Back to Reality

I have arrived safely back in the USA and am currently re-acclimating to life in New York City. It will be a slight adjustment; there is no maid to clean my room, everyone can understand me so I need to watch what I say in public, and I now have to look for employment--I want to go back to Europe! Actually, I am only in New York for a few days and then I'm off to vegetate at my grandmother's before having to immerse myself back into city life. I've only been in NYC a day and it's already a little sensory overload; I'm looking forward to checking out in the northern woods for a month or so. I am of course happy to be back, but part of me already misses the adventure, and of course I'm sure I'm disappointing a few of you knowing that the blog entries will cease and we will all have to find someone else to live vicariously through. Such a bummer! Looking forward to seeing most of you over the coming months.

The final tally is 47 cities and 11 countries, not too shabby. There are of course several that I want to go back to and even more that I wish I could have seen--next time!

Thank you all for reading and keeping me entertained with the comments and emails. This truly was an amazing experience and I'm so glad I decided to take off on my little adventure. I hope the blog has encouraged each of you to go on a voyage of your own! Buen viaje.

Two pictures from our last night in Madrid...
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Birthday Wishes

I figured those of you who celebrate your birthdays in the summer probably suffered the same fate as me; no big party's as your friends were on vacation or you were on vacation with your family, and of course, you never got to bring cupcakes to school. I did not want anyone to feel left out anymore, so this is a special birthday wish for those of us who will be celebrating our birthdays later this summer. Happy Birthday ladies and gents!

June: James, Mary, Annie, Christina, and Sarah
July: Jimmy, Dad, Cortney, Drew, Staci, ME!!!
August: Tammy, Wellington, Justin, Harriet

And of course, Happy Father's Day to all of you father's out there. Love you dad!

Segovia

The whole reason this city even entered my brain was from reading a hotel review on tripadvisor.com. The city is beautiful and very reminiscent of Toledo, which I toured when I studied here and dragged Megan Walsh to when we backpacked. There's a castle, cathedral, and aqueduct, and I loved all three. The aqueduct was my favorite for its architectural feat, however the "true" castle was Erin's favorite. The castle had these really cool circular poles in the tower, which reminded me of the "amusement park" game I had as a kid (remember that girls? Mom and Dad still have it in my old closet, purple box and people with "key feet"). Anyways, the city was beautiful, everything in walking distance. The cathedral was absolutely massive, as seen in the pictures. There are 23 chapels in it, all are beautiful. The castle was so well kept that it looked fake. We climbed up the tower, which was 152 steps and I have to admit I needed to stretch my legs afterwards. My poor body needs a gym! We headed back to Madrid and enjoyed our last night with some locals, very entertaining, as the language barrier and slang can confuse even Americans. I love Spain, and am reminded every time I am here that I could live in this country. Who says I need to go back to the U.S. ha-ha.

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Capital of Spain

We've reached the center of Spain, finally! Arrived early afternoon and I must say I was impressed with the walking tour I provided Erin; and, I even saw a few things I hadn't noticed in my prior travels here. There's a beautiful catedral next to the Palacio Real (who knew) and the Parque del Retiro is splendid (outshines Central Park I must say). We even had time to visit the Museo del Prado before enjoying some cocktails at happy hour. A late dinner led us to a cafeteria that was lit up like courtyard during a prison break, very strange. To explain, we were in search of water and briefly peeked in the window and discovered that yes, indeed they had some. Before I could ask he handed me the water, I asked for una mas, which he provided, and then gave us a bag of candy that he had wrapped up. We can't figure out what on earth the candy was for, and no we didn't eat it, I left it on a ledge for some bum to enjoy, but it was the weirdest thing to receive. Oh, and while the hotel is very chic and nice, it could be the strangest place I've ever stayed in. I'm not in to this whole modern/new wave thing. Keep it classic.


Happy birthday to Diana!

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Cordoba

What I had not mentioned in regards to Malaga was that there was some religious parade going on in the city, we couldn't get a taxi at our hotel because when we left they were passing by, not to mention we were overwhelmed by the incense. Unfortunately, it followed us to Cordoba. The restaurant owners in the main square would not serve food until the parade had passed--I guess too many waiters wanted to watch all that went by. What was strange, they covered the streets in evergreen leaves. Still don't know what it was for, but we're hoping somebody enlightens us. Other than that. Cordoba is a lovely city. White-washed buildings in the old town, the people are very friendly, and the Catedral (aka Mezquita) is massive and very cool. It was fun to expose Erin to a typical coastal city in Spain and then to one of the small treasures in the center. She loved it, just like me, you turn a corner and can't believe how beautiful everything is. She's currently suffering from my sickness, falling in love with plates and bowls and buying them; and frankly, we're lucky we were able to get everything on the train. Getting home should be quit entertaining with all the breakables! But every time we use the dishes we'll always remember what a beautiful city Cordoba, Spain was!


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Malaga

What to say about Malaga. I spent a lot of time on the beach, as well as shopping. Too much shopping probably, but that’s part of the fun of being in a foreign country. I know when I go home I don’t have to worry about anybody having the same outfit! So life was pretty quiet until Erin arrived, lazy days for me. She was delayed out of NYC and missed her connection in London which caused her bags to go missing, but luckily she packed a change of clothes in her carry-on and the hotel provided toothbrushes! So, for her first night in Spain, off we went to walk down the main promenade and enjoy the atmosphere. Right off the bat the “Cowboy Statue” impersonator startled her (she jumped about 5 feet) as he pointed his “guns” (aka hands) in her direction, great entertainment for me though. We continued our walk, stopped in at a few different places sampling the wine and watching the world go by. We decided on a spot for dinner and the waiter talked us into the special for the night, a fish platter; we agreed and although didn’t enjoy having to stare at fish heads and eat around the bones, we weren’t disappointed. The evening became more interesting when a woman came up to us and started speaking in Spanish asking if we were done. Given the fact Erin and I were in mid conversation and I initially thought she was trying to peddle something I ignored her and then said, “No, no gracias.” Meaning no, leave us alone. Instead, she reached over the plate, grabbed some napkins and started taking the remaining fish, stopping of course to take a bite of one piece and then throw it back on the plate. We were both horrified. The waiters finally came out to shoo her away, and she began to leave, although at the last minute turned and grabbed a handful of olives that were next to me. It was crazy. We couldn’t believe it. The surrounding tables were staring at us, a few laughs, our waiter apologized, but we decided to ask for the check and vacate the area. I felt a little better when last night another bum asked the table next to us if he could have their leftovers (In Spain you do not take home the remaining food). At least he waited until the waiter cleared the plate from the table before scooping it into his plastic garbage bag. So, Malaga proved to be an exciting and lovely welcome to Spain for Erin. Ha-ha. Everything since has gone smoothly and she seems to really like the country. I didn’t fail.

Congratulations to Megan Walsh and Megan Sara on your engagements, very exciting news ladies!!!

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Me Encanta Espana

Translated, I love Spain. Most of you who know me well have heard me say that on more than one occasion. And while the past few days I’ve been telling most of you how anxious I am to get home, I do have afternoons like today when I realize how much I love this country. Granted, I could be a bit nostalgic given the two glasses of proseco I had with dinner or due to another great find in a pair of shoes (I’m currently wearing them in my hotel room to break them in), but I really do love Spain. There’s a lot to be said for their way of life. But, let’s start off with the highlight of my day. I did a 30-minute workout in my room b/c my body (aka my ass) is defying gravity as we speak…maybe 30 isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, or maybe it’s all the milkshakes I’ve been ordering because I feel I lack calcium (again, my excuses get better with each day). So, after a good sweat I finally vacated my room and started my shop-a-thon at, my favorite, El Corte Ingles—I did not buy lotion, I keep talking myself out of it, but I think I will have to cave before I leave, any extras, let me know (I realize only my family really understands my obsession with the lotion, I ask the rest of you to let it slide). I walked back to the main thoroughfare and while walking down the wide pedestrian promenade, I suddenly was whacked on the left side of my head. It startled me to say the least, and I can’t say it didn’t hurt a twinge. It took me a second to get my bearings and realize it wasn’t some kid running by swatting people, but rather a full on pigeon wing that side swiped me. How disgusting, and I somewhat wish there had been a camera because I was in such a startled state when I was hit. I kept touching my head expecting to find feathers. It was all I could do to not run home and wash my hair again. I had a flying rat hit me. Ugh! Finally, after all these years of dodging them, they got me! Needless to say, most of the afternoon was spent avoiding them. Shopping done (for today), I settled into a nice quiet plaza café; and unfortunately the children that soon joined the area found it entertaining to chase the pigeons, which kept them buzzing above my head for a couple hours. To combat the piegeon stress, I indulged on the best crepe I’ve had on my trip, Crete coming in second, and sadly, France last, I was very disappointed with the one I had in Avignon. And now, I’m breaking in my new shoes and tidying up my room for my friend’s arrival tomorrow. This being my last night on my own is somewhat sad as I know my trip is coming to an end (aka I have to go back to work at some point); and yet at the same time very exciting knowing that I get a stocked refrigerator and better yet, friends to share food and drink with. Don’t worry, plenty to update between now and then, I’m sure. Ms. Gilroy will be my American project in Spain, should be very entertaining!

