RIP

Conquista, a 1985 El Camino.

Known lovingly as “the mullet of cars” and described playfully as “brown and light brown,” the dual purpose car/truck had been feeling ill as of late. She provided great service to her owners throughout her lifetime, all the while getting pretty decent gas mileage and more than ample leg room. Road trips were taken. Objects were hauled. Cassette tapes were jammed. Her greatest joy came late in life as the managing partner of El Camino Lawn Service, a short lived but profitable business venture that she described as “probably the reason I was invented in the first place. I can haul two mowers and a weed eater, but I’m not so high off the ground that you can’t lift things into me.” She also fondly recalled once hauling a new refrigerator for a friend, only to have it fall over in her bed halfway to their destination.


Several recent instances of non-routine maintenance led to the decision to have open hood surgery. After 2 days with her hood wide open, Conquista took a turn for the worst when the mechanic (sniff) was unable to provide engine heat displacement, despite his best efforts. Things were going well until the head gasket cracked and the patients steam sprayed everywhere, it looked like a war scene in the operating lot. The team of one attempted last second resuscitation until it was noted that the steam was also coming out of her tailpipe, described by experts as “the automobile kiss of death.” Time of death was reported at 817pm last night. Services were held in a private ceremony last night in my driveway, attended only by myself, a socket set, and a headlamp. There will be a constant viewing at 19th and McKinley until a proper burial place can be found. Our thoughts and prayers go to the owner.

Lovingly, Russ

“Rest well Conquista, you will be missed.”

Mud Water Triathlon

My first real triathlon race was last weekend at Lake Afton, near Goddard, Kansas. It was a sprint triathlon, which is the shortest distance, and included a 750 meter swim, followed by a 15 mile bike, followed by a three mile run. I was confident about the bike and run after my duathlon went so well but was pretty nervous about the swim. I train the least on swimming when I should probably train on it the most. I had never actually swam 750 meters straight in my life. The most I had done in training was about 500 meters.

I actually ended up kicking some serious butt on the swim. I think it was a combination of nerves and competitive spirit swimming next to so many people. Open water swims are much different than swimming laps in a pool. Pools are nice a calm and you have your own lane and its all very peaceful. Open water swims are in choppy lakes that sometimes have currents and you have to deal with other athletes swimming all around and sometimes on top of you. It is all very chaotic.



So I took off on the swim and kept trying to tell myself to slow down and get my pace but my body wasn't listening and I ended up in the top 10 or 15 coming out of the water. I swallowed about half of the lake and was a bit woozy headed to my bike but confidence was high. I got on my bike and headed out on the road for the 15 mile loop and I could tell that I was pushing hard because I wanted to stay towards the front of the pack. I was feeling great and making great time.

About half a mile into the course, my front tire blew out. Not just the tube, but the whole side of the tire. I immediately thought my race was over because I didn't have a spare tube or tire with me. I didn't really know what I was going to do when I got there but I decided to grab my bike and jog back to the transition area (the place you change shoes and everything between events, as fast as you can). Carrying a bike on your shoulder for half a mile in cycling shoes will wear you out almost as much as swimming 750 meters as fast as you can. When I got back I spotted the guy from a local bike shop who had been doing maintenance on bike before the race. I looked at him and said "I had a blowout!" and he quickly jumped up and changed my tube and tire for me. Overall I lost about 20 minutes between running back with my bike and getting the tire changed, but I decided to finish the race anyway. I had come this far and I still wanted to see how I would hold up. So I started over on the bike and managed to have a decent time if you take away the 20 minute delay.

After the bike I slipped on my runners and took off for the 3 mile loop. I did pretty good on that but I could tell I wasnt running my best since there was no one around me to race. I was way in the back with all the really slow people by that point so it was hard to push myself too much. Plus, that blowout had a serious negative affect on my psyche. I was pretty down, especially since I had done so well on the swim and was feeling good.

Anyway, I finished and afterwards I felt good. Physically I was tired but not dead. I felt pretty good about finishing the race and not quitting because of some bad luck, which I hope I got out of the way for future races.

Next race is mid August in Edmond, Ok. This one is the olympic distance: 1500m swim, 25 mile bike, 6 mile run. Which reminds me, I need to go work out!

a new expensive hobby

I guess I thought photography wasn't draining my bank account fast enough so I picked up another, more athletic hobby: triathlons. I've always wanted to do one since I got out of college sports and this summer I began training for my first race.

Triathlons are multisport races in which you swim, bike, and run, in that order. It takes hours and hours of training per week in all three disciplines and, like most hobbys, gets expensive. You always want to best running shoes, better components for your bike, gadgets, clothes, etc. Not to mention that you actually have to pay to enter these races. Some of the longer ones are several hundred dollars just to race. And I won't win. Ever.

