Hellos and goodbyes

The highlight of Mom and Dad's trip was meeting their Slovak pen pals for dinner at a Koliba. It's a traditional Slovak cottage. After exchanging emails for several weeks, they were eager to meet. Dad's partner Zdena arranged the festivities. Mom and Dad were treated to shots of slivovica, traditional foods, and live music. All of this lead to uncontrollable laughter and unforgettable memories.

Yesterday, we went to Bratislava. Matt arrived at noon! I still can't believe he's here. I'm a happy girl. After exploring Bratislava, the four of us went to a ballet. It was almost like Cinderella, except the ashy boy was rescued by a princess. Obviously, I like this twist.

Today, we had all of our baggage and no energy, so we went restaurant hopping! We went to three separate restaurants for hot chocolate and apple strudel, pizza and beer, and chocolate cake and tea. I know it's silly, but it was my favorite. I loved talking and laughing with my favorite people.

It was expectedly difficult to watch Mom and Dad grow smaller as our train left today. I'll miss them. I'll always remember Dad's energy. He wanted to be everywhere. Mom and I tried to keep up, and when we couldn't, we looked at each other and smiled. It was a very cold Christmas, but the memories will always make me feel warm.