And welcome to the world Mary (still waiting for the official name) Franklin. Congratulations to Aaron, Coree and big brother Perrin.

Costa del Sol

The drugs lasted long enough for me to get outside and I found a pharmacy on the way to the beach and got some allergy pills that work for me. I'm feeling fine now; thank you all for your care and concern, especially those of you who basically told me to shove it since I was laying on a beach instead of at work and you had no sympathy. Nice, real nice. lol. Soooo, today I lounged on the beach along Costa del Sol. It's nowhere near as pretty as Costa Blanca. The water isn't as clear and the beach is more pebbles and shells than sand. Nothing like the rocks in Nice, thankfully, but very small pebbles that stick to you like sand. It reminded me of the black sand beach in Santorini. Today was hot and there wasn't much of a breeze, but holy cow the water was freezing. I came up gasping for air each time I dunked my head. Refreshing at least, but quite chilly. I forgot to re-apply sunscreen early on, and while I'm not really sunburned, tomorrow will be spent shopping and walking around rather than on the beach. I'm getting good at my excuses to buy more shoes, don't' you think? Other than that, some of the shells on the beach were beautiful and they were the largest that I've seen on this trip. That's what I've been collecting along the way. Yes, I'm a dork, but they're easy to carry and who has shells from Ireland I ask you!

Sick Day

I guess I can't complain considering I've been traveling for three months and today was the first day I physically couldn't get out of bed. And, more importantly, I should be grateful it was due to allergies instead of some other foreign illness that my bag of tricks wouldn't have the cure for. What I don't get is how on earth our bodies can produce so much to keep our noses running throughout the day. I have gone through half a toilet paper roll because they only supplied me with a cute "travel" case of tissues. I decided to attempt to get some fresh air earlier today and ventured out to the roof deck for some sun (it was another gorgeous, sunny day here). I was on my own initially, but more and more people kept arriving, and I was too embarrassed to keep reaching for the toilet paper roll, so I went back to the comfort of my room where I could blow my nose in peace. By that point my nighttime cold medicine had kicked in (I seem to be immune to Clariten and all I have left is Tylenol cold p.m.), and for the next several hours I was in and out of consciousness, only coming too when I could no longer breathe. I guess that's a plus. I'm hoping the nighttime medicine works long enough to get me through tomorrow morning so I can buy some new allergy pills over here. So annoying.

Alicante, Spain

I revisited my old stomping grounds in Spain this weekend. I stayed with my friend Cecilia at her place in Campello, which is just outside of Alicante, where I studied in college. I met Cecilia through my friend Amy who lives in Michigan (some of you have met her), who I was in school with in Alicante, and she lived with Cecilia's family while studying there. Anyways, Cecilia and her boyfriend, Jose Luis, have a gorgeous place just off the beach and were kind enough to let me stay with them. After checking out Cecilia's office at the hospital and meeting some of her friends, she and her boyfriend took me out and treated me to a delicious typical Spanish lunch, the food was amazing and there was a lot of it. Things I would love to try to cook, but as Cecilia informed me, it never tastes the same at home. I indulged in a siesta on the beach and then we picked up Cecilia's 15-year old niece, Paula, and went out for a tour of downtown Alicante. It was pretty much just as I remembered it, which was nice. Took a walk down by the port, checked out the beach, enjoyed a typical Spanish dinner sampling different tapas. I still don't know what one of the items was, but I liked it, so I figure I just won't ask. It was a lot of fun to relive some of the memories I have of running around Alicante. It's a beautiful place, very touristy according to the Spaniards, but that's because the city center is so close to the beach. It's got the best of both worlds right next to each other. We took a quick tour of the castle the next morning, which I never went to when I studied there (great views of the city), and then walked around checking out the local markets and such. We finished up the afternoon stuffing ourselves with paella at a great place on the beach. Absolutely beautiful day. The weather has been amazing! It was a quick trip, as I flew out that night, but I loved every minute of it. We even got to make a surprise phone call to Amy, just to make her jealous (ha-ha, kidding Amy, we wish you were with us!).

A special thank-you to Cecilia, Jose Luis, and Paula, thank you so much for showing me around your city and treating me to a wonderful weekend. Can't wait to host you in New York!

Happy birthday Erin!

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Costa Blanca

I am now an expert on the Costa Blanca coastline, as Brian and Ann were kind enough to take me up and down this part of the Eastern coast, stopping here and there for coffee, cocktails, lunch, walks along the beach, shopping, and of course to check out historical sites that not many people know the meaning of (but the pictures look great!). The Eastern coastline is beautiful, the beaches were packed with people and the water looked ever so inviting. It was a lot of fun and best of all, during my stay Ann made her famous chicken curry for me. Delicious! And so nice to have a home cooked meal, a great treat. They live in a cute little village, complete will a bull ring (no longer used for bull fighting) and auditorium where some of their fellow retiree's practice their theatrical skills. It's a great place, and their friends that I met are so nice--I'm looking forward to retiring and living their life!

So, a special thank you to both Brian and Ann for feeding me and keeping my clean--I even got to do laundry, my last time for this task in Europe! Yippee!

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Valencia Pictures

Something else to look at to pass the time at work...

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Beautiful Valencia

In the Spanish alphabet the "V" is pronounced like a "B," just so you all know. I'm typing on a foreign keyboard again, so it will be a miracle if this gets published, especially since Ann just concocted me a nightcap which is currently waiting for me on the table below. Valencia is currently hosting the World Cup, where the winner will compete with America's champion. Lots of boats, the horizon during the day was beautiful. The city was like most of those, lots of shops, gorgeous, clear beaches. Big city though. I'm currently staying in Alcalali, between Valencia and Alicante. Ann and Brian are kind enough to be my hosts for the next few days....for those of you that have been reading along, Ann and Brian are Sarah's aunt and uncle who recently relocated to Spain from England and I met them in the South of France a short month ago. They live in a beautiful hacienda in the mountains, about 20 minutes from the sea. When I think of Spain, the area where they live is what I think of and the place that I love. Cool breezes on the veranda at night, beautiful sun during the day, romantic language to go along with it all. That's the Spain I fell in love with. They are my tour guides for the next few days and then I'm headed down to Alicante, where I studied in college. Meeting a friend there and then closing out my trip with a former colleague, which should be fun, help me get my tolerance back up in time for my summer family escapades, and I'm hoping she won't get me kicked out of any bars in Spain. I attended my first "quiz night" in Spain, which was a ton of fun. I was able to answer a few questions about the US, given that the locals were all brits, so I felt useful at least! The view on American intelligence in the South of Spain has been saved. ha-ha. I will update pictures at a later time, as I still need to figure out how to compress the files when I download. Ridiculous, but then again, I don't really have the time to look at the directions.

Happy birthday Christie!

Pics from Lagos

I finally had enough time to upload them.

