The year was 1974. August. Richard Nixon was still president -- for one more day.
I was driving from my assignment in Greece to a new one in the United Kingdom. But the night was mine.
My dinner companions, contacts for the past year, joined me in Vouliagmeni. We chose a new restaurant -- one with a deck overlooking the boat basin.
There was something that struck me as particularly special about that night.
I remember the sun setting over the gulf. But almost everything else has faded. Except for one strange fact. I remember the waiter bringing a bottle of water.
Funny. What was so memorable about that?
The next day I was on my way through Greece, Italy, and France to my new job. Gerald Ford was the new president. And before I reached the United Kingdom, two of my dining partners were dead.
Last Thursday my neighbor asked me to join him for dinner in Barra de Navidad. We sat on a balcony overlooking Navidad Bay.
We had a great conversation. Absolutely the best meal I have had in Mexico during the past four months.
As we were finishing dinner, the waiter brought a bottle of water to my neighbor. And that night 35 years ago played out in my mind.
I have no idea why. There were some similarities. But I had almost forgotten about the old memory.
I do know that both nights will be filed away together under the tab "great meals with friends." And I hope to be able to pull both of them out for many similar future nights.
I was driving from my assignment in Greece to a new one in the United Kingdom. But the night was mine.
My dinner companions, contacts for the past year, joined me in Vouliagmeni. We chose a new restaurant -- one with a deck overlooking the boat basin.
There was something that struck me as particularly special about that night.
I remember the sun setting over the gulf. But almost everything else has faded. Except for one strange fact. I remember the waiter bringing a bottle of water.
Funny. What was so memorable about that?
The next day I was on my way through Greece, Italy, and France to my new job. Gerald Ford was the new president. And before I reached the United Kingdom, two of my dining partners were dead.
Last Thursday my neighbor asked me to join him for dinner in Barra de Navidad. We sat on a balcony overlooking Navidad Bay.
We had a great conversation. Absolutely the best meal I have had in Mexico during the past four months.
As we were finishing dinner, the waiter brought a bottle of water to my neighbor. And that night 35 years ago played out in my mind.
I have no idea why. There were some similarities. But I had almost forgotten about the old memory.
I do know that both nights will be filed away together under the tab "great meals with friends." And I hope to be able to pull both of them out for many similar future nights.
