THE ENTERPRISE
We are back from vacation, after having the memorable experience of visiting ten European countries in fourteen days, but the eleventh country-the one we came home to--the United States of America-is still the best of all. Every time I hear a US Immigration official say “Welcome Home” as he hands me back my passport, I thank him... and I thank God... and I have a lump in my throat as I do so.
This was a big vacation, with shore excursions from a cruise ship, so I am certain we saw the best these European cities and countries had to offer. There are surely other places that may be as picturesque, but far poorer than what we saw. I won't try to draw many conclusions from this "biased sample" of ports and cities....except that most of Europe is "old!"
Here are places we visited:
Stockholm, Sweden (nice, but very expensive city); Tallinn, Estonia just happy to be free from Russia); St. Petersburg & Moscow, Russia (lots of money over there, but still way behind in so many ways); Helsinki, Finland ( a nice, pleasant city); Gdansk, Poland (an historic old, old city); Copenhagen, Denmark (like the other two Scandinavian cities--very nice); Warnemunde, Germany (a bustling beach-front resort & tourist town); the Kiel Canal was ride through idyllic rural Germany; Amsterdam, Netherlands (a cosmopolitan city with beautiful countryside in nearby Holland); Bruges, Belgium (another historic old city--every fifth store is a chocolate shop--how can that be anything but good); and (just passing through) Dover to London, United Kingdom (at last, road signs I could read).
The trip was not without turmoil. Most notable was the fact that our luggage didn't catch up with us until the 7th day at Helsinki, Finland. (Thanks to an error by a haughty United Airlines counter attendant in Columbus, OH. who omitted the Stockholm leg to the baggage tags-leaving the bags stranded in Chicago-and bags couldn't travel internationally without the owners--a BIG dilemma!)
Finally after some great work by the ship's concierge and our travel agent, the bags got moved to Stockholm where they should have gone in the first place, and from there forwarded to Helskini--but not until we had been traveling 6 days.
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The luggage debacle meant our day in Stockholm was consumed shopping for necessities instead of touring. We became very attached to our two outfits-wear one and launder the other one. The NK Department store in Stockholm is first rate, equal to better US stores. I was happy with that--until I had to pay $240 for two pair of Dockers (4X the US price). H. & M. next door was much more reasonable but with a limited assortment of clothing--mostly young, slim and trendy--measures on which I am 0 for 3.
Meanwhile, all the news was focused on the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict. It's hard to believe how most of the world believed Israel was “wrong” in defending itself. I was pulling for them, and think the whole cease-fire deal is riddled with flaws-but maybe it avoided Israel getting into an Iraq-type situation that the US is struggling with. We'll see. Peace in the middle-East IS an oxymoron. The various countries and religious sects there have hated each other for centuries--and always will. Now they just hate America too.
Once we got our bags, it was only a day or two until UK officials discovered the terrorist plot to blow up as many as 9 planes headed from Heathrow or Gatwick (London airports) to the US. Of course we were flying out of Heathrow in 5 days, to the US, on one of the targeted airlines-United! Ouch.
Anyway, we “struggled through,” traveling, eating and drinking, and sight-seeing, one city after another, and finding memorable new places and sights. I wlll never forget the concentration camp at Stutthof, Poland, or the side trip to Moscow--to walk in Red Square and the Kremlin.
Heathrow was chaotic (it's a very disorganized airport anyway), mobbed with people due to cancelled flights, and security was intense. Weapons at the ready, in the hands of military, with fingers on the trigger guard! After passing through 3 security screenings, being searched twice, we boarded and had an uneventful flight back to the USA. (Whew) That brings me full circle to where I started. I was never so glad to touch down in the USA.
As I unloaded my bag and shuffled through the odd assortment of leftover coins: Zlotys, Krones, Krunes, Kroners, Euros, Pounds and yes, Rubles, I marveled at how much we take for granted in the USA. Notice I didn't say Dollars (those were almost all gone!). Merchants would take the US Dollar 9or the Euro) almost everywhere--even on the rainy streets of Moscow where the new law says trade must be in Rubles. It made me think over and over about how spoiled we are, and how much we take for granted.
We are so critical of each other in the US. Bitter partisan bickering fills our government, our news media and minds. We criticize our elected officials and show total disrespect for the fact that they sacrifice (to varying extents) their personal lives to serve us (however imperfectly they do it).
When we find ourselves starting to believe all the anti-American sentiment and negativity, we should remember England's Prime Minister Tony Blair's words during a recent interview. When asked by one of his Parliament members why he believes so much in America, he said: "A simple way to take measure of a country is to look at how many people want in... and how many want out."
America is still the land of opportunity. It seems that many would-be immigrants (and investors) see that; it's just those of us who live here that overlook it. We have good paying jobs. We have clean drinking water, clean (and free!) public toilets, freedom of speech and assembly, good highways, electricity and plumbing that works, gas that is ONLY $3/gallon (vs. $5-7 in Europe), great hotels at all levels of prices, fine entertainment, strong educational institutions (except for our nagging inner-city school problems), buses to take our children to school, the finest medical facilities, and we get to elect our officials in free and open elections. And all we do it gripe about what's wrong. Shame on us! God bless this wonderful country, and may God help us all work to make it better than it is, instead of running it down with cynicism and complaints.
All that aside, the trip was memorable, especially the 3 days in Russia, (2 in St. Petersburg, with a long day's side trip to Moscow, and flights both ways on Russian built airliners that were much better than I expected). The ride on the Metro in Moscow was interesting, but they are so proud of something that is no better than any of our US subways. The visit to the concentration camp at Stuthof, Poland was another memorable, but sobering experience. Those who was to pacify tyrants from Iran, Korea, and the other world's hot spots, should see what a tyrant who went unchecked did about 60 years ago. It was a horror.
The last memorable point of the trip was to see how all the dikes in Holland were built and the number of repairs that had been made. Maybe the Corps of Engineers would be well-advised to consult with the Dutch before finishing the levees and declaring New Orleans safe and sound.
Now that we are back in the US, the next few weeks will be devoted to what's happening here and now. Mid-term elections are coming--and are very uncertain--and will continue to be contentious. The axis of evil is spreading and getting "more evil"--and nobody seems to have many good ideas about what to do with lunatic leaders Iran and North Korea. We have lots of problems at home, although our economy continues to hang in there....for now anyway.
There will be lots to talk about, and hopefully, explore some solutions. Until then, enjoy the last of summer, living in this wonderfully flawed country we call home. God Bless America.
Best, John
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