Convergence
It’s been a while since we left the Alps. Shortly after departing, Johana and I embarked on probably the most ambitious and important adventure we’ve done yet. For months — since Austria, actually — we’d been planning to fly Johana’s parents in from Uruguay. They’ve never left Uruguay before, they’ve never flown, and now they’re in their 70s. It was beautiful. For weeks, we traveled around Europe together and shared a wonderful time all together. We reconnected the family, and brought them back to their…
Adieu les Alpes
A few days ago marked the end of our long chapter in the French Alps for Johana and I. Honestly, I’m quite relieved to be moving on. As I wrote in Meditations, this experience proved to be quite different than I may have expected going in. There was all the opportunity in the world for us to go skiing, partying, drinking every night. This is the culture, after all, in European ski resorts. Johana and I really aren’t the kind of people keen for this…
Washington D.C. — World Culture Festival, 2023
By the time I arrived in Washington D.C. for the World Culture Festival of 2023, I was no longer entirely myself. This chapter belongs as an extension of my New York Chapter, because it came from the same unraveling. There was a stretch of several weeks during which my mental health had deteriorated so badly that I can only say I had lost myself. And what a setting for such a state of mind. Washington, during one of the largest cultural gatherings in the world,…
Meditations
It’s been quite some time since I’ve last written. The season is almost over here. We’ve met some great people and shared some wonderful memories together, and it has definitely been another noteworthy step in Johana’s and my journey together. However, this chapter in my life has been a bit different than I maybe expected going in. What I thought might be a season of lots of partying, skiing, and fun has instead turned out to be a chapter of stability, routine, and time for…
Temps De Ski
So it’s been 2 weeks here now living in French Alps. The ski season is just about upon us here, and honestly we’re loving every second of our time here this far. The team were an apart of here only comes close to the magic we had while working in Germany. Today we were all working to decorate Christmas trees. We had classic holiday music playing, and it was all laughs and smiles while we worked decorating the trees for our guests. The resort here…
Feelin’ Venice
Continuing from Johana and my story in Spain, on the 8th of this month, we flew into Venice, Italy. We booked a beautiful Airbnb and planned to do nothing more than enjoy the city while we prepared for the next step in our journey. We could have chosen to go anywhere in the world when we left Spain. We chose Venice because we had friends nearby whom we both wanted to visit again, and because it seemed like the perfect place to spend a few…
Expect the Unexpected
So, our plans for Spain didn’t exactly go as we had imagined. We spent a few weeks working at the place we had planned to be at for quite some time ahead. It quickly became clear the price that would be asked of us if we stayed. So we all sat down and agreed that it would be for the best to end things now before we grew to be miserable. We packed up our things and moved out to a nearby town where we…
Spanish Paradise
After having spent the entire summer at the Castle—not particularly happy and itching for so much more—these last 72 hours couldn’t have been more of a pleasure. My gut and heart tell me we’ve found a real gem here: Spanish Paradise… We left the Castle on a good note. We said farewell to our friends and the family, and finally boarded the bus we had dreamt of all summer. We went straight to Vienna, where we wanted to visit our favorite café one last time.…
Tschüss Castle
Today officially marks the end of our summer contract here at the castle. In three days, we have a flight from Vienna to Barcelona, where Johana and I will be starting a new chapter in Costa Brava, in the northeast of Spain. We cannot wait to see what this new chapter will bring! It’s been a long summer here, and honestly, we’re both really relieved to be moving on for a multitude of reasons. We will miss the friends we made here, and surely someday…
The New York Chapter
The New York Chapter Without a doubt, this was the hardest and most soul-crushing period of my life. It was heartbreak, poverty, insanity, and desperation that played a key role in forging who I am today. Despite how grim it all was, I’m glad I went through it. As Nietzsche said: “That which does not kill me makes me stronger,” and that sentiment is especially poignant in this chapter of my life. Prelude The events leading up to my decision to move are key to…
The Lost Chapters
I recently felt inspired to sit down and write about some of my stories that I haven’t shared before. When I started the blog, I covered a lot of ground writing about both summertime and wintertime. But I want to focus on the latter for this one, because without a doubt, it was the most special time in my life—the time when I met Johana, when I found salvation from all the disaster that had just passed, and, moreover, a period of pure magic that…
Birthday Surprise
I love this woman. Johana had been planning something for my 26th birthday now for a month. She meticulously crafted and thought carefully about everything. Completely to my surprise, she had planned a full birthday party, with cake, presents, and friends. It was easily the warmest and most special birthday of my life and I will forever cherish all its details. The party, however, had only just begun. Johana had to do it early because we had spontaneously made plans to leave Bernstein and travel…
