Home again, home again

Happy 4th of July to everyone. It's a wonderful welcome back to the USA.So yes, I'm back. The last part of my trip went well. I had a nice time with Luca in Bologna. We relaxed and watched some tennis and read as well as doing the tourist stuff that I love. I got my taste of Italian pasta and pizza which is very good. On Wednesday I spent the afternoon in Rome. I walked all over the city and saw a lot of the sights. I saw the Colosseum (but didn't go in) and the Trevi Fountain and went in to explore St. Peter's cathedral. It was a very hot day and I was king of ready to head home, but I'm glad I got to do see it all. I splurged and stayed in a hotel near the airport that night because my flight was so early in the morning. It was very nice and cool to have my own room. The bartender at the hotel was

really nice and made me a pizza, that was normally sold frozen (but was cheaper than that at the restaurant). I woke up at 3:45 the next morning and both of my flights went smoothly. On
the long flight (Munich to Washington) I was sitting next to an 18 year old from Ukraine who I helped with his immigration documents. I also watched 2 movies: Definitely, Maybe and The Other Boleyn Sister. Both were very good. Now it's back to real life I guess. I'm spending the weekend recovering from jet lag, unpacking, and spending time with my parents. I
restart work on Monday.

It has been great hearing from so many of you so often. I plan on continuing these emails when I head off to Argentina on August 15. Between now and then I'll be doing some visiting and working and preparing. I'm going to Florida next weekend with the whole family to visit my
grandfather. Then the weekend after that I'm back in North Carolina for Alice's wedding which I'm in. Then I'm here until August. I hope to see many of you between now and then.