Well, I’m back on the road! I’m in Charlottesville for the Virginia Film Festival. I did this trip last year, but I hadn’t thought seriously about doing it again. I’m still organizing my apartment, so nesting time is at a premium… but I looked at the festival schedule and they’re screening Amadeus! 😭

This is all I needed to book an Airbnb and nine other movies! I’ve already seen one of them (Steve McQueen’s BLITZ) and I’ve already skipped one of them (Pedro Almodovor’s Talk to Her). I skipped the second one because I was way too tired after a 100 mile drive on not-enough sleep.

Thankfully I’m well-rested today and ready for Amadeus, a documentary about Luther Vandross, and some harrowing Danish movie about a pregnant woman under duress (there’s a serial killer involved?). I’ll let myself be surprised.

I’m in London! I arrived on the 23rd, and I got sick on the 24th. I think it is just a small cold? Regardless, I threw a pity party for myself on Wednesday and Thursday. Whining with a little perspective can be very healing 😂.

Thankfully my symptoms have eased, and I’ve made my way around to see some famous England things. Including…

It’s hard to believe that I’ll be flying home in a few days? Trains and airports and power adapters and packing and unpacking and walking have been my life this entire month! I’m so grateful for the adventure, and I’m soooo ready to see my cats again :).

I’ve been in Norway for a week! I took time off work for this leg of the trip, so I’m doing my best to live in the moment (i.e. I keep forgetting to update the blog 😅).

Construction woke us up at 6:30 AM both mornings in Oslo, so we were a little sleep deprived once we reached Bergen. We’ve spent the past few days relaxing (spa, sauna, lazy afternoons reading, etc.), but today we took a bus to the fjords of Flåm. We then climbed 570 steps for this spectacular view!

One more day in Norway before heading to London! I am feeling wistful for home and enjoying my travels all at the same time. It’s a potent mix! 😊

Wow, the last four days in Berlin really flew by! I felt settled in our Airbnb, and I started to imagine a life there. A big part of that imaginary life was sober partying. I did some of that!

I used to lubricate social anxiety with alcohol. I don’t think that is “bad” per se, but when it tipped over into a solo binge drinking habit I decided to quit. Now I face the social anxiety head on. That isn’t particularly easy, but I’ve learned the discomfort is usually temporary. Also, I can leave whenever I want! Especially if that time is 3:30 AM. 🕺🏻

I got some of my film from the first week in Berlin developed. I’ve been very diligent at approximating the correct aperture & shutter speed depending on the light. I was nervous to try nighttime photography, but the Internet came through with some excellent recommendations. Look at these!

We’re on a plane to Finland now! It was cheaper to fly from Berlin to Helsinki and spend the afternoon there. I’m not sure what we’ll do? Walk around, eat, and shop? Nothing too strenuous – we were awake at 5:45 AM. Oslo tonight then a train to Bergen on Tuesday!

I am still endlessly delighted that I’m here for the Silent Film Live Festival. It makes me want to come back next year? Seeing these films (for free!) in a historic theater with a live theatre organ, piano, and harpsichord is just so, so fun. Last night was my favorite of the bunch: The Extraordinary Adventures of Mr. West in the Land of the Bolsheviks.

This Soviet film operates on so many levels. It is a satire that addresses American stereotypes of Bolsheviks (or, at last, Soviets’ perception of American stereotypes), all the while employing their own stereotypes about Americans. It ends, of course, with everyone agreeing that Lenin and Communism are both incredible, but before that there is a lot goofy intrigue. I mean, just look at one of the main antagonists:

That face!!! If she were alive (at 127 years old), I’d say book Aleksandra Khokhlova to host SNL!

It is itself a satire of American film tropes! There are fist fights and car chases and romance and good triumphing over evil. I think this film shares a significant amount of DNA with the Fast and Furious franchise, to be quite honest.

I have four days left in Berlin, and it sort of feels like I live here now? Maybe I could make an extended stay in Berlin a yearly or bi-yearly thing………………………. 🤔. I wonder if I could bring the cats lol (I know I can’t).

