Kate:
The tree and stockings are up, the carols are echoing through the air and the house is groaning with good food. Whatever age you are I can bet that you are excited for the morning; the wait is finally over and Christmas day is nearly here.
We walked from our hotel down to the source of the Danube earlier on today. Yesterday it took us taxis, train rides and a flight to get here, not to mention weeks of preparation. so to see where the two tribute rivers converge into the Danube was incredibly exciting.
We've wanted to get here for so long; over the past few months most days have somehow been connected to this moment, this journey. We are now packed and everything fits (including my emergency stash of chocolate and coffee). The clothes for tomorrow are laid out and we've even got a kettle ready for tea first thing (we had to ask, being English this need was dire and the staff here think we are crazy anyway). We are ready to go, to relate to the description above, the tinsel is twinkling.
But this doesn't mean it is going to be all smooth sailing over the coming days. The turkey may burn, the queen's speech could not quite live up to last years...just because we are ready doesn't mean it'll all go to plan. Its snowing quite hard and although the water isn't as scary as I thought it would be, we'll take these first few days as they come and deal with what ever challenges arise whilst basking in even the smallest of victories and achievements. I may face plant within five minutes of launching and camping sites could be harder to find than we thought but we'll be doing it and that's what really matters.
I guess that's what an adventure and Christmas are all about for me. You have to go with it and not plan every single moment. You can get your gear, loosely organise the first few days but then be open to all the little moments and new possibilities that rock up.
So here we go and I can't wait to see what small disasters and big fun adventures the coming few days bring.
