When this post went out, I was aboard a plane flying back to the United States after almost four weeks in Europe. This was the first real test of whether we can truly work from anywhere in this legal practice, and it has been a qualified success. There are some additions that will be needed (i.e. getting a portable monitor like I mentioned last week), but our deals have kept progressing and our long-term clients have had their legal needs met. A few other observations follow.

This was my first time in Europe in the spring. The mornings and evenings have required jackets of varying thickness, but that is preferable to the rising humidity and temperatures in the high 80s to which I am returning. It has been an ideal time to be here. I have noted the temperature ranges and may take steps to increase the number of days during the year when I am in such climates.

Being in Europe and working west coast hours is not viable for me. The nine-hour time difference has not meshed with my early rising. This has not been helped by a lack of blackout curtains in my accommodations. I’m not sure what the answer will be to this problem, but further experimentation will be required to find a solution that doesn’t leave me dragging through half of the afternoons during the week.

Eating out at every meal has been both blessing and curse. It has given me a better feel for these cities, yes, but it has also been a frequent reminder that most of this trip has been spent alone and has meant that my diet has not been as regimented as I prefer. I will tweak these protocols when I take my next sojourn.

In order not to sacrifice on location for my Airbnb rentals, I opted for private rooms instead of having an entire place to myself in both Vienna and Berlin. Neither one worked as I had hoped. Instead of gaining a guide, I felt more like an intruder living a parallel life under the same roof in both apartments. Having a place to myself will also help with the food issue as I am more comfortable cooking somewhere that isn’t someone else’s kitchen who is sitting in the living room.

Being with other people created the potential for greater enjoyment. Some of the more enjoyable meals on this trip were in busy Parisian cafes with colleagues. And my weekend in Berlin had the most variation and spontaneity of any weekend so far this year as I leaned into the activities on offer as I reconnected with an old friend. This took me to a family birthday celebration, a Kreuzberg bar, some great doner kebab, and a meetup with a group of people I wish I could meet again. It wasn’t that the activities were only possible in Berlin (though there are few places that do doner kebab as well as here where the food was invented), it was that I was thrown into groups of people who accepted and even embraced my presence, the sort of thing I have never managed without some help even in the English-speaking world. It has left me wondering about possibilities. I don’t plan to take any action on these thoughts immediately, but it has left me wondering.