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Lovely Lagos, Portugal

I love this tiny little village in the Algarve. Filled with beautiful beaches and these really cool cliffs, grottos, and SAND! I was so excited to walk on sand. Although the beach is filled with seashells, some of which have been broken to bits and can pinch your toes, but it’s not too bad. This sleepy little town reminds me a lot of Mexico. The white washed buildings are all 2, maybe 3 story’s tall and you can see the church bells cascading above them. The marina is never too far and everyone just seems so relaxed. I guess that’s what you can expect to find in a resort-town, but still, I love it. The weather was a little funky while I was here, overcast in the morning, sunny in the afternoon, but a chilly wind that was relentless. I guess last week they were experiencing hotter than normal temperatures, so this was a nice break, but I’ve been told the wind at least is usually a warm desert wind. I can’t complain I would rather have a slight chill than be sweating to death on the beach. And, this place has the best fresh squeezed orange juice I have ever tasted, it’s amazing. I don’t know what they do or don’t do to them, but I wish I could take some home. In other news, this sleepy little town has been quite busy lately. The little girl, Madeline McCann, who was abducted from her hotel room while sleeping; her family was staying about 10 minutes from Lagos. Not sure what kind of coverage this has received in the states, but it has been all over the news here, I first heard about it in France. Turns out a bunch of reporters were staying in my hotel, and since I’m traveling alone, I have been mistaken for one of them. I also had a women tell me she thought I was 22, I replied with, “I love you and you are my favorite person in the world.” I didn’t start putting eye cream on at 15 for nothing! I digress. Tonight I head over to my favorite country, Spain. Another overnight train, but thankfully this one is only 10 hours and most importantly I get a bed. I believe it will be a small compartment with 3 bunk beds on each side with just enough room between the two to turn around. My butt is just happy I won’t be sitting for that stretch of time. In the meantime I’m rationing my liquids as for some reason you are not allowed to use the WC on a Portuguese train while the train is at a station. Why, I’m not sure, but if everybody is trying to aim while the train is motion, you can imagine eventually some people miss. I prefer not to attempt it anymore at this point—oh to be a man at these moments! Anyways, my eventual destination tomorrow is Costa del Azahar, and I will continue to make my way further South, keeping on the beach, although I haven’t thought that far ahead yet. I’m shocked I haven’t woken up on a day where I have to check out and realized that I haven’t got a clue where I’m staying next. Lucky for me I’ve always remembered at least the night before. Let’s hope that trend continues. Hasta luego and buen viaje for all of you traveling today as well.

Happy early birthday (by a day) to Gary!

Will upload photos later as it´s taking forever and I have to catch a train!

La Comida

This is more of a rant than anything. I talk to myself enough as it is and I've realized it's getting a tad worse, as I now speak out loud to myself in public places. LOL. I catch myself for the most part, but still. So my question is, are shrimp shells edible? I mean if you cook them enough do the shells become soft enough to eat? I would say never, but it seems in Europe, if you order anything with shrimp, it's still in its shell, legs, feelers and all. Now maybe in the US we're spoiled, but I don't think so. It's not like I am ordering peel and eat shrimp either. Today was seafood rice, meaning it was in a sauce; peeling the shrimp with my fingers is out, and using a fork and knife to do it is next to impossible. They also left the crab leg in tact. What am I supposed to do with that? I tried to break it open and ended up spraying the table with the sauce. Not pretty. What's odd, the restaurant de-shelled the clams and mussels, two shellfish that are totally do-it-yourself compatible. So maybe that's it, the chef is lazy. Who knows. It makes me not want to order anything with shrimp and I love shrimp. I'm bummed because I was so looking forward to paella in Spain and I can't remember if they de-shell them or not. The begining of my dinner will provide entertainment for some of you....I sat down and shortly after getting settled in, I noticed there was an 8-legged "A" thing on the wall, which my table was next to. You would all be proud, as I did not scream, but rather moved the table away from the wall. I then contemplated taking my shoe off and smushing it, but there were other people present and I didn't think I'd get a good angle and I might lose it. Given the language barrier my waiter moved the oil and vinegar first, then the flower vase, (all the while I'm trying to get around him to crawl out of my chair for fear the thing goes the wrong way), and finally when I was pointing frantically to the wall and a safe distance away, he picked it up (it was very similar to a daddy-long-leg), handed it to another guy and out the door it went. They saved it, I'm sure that makes some of you (Andy) very happy. I'm probably going to have nightmares now and never get to sleep tonight. I need therapy, I know.

Portuguese

People say that Portuguese is close to Spanish, but I actually think it sounds like Russian. If I see the writing, I can make out what on earth I'm buying or eating, but listening, I got nothing. Currently in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. Big city, beautiful architecture surrounded by old castles, mountains, and the ocean. I've been reassured by several people (after I answer and say shhh, don't tell anyone I'm American), that Portugal is the end/begining of the world. Once you leave land there is only ocean between Portugal and America, and that makes us neighbors. I arrived via a God awful 14-hour overnight (sitting up) train from Biarritz. The train ride was rough, but after the crazy guy was carted off the train (he didn't have a ticket) at least there was some peace and quiet. I spent the last couple hours of the trip speaking (attempt at least) Spanish to my two remaining compartment mates, one Spanish, one Portuguese, both fantastic people. The people here have been so nice, although a weirdo greeted me on the corner today by trying to put his baseball cap on my head--very strange and ewe gross, luckily the traffic cop waved me past so I wouldn't have to stand there with him. Nice traffic cop. The wonderful thing about Lisbon is that the sidewalks are all made out of small stones. Do you know what the best thing about stone sidewalks is? Yes, of course it's much prettier than cement, but the best part is that it's slippery as hell! Any type of shoe, slips and slides without careful steps, foot after foot, strategically placed. I smacked a guy while flailing my arms trying to prevent myself from wiping out; luckily he was attempting to save me so I didn't feel like a complete jerk. Then of course I scared a poor girl when I slipped off the sidewalk (in front of a packed cafe mind you). For those of you that have played softball, sloshball or sailed with me, or really anything that might induce fear, if you remember, when scared I inhale deeply, which creates a squeak noise. Sometimes louder than others depending on the level of anxiety. This poor girl was in front of me when I slipped and squeaked, she reached out her arms to grab me and shrieked a bit herself, but luckily when my foot hit the safety of concrete, I was stabilized. I always laugh attempting to avoid embarrassment and remind myself that I will never see these people again, but my face still turns red from humiliation. I'm hoping my next stop in Portugal is full of cement, otherwise I'm going to have figure out how to put traction on all my shoes.

Biarritz

Located near the border of Spain in Northwestern France, Biarritz has been called a surfer's paradise, and the waves did not disappoint (as long as you had a wetsuit). A torrential downpour occurred upon my arrival late Monday night. The rain held off yesterday and the sun came out, but it was still chilly with the wind. Unfortunately I decided that today would be a better day for the beach, when instead, it was another excellent day for surfing, as the wind was fierce and it was colder and overcast. Still a fun city to be in. You can walk everywhere, which is nice and there are plenty of places to watch the surfers in action, whether inside or out. I opted for inside today, since the sun didn't peak out until around 5 p.m. The ocean here is dotted with these massive rocks, which reminds me a little of the beach in Monterosso; the beach here is bordered by beautiful cliffs, one of which has a cute little lighthouse looking out to the Atlantic. Needless to say the weather dashed my hopes of learning to surf, maybe mother nature was looking out for me! Biarritz will be known (to-date) as the city that hit my wallet the most, as without a warm beach to lay on, I shopped and shopped. Among my purchases is a new camera, which I hope to get set-up shortly and share a couple pictures of my current home. I'll add those later once I learn all the in's and out's of my new gadget. I never learned all there is to know about my last camera, so this should be a fun task. At least I have time to kill on a train, hopefully I can learn it all then.

A special note to my family...I'm sending positive thoughts and all my love to each and everyone of you from halfway around the world. I'm there beside you all in heart, mind, and soul.

Figured it out...
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Aix en Provence

Another very cute, quaint little town tucked away in Southern France, just North of Marseille. It's more of a wandering city, tons of little shops and places to perch outside and watch the world go by. Luckily, not too many photo ops since I don't have a camera; again, it's a city more for wandering and enjoying the town rather than sightseeing. Unfortunately, I chose to visit on a Sunday, when everything is closed. They had a very cool antique market lining the major pedestrian thoroughfare, and had I lived nearby or had the means to ship things, I could have done some damage. Lucky for my wallet--neither were true. So, after window shopping all I could, I sat down to read a magazine, people watch, and enjoy a glass of champagne on a lovely Sunday afternoon. The clouds took over eventually and the breeze turned from warm to cool, so I hightailed it back to the train station and made it home before any rain started. Hopefully it passes me by altogether. Headed for a few days on the beach tomorrow and looking forward to soaking up some sun.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you mother's out there! Love you mom.

