5-27-07 Masstricht

Some things are universal. Last night while we were walking we saw a guy cat call and rev his engine at the woman crossing the street in front of him. She responded with what I would assume was Dutch profanity. I was very glad to find out that it wasn't a successful pickup in their culture either.

I noticed in both Amsterdam and Maastricht that when we tell people we are from the states they become a type of modest, and expect us to want things bigger and better. Both of the universities we were at emphasized how small they were. The University of Maastrict has as many students as UCA. All the people we talked to in Maastricht and Aachen began by telling us that it was a small city, but they loved it because... I guess they don't expect Americans to come from small towns or value small communities.

Mike and I have always talked, though rarely seriously, about moving out of the country for a couple of years. I think that it is something that I've wanted more. Mike has already lived in Germany for 3 years, so he is not as intent on it as I am. I've thought about Australia a lot because I am worried about the language barrier, but it is becoming clear that I would have quite a bit of time to learn the language in Europe if I could only find a job that would hire me. This trip is doing a lot to make my desire stronger. At this blissful moment the only thing that worries me is my family. I have an aunt who refuses to watch Johnny Depp movies because he moved to France, and, "The French hate Americans." I'm afraid my reasons for wanting this would be lost on them. It really would be a great adventure and Mike seems to be getting easier to persuade. We'll see I suppose.