Category Archives: Uncategorized

Jul10

Exploring Vilnius

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Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday – 16, 17, and 18-June-2024


Vilnius is staggeringly beautiful.

I only had two days to explore, thanks to an ill-advised dinner choice in Riga taking me out of commission for a few days… and I can’t say that I was at nearly 100% for either of those two days.

In those two days, though, I was able to see some small part of an incredibly ornamented and decorated city. From beautiful storefronts, to the sculptures abounding, to the castle and riverside walk, I adored every bit of exploration I was able to drive my poor recovering body to.

The city felt like a really interesting blend of the Baltic style that I’d seen in Riga and Tallinn, and the Mediterranean stylings that I recalled from my previous visit to Rome and Florence. As I explored, I learned that this wasn’t coincidental – that Vilnius had been a centerpoint for Catholic learning, a place where the Vatican (and later the Eastern Orthodox church) would send people to learn, and then spread the word to neighboring countries.

As such, there were quite a few churches and universities for me to check out… all of which were beautifully explained by my reccurring love interest through this trip – Informational placards. Seriously – they were everywhere in Vilnius; including descriptions in both Lithuanian (I assume it was Lithuanian) and English (I’m confident it’s English). They were beautiful burnished gold with black lettering, set intermittently around the city by the points of interest.

And there were points of interest. Tons of them – churches, universities, squares and cathedrals. Monuments, palaces, and a castle too. I wandered around as many as I could, in my two days of recovery-fugue, and I’ll say that even through the haze, they were absolutely glorious.



Another fun little extra that I ran into – there was some sort of event happening in the main square near where I was staying! There were booths, music, all the fun things one could want! Even fried food vendors! I stayed for the music. I didn’t stay for the fried food 🙁



And now, finally, we come to the key part: What did I eat, and where did I eat it?

  • Hotel Amberton – I ate here thrice (I’m writing this in Vienna, it’s fancy-words-time, okay?), and all three were exactly what I needed. Mild, inoffensive, and safe meals after being sick. They were well seasoned, well cooked, and simply good. Adored them.
  • Pizza Marinara – Another good spot. Delicious pizza, nice and tasty and simple.
  • Augustas & Barbora love story café – This place was ridiculous and amazing. Absolutely beautifully decorated, with approximately infinite roses and flowers everywhere. Good food, great latte (pink!), and a very fun place to sit and relax.
May18

Leaving the United States, and the travels afterward.

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Wednesday, 01-May-2024


Everything I’ve been writing has led up to this point.

Everything I’ve been generally planning for the last 5 months, and specifically planning for the last 2 months, was in preparation for this singular moment.

Planning, preparing, making ready and laying the groundwork for one simple action – stepping out of a car, hefting some bags, and walking up to a plane.



Let’s start at the beginning, a bit of a recap.

In 2021, I gained my dual citizenship between the United States, and Austria.

In 2022, I applied to various universities around the world for their MBA programs. I was accepted to Trinity College in Dublin, and deferred my admission until 2024.

Around October of 2023, I gave my manager at Raytheon an ultimatum – I get promoted by the beginning of January, or I leave.

In January of 2024, I still hadn’t gotten a promotion.

In mid February of 2024, I turned in my 2-weeks notice. This was somehow a complete surprise to my manager.

March and April of 2024 are spent relaxing and preparing for my imminent departure from the United States, for at least a year but likely longer.


Now, what exactly is my itinerary? Well, I’ll be visiting:

  • Nuuk, Greenland
  • Reykjavik, Iceland (and the rest of Iceland, via camper-van)
  • Oslo, Norway
  • Stockholm, Sweden
  • Helsinki, Finland
  • Tallinn, Latvia
  • Riga, Estonia
  • Vilnius, Lithuania
  • Warsaw, Poland
  • Krakow, Poland
  • Prague, Czechia
  • Vienna, Austria
  • Marseilles, France
  • Cassis, France
  • Zermatt, Switzerland
  • Stuttgart, Germany
  • Brussels, Belgium
  • Dublin, Ireland


Each country and city will have a different amount of time that I’m there – for now, I’ll keep that as a surprise for those following along… but it varies between a two evenings in some places, to two weeks in others. There’s a sort of method to my madness, regarding duration, though I’d have a challenging time fully explaining it in retrospect.

The key is that I spent time confirming it, and until I have reason to doubt my previous self… well, I have a simply massive document detailing where, when, how, and why I’m going to each place. How to get there, where I’m staying, what I’m doing (in some cases). Mostly, I’m excited to explore and decompress. To let myself stretch out, explore new places, and meet new people.

It will be glorious, but the first step is the simplest.

I stepped into the airport.

May16

A final shot at a shooting range in the States

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Sunday, 28-April-2024


One thing I wanted to make sure to do in the United States, and specifically in Oregon, before leaving was to hit up a shooting range. It’s not that shooting is particularly important to me, but it’s very much something that I won’t be able to do in Ireland quite as easily… and it felt like a perfectly American thing to do before heading out.

So… I gave them a call, and found out that they were booked up for the next two weeks. Which… would be challenging, since I’d be in Iceland.

Thankfully, people are pretty rad. When I mentioned why I was hoping to come in, and where I’d be in two weeks, the range office got quiet for a moment, asked me to hold for a few moments longer, and then came back saying that he’d opened a spot at 4pm that same day.

You know, people are pretty rad sometimes.


I drove over at the appointed time, got an impromptu masters course in pistol work, and even earned a bit of an accolade from the range officer on my shooting. I’ll absolutely take it as a lovely win!

(Yes, I always pick a different spot to practice on, so I can tell where my sets are ending up each time. I find it very helpful, but to each their own)