Avignon

Lets start out the story with the train station experience in Marseille. I'm not sure which futbol (aka soccer) game was being played today, but the favorite team color in Marseille was light blue. The place was packed, absolutely crammed with soccer fans. I got to the station about 45 minutes early because I needed to book some tickets and was thoroughly entertained by the chanting and singing that broke out every 10 minutes or so, complete with air horns, pot smokers and beer drinkers, all before noon--I guess they too live by the rule, "it's 12 o'clock somewhere!" Of course, my train boarded the same time the riled fans did and as luck would have it, I was going against the crowd. I was only knocked sideways once, and saved by a suitcase and the guy I fell on; but, anytime I put my arm up to push or shove or balance myself, somebody grabbed it to "pump" my arm in the air to coincide with the chanting and singing. Quite comical to say the least. So after the struggle to the train, I took a quick trip over to Avignon, about 30 minutes outside of Marseille. It is a walled city and so quaint and cute, a great afternoon. Massive palace, that looked more like a castle, built by and for the Popes when Italy was experiencing some political unrest. Toured the inside and took in the views from the terraces. There is the grand cathedral, a bridge that had a song made about it, and a ton of little side streets to get lost on, which I did, but found my way in time to catch the bus back to the train station. Unfortunately, there are not too many pictures from this adorable place in France because my camera decided that it doesn't want to take photos anymore. Everything works except for the lens, all pictures are black. While my goal of course is to get a new one as soon as possible, I'm not sure when that will be. I'm hoping tomorrow or Tuesday at the latest. I'm still holding out hope that it just wants a break and will work in the morning (normally when it does this it works when I turn it back on, not so lucky today); so, I fear it's finally had enough--It's been a terrific travel companion for the past 4 years, so I can't complain!

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Marseille

Dubbed the meeting place of the world. It's quite a large city, second only to Paris, which I was not aware of. The people are friendly, the old port is loaded with boats (although nowhere near the standards of Cote d'Azur), the restaurants are plentiful and the people watching is fun, as always. I toured old town and the large basilica at the top of a peak, which stands guard over the city. Old town was cool but nothing too exciting; small windy streets where you have to hug the wall when a car drives by. I took a little trolley to both places, which was fun, although I may as well have tatooed "tourist" on my forehead. Who cares, I'll never see these people again! The basilica was fantastic, mainly for the view. The inside was very ornate and beautiful, the crypt was cool, but unfortunately blocked off, which messed up my picture. I feel like everything is under construction when I go. Jeez. The view of the city from the basilica was amazing, absolutely gorgeous! I could have spent hours up there making my way around. All in all though, I wasn't that impressed with the city and on future trips, would skip it. I should probably wait to post that until I've safely left the city. I've rented a small apartment this time around and while I'm enjoying the space (and again, the washing machine) it's not everything it's cracked up to be. I was looking forward to grocery shopping and curing some of my food cravings, but I forgot that the basic spices (like salt) are not supplied and it's not worth it to buy them for a few days (it's not like I'm doing tequila shots on a regular basis), so, I probably won't be doing this again. Lesson learned; I have to wait until I get home to experience the comforts of it. Life is so unfair. ha-ha.

P.S. Nobody ever buy Old El Paso pre-made queso or guacomole, it's just not worth it!

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Nice is Nice and Cannes too!

So I've been hanging out in Nice for the past week, taking day trips to Eze and Cannes. Eze to the East and Cannes to the West. Cannes was o.k., beaches, shopping, not too much different than Nice--although next week it will of course be pure mayhem with the film festival in town. My thorough enjoyment of Cannes came from checking out all the beautiful boats docked there...and my waiter took a liking to me and provided me with some free champagne and food, I guess I looked sad all by my lonesome. The champagne helped me sleep on the two-hour bus ride home, ridiculous! Traffic was awful and I was so worried I would have to pee, so I was glad to have slept right up until the end. Back to Nice. The beaches are pretty, water is gorgeous; but, the beach is made of rock, and not little pebbles, but ouch that hurts to walk on, rock. Yes, you leave cleaner, but it's not the most comfortable to lay on, there is always something stabbing you (Ms. Katz you were much younger when you were here), my body hates me. The water is still a bit chilly, but I have come to the conclusion that people are swimming in it because they fell into the water when a wave hit them because the rocks hurt their feet to bad to remain standing. At least that is what sped up my dip in the Mediterranean. There are pigeons here too...and I was attacked by one on my first day. It divebombed my face--I'm still not certain somebody didn't throw bread my way just to be funny. Luckily I had my face covered to block the sun so I wasn't clawed, but it scared me half to death. I hate those things. Let's see, what else....have I mentioned I think the US should introduce public toilets that you pay for? They are so much cleaner, I don't feel like there is some strange disease to avoid and I can actually breathe in them, fifty cents, that's all, so worth it. That's my soapbox for the day. I have enjoyed this city, but I'm looking forward to moving on to sandier places!

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Eze--The Scent Stays With You

The little town of Eze is situated about 20 minutes East of Nice. An absolutely beautiful place perched on top of a mountain. It's extremely small and can be toured easily in an afternoon. The main business that I found was the parfumerie, Fragamond. I did buy some perfume, which is lovely, but they must have sent me home with a scented card or something (which I cannot locate), because every time I'm in my room, I can smell it. I have no clue where it's coming from, not the scent of the perfume I bought and frankly, I'm not too keen on it. Luckily, I leave tomorrow and will hopefully not bring the scent with me. And no, it's not me. So my perfume experience was interesting. I figured I would go on a tour through the factory to see how the stuff is made. There was a group of college kids about to start and English tour, so they let me join that one. About 15 minutes into it I was bored to tears (my tour guide was not so good and the group was huge)--plus, it was a gorgeous day outside and I wanted to be part of it. I discovered a door on the opposite side of the factory that led outside to the parking lot and I could see the stairs to climb up to the old town, which is where I wanted to go; but, I couldn't get to it from my side, we were blocked. My group headed up one staircase and in the middle, it crossed the staircase which led to the other side of the factory, which had access to the door. Because I'm so smart, I thought I could easily hop over one side to other. Mind you, they were metal railings, not much to grab onto, and I was wearing a dress and didn't want to flash the stragglers in my group who could still see me. I almost thank God they were still there since I was so concerned about being humiliated, it was the only thing that kept me upright. My "hop" was not so graceful and I think I pulled a muscle in my arm while trying to prevent myself from falling smack on my face (and of course then rolling down the cement stairs). Not pretty, but I made it and quickly ran out the door, across the parking lot to the stairs up to old town in order to get out of sight of my tour group, never having to see them again! The old town was absolutely beautiful. All these small windy stone streets. The views across the ocean and mountains were so picturesque. A fun place to go see and glad I returned unscathed.

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Election Night

For those of you not living in France (or visiting), you might have missed the news today that Sarkozy, from the conservative party, beat Royal, from the socialist party, and is the president-elect of France. CNN is the only English speaking TV station and since I’m in France, I’ve been watching the coverage now for over two hours. Same speeches, over and over again, can we move on please? Now, Royal had said that riots would break out if Sarkozy won. I, being in Nice, a beautiful coastal city, was obviously naïve to think my little town would be unaffected. It started right after the announcement that Sarkozy won, cars honking their horns, cheers in the street, etc. However, apparently I am currently staying in the center of it all, as a huge crowd gathered right below my balcony on the street, there was a lot of yelling (more women this time so I figured it was an attempt to stop a fight), sure enough fighting started. A few cops showed up and the group began to slowly disperse. Then, the paddywagon showed up and out of all available doors of the van, 10 cops jumped out, batons in hand, ready to kick some ass. They guarded the intersection and when I stuck my head out the balcony, I could see that the dispersed police were finally getting everyone in their cars. There is still a large crowd down the street, gossiping about the recent events I’m sure. I have a feeling I won’t get much sleep tonight. I should have kept the ear plugs. Crazy French.

