a mini viennese reunion

last week, one of my "old" friends, corrinne, from vienna was in town for the weekend after spending a week doing relief work in haiti. while using ft lauderdale as her main transportation hub, the greyhound as the carrier, and the chance to reunite with someone who lives at the extreme opposite side of the continental 48 as the motive, a mini viennese rendezvous was able to take place. this was not only a great way to touch base with the happenings of the past year, but also a way to reminisce in a way that only a fellow traveler can understand. we talked about the trip itself, how we have changed and adapted to situations, ways we handle inconveniences better than we ever though possible, and how our approach to travel, life, and money has changed.

it also gave me an opportunity to visit some areas near my newly adopted home that i have yet to explore. on friday, we headed to sanibel and captiva islands which are about a 30 minute drive from my apartment to the end of sanibel-captive road. not only were there some great places to eat, rc otters and the bubble room, clean beaches, easy drives, and a wonderful sunset, the people were also friendly and talkative as one can hope for in a small "village."

saturday proved to be just the same with a trip to naples, the beach, and a walk up and down 5th ave during their annual art fair. we spent some time talking to the merchants and after a bit, we realized a common theme in our interest...they all revolved around travel, places we have been, and the conversations that evolve from story swapping. it was nice seeing corrinne again after a year. we would have been preparing for our last weekend as a group in vienna one year ago this weekend, corrinne and hannah's mothers were in town, trips were being planned, good-bye and hugs were had, but i realized one thing, no matter how much time passes, no matter how many easters pass from the one spent in paris in '09, and no matter how many trips take place between the study abroad semester and now, we will all have the same common thread sewn throughout our memory and uniting us forever.