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Thanks for joining us over here at Major Meander! (no salutes necessary) If you’re arriving from our previous blog Mezera Rok that we updated during our gap year, I note that this new blog is operated by me (Scott) alone, and it is intended to provide you with updates from the road as I travel Eastern Europe and Portugal for two months, visiting places both familiar and new.

Feel free to follow along by subscribing for email notifications for newly-published posts. No expectations on my part — if you’re interested and have time to read, sign up. If not, don’t. I can’t promise anything, but I’m hoping that there will be many groan-worthy dad jokes, along with some funny and surprising Google Translate foibles for Eastern European languages. And of course I’ll be providing whatever insight I can glean for the more confusing and unique cultural and other experiences I encounter during the journey. There will be hiccups along the way, and these always provide the most interesting stories!

First, Colleen and I will be visiting Sofia in Prague for one week. We want to be able to see Sofia at least a few times per year, which will mean that Prague will be our occasional home away from home for at least the next couple of years. At the conclusion of that week, Colleen heads back to Asheville, and I journey onward from there, solo this time. We’re excited to travel without all the various Covid restrictions from last time.

As planned, during my three months back in Asheville I have not returned to the patent analysis business, but I do now entertain myself with software-related work for clients. And in fact, these several weeks in Europe are a “workation” for me, other than the week in Prague, as I plan to get some hours in each weekday. I’ve got to somehow fund all this travel!

Here’s the agenda (this time it’s all planned out in advance!):

• 1. Sep 14-21: Prague, Czechia
• 2. Sep 21-28: Wrocław, Poland
• 3. Sep 28 – Oct 5: Kraków, Poland
• 4. Oct 5-12: Bratislava, Slovakia
• 5. Oct 12-19: Budapest, Hungary
• 6. Oct 19-26: Zagreb, Croatia (I just can’t resist this quirky and fun city)
• 7. & 8. Oct 26 – Nov 10: Lisbon and Porto, Portugal
• 9. Nov 10-16: Prague, Czechia

So if you just happen to find yourself in one or more of these great cities during these time windows, let’s hang out! A friend recently told me that his son will be in Prague while we’re there too, so you never know. Or, come join me for a segment or two — I’d enjoy travel partners!

I surprised myself by not including the Croatian coast on this visit, despite that being very high on my wish list. But as I pondered the logistics, I thought that it would be fun to take one-way bus or train rides between multiple engaging yet relatively affordable Eastern European cities (making my way in a shape that sort of resembles a “3”), without the headaches and surprises normally involved in Croatian coastal bus trips. Plus, once on the coast there it can be tricky to get elsewhere with ease. And besides, I’ve been spoiled with loads of sun and water this summer. Next Europe visit, hopefully.

I’ve also got to comment on the transportation costs a bit here. The grand total for all the buses and trains (5 days of travel) between Prague, Wrocław, Krakow, Bratislava, Budapest, and Zagreb is $85! What a steal — who needs a car? The US dollar is super-strong now too, around 17-19% stronger than when we began gap year in Aug 2021, as compared to some of the relevant currencies like the Czech crown, the Croatian kuna, and the Euro. In early September 2022, 1 USD bought over 1 Euro for the first time in 20 years!

While I’m in each destination, my plan is to find as much as possible of the following:

• Hiking
• Nature
• 5k/10k Races
• Social Time
• Unique Sites
• Music
• Sports
• Other Entertainment
• Tasty Food
• Good Beer

By the way, the site is called “Major Meander” to reflect my tendency to drift from subject to subject, to represent life’s constant twists and turns, to denote my love of wandering, and to indicate the winding routes that travelling involves.

Thanks for joining me (virtually) on this adventure!