Cote d'Azur

I survived the long weekend with the adults. ha-ha. Actually, what I survived was Larry's driving a stick shift van with crazy Frenchman veering all over the place. We stalled, a few times, there were some four letter words dropped, but all in all, it provided good entertainment. Thank God for roundabouts. We even managed to get 6 people with luggage smushed into the car so they could take me back to Nice with them. Very appreciative for the squish ladies! I had a great time with Larry, Gretel, Peg, Ann, Brian, Angie, and Stan. The van load picked me up at the train station in Monaco/Monte Carlo and we toured the city by getting lost, which is the best way if you ask me. Larry and I climbed up to the castle in Monaco and toured the gardens, which were nice. Lunch in Monte Carlo and then we headed back to Grimaud, where we were staying. The weather took a turn after that and it poured all day Thursday, but I can't complain, as the "rain day" provided me with the perfect opportunity to do all my laundry. That's a very exciting thing for me nowadays; don't I live an exciting life? The weather gods were kind enough to stop the rain while we toured St. Tropez. Angie assured us of its beauty, even though the clouds and gray sky tried to hide it. I missed out on making daquiris, as Larry and Brian drank most of the rum upon their arrival...our quest to find more Bacardi was unsuccessful, next time.

A huge thank-you to Larry and Gretel for inviting me along on their vacation, and treating me as one of their own; to Peg, Ann, Brian, Angie and Stan for letting me crash the vacation; and to Angie and Stan for opening up your home (and washing machine) to me. I had a lovely time.

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Halfway Point

For those living vicariously through me….my life will become somewhat less interesting I feel from here on out. I have tired of the big cities and am sticking to the coast line (it’s warm and sunny why should I veer off). Needless to say, I doubt I will update every day, but who knows, interacting more with the locals could provide even better entertainment than my own daily findings. I am meeting some Texans tomorrow in the South of France; the Smith’s (Sarah’s parents) complete with Grandma Smith and of course Larry and Gretel. Larry is expecting daiquiris (as always) and I’m hoping Gretel doesn’t get us kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo! Will be a ton of fun to be an adopted daughter for a few days and I’m looking forward to hearing Larry’s southern twang…I’ve been away from the South for far too long and am looking forward to getting back to my roots in early fall. As I’ve reached the 2-month mark, I thought I would note the tally to-date, 22 cities and 9 countries. Not too shabby. From what started as a trip that I thought would take forever, I find that in my last two months, I do not have the time to see and do all that I want and I wish I could stay. Not that I don’t miss you all back home and look forward to chatting over drinks and dinner upon my return, but I wish even more that the rendezvous could take place over here so you each could experience my current "fabulous life." Don’t hate me because I’m on vacation! Lol.

Happy early birthday to Coree!

Animal Farm

I’m currently stationed in San Remo, Italy, right on the Italian/French border. Lovely little town, from what I’ve seen of it. I got in late yesterday afternoon and didn’t meander from the hotel given the fact I lucked out with a balcony looking out over the ocean. Today I hit the beach, hopefully I didn’t get too much sun, we shall see once I get in front of a mirror. You have to have a card for the electricity to work and the cleaning man took mine. Luckily, the sun hasn’t completely set, so I have light in the main room, but not the bathroom. The town sort of reminds me of Galveston, which makes it sound awful, but it’s not. Palm trees everywhere, big strand along the ocean, all these little beaches. My room has a little kitchenette and there’s another bedroom with two bunkbeds-I guess that’s what really reminds me of Galveston. In regards to the animal farm, I currently hear birds chirping and dogs barking. Last night however, it was the frogs first, then the dog howling, then the cat fight in the street. You would think with my ability to tune out ambulance, police and fire sirens, taxi horns, and drunken locals, I would be fine; but, apparently I now find nature difficult to sleep in. Oh the joys of the little things New York does to you. Tonight is my last night in Italia and I’m ready to leave. The country has been great but I think I’m ready for a new language…and more importantly to move closer to the one I can actually speak! Ciao, Ciao.

I didn’t take many pictures…as I was on the beach all day.
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Cable Cars

Today my adventure was to hop on the cable car and venture up 1385 meters to Mottarone, at the top of the mountain overlooking Stresa. I took a lot of pictures that probably look repetitive, but that's because I could never get a shot that I thought gave the view justice. The ride up wasn't so bad--even for those of you afraid of heights, just stand in the middle. I only lost my stomach once. When you pass the cable poles there is a swinging motion that occurs. There were two kids in with me on the ride up who kept yelling "whoooaaaa" every time we passed one. Pretty funny. If anyone makes it here and goes for the cable ride, I suggest bringing a blanket and packing a picnic lunch. When you get to the top of the mountain, you can walk/hike (I did it in flip flops, it's not that bad), to the very top and there is plenty of room to cop a squat and enjoy the view. It's beautiful, and again, the pictures don't do it justice. I stopped in Alpino, the halfway point, on the way down. They have a beautiful botanical garden, with scenic lookout points as well. Unfortunately, by that point my allergies were torturing me, so I enjoyed the view and headed for sea level. I did make a pit stop in the "toilet" and had to laugh because, as is common, it's just a hole in the ground; but, to make it entertaining (at least to me) there was a sign in four languages asking you to "please hit your mark." Maybe they could elevate the hole just a tad for the ladies so it's not an aerobic exercise to stand back up. Just a thought. Tomorrow I head for the Italian Riviera, San Remo, I have decided to leave, although definitely plan to come back at some point, as this place is worth visiting over and over again. Ciao.

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Isola Bella

Did I mention I’m never leaving this place? So there are three small islands on Lake Maggiore, one of which, Isola Bella, I visited today. Forget the villa; I want to live in a palace. And I don’t even need the palace; I just want access to the gardens. Absolutely amazing. Such a beautiful sight and so full of color, I walked around in them for what seemed like hours. The sights from the island are even more beautiful than from the shores of the mainland. I have fallen in love with this place and will leave behind a small piece of my heart if and when I ever leave. It’s amazing and I recommend a trip here to anyone. Skip the coast and head for the lakes. There are white peacocks in the gardens of Isola Bella. This provided some entertainment late in the afternoon, as the peacocks had yet to show their feathers. When they finally did it was a mad dash to capture a photo. I can’t make too much fun because I too got caught up in all the hoopla and managed to get a couple great shots. They are very beautiful birds, and mix so well with their surroundings. To end my day, I hopped on the boat back to the mainland and parked myself at a bar/disco/restaurant right on the water. I wish I could have hooked my eyes up to a TV. or something to project a live feed of the view. I had the water washing up about 20 feet from me, the sun slowly setting behind the mountains to my left, which were specked with villas overlooking the lake, the mountains directly in front of me were glimmering from the setting sun, and Isola Madre (another island in the lake) was lit up, as the sun was directly upon it. Not to mention all the boats dotted across my view coming in for the day. I couldn’t have asked for a better ending. When the sun finally disappeared, I grabbed my sweater and meandered along the water towards my hotel. Days like today bring such a smile to my face and really make me thankful that I pulled the trigger and decided to embark on this adventure.

O.K. and to top it all off, there were just fireworks outside my room. My favorite!

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Milano

I was so geared up about Lake Maggiore, I completely forgot about Milan. Milan reminds me of New York, just on a slightly smaller scale and not quite as go,go,go. The buildings are older and therefore more beautiful (in my mind), it’s not in a grid, so it’s easy to get lost (or walk in beautiful circles discovering new things along the way), it’s not as dirty but it’s no Chicago, and the shopping is great—if you find the right stores, otherwise it’s ridiculously expensive. I think I might be a bit tipsy. Anyways, it’s a great city; I enjoyed walking around in it, but was just as happy to leave. I did walk in the Duomo, which was beautiful. Unfortunately the exterior is being refinished, so I couldn’t capture the amazing spires out front, but I did my best. The church was massive, large stone pillars, ceilings that reached up to the sky, and beautiful stained glass windows. I’ve decided that’s what I like best about most churches, the stained glass, such an amazing talent to have, I can’t even imagine putting something that elaborate together. Needless to say, I felt right at home—there were even white fuzzies floating around the city, which seems to happen every spring in New York, specifically to wreak havoc on everyone’s allergies, and the one drug I forgot for my journey—allergy pills. I’m hoping the fresh mountain air will cure the sneezing. And for today's local entertainment..at breakfast, I was seated next to this nice older Indian gentleman who would like to meet for a drink when he’s in New York, or would be happy to be my tour guide when I visit India—he suggests next year, he’s in the shoe business, that must be his line with all the women! Then, while enjoying my foccacia outside the duomo, a nice Greek decided to chat with me. I often try to pretend I do not speak the language they are, but ineviditably, they dumb look I give oozes English, so I’m caught. Lucky for me, he wanted to have a drink in Milan and my train was leaving in 45 minutes and I would not be returning. I ask; where is George when I need him to be my man repelent? Kidding (maybe).


