Not All Trips Are Created Equal

Just got back from spending the weekend in Ireland (for St. Paddy's day, woot!), which is why I didn't post this weekend---again. And the exciting news I have to report is:

I didn't learn much about writing. At all.

Don't get me wrong, I had a great time. Cork is an incredible city, the locals are friendly and the company was good, but it didn't compare to my time in Cumbria, or even my afternoon at Windsor Castle, in helping me with my writing.

I'm not sure why I expected it to--perhaps that my European travels so far had been so helpful, or because Ireland has the reputation of being so magical, but other than developing a taste for stout (which in the long run will probably work its way into my writing somewhere or another), I didn't get much material.

Sort of a sobering omen as I gear up for my big three week extravaganza that begins on Sunday. However, just for fun, I'm going to write up odds for getting inspired in the various places I'm going to visit. It should be interesting to compare with the results in a month.

Rome--- 1:7 I mean c'mon, given a couple of scenes in my book, if I don't get anything out of the ruins of a civilization that had its heyday two thousand years ago I'm screwed.

Paris--- 1:2 Thinking mostly of Notre Dame and the catacombs below it here, but there's plenty in the city as well.

Frankfurt--- 3:1 A bit of a wildcard, but I can't think of anything there that seems particularly pertinent, plus I'll be pretty tired after Paris and Rome.

Garmisch (Germany)--- 1:2 Again, a bit of a wildcard, but it's in the mountains, and I seem to find those singularly inspiring.

Prague--- 1:2 Once again not entirely sure what I'll find, but I've heard great things, and I have high hopes for a new architectural style to work with.

Berlin--- 7:1 Not much time here, I've heard it's a very modern city, and I'm meeting a college friend here. Doesn't seem good.

Stockholm--- 1:5 One word for you---fjords. I've heard a lot about them, and now I'm going to see them, and the north coast of my world needs better description. You do the math.

One more thing occurred to me as I wrote this. I'm now much more likely to get inspired in all of the places with good odds because I have something in mind to look for as I go there. That may have been my failure with Ireland in the first place---I just didn't think through what I was likely to find there.