Off to Ride the Camels!

One very short week later, I'm back at Logan Airport, waiting for my flight to Frankfurt. I will spend a glorious 30 hours in Heidelberg (minus travel time) before heading to the Kingdom. It has been three years since I was last in Europe, so I'm looking forward to it immensely, especially the staying in a nice hotel part. Most of my European experiences as an adult have consisted of hostels and campgrounds, so this will be a nice change.

I suck at packing and at saying goodbye. There has been a lot of both in the last week. And I have to pack one more time before getting to my destination (not counting the move within the compound from my temporary to permanent quarters). So I'm not going to dwell on this aspect of the last week.

My youngest nephew, who is three and a half, doesn't quite understand why I'm always coming home and then leaving again. This time he finally ordered me to "just move back into my house and stay there!" I explained that I have to move far, far away for work but that he can come and visit me and see the camels. Well that part stuck in his head. For the last several days he keeps telling his grandparents and his father and anyone else who will listen that he's going to go visit Aunt Sadie and ride the camels. His grandmother encourages him; his father not so much. Yesterday, though, as I was saying a last tearful goodbye to him and telling him I'd keep the camels company until he visited, I realized how much he'd been thinking about this. He was quiet for a few minutes (an unusual thing), and then I heard him ask his father how he was going to get up onto the camel to ride it. This was the biggest obstacle he could think of with regard to visiting me far, far away. We of course all burst out laughing. So in a sad moment came laughter, as it always does.

And with that, I'm off. Let the adventures begin!