My first race was actually a duathlon, which is only running and biking. The event I did was a 2 mile run, followed by a 14 mile bike, followed by another 3 mile run. I wasn't able to train for it as much as I'd liked but was able to put in a strong effort and did reasonably well for my first race. My times were decent in all three parts and I finished 8th in my age group out of about 20 competitors. Not too bad considering I had trained less than most. So I decided to keep going and buy more stuff and pay more entry fees....

Crap.

I got robbed, literally

I don't update my blog much because nothing exciting ever happens to me anymore, especially compared to everything below. But, I did get robbed which is both exciting and incredibly frustrating.

Someone broke in to my apartment and made off with my computer (ouch!), my TV (eh...), two ipods (double ouch!), and a digital camera (but not the good one). They also took some clothes (who else wears 32x62 jeans and extra medium shirts?) and my big backpack that took me all over Europe (sentimental tear).

They got in in the middle of the day, in broad daylight, with a screwdriver. How clever. Then they tried to get in again two days later and then a third time 3 days after that. Why? I dont know. I don't have much left that's worth stealing. My guess is that they were trying to get in to my apartment in order to get in to my neighbor's apartment, which they got in to the first time but got spooked before they got all his goods.

Do I have renters insurance? No. I have always had it but I never got it here once I got back from Ireland. Of course I never needed it when I had it and got robbed the first time I went without it. I am, after all, Russ Cornelius...

el camino lawn service

so, I sort of accidentally started a lawn mowing business...

first of all you should know that a few weeks ago I bought a 1985 El Camino. you know, the mullet of cars. business up front, party in the back. it's two beautiful shades of brown and runs like a dream. a car with a truck bed, the best of both worlds.

part two of this story is that i live in a loft above the garage of a duplex and the whole lot is up for sale. i have noticed over the last few days that the grass long overdue for a trim. the property manager is a guy named darrel who comes by to show the place to prospective buyers every couple of weeks. last saturday he came by to show the place and i was just leaving as he was arriving. i casually mentioned that if he needs someone to mow the lawn next time before a showing to let me know. i'm thinking, "i have this sweet El Camino, my buddy has a mower, i load up the mower in the El Camino, badaboom badabing, i could make a few bucks easy." so he replies that they do have a kid who does it but he obviously hasnt shown up in a while and if he doesnt show up in a day or two, the job is mine. PS we have another property down the street and you can do that one too.

two days later darrel calles me back and says to get started on the lawns, mow them every 10 days, $25 bucks a piece, and he'll probably be able to find me some more. so i call brandon and explain that i accidentally started a lawn service even though i dont own one single piece of lawn equipment. oops. no problem.

i make a deal with brandon that i will mow his yard for free if i can borrow his mower and weedeater. yesterday was my first day in business and I made $50 in 3 hours. darrel has already lined me up a hedge trimming gig as soon as this lady calls me back. i dont own hedge trimmers. irrelevant.

i have three more potential customers from the restaurant just by telling this story yesterday. several people say they mow their own lawns but are interested if i go topless. i need a tan anyway, win-win. lawns do not acknowledge the recession and continue to grow at an alarming rate. at this growth rate i'm going to have to bring in a partner and i might be looking at early retirement. who knew you could start a lawn mowing business with just an El Camino and a smile? i did. cha ching!

nothing to blog about

i have nothing to blog about. my life went from 90 to nothing in 2 point nothing. i need an adventure!

The Valentine Sham

Today is Valentine's Day as you all well know, and again, intentionally, I am single. I make a lot of jokes about this day every year and most people think I'm bitter, which is not the case. I think the idea of Valentine's Day is nice enough. Expressing love and giving gifts and all that is worth doing...

Did you know that Valentine's Day was originally a pagan holiday and that it was renamed after Christian martyrs named Valentine, of which there are actually several. In fact, until the late 1960's, the Catholic church officially recognized 11 Valentine's Days. These days were celebrated for centuries with no romantic cues attached. It wasn't until America got a hold of it that it became the second largest card sending day of the year behind Christmas, though it was done in England before that only to a lesser extent. Now there are around a billion Valentine's Day cards sent each year worldwide. How much is a card? $2? $3? How much for the giant ones? Those are hilarious. As technology continues to increase in popularity, ecards are robbing Hallmark stores and saving some trees. I'm all for it. My favorite ecard site is terribly inappropriate and has the tag line "when you care enough to hit send."

