Chris Brooks Newsletter 012
Greetings from Italy! I'm on a train from Cinque Terre to Pisa to Florence. We are about 10 days into our adventure, and nearly done with our party-of-six travels. Julie and I will be solo from Thursday on.
1. 🚘 Where I've been traveling
- Our month started with a slow-going camping adventure as we worked our way up from Florida to New Jersey. I won't share every stop along the way in this newsletter, but you can start with our paddling at Manatee Springs and click next if you want to follow the adventure.
- We took a vacation before our vacation and spent four nights in Manhattan. A lot of walking, a six mile run through Central Park, some music in the Village, and a couple of Broadway shows.
- Madrid was our first stop in our European adventure, starting with a walking tour and the modern art museum.
- Next up was Barcelona, where we had an amazing apartment overlooking La Sagrada Familia.
- After a transition flight through Milan, we ended the month in magical Cinque Terre, Italy.
2. 📖 What I've been reading
Books:
- I finished Sanderson's The Bands of Mourning. Looking forward to seeing the return of Wax and Wayne in the future!
- Also finished Hugh Thomas' The Spanish Civil War, and thankful that I better understood what it meant to be an Anarchist during this conflict.
3. 🍿 What I've been watching
YouTube:
- Some very cool drone delivery innovation
- We played some YouTube roulette in Cinque Terre and my sister-in-law introduced us to Total Eclipse of the Heart Literal
TV:
- We finished the current seasons of 1923 and The Last of Us.
- Liaison was started but not finished. Didn't like the writing or the acting, which is a shame because I love this sort of story (spy games, terrorist attacks).
- On that front you won't go wrong with Slow Horses. We finished season 1 and will start season 2 shortly. Gary Oldman!
- We watched a couple of episodes of The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy. I think he should stick to improv and situation comedy, as he never seemed believable. Is he actually that uncomfortable staying in 5 star accommodations in Venice and Finland?
- The highlight was season four of Stranger Things, which I finally talked Julie into watching with me (even when alone in a dark campground in our van). You can see how early casting choices haven't paid off as some of the younger talent hasn't necessarily blossomed into good teenage actors, but they've re-vectored some of the story lines to allow for this (and to allow the good talent to shine).
Movies:
- In prep for our Broadway viewings, we watched Sweeney Todd with Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter..
- We enjoyed The Fabelmans, the Spielberg semi-autobiography.
- All Quiet on the Western Front was appreciated but I'm not sure I need to see any more brutal WWI trench warfare movies. This one was notable for the sound engineering and the score; so haunting.
On Broadway:
- I finally got to see The Book of Mormon and it didn't disappoint. I could hardly breathe during the skit put on by the Ugandans in Act 2.
- We saw Sweeney Todd with Josh Groban (still in previews). Groban started slow (sorta stiff) but warmed to the role as things went on, but the star of the show was Annaleigh Ashford as Mrs. Lovett.
4. 🎶 What I've been listening too
Not much at all, but if you have an iPhone consider trying out the newly launched Classical app. Looks to be a great way to discover (or re-discover) classical music.
That's enough for this newsletter! On to Florence, Verona, and Venice before we move north to Austria.
-Chris
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