Preparing

I'm taking my daughter on a tour of Europe--without ever having been there myself. And for the last 36 hours, I have been certain that in the next 5 minutes, I will definitely throw up. Unfortunately, my daughter is symbiotically attached to me and knows this, making the whole prospect of thowing up even that more imminent.

I'm glad I'm doing this, despite my utter fear, because I believe that I am giving her something I never had as a yound person--a whole world at her fingertips. Her older sister, my stepdaughter, is living and working in northern Italy with her wonderful husband and dog. She is a traveler, unafraid of anything. She is,  as I always knew she would be, changing the world. Her PhD work is in evolutionaly marine physiology. She is growing marine microorganisms in the presence of excess CO2 from live volcanic vents under the Mediterranian Sea, and as they gorw she will determine how they genetically adapt to the presence of excess CO2 in their environment. I am beyond amazed with her, moreso for her utter humility for her work.

Since we will be there visiting her it seemed to make sense to do a rail tour of Europe with my 12 year old. She is just old enough to be able to travel with her mother, appreciate what she sees and not be utterly embarrassed to be traveling with her mother. I believe this will give her an appreciation for her own ability to do this on her own, something I never had. And still don't.

I used a travel agent to order to air and rail, I planned our trip and reserved our hotels in Paris, Luxembourg, Brussels, Bruges, and London. I arranged for our passports and bought travelers checks. I figured out where the train stations are and where our hotels are relative to them. I arranged for a global phone so that we can call her father every night to check in. I bought us rolling backpacks so that we can travel light, carrying what we need on our backs without checking luggage. I helped her pack. I've done everything I need to do, but still I feel like I'm going to throw up.

Did I mention that I have to sign the papers for a condo that we are buying while we are away, an investment property to add on to the rest of the the ones in the building and the one next door, less that 24 hours before we leave? Just in case I wasn't anxious enough.

Breathe.