Once greeting cards were regarded as the thing to do on Valentine's, all the other industries decided to get a piece of the action. Florists got it, then the candy people, and finally the diamond industry. It's become quite popular to propose on Valentine's Day, which I think is about as unoriginal as a guy can get. The restaurant where I work is completely booked for tonight and I expect at least one proposal.

Money money money. And don't forget sex. Dig deep enough in of all this Valentine's Day madness and you will find sex at the root of it all. It may have started out harmless enough, with the idea being to show love and maybe send a little note to show it, but modern Valentine's Day is all about sex. I see the commercials and I wish one of them would just come out and say, "Buy here these (flowers, candies, stuffed anteaters, jewels, BMW's, etc) and there is a better chance that she will want to have sex with you! Tonight!"

The sad thing is that billions of dollars worth of men fall for this. Or they date shallow enough women that it rings true! It's also sad that women come to expect these things on Valentine's Day and can become furious if the traditions are not kept. I've witnessed this. Don't ask.

To women on Valentine's Day I say this:
1. Do you really want your man to be a mindless drone and follow the prompts of our disparaged society and buy you some useless crap, that same useless crap that he buys you every year and that all your previous boyfriends have bought you and that thousands of other guys are buying their women at this exact moment?
*To 80% of women*
2. Really? You do? Crap. I thought I had something there. You're shallow.
3. It's a day of showing love. It goes both ways. We don't want crap either. We already have ten pairs of boxers with hearts on them and those chocolate things give us gas. On that note, spare boxers may not be a bad idea.

And to my brothers on Valentine's Day I say this:
Walk past the heart shaped candy boxes and the cheap roses and stuffed carnivores and shiny sex bribes and think of something unique to show your love. Chances are if it has a heart on it, you are going in the wrong direction. Buy her a flower that you know she likes and you didnt have to ask her about. You should know this. DO SOMETHING with her. I can't believe you havent realized this yet! They want you to go to a show of some kind or take dance lessons or go to a winery together. You don't even have to spend a lot of money. How about a picnic or just staying at home and cooking? Some married friends of mine are going to stay home and roll their own sushi together. This is the key word, together. Dont send her to a spa by herself. Thought about going to the spa with her? Couples massage? Cha-ching. That's a win-win!

You know what else really grinds my gears? That people (men) think they can get away with things like this only once a year. It's like a get out of jail free card of sorts. By creating a holiday where we HAVE to do it, we've confined it. We become complacent the other 364 days a year and then it becomes a chore when Feb 14 actually rolls around. How many other times would a person do any of these things in a year? Answer: other holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. Those are obvious. The difference is, in my opinion, that those are celebrations of EVENTS. Love is not an event, it's a state of being, and to celebrate it once a year with Russell Stover's and beanie babies is a sham. I think we owe love, and each other, more than that. Let's make Valentine's Day an unlimited floating holiday, one you can use whenever and as often as you like.

*disclaimer*
these are my opinions and if any of this backfires on you, you deserve it for taking your advice off the internet from a guy who is at home alone blogging on Valentine's day.

What have I been up to lately?

If you've read all that, kudos and thank you. After I finished it the other day I flicked through and read a few of the highlights and relived some very fond memories, an occasion which normally delights but in this case did not. I became sort of sad. I miss my vagabond lifestyle. I miss hopping a cheap flight to another country every month. I miss different cultures and my friends in Dublin and rugby and pubs and the ocean the bus and...well you get it.

I don't miss the weather and I was glad to see some real thunderstorms the other night, I had missed those. There have been a few springy days lately and that made me realize that I have missed Oklahoma spring and summer. Minus the destruction and carnage of course.

I digress.

What I've meant to say is what I have been up to lately. I am gainfully employed at Iron Starr Urban Barbecue in Oklahoma City. It's a very fine restaurant with a delicious menu where I am a server. Hopefully we will be opening a second restaurant soon where I will be a bartender. (THAT sounds dangeruss doesn't it? Sorta like hiring Cookie Monster to drive the Oreo truck?) When I'm not working I read and write, scoot all over town on Stella, my mint green scooter that looks like this, and I go for bike rides at the lake and visit friends for lunch and goof off most of the time. Maybe this blog temporarily be a compilation of stories from the restaurant and other general mischief I find.

In a hotly contested comment put forth at Christmas dinner, my mom referred to me as "just a waiter" but I do have some goals in life. (by the way, mom, I know you meant that as a compliment and you said "just" because I have such potential. Honestly, I'm not offended) I still have the travel bug so I plan to save a few bucks (contact me for donations) and get myself to Costa Rica where I will begin to learn English to the masses. It doesn't pay much but I've learned to live on very little and it will allow me to explore South America for a while. I've always wanted to go to the rain forest and learn how to surf (not at the same time. there is no surfing in the rain forest), and SA has both.

