December 1994

Dear everyone,

Good grief, don't tell me another year has gone by!  I can't believe that I have to write another one of these letters already.  Well, let's get on with it.  If I remember correctly, we left off last year with us enjoying the Czech Republic and inviting everyone to come visit.  Well, lots of people took us up on that, and that's just great because this is the place to be at this point in history.  Of all the former Communist countries, this one has had the best transition to democracy and a free market, if what we read in the papers is correct.  It sure seems that way to us too.

We've had a great twelve months, punctuated with lots of travel and time back in the States.  The big news is that we sold one of our apartments in Columbia, SC -- the small one that we kept empty just in case our overseas life might come to a crashing halt (as it did in Zaire) -- but now that we are in a more stable environment, we don't need the expense.  We still have one apartment by the lake which, if all goes as planned, will be our retirement home.  We have about 10 more years of this overseas life before we can move into the place permanently, but that's OK as long as the years are as pleasant as the last one.

Last February, we realized a life goal by finally skiing in Europe.  We rented an apartment in Austria in a small village near Kitzbuhel, were pleasantly surprised that the prices were reasonable for renting equipment and using the ski lifts, and were even more surprised that our out of shape legs remembered how to ski after all these years.  Of course, after a couple of beers on the slopes, our skiing deteriorated noticeably, but we managed to have lots of fun despite a few wobbly runs, and we'll surely return this February during ski-week break (great school calendar!).  We spent most of the spring entertaining guests and traveling around the Czech Republic, visiting beautiful towns and sopping up the medieval atmosphere.  We got snowed on in April, a real surprise since the winter had been very mild.  We also visited Budapest on work related boondoggles.  Then June arrived, and we spent the summer in the U.S., partly in NJ and partly in South Carolina and Florida.  Most of our time was spent getting our apartment ready to sell and going to the movies during the cheap matinees when everyone else is at work.

When we returned to Prague, I took up my duties as Deputy Director of our school (the previous fellow was fired), and I moved into a new office with a fireplace which will either be great or will burn the building down.  This fall has been simply outstanding, filled with travel and new adventures.  October (we have a school break then too) was spent cruising the autobahns and byways in Germany, Austria, Italy, the French Riviera and the Alps.  We were shocked at the prices of Western Europe, and were thankful that we lived in Prague where a chateaubriand dinner for two can still be had for $12, but we loved the scenery and the luxury of the West.  As I write this, we have just returned from the best Christmas fair in Europe in Nuremburg, Germany.  The previous weekend was spent on business in Hamburg, a lovely city, and previous to that, we went to the former East Germany, which, compared to the West, is still a dump.  We also managed a week in Kuwait (at the local American School's expense), stayed at the best hotel in town, ate like swine but didn't get to see Bill Clinton although he was in town.  All in all, Kuwait is a great place to spend two hours.

And now, as December is upon us and winter threatens us with short days and cold winds, Sharon is off on a boondoggle in Boca Raton, FL, for two weeks, followed by both of us going to New Jersey and Florida for the holidays with the family.  It'll be back skiing in Austria in February, most likely London in April for a week of theater, and then home for the summer, but not without taking a Princess cruise to Alaska to celebrate our 25th anniversary although it occurred in 1993.  Well, better late than never.

And that's the way it is with us.  We hope all is well with you and hope to hear from you soon, and, remember, we do have excellent guest facilities.  Prague is a real gem, not to be missed.