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Lake Maggiore

I have died and gone to heaven. Stresa, perched in the middle of Lake Maggiore in Northwestern Italy, it’s amazing, absolutely beautiful. I wanted to pinch myself after arriving here. My hotel is right on the lake, I have a balcony and my view is North, looking out to the mountains. To describe my current state of affairs, I am sitting on my balcony, slight chill in the air and I’m wrapped in my favorite new sweater purchase from Milan, I can see the silhouette of the mountains in the background, as the half-moon is now just over head and casts enough light to make them out. There is a bottle of chianti to my right and my glass is ever so close to my hand! I wish I could say there were birds, or just silence, but I think the dishwasher is stationed three floors below, so every often I hear plates and silverware clanging, not too bad though, doesn’t take away from it, that’s for sure (maybe the wine helps). Aside from that…I have found a place I may never leave, especially if I could secure one of the many villas lining the lake. I think I have found my “Under the Tuscan Sun” situation. Wow. I haven’t even toured around yet, but I could walk along the flowers and the trees along the lake forever. I plan on venturing off to discover the three islands on the lake tomorrow, then I’m not too sure, if it’s nice, maybe I’ll attempt a tan, although the outdoor swimming pool is empty and I would feel a little strange laying out next to an empty pool. I haven’t completely lost my mind; at least not yet.

Venice Pics

Here they are...and oh my God, it's almost May! When did that happen? Time has flown by.

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More Canals

Venezia...island of canals, does that even make sense? Meg and I were only here for a day trip in 2001, which also consisted of a 7 a.m. stint in the local washateria to dry our clothes. Very quick and didn't get to see enough. Lucky for me the weather was beautiful, got to hang out in a sundress even....I'm loving the sun! Thankfully, the warm weather hasn't been here for long, so it doesn't smell too bad, every so often, you'd pass through an area that kind of knocked you back for a second; I can handle that--NYC in August isn't any better. I love Venice. Getting lost on all the tiny streets, the gondola men all dressed up in their stripes and scarves, and the people are so fun. Had dinner at a great place I stumbled across and the waiter was kind enough to give me a ride back to St. Mark's in his boat (married, with two children-mr. and miss incredible, very safe); such a cool experience to be on the water at night and getting a guided tour of the lit up buildings of Venice. I did a lot of browsing and bought a few glass jewelry pieces that I love (found a replacement glass ring for the one I broke--YEAH!). I met an older couple from California while waiting in line for the ATM, they weren't too impressed with the place, didn't see what all the fuss was about. It took all my effort to nod and delicately suggest where they should go--how could anyone not fall in love with a city like this. It's so cool! No cars, you're only dodging pigeons in the main square (which seem to be a tourist attraction in and of themselves, vendors sell packets of corn to tourists so that the pigeons flock and land on you and then you have a friend take your picture. With pigeons! These aren't doves people, they're flying rats...they've been eating garbage who knows what else and now they are crawling and pecking at your hands and arms, dirty, dirty. Ewe.). I digress. Anyways, it's a maze nobody is afraid to get lost in, that's what you are supposed to do, even the locals don't know their way around completely; and then while meandering the streets you get to cross over these little bridges that connect one side to the next--you can stop and smile at the gondola riders below, or just check out the locals boating around. It's so much fun, highly recommend a trip here for everyone. I enjoyed it so much. Off to Milan next and then I'm meeting up with George in Lake Como. ha-ha! ;)

I have pictures to post, but no time to do so right now. Will do tomorrow morning before heading off. P.S. Meg--As I was wandering the city streets, I found the restaurant we ate at. So funny, it was outside, but on a covered patio, slightly lifted off the ground, with a black iron fence that surround the tables, remember it at all? I walked around a building and saw it and immediately had a flashback. Too funny.

The Cretans

I spent a fabulous week in Crete, Greece. The winds were much warmer than they were in Copenhagen, and although it wasn’t ideal beach weather the whole time, I was able to enjoy a couple days basking in the sun, albeit slightly bundled. Crete was beautiful, I had no idea it was so mountainous. I don’t remember if Santorini was like that or not. The roads driving through the mountains in Crete were a little frightening in some spots. There are few if any guardrails and the roads edge is most of the time a drop off into a ravine. Like the rest of Europe, the Cretans drive like crazy people, passing around curves, flying down the windy roads, there’s one curve where you can see cars that have flipped over the edge, lying in the brush, scaring all the passengers that this could be their fate. My week consisted of beach hopping, my favorite being Falasarna. The water was beautiful, sun was shining, and the only problem was the wind, although I guess I should be grateful for the free microdermabrasion treatment that I received, ouch. We also took a girls trip over to the East side of the island. Checked out the palace ruins in Knossos, the beach, the rocks, and the champagne in Hersonisis, and then headed back West to take a sightseeing trip to the Samaria Gorge. Unfortunately, the gorge was still closed for the winter, so we were unable to do the 11-mile hike down into it; that is on the list for next time! All in all, I met some great people, enjoyed gorgeous views and sunsets, and gorged myself on some fantastic food. I must say though, after a week of Greek food, I was done, although I did get to try a lot of stuff I had never even heard of before, so that was nice (and tasty) but I’m looking forward to some pasta and pizza in Venice.

Thank you so much to Cortney, Ken, and Echo for your hospitality, it was so nice to be in a home; I did a gazillion loads of laundry, but more importantly, got to eat some queso and make a black bean burrito! That should hopefully cure my Mexican fix for a month!

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Kobenhaven

The parks in Copenhagen are absolutely beautiful! Amazing the trees, flowers, lakes, everything, smack dab in the middle of this huge city. They are gorgeous. My one complaint, there is nowhere to simply grab a sandwich here. It's a little strange. Unless of course I wanted to try my luck at the many 7-11's around, which I didn't. Everything was sit down, I just wanted to grab something quick to take to the park. Oh well. So day one was a little overcast and I woke up exhausted, staring at my suitcase and the "cold" outside and thought...I don't want to play today. So, I walked around a little bit and called it an early night to attend to my book, which I had forgotten about while in Sweden. Today was sunny and warm enough to enjoy--no scarf, which was the best part. Like every other city so far, Copenhagen has some beautiful historic buildings, I didn't get to go to Tivoli Gardens, the amusement park, because it wasn't supposed to be open, although by the time I got home tonight, I realized they opened today--oh well, no roller coasters for me. I've enjoyed it and would definitely recommend a visit, although I'm sure the summer months are much more enjoyable. I'm so ready for some sun and beach time, I can't even tell you. Just to shed a layer of clothing, go on a hike and freaking break a sweat and not freeze...how exciting does that sound! :) So I fly to Crete tomorrow, where I will be "docked" for an entire week--complete with washing machine, kitchen, car, and even a dog! I'll be domesticated again and won't know what to do with myself!!! On that note, I'm not sure what the internet availability will be, or how often I will get to update; but, I'll take excellent notes from my adventures and post when I can. Just don't worry if it's a few days--I'm just baking on the beach.

Since I didn't update yesterday (April 10), happy belated birthday to Scott!

Side note, who knew that George Michael was still touring...he's playing in Sweden the end of April; damn, I should have postponed my trip! lol

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Swedish Fish

Easter weekend in Stockholm was non-stop, bar-hopping. It seemed that when we asked the locals what to do, they pointed to a cocktail and said you're looking at it. We did tour around the city and get to see some great buildings and cute areas. Friday the sun was out, so we went and had a late lunch at an outdoor bar, sun shining, sunglasses on, and suddenly things started falling around us. We covered our beer, then we realized it was snow, we ended up staying outside a little longer, wrapping ourselves in blankets. That was the strange thing, all the bars with outdoor space had blankets to keep everyone warm. Stockholm is beautiful though, I thought. All these small towns separated by water, small bridges connecting each one to the next. Obviously an old Viking town, which showed in the decorations on the buildings, the statues, the bridges, it was really cool. We walked by city hall and it was an amazing setting, right on the water, steps that led right down to it, no barriers, just beautiful. We ventured to Ice Bar on Sunday, it's made completely of ice, the bar, the couch, the cocktail tables, the walls, even the glasses you drink out of, all ice. You get 45 minutes in there, they give you these parkas, with furred hoods and heavy gloves. It actually didn't seem too cold, but by the end my toes and fingers were forzen (from holding my ice glass of course). It was fun though, the pictures turned out great, and it was a cool thing to be a part of for a brief period of time! All in all, I would venture back to Sweden, although in the summer months!

