Traveling can be a "breeze" ...

Greetings from Hungary! I flew yesterday from Princeton to Zurich and then onto Budapest. For those of you reading from the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, you know that the oppressive heat which we endured during CoOPERAtive became stifling and movement-reducing. It even got hard to breathe.

So imagine ... getting off of the plane in Budapest and being introduced (greeted by) to beautiful weather, sunny, 75 degrees and a breeze. I almost wept.

The flight here was also worth mentioning. Those of you who have been readers since China (where the blog started. The travels have been ongoing for years!) remember my raving about the Chinese airline service. The Swiss also have it down to a science, and the Chinese and the Swiss still beat any American airline that I've serviced as of late.

The "pampering" on the flight included: hot rolls, hot food which was good, complimentary chocolates served on a tray, good yogurt for breakfast and probably the best airline coffee with milk I've ever had. (key word = airline). I also had the distinct pleasure of the company of a delightful seatmate, a really accomplished PhD Economist who was from Kenya but had spent about 8 years in Italy. We even shared a coffee in the Zurich airport before taking our respective planes (she continued onto Venice).

This is the first time that I've flown to Hungary instead of continuing here by train from other work which preceded it in Europe. So the idea of jet-lag here is foreign to me. It is remarkable to be back in Sárospatak, where such important spiritual things began for me two years ago, and where they were really tested and tried all of last summer. Now, with the bulk of the doctorate behind me, and the blessing of a wonderful fiancé (who is new to my life as of Hungary last year), being back here feels different.

Wonderful-different. My room is quiet and is at the end of the hallway, so I have no neighbor on one side. I also don't get internet in my room, which I think will be a good break (I have to walk about 50 feet to pick up WiFi). That will keep me disciplined into going to bed at a better hour.

I will keep everyone updated as to how this institute progresses. My schedule in Princeton didn't allow me a lot of writing-time, but Hungary always does.

It is, in many ways, a necessary artistic retreat.

PHOTO - is from 2012. These are flowers which are in small groups along the streets in Sárospatak. (The photo has received little post-production magic.)