Days 48-50 - Home!

As I said before, I flew home to Dublin on day 50, thus ending my whirlwind tour through Europe. It was good to be home but I honestly could have roughed it on the road for another 50 days, maybe even more. I hope that someday I am lucky enough to experience something like that again.

Day 47 - Berlin/Amsterdam

On day 47 I took a long train from Berlin to Amsterdam. Days 47-49 were spent there, I'm pretty sure...and I flew back to Dublin on Day 50.

I remember the Van Gogh museum and Ann Frank's house. The rest is a blur. There is plenty of fun to be had in Amsterdam and I highly suggest you spend some time there if you ever get the chance. I will save the stories for another day. You'll thank me:)

Day 46 - Berlin

I ventured out in the morning to some flea markets I had heard about. They had some glorious junk that my mother would have loved but I didn't buy anything. Mostly because I couldn't carry anything else.

I walked through the Berlin Wall memorial and spent 2 hours reading through the Topography of Terror exhibit which detailed Hitler's rise to power and a time line of what went down once he got there. All very interesting and gut wrenching at the same time. It was very detailed. I also stumbled across Checkpoint Charlie which caught my interest and made me late for a bike tour that I had REALLY been looking forward to. I was very angry with myself for a minute about this.



So I walked to the TV tower and caught a bus tour, which I was the only passenger on, so it was like a private tour. My favorite was the holocaust memorial.


At the end I found a beer hall that had been set up to celebrate Oktoberfest. I took this as a sign and eagerly indulged in fine German beers served up by busty beer maidens and more mystery meat (Munich Meat Bread it was called) carved up by burly German men wearing wedgie inducing lederhosen and feathered hats. And Polka!



Home. Bed.

Day 45 - Prague/Berlin

Up in the morning, another good breakfast, and off to Berlin. The train was late but the route was very scenic. It took most of the day to get there. In the hostel I met some kids from America and we chatted over a few beers and pizza at the hostel. Ok quite a few beers. Then to bed.

Day 44 - Prague

My hostel has amazing breakfast. You can cook you own eggs and make omelets and all that.

I walked around by myself most of the day. I saw this neat communism memorial:


The Little Eiffel Tower:

Prague Castle:

and the Astronomical Clock:


It was in Prague that I found a treasure, an old 35mm camera from the 60's-ish.

That night I met up with Luke and Meg for a few beers and went to bed.

Day 43 - Vienna/Prague

Woke up early to go straight to the train station for Prague. Once there, I made my way to the hostel through the many bisecting trains, trams, and buses. It was quite complicated but I managed not to get lost.

Once in my room I met a pair of traveling cousins named Luke and Meg from Canada. We went off to look for dinner and on the way picked up two more American girls, though I don't remember their names. After dinner we went to a local bar that Luke had heard of that was supposed to be off the tourist map, where the locals would go. It turned out to be a very interesting place, maybe even a little creepy but I enjoyed it very much. Everything to look at was mechanical and moving. We listened to some music from an all girl Czech rock band with a VERY pregnant lead singer. The rocked.

Walked home to bed.

Day 42 - Vienna

I had to get up early today to switch hostels to a newer one, closer to town. Bec and I said goodbye to Brendan and then hit the streets. Our first stop was a piercing parlor where I got my lip pierced and from there to the museum of modern art. There was an exhibit called "bad painting, good art" which proved to be very interesting. This museum had some very weird art too, particularly the performance art. Beyond explanation. Just...odd.

We had some lunch and then went to stand in line for tickets to the opera. For only 4 euros you can get a standing ticket in a pretty decent spot in the famous opera house. The show was great, though I had to read the translator the whole time.

Post opera we hung out at our hostel bar and met some folks and then went to bed.

Day 41 - Budapest/Vienna

Up early and to the train station. I got busted without a valid ticket on the bus. Everywhere I go, I use buses and trains and trams, and you always have to have a valid ticket. It usually involves some sort of stamp with the date. I knew this. I knew that my ticket was from the previous day but I was willing to take a risk. I can count on one finger the number of times I have been asked to show my ticket. Plus, the ticket that I had in my hand had the date written by hand, and I figured that the 15 looked close enough to an 16 that I could pull it off if confronted. I knew that it was a sting as soon as the guy got on the bus. I've learned to spot these guys. They try to look like the normal commuter and then as soon as the doors close they whip out their badges and citation books with great and exaggerated yet unimpressive gusto. But, there was nothing I could do. I was cornered with a giant backpack on my back and nowhere to run. He could easily see that we would not be having a conversation so he gestured for me to show him my ticket, which I did. He took a look. Then a second look. Then a look at me and back at the ticket. I could tell that he was trying to figure out how to tell me that I had an expired ticket. So he pointed at the date and shrugged. So I informed him, in perfect English, that that was

"a 16. Today is the 16th :)"

So then he covered up the 1 to highlight the 5 and gave me another look.

