A. The short answer: Fabulous! The long answer: Read my blog.
Q. "What was your favourite place?"
A. I really can't narrow it down to one particular place or experience because the things that stand out in my mind change from day to day. I think my favourite cities were Rome (incredible history), Salzburg (friendly, pretty, and cozy), and London (a lot to see and it makes me feel proud to be part of the Commonwealth). A few of my favourite experiences, in no particular order: I never grew tired of hearing Big Ben chime at the parliament buildings in London, visiting Poland and connecting with my roots was amazing, I loved being a part of a wonderful church family, I love being able to say I climbed the Leaning Tower of Pisa, being the foreigner with the hot accent is a fabulous experience, walking along the outer wall of Harlech Castle was surreal, learning how to catch a sheep with a crook was an unexpected perk of spending Christmas on a farm, and it was great to settle in and feel like a foreign country was my home for a little while.
Q. "So, you didn't find a husband, eh?"
A. No, I didn't, but one more week and I'm sure I would have had an engagement ring. (It has surprised me to discover how popular this question is on both sides of the ocean - apparently a lot of people were expecting me to relocate with a spousal visa!)
Q. "How did you travel for so long without any income?"
A. When I first started considering this trip in January 2008, I began saving my money. I paid room-and-board, tithed, put fuel in my car, and spent money on little else. My self-control was motivated by considering every expenditure as a portion of a flight from England into Europe ("A sweater for $45? That's almost a flight to Italy!" or "A Starbucks drink for $4.50? Seven of those and I could fly to Ireland!"). I ended up spending about $13,000/£7,300 during the past eleven months. I didn't set myself a budget, I just tried to be sensible about expenditures. Because I didn't keep any kind of budget or records, I really have no idea how my money stretched so far. I was given free or cheap accommodation several times when I travelled, but, logically, my money still shouldn't have stretched so far. The credit goes to God because it's a miracle that I was able to do so much with so little.
Q. "Are you going to keep writing your blog?"
A. No, the blog is nearly finished - only one more post... or maybe two. I'll leave the blog online for quite a while, but I won't write any additional posts. It's time for my private life to return to being private and just live a normal life without always thinking, "Hey! That would be great for my blog!" I've let people see into my heart every day for long enough; I want to return to focusing on two-way friendships.
Q. "Are you going to publish a book?"
A. I plan to create a hard-copy record of this blog by self-publishing a full-colour, hard-cover book for myself and the few others who want copies. It will likely take three to six months to be ready to go to print and I'm not sure what the price will be (based on a previous project, I figure it will likely be $50 - 100 per copy). The content and format may change slightly - the "boring" posts removed, some photos changed, maybe add a few extra stories that I didn't want to publish publicly. I may also print a smaller photo book with brief captions - something a little less overwhelming than the complete blog. If you're interested in purchasing a copy, please email me (apiechnik@gmail.com) to indicate which book you'd prefer and I'll put your name and email address on a list. Once I've worked out prices, I'll get in touch so you can make a final decision.
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I know how many people read this blog on a regular basis and the number is far more than the thirty people who have told me they read it. If you feel like finally fessing up instead of lurking, please post a comment or send me an email!
apiechnik@gmail.com
