The Thiamine Tower

My brother and I flew to Rome. He had scored a recording contract overseas and needed travel to sign all the paperwork, and I went along for fun.

We stayed in a giant hotel on the third floor. The third floor was so immensely large, this huge expanse of carpets and furniture, that we couldn't find our way back to our suite and had to ask for help.

The next day we ascended to the top of a tall, narrow tower where my brother was to fill out his paperwork. As he signed his life away, I walked along the slightly crunchy tan tiles that lined the top of the tower, and noticed that a few were more crumbly and unstable than the others. Some tiles didn't hold my weight at all, and instead sunk a few inches down into the tower.

This was surprising, even though it was very clear to me (and my brother) that this tower was made of thiamine (also known as vitamin B1).