Backpacking through Europe in 1994
Day 61 • November 6, 1994
Århus, Denmark
My new friend Annette, who I met at the party the night before, invited me to stay with her for a few days. It was a little awkward at first — two strangers suddenly sharing space — but we quickly settled into an easy rhythm. We looked through my photographs, played backgammon, talked for hours, and before long the awkwardness faded.
We ended up having a really great time together. Unfortunately, I only have one picture of Annette, from the party the night we met, standing with her friend Trina. But I have my memories, and I have my journal from that time, so the moments of the time we shared are still with me.
Before your mind starts wandering too far, I’ll just tell you straight — we went to church together on Saturday night. And afterward, although the invitation was there to join her in bed, I slept in my sleeping bag on the couch.
My Photographs from today
Annette and Trina
At the party the night before, I met Annette (on the left) and her friend Trina. Annette and I hit it off right away. By the end of the evening she had invited me to stay with her for a few days while I was in Aarhus. Her easy smile and genuine warmth made the invitation feel completely natural.
DAY 61 / 11-06-94
Århus, Denmark
I left Pernille’s about 1:30 today, after saying our goodbyes I walked to where Annette lived. It was a little awkward at first, but we looked at pictures and played backgammon and talked and it became easier. At 5:00 we met her friend Trina and went to mass in the biggest church in Arhus. Of course it was in Danish so I didn’t understand any of it, but it was cool just looking at this huge building.
After that we got some pizza and then watched the movie Police Academy 4. A great drama there – I’m not surprised when people think Americans are morons after seeing shows like that.
I tried to call home one more time but there was still no answer. I was starting to get a little worried. Not worried-worried but worried-curious.
I decided to call Tracy. It turns out that Mom & Dad & Tammy had driven down to see her! But they were on their way back to Kearney. It was awesome to talk to Tracy again. After talking with her I feel it’s best the sooner I get home. My bills are mounting up, and it sounded like it would mean more to my family if I was home for Christmas than it would to anyone here.
Plus, I’m starting to get ready. I’m not homesick anymore, but two months of traveling is starting to wear on me.
And one of the biggest reasons I am so anxious to start developing and printing my pictures.
I gave Tracy the numbers of where I was and where I was going next.
A short time later I received a call – not from home, but from Gitte! I knew she was here in this town and I had left a message a few days earlier but had almost given up on her. But at the last minute she came through. We made plans for the next day.
Then Annette & I talked some more & I wrote some postcards before going to sleep.
Click the movie poster to watch the trailer for “Police Academy 4” on YouTube.
Looking back, I can’t believe I only took one photograph of Annette.
Looking back at that single picture from the party — the one where she’s standing with her friend Trina — I feel a real sense of regret. If this had happened today, I would have asked her to do a whole photo session, and invited her friend to join us. We had such an easy, fun connection, and she was incredibly kind to invite me to stay with her. I have a strong feeling she liked me - and I liked her too - and I know she wanted me to stay longer than I did. I wish I had more photos of her to remember that time.
That same evening, the three of us went to mass together in the largest cathedral in Aarhus. The entire service was in Danish, so I didn’t understand a single word. But sitting in that massive, old stone building, surrounded by people quietly participating in something much bigger than themselves, I felt something shift. Even without understanding the language, I sensed a kind of peace and order in the room. For the first time in a long while, I had the quiet thought that maybe there really was a God — and that maybe He was kinder and more loving than I had allowed myself to believe growing up.
Later that night I finally reached Tracy on the phone and learned that my parents and Tammy had been in Texas visiting her. That explained why no one had been answering at home. Talking to her felt grounding. It also made me start thinking seriously about heading back. My money was running low, my bills were piling up, and Christmas was getting closer. More than anything, I was starting to feel ready to develop and print all the film I had been carrying across Europe.
And then Gitte called. She was another exchange student who had spent her year in Kearney, where we first became friends. I had left her a message a few days earlier but had almost given up on hearing back. When she finally called and invited me to stay with her, it felt like a small but meaningful gift — another chance to reconnect with someone from that special time in my life, right when I needed it.