Well my new role at Honeywell is off to a busy start, I cannot remember
being as stressed by a role in my career. There is a lot to be learned and a
large amount of responsibility that comes with this role, I am looking forward
to a few months from now when I have my bearings, and when someone takes my
last position so I don’t have to do both roles at once. Last year I hardly
traveled, and so this year it came as a welcome surprise to be able to do
several trips internationally, downside being that they were back to back!
My first trip took me to Milan, Italy to negotiate a deal with a company
called Leonardo that manufactures helicopters. The negotiations went well, I
found that Italians primarily try to wear you down through excessive talking,
repeating points time and time again until you wish to argue no longer… I stuck
to my plan though and walked away with the deal I wanted, in negotiations the
most organized often wins. Since airfare was inexpensive I decided to have mom
join me at the end of my work trip, she flew out all by herself all the way to
Milan, her first time traveling alone internationally.
Mom and I rented a car in Milan, a bright red Fiat 500- most cars in
Europe are stick shift, thankfully I learned to drive one in high school, my
first pickup truck was a stick. We started our adventure with a drive to Lake
Como. Lake Como is primarily a summer destination, as people flock to the lake
to stay cool and have fun doing watersports. Therefore, arriving in the winter
we found it mostly empty, we were the first to stay at our hotel in 2019 (Hotel
Olivedo) they had just opened. We had a great couple of days exploring the lake
and the sleepy towns that dot its shores, we took the ferry to a few different
ones and rode a funicular up to the alpine town of Brunate that overlooked most
of the lake. The views were spectacular, and the building style and large pine
trees made it feel more like Switzerland and less like Italy.
After Lake Como we headed to Bergamo. Bergamo is perched high on a
mountain and surrounded by massive walls dating back to the empire of Venice.
It was a great stop for a few hours, I could have stayed the night easily.
Really beautiful quiet streets, fascinating medieval architecture, and
magnificent views over the valley below. Moving on from Bergamo we arrived in
Verona for the evening. Verona was made famous as the setting of Romeo and
Juliet, it has a lovely old town with twisting streets to explore, a Roman
amphitheater, and bridges running over the Adige river. That night at dinner we
happened to sit next to a man from Utah. He heard us speaking English and
introduced himself and we had a nice little conversation, he was a stone
importer and so traveled to Verona often. One of the fun parts of travel is the
interesting people you meet, often in the strangest places.
We departed Verona and stopped by Parma on our way to Milan. Parma is at
the heart of the region where Parmesan cheese comes from, I guess every regions
soil, and climate have effects on the final product hence the regional
affiliations with most of the food in Italy. It was a sleepy day in Parma with
some rain so we were able to stroll most of the town and have a wonderful lunch
before heading to Milan. On our arrival mom found out about the last supper
painting, which she really wanted to see so we went straight to the church
where it is housed. Issue was the tours were sold out for two solid weeks,
while we were milling outside trying to decide what to do I saw one of the tour
operators looking around so I headed towards her, she had a ticket so sell from
someone who didn’t show up! I grabbed it right away and so mom got to see the
painting after all, worked out perfectly.
We spent the rest of the night exploring the fortress and stopping in
small cafes for a glasses of wine as we meandered through the city. The last
and final day we saw the famous shopping areas and the first indoor mall, went
by stores where they sold handbags as expensive as my truck, and generally had
fun exploring the city. Our final stop and tour was the Duomo. The church was a
mass of marble and granite, every inch embellished with sculptures and figures
with no two repeating. You can tour the rooftops, which we did, and find
amazing views over the city. It always strikes me that many of the stone masons
and other trades most likely worked their entire lives on one project at so
many of these places mom and I have now seen. I am not sure if I would have
liked that or not, but I am sure those who were able to create structures such
as these were very proud that their work would be admired by so many for so
long.
All in all it was one of our shortest trips, but wonderful. Travel is
really one of my favorite things in life, the adventure and experiences really
energize me and keep me going. We flew from Milan to Heathrow and while we were
waiting in Heathrow we went to one of the lounges I used to frequent for
American Airlines. I remembered one time as I was waiting to check in I saw a
little boy that was battling a cancer known as DPIG. It seems to be fatal in
almost every case, his mother and he were in Germany for an experimental
immunotherapy treatment as there is not much they can do conventionally, though
I hope they make rapid advancements for treatment in the future. I remembered
sitting there speaking with him and his mother. He seemed fine, like any little
boy, focused on his games and telling stories of their trip, I could remember
exactly where he was sitting having a snack. That might have been one of the
last places I saw him alive.
I don’t mean to end this entry with something sad, I mean to keep you
aware that life changes slowly, and then all at once. It is good to be filled
with joy, and live life with passion, but it is also important to remember that
others are suffering, and we should do all we can to alleviate it. Sometimes we
cannot change it, or help, but we can care, and remember, and show them love
and compassion. I will never again fly to Heathrow without thinking of Hollis.
When I am in a joyful time of life I temper it with remembering that others
suffer. When I suffer I know others are too, and that joy can come again, and
should it not, that no amount of time or pleasure on this earth will compare to
what waits for those who love God after this life is spent. In the meantime, I
make of this life what I can with your mother and the three of you, being
grateful for the good, and taking joy in the many sweet moments we have. I
always think of a line from some poem I once read “arriving early they stayed
late, theirs was a long day in the sun”.
Love you guys.
