the more popular weekend trips if you're already in Prague, so most everyone (and their brother) had already been.

The next item of debate: to Copenhagen...or not to Copenhagen? I'll have a good friend who'll be taking a graduate course in furniture design in the Denmark capital over the summertime. Certainly this could be a rare opportunity to visit a world-class friend in a world-class city...yet the first response I get from everyone is, "Watch out for Scandanavia, it's freakin' EXPENSIVE." As is the case in Switzerland and the UK, it turns out most Scandanavian countries are not even on the Euro, as their currency is so strong. (Of course in the U.K. it's said that it's more a matter of national pride - although the pound IS stronger than the Euro). So that means those hard-earned Czech crowns will go for even less...

Given my family history, I think I'm left with an intense money complex that's rare among my peers. That's not to pride myself, either. I worry about money all the time. Sometimes I wish I could spend money less conservatively!

Of course, being so far landlocked, I do long for a few ocean breezes once in a while, and Copenhagen could certainly provide that. Can Curtis really turn down the possibility of visiting the home of Tivoli Gardens, cited as the "world's first theme park," and said to have inspired Walt Disney? And the city where Hans Christian Anderson's "little mermaid" is a national symbol? Only time will tell...