And...Happy birthday Tina!

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Train Travel

Just a quick side note. I took a train from Hamburg, Germany today, ending up in Stockholm, Sweden (all day pretty much and I had to switch trains in Copehagen). So, I had fallen asleep for the first leg of the trek, and woke up thinking we were at a train station. I was surrounded by white metal to the right, and we kept moving from side to side--swaying. I then looked to my left and realized there was a motor home...it took me a little while, but I finally realized that my train had docked on a ferry to cross over into Denmark. Who knew trains could do that! Needless to say, the water was very rough and I'm still feeling the after effects of the swaying, like I just spent the day at waterworld...maybe it's just the wine? Don't think so. I'm just glad I don't have to do that again, very nerve wracking being confined in a train in a ferry hall. But, at the same time very cool, so I thought I would share. Those suffering from motion sickness should not attempt.

Hamburger

So today I spent the day in Hamburg. It’s a small town, one that I wasn’t too sure about at first, as my hotel, which is clean and basic, is sandwiched between two sex shops. So, initially I didn’t think there was a lot to offer. Not to mention that the shops around me sell hookahs and sequined slippers; but, I’m 300 meters from the train station, which will come in handy with my bag of rocks tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. As I began my tour through Hamburg, right after crossing over to “the other side of the tracks,” I was extremely pleased with the city. It’s the largest (or was, I threw that page away already) port city in Germany. There are rivers everywhere, which aren’t clogged with run down house boats or tours, like Amsterdam. They have done a great job combining waterways with plenty of outdoor space, which makes the city very unique. In the main center square, Rathaus Market, you can step right down next to the water, feed some swans, ducks, or flying rats (aka pigeons), and it’s lovely. The shopping is great (more shoes) and again, there are a ton of outdoor cafes. The only unfortunate thing, they have not outlawed smoking in restaurants. I feel like everybody smokes here. My nose burns from all the smoke I’ve been breathing in, yuck! New York has spoiled me. A bar, o.k., but a restaurant, not so keen on. Anyways. I’m on a train all day tomorrow, headed to Stockholm for Easter weekend. In addition, I will be celebrating my sisters 24th birthday with her, which will be fun, since I don’t think I’ve been around for it since she was 13. No better time than the present! Other than that, I’m headed to Crete next week and I am looking forward to warmer weather—and more importantly, wearing flip flops. My feet hate me…too much walking on cobblestones in confined shoes! Happy Easter!

And I can’t forget…Happy birthday to Berto (April 5th) and Courtney and Ray (April 6th)

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Berlin

As I previously stated, I love Berlin. It is such a cool city. Yesterday however, a cold front blew through in the middle of my walking tour and froze everybody out. The strangest thing happened in the beginning of the tour though, we were walking up to one of the museums and this guy approached me, asked me if I was on a train from Paris to BVA airport a few weeks ago, I said yes, he said o.k., I would like to wish you a nice day. He did a little bow and left. I realized after thinking about it that he was sitting diagonally across the row from me on that train. What a small world…I’ve been to Ireland, London, and Amsterdam since then, and I randomly run into somebody in Berlin that was on my train in Paris. And no, he’s not stalking me, he had every opportunity to try to talk to me and he politely wished me a good day and left. He was a very nice, gentleman. Anyways, just proves that you never know who you will bump into. So, last night I attempted to go to the Reichstag Building, which has this sphere that offers a great view of the city. It was over an hour wait, and in the cold (I already couldn’t feel my fingers), so I opted for pretty pictures of the building, and then got my ass up early this morning (7 a.m.) and beat the crowds. I bet the view is prettier at night with all the lights, but I was glad I made it up there. The other two cool monuments were the memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe,and then the empty library representing all the books the nazi’s burned. In the pictures it’s hard to see the empty bookshelves, but I did my best.

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I love Berlin

I caught an early train to Berlin and arrived this afternoon. I walked around for a little bit, dragging my computer, and I'm now sitting outside at a cafe near the Sony Center, drinking proseco and people watching (I feel like such a nerd with my computer). The area is beautiful, all these new buildings, they did a great job. Not sure if I'll have time to post tomorrow, as I have a tour and a whole list of things to do, and I'm on the early train to Hamburg on Wednesday. All I have to say is this city is amazing. It's so cool, the architecture is fantastic, again, tons of outdoor space. I absolutely love it. Will post pictures, etc. on Wednesday.

In which case, happy early birthday Carrie (I'll leave out your age;)--love you!

Eau de Cologne

Today was a tour through Cologne and it was definitely a tour! I walked more today than I think I have this entire trip. My feet are rejecting me and although it’s a tad to cold and I’m in need of a pedicure, I may just sport the flip flops tomorrow. My luck though I’ll run over my toes with my suitcase which seems to increase in weight each time I re-pack. It’s like I’m stealing lamps or something. Anyways, Cologne is still a city full of cobbled streets and old buildings surrounded by mega stores. The claim to fame here is the Dom, Germany’s greatest cathedral, high gothic style built over the course of six centuries. I think I took 10 pictures of the exterior and wasn’t satisfied with any of them because it looked fake. It looks fake staring at it. It’s amazing and absolutely enormous. The stone has blackened which only adds to its surrealness. I climbed 509 steps to the Sudturm tower and although the views weren’t as pretty as Wurzburg, the interior of the tower was amazing. You can stop by the bell tower while you are up there as well; it houses one main bell, and 5 smaller ones. The mechanisms to ring them all looked so intricate; however, I was glad they weren’t able to ring while staring at them. I believe I would have lost all hearing capabilities. I did stop by house #4711, which was the house of origin for Eau de Cologne, which earned the town worldwide recognition. Unfortunately it was closed, so I didn’t get to see the fountain flowing with scented water. Oh well. My final stop was the Schokoladenmuseum, which is “willy wonka made real.” It’s the Lindt chocolate factory/museum. It was actually very cool to see the production line in action, filling the square molds, shaking them into place, wrapping the squares, finishing off the truffles with the chocolate drizzle, and of course, how they make the hollow chocolate treats. Very enjoyable, and I was able to taste a sample from the chocolate fountain. It was an action packed day and very exhausting. I’m looking forward to sleeping tonight.

Since you all will be reading this on Monday—Happy birthday Megan! Welcome to your late 20’s. lol

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Fuzzy Wuz

Today was a spectacular day! Especially since yesterday wasn’t that great. At the suggestion of my friend Christina, I took a day trip to Wurzburg, Germany. It was so much fun! The town is so pretty. The buildings all seem to be Romanesque or Gothic and it was really neat to walk from one shop to the next (which caused me to buy a pair of shoes—and I wonder why I can’t lift my bag) and then all of the sudden there was another huge gothic structure in front of you. The colors also seemed to jump out at you, although today was overcast without a hint of the sun, so I feel like all the pictures came out dark. Oh well. The main sight to see (at least for me) is the Fortress Marienberg, which is on top of a hill surrounded by what appears to be grape vines. The hike up to the top meanders through the vines and the best part was looking back at the city. What you don’t realize while you are walking around the historical structures is that none of the buildings surrounding them are as high. So, the coolest part of the climb was that you are basically eye-level with all the towers, spires and domes, they all just stick out above everything else. I got some great pictures! I absolutely loved it. For some reason it reminded me of Mary Poppins—when they are on the rooftop, I don’t know, thoughts? Another highlight of my day was that I got lost while trying to navigate the streets with my limited German vocabulary, and I happened across a Mexican restaurant—I stayed safe and ordered nachos (you can’t really screw those up) and a margarita, which actually wasn’t bad at all. So, hopefully that cured my Mexican cravings for awhile—at least until I can get close with Spanish food! Oh yeah, and I made some friends today, you can check them out in my pictures (I might be losing it, but maybe it’s “my gnome” for Europe). ;) And…cheers to the completion of my first month abroad, 12 cities in 6 countries and still looking forward to more!