Hi, I’ve been busy! First and foremost – my friend Emily is here!

We’re headed to Norway next week! I’m very much in a place of “exclamation point” about both of those things. Nature will be our focus in Norway, though there is still plenty of history to see. I’m particularly interested in the Hanseatic League Museum.

Before Emily got here, I had a full Friday and Saturday. I saw FOUR silent films with live accompaniment for free! I think my favorite was Michael, a Carl Theodor Dreyer film from 1924 about a homosexual relationship. Well, the relationship is behind a VERY thin veil, but it’s clear they are (were?) in love. Lots of juicy drama in that one. I also saw Aelita: Queen of Mars, which had been on my watchlist for awhile, but I was a little bit disappointed. Maybe that’s because I saw it at midnight and I was tired from a long day of walking around, but I contend that there simply wasn’t enough Mars. The sets and costumes on Mars were so cool, I just wanted to live in that world for 115 minutes. Instead we spend a good amount of the movie following the various travails of comrades on earth. I wanted more Aelita!!! Someone revive Aelita and cast… um… Joey King, maybe?

Since Emily arrived, we’ve revisited that falafel place from my first night here, gone on some great walks, ate some delicious Italian-style pizza, and met some kitties at the local cat cafe. There was a little girl lovingly chasing them around, so they eventually retreated to their vertical kitty highway 😹.

Now we’re both solidly in the work week. My workload picked up a bit yesterday, so I’m even more ready for a peaceful retreat to the fjords.

I’m spending a lot of time thinking about my relationship to cities. I didn’t grow up in a big one, and I have lived in places of varying sizes since then. My current home is by far the smallest of all. This is not where I expected to be as a 35 year old gay man? Particularly not as a single one? However, I’m really happy in Virginia! I love my community, the scenery, and my peace.

And yet, there are things I really miss about cities! I’ve been walking so much and planning so many different experiences. Tonight I’m going to see two silent films with live accompaniment for free! If I feel up to it afterwards, I’m going to walk the 3 miles back to my place. It’ll take me through Alexanderplatz and by the Fernsehturm, which are lovely in their own East German way. It’ll be a good opportunity to take some pictures with my camera! I do think I miss city walking the most.

The everythingness of a city is exhilarating and exhausting in equal measure to me. That tension was a little bit too much for me to handle in NYC, mainly because alcohol became my go-to stress relief. But with that out of the picture, I’m practicing distress tolerance in the other ways. Eat greens and drink plenty of water! Go home when I’m ready to go home! “Doing something” can be as simple as a walk or bike ride around a new neighborhood! No one can tell me the correct way to experience a city – the endless possibilities mean I can make my own adventure :).

Me arriving home after dinner with a Berlin-based coworker. Yes, there’s an elevator here!!

It was hot today!!! It’s not exactly my European autumnal fantasy, though I still have plenty of time for that, I guess.

An up and down day! I over caffeinated in the afternoon and felt a bit 🫨 by 6pm. I started to look around and really miss my nest. Traveling is like this sometimes? You gotta ride the waves as they come.

I reset with a short nap, plenty of water, and a walk to some fast casual Swedish meatballs. I followed this up with an outdoor screening of The Killing of A Sacred Deer. I found it very stressful, and I only kind of liked it? Dark comedy horror isn’t exactly my genre of choice, and Yorgos isn’t my director of choice… so I can’t say I’m surprised! But the venue was really neat, and it was nice to spend time in Kreuzberg.

Anyway here are two pictures from my walk. There’s the Oberbaumbrücke, a bridge from the 1700s, and the Spree river with the Fernsehturm in the distance.

I biked to the Stasi Museum today! It’s located at the original Stasi headquarters in East Berlin. The exhibits were harrowing and also very good! I couldn’t help but consider whether I’d turn informant or not, especially if I was promised some treats during an otherwise meager existence.

This concrete barrier was placed in front of the entrance to keep those in nearby high rises from seeing people come and go. Kind of grim, but at least it’s chic?

Anyway, I start working again tomorrow. We’ll see how that goes!!!