I feel like everything inside of me is going topsy-turvy. False illusions are crumbling – some quickly, others decaying rather steadily, but slowly. And that’s a good thing, because my desires and dreams are coming to fill the voids that these crumbling illusions leave behind… and my desires and dreams are becoming more of my reality everyday. I’m learning that so many “truths” that have been impressed upon me might not even resemble the real truth. Each day, I learn more and more about what I DON’T know… and that comforts me. I’m also discovering/learning new things… and that’s exciting. Passages from several books I’ve been reading have been aimlessly drifting around inside of my head, ever-present, but unsure of themselves. They have certainly been affecting how I interpret what I’ve been experiencing during this last part of my journey. I’d like to share them. But first, a little about my adventures since my return to Austria!My first few days in Graz were spent relaxing, catching up on various to-dos, sleeping off jet lag… and, gasp, securing a flight back to the U.S. The date is set. I fly into KCMO from Frankfurt, Germany on April 7th. I’m not going to lie. When I booked the flight, I started to panic a little bit. That was it. I had booked the flight back to reality. The flight that would tear me away from my dream life as a nomad and plunge me back into well, what we refer to as “the real world.” Three things saved me from succumbing to full-blown anxiety: 1) I booked a roundtrip ticket. I am scheduled to fly back to Europe, via Frankfurt on October 16th. Yay!!! 2) Of course, I am excited about seeing all my sorely-missed family and friends, enjoying the good ol- times with them once again! 3) I had two weeks to fully adjust to the idea of returning home, meaning I had time to fit in some last minute travels and adventure. Again, yay!!!
The last-minute hoorahs began the next evening when I went out salsa dancing with Claudia and her friend Mua. Then, the next thing I knew, it was Easter. I enjoyed a laid-back Easter celebration, helping Claudia hide eggs and other treats for her daughter Lisa, sharing in Lisa’s joy of the holiday and tasting traditional Austrian dishes in an Easter feast at Claudia’s friend’s house. The main Austrian Easter dish is a platter of various meats topped with slices of hard-boiled egg. You usually pair these with a slice of bread (and European bread is never the poor excuse for bread in the States mind you… sorry but it’s the truth), cheese and perhaps some mustard. I also enjoyed my first bowl of zucchini soup and devoured some delicious asparagus dish.
The next day, I met Reini, an active couchsurfer living in Graz and studying engineering at the university. I quickly found out that Reini is the king of hospitality for couchsurfers and foreign exchange students alike in Graz. I met Reini at his apartment and then we set off to explore the city in local student fashion on a couple of old, rickety European bicycles. There was a biting chill to the air, but I loved it! If I were studying here, this would be a part of the student experience. We cycled to the city center and decided to visit the Schlossberg clock tower, which Claudia had introduced me to before back in December. The scenic look-out point was a lot less crowded than it was during the Christmas holiday season and offered a nice relaxing atmosphere where Reini and I could chat and easily get to know each other a bit better. 
Reini and I had spent… maybe… a half an hour together before we started making plans for more adventure when I returned in October. We plan to go trekking, camping and rock climbing in the Austrian Alps near the town where he grew up. We will go visit the islands of Italy, Sicily and Sardegna (since Italy is so close!). We will organize Sunday dinners every week for interested couchsurfers and foreign exchange students. We have a lot to do when I get back!In the meantime, Reini and I strolled along the River Mur and spotted a kayaker battling the frigid rapids just under
one of the main bridges in the city. We also enjoyed a bit of urban bouldering. This is ingenious! A portion of wall formed by the roadway running alongside the river is covered in bouldering pegs. Reini explained the pegs were attached to the wall during the same time Graz built the eclectic Art House and Moor Isel (Island) during it’s celebration as the cultural center for Europe in 2003. I think the bouldering pegs are a great way to add culture and function to a typical highway wall. I think every city should do this… especially the city where I went to college. There’s a decent rock climbing community in COMO that would appreciate a few extra places to boulder for free!
That evening, a handful of couchsurfers, students and foreign exchange students met us at Reini’s apartment for an impromptu dinner. Reini and a couple others were planning on exploring a bit of Eastern Europe for the remainder of their Easter holiday and were leaving the next day. Reini used that as an excuse to invite everyone over and use the remainder of his food to prepare a creative feast. We dined on Czech-made Weiner schnitzel and mashed potatoes and one of the most inventive and delicious salad’s I’ve ever tasted. The salad consisted of a mixture of whatever salad ingredients Reini had on hand: sliced tomatoes, 
sliced grapes, chopped spring onion, cubed pineapple, corn, and chopped walnuts all coated in olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette, a pinch of salt and pepper and spoonfuls of cinnamon. The salad was a success and none of us could get enough of the imaginative concoction. After dinner, we all stayed there huddled around Reini’s kitchen table laughing, sharing stories and enjoying each other’s company.The next day I met Reini and the two others leaving for Eastern Europe in the evening. I had already planned a trip to Vienna and that happened to be the first leg of their trip, so we decided to travel that leg by train together. In Vienna, I left Reini and the others to go meet yet another delightfully interesting and entertaining batch of csers.... !
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