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Hotels

So I feel they keep getting weirder (is that a word even?). We stayed at a farm one night in Ireland and you had to pull a switch “on” to get the water to come out of the shower, mine never had hot water and then stopped completely after about 5 minutes. I gave up and went downstairs to another room. Amsterdam didn’t have a shower curtain, everything was stone, so it dried…but what about all my stuff on the shelf that I didn’t want to get wet? The minibar was weighted—so if I picked anything up (or God forbid accidentally knock it over), I was charged. I cordoned off the area to ensure no accidents happened, my luck I’d take out a 6-pack and not even enjoy it. Then, there’s no top sheet, just the bottom sheet and then a comforter. This trend continued to Cologne. So basically, if anybody sweats, that’s what I’m sleeping with? They don’t wash the comforter after each guest, I wouldn’t think. The top sheet was always my safety net from germs. The other strange thing in my current abode, I guess I have an alarm, once I get into the room I have to put my key into another slot to get the buzzing to stop. I guess it’s a good safety feature, but it freaks me out every time, like I’ve just been caught red-handed. My favorite part though…they left fruit snacks on my pillow to welcome me…they are shaped like sheep and the package has pictures of sheep with numbers on them. How cute is that! O.K., maybe I need some sleep.

Amsterdam--Check

I guess I should have mentioned exactly what I have been doing in Amsterdam. I did explore Vondelpark, the Van Gogh museum, and all the old churches. I think my favorite sight may have been the flower market. It was so pretty, and I was amazed at some of the flowers, I had no idea some looked like onions before planted. So today I finished up my to-do list with a canal boat ride. Today was overcast, damp, and there was a chill in the air, so being enclosed in a boat for an hour was nice. It was fun, interesting, I got to see several bike parks, or storage areas for the bikes. I looked it up, in a city with approximately 738K people, there are about 600K bikes. That's insane is all I have to say. I fell in love with a falafel place on the corner, I've never had it before, but the lines were ridiculous so I figured I had to try it. I've now had it three times and will miss it once I move on. Who knew. Now the rest of my evening will be spent trying to pack and shove my belongings into my suitcase. I'm not adding anything, but somehow everything keeps getting heavier. Ugh

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Red Light Green Light Go

Another beautiful day in Amsterdam. It's a very interesting city. There is beautiful architecture and then not so, the canals are cool, but similar to Venice, dirty, the exterior of the historic buildings are filled with souvenir shops--I don't know, it's a little weird. I like it though. There are so many outdoor cafes and restaurants it's ridiculous. This is what all New Yorkers ache for once the weather changes. The best part about it is that the buildings aren't skyscrapers, so most places are in the sun until late afternoon. I'm thoroughly enjoying the sunshine! (yes I have on SPF mom--and it's reversing the signs of aging at the same time, thank you Oil of Olay!) So the cool part of my day today was my visit to the Anne Frank House. Very moving and extremely sad. I would like to say I can't imagine living in such a small, cramped space, but it was bigger than my studio, sooo. I'm probably going to hell for that statement. Oh well, add it to the list. (kidding, of course;) What was impossible to imagine was being trapped in these small rooms without the ability to step outside--ever, for fear of being captured by the Germans. The only time they saw the sun was through a small hole in the curtains, I can't imagine being so confined and how awful it must have been. After that I continued to walk around the city and then finally completed my tour today with a jaunt through the Red Light District. Hmmm, that was interesting. I felt like a lesbian, what else was a girl on her own doing walking down a street with hookers and such in the window? I was actually glad when the toasted rasta man asked me for a drink, I turned him down, ducked around a corner and got a drink on my own. I enjoyed a Heineken while people watching along one of the canals and patting myself on the back for my bravery. lol. Apparently my old age has turned me into a prude...I just don't need to see that, or the men practically stripping off their clothes before they get through the door. Anyways, I went and I saw and I can now mark the Red Light District off my list! Tour complete.

Pack Mentality

So today was my first day in Amsterdam. There are bicycles everywhere, like pollen in the spring; I cannot get over how many there are. A few bike tours, but mainly locals who use them as their daily mode of transportation. They are trendy, complete with basket or a knapsack on the back, a makeshift seat for friends, and most importantly a bell to alert me that I'm about to be run over. The confusing thing about Amsterdam (to me, at least) is that in order to cross the street, you can't walk to what appears to be the edge of the sidewalk, but rather 4-feet prior to the edge because there is a bike lane that bears a striking resemblance to the sidewalk. So, I quickly learned to mirror my fellow pedestrians and cross when they do. The tram, car, or bike can't fatally injure us all--and I always make sure to be on the inside so that I am merely knocked down and not run over. This strategy is very similar to Manhattan, which I often refer to as a daily game of frogger--except I feel that this is an advanced level that requires much more effort. Either way, I'm begining to get the hang of it, but my strengths at "dodgeball" has convinced me that a bike tour through Amsterdam is not in my cards. I fancy myself as an athletic person and I remember learning to ride my pink flowered banana seat bike on the paved sidewalk in front of my house in Chicago; and as they say, it's just like riding a bike, you just get back on, but me and bikes just don't seem to mesh anymore. Megan Walsh can vouch for me, as our bike tour in 2001 through Brugges and Munich seemed to turn me into a complete klutz--broken sunglasses, knocking over my fellow tour members (including my cousin) all because I forgot how to hold a bike steady (while stopped mind you), going down the wrong way of a two-way bike path and causing the local to veer into the grass (while using words I thankfully didn't understand), and the only one to be covered in a wall of water when the bus drove by. I feel my ability to no longer be seriously injured on a bike may have run its course (and lets face it, I'm not a spring chicken anymore ha-ha). I would prefer to avoid the label of the tourist that took out the pack of locals because I used the bell instead of the break. Looks like more museums tomorrow. Lastly, my punishment for being lame and going to see a movie in Amsterdam is that the theater had mice, one that was a chair over to my right. I fled to the back (I really wanted to see the movie) and managed to develop a nervous twitch in my leg that kept my chair shaking the entire time, in an effort to scare the mice away from me. It seemed to work, although I haven't checked my bag yet. Sweet dreams.

London Bridges

So Friday was a mad dash to Belfast where I had just enough time to ditch the military jeep I had been traveling in all week and board a coach bus for the 3 hour jaunt back to Dublin to catch a flight to London. The weather was colder than usual, but no rain, which was fantastic! Spent some time with my old roommate Suzanne (thank-you Suzi and Iain for your hospitality and the hangover on Saturday) and then was able to spend some time just outside of London in Harpendon, with my old co-worker Caroline (thank-you Caroline and David for your hospitality and the pub tour). All in all it was a great weekend and fun to catch up. Now I am in Amsterdam where I will be "stationed" until Friday. My plan right now is to head over to Cologne, Germany for the weekend, then drop down to Vienna, finishing out next week in Berlin and Hamburg. I depart Copenhagen April 12th and spend a week in Crete with my friend Cortney and her husband Ken. I'm really looking forward to getting some beach time in. Will update more from Amsterdam once I experience it! :) (that means museums and culture people, keep it clean)

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County Antrim

So today was the last day of my tour. I think it was my favorite day yet. Could be because it was sunny and beautiful in Ireland today. The weather was amazing, finally warmer, I didn’t freeze throughout the day and there wasn’t a drop of rain or hail to pelt my face. Lovely. We trekked through the remains of Dunluce Castle (claim to fame was that a storm once blew the kitchen into the sea), then on to Giant’s Causeway which is a really cool volcanic rock formation on the coast. As usual, the setting was gorgeous. After a lovely picnic lunch overlooking the Atlantic, we headed off to Carrick-A-Rede-Rope Bridge, which is 80 feet above sea level and you cross it in order to access the salmon fishery on the tiny island across the way (or cross it just for kicks, like us). Luckily I am not afraid of heights, otherwise climbing along the rocks on the Giant’s Causeway and balancing across the Carrick Rope Bridge would have been nauseating. It was a beautiful sight. The coastline of Northern Ireland is the most picturesque place I have ever been. It’s absolutely amazing. Because of the instability in Northern Ireland, tourists haven’t really seen or been exposed to the beauty of the North. Within the last 8-10 years though, the terrorist attacks have declined and the peace agreements are finally being enacted. We did a walking history tour through Derry the day before, which was a town that was almost completely destroyed with all the bombing, but as our guide said, they have turned a corner and looking forward to a peaceful future. It was such an interesting place to experience. So much sadness and destruction has taken place and it’s nice to see both sides working together. So, if you make it to Ireland, I highly recommend the Northern Coast in County Antrim, it’s like walking through a wall calendar. Everything corner you turn is breathtaking. So glad I got to see it.

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