"Right. Thats a 6. Today is the 16th :)"

His next attempt was to reach into his pocket and pull out a small pocket calendar and point at today's date. I looked at my watch to confirm.

"You got it. Today is the 16th. It's a Tuesday. September 16th. And that's why my ticket says the 16th."

My strategy was to both stall for the next bus stop and confuse him with as many English words as I could. As long as I was talking, he wasn't talking, and I could see his frustrations mounting. This continued for a few more minutes until the bus began to stop again, at which point my plan was to get off the bus and thereby end my crime spree. Luckily for me, he was more frustrated and I think slightly embarrassed and he got off the bus. So I stayed on and rode the bus all the way to the train station, illegally, as intended, proud and ready to ward off any other foes who might challenge my ability to decipher the numerals of Hungarian bus ticket tellers. Bring it on.

I arrived in Vienna that afternoon to cold and rain. I made my way to the hostel and was surprised to find Brendan from caving there. I had planned to meet up with Bec but neither of us knew that Brendan would be in Vienna at the same time. So the two of us headed in to town to meet up with Bec and see the town. We went to the Albertina museum to see a van Gogh exhibit as well as all the other great works there, including several Picassos.

After a pizza we all went to see an orchestra perform inside the palace. It was mostly works by Strauss and Bach and the performance was phenominal. We fninshed the night with a beer from an Aussie bar and headed home.

Day 40 - Budapest

I had intended on leaving today to head to Vienna, but I decided to stay one more day because I really wanted to go caving. I had seen several fliers for it and everyone who had done it had recommended it highly. It was a rainy day and caving wasn't until 3pm, so I slept in and then went to a market for some food. Thank God they put pictures on the labels of what is actually inside the packaging.

I left the hostel with Anita from Sydney and when we got to the meeting spot we met Gavin and Paul from Liverpool, Bec from rural Australia, and Brendan from Sydney. Our guide was Szilard from Budapest.

This would turn out to be one of the cooler things I've ever done. The entrance to the caves is just outside Buda and they expand for miles in every direction. We were all pretty gung-ho about it so we decided to take the most difficult route allowed. We descended to about 50 meters at our deepest point, and when we turned off our headlamps there you literally could not see your hand in front of your face. It was the darkest dark I have ever seen. We all stayed as quiet as possible and found it to be the most quiet quiet we had ever (un)heard.

Another point of interest the Szillard had told us about was called the "Winnie the Pooh Hole," which was a small hole in the rock that people skinnier than me could crawl through. Szillard demostrated, I became stuck. I did try hard enough to get a pretty nasty bruise on my hip from trying to cram myself through, but the rocks are unforgiving.















Check out these other attractions inside the caves








a billion year old oyster












"the spirit of the caves"














a creepy face
























"the library"












"the elephant"












On our way out we went through the most difficult passage in the caves, a paper thin section appropriately named "the sandwhich." While Szilard was explaining how this crevace curved and some points on how to navigate it, I was looking for a way to go. I didn't see any way out of the spot we were in except the way we just came. Then Szilly pointed to a crack and the rock and told me to "give it a go." I scoffed, Bec giggled, and Szillard disappeared into the crack and we heard a muffled "Come on in now. You have to turn your head to the left." And he was right. When you begin to crawl, you only fit if you turn your head to the left. Once you are in, there isnt room to switch it for another 3 feet. Now, 3 feet may not sound like much, but the entire sandwich is only about 12 feet long and took me, the most skilled beside Szilly, about 15 minutes to crawl through. There was no room to bend an elbow or raise a leg. I was literally inching along using little more than my fingers and toes. Once I was through, I felt like I had just done 100 situps and sprinted a mile with my backpack on. It was exhausting and I was soaked in sweat. But it was thrilling and the sense of accomplishment was worth the entire struggle. Once all the way through, there is a hidden notebook and pen for the proud few who make it through to sign. I couldn't manage a pic inside the sandwhich but here is what it looked like from the outside:

Day 39 - Budapest

Woke up early to go on a free walking tour with some of the gang from the previous night. Its a cloudy and sort of chilly day but the tour is pretty neat. The guide was Hungarian and spoke broken English but he knew a ton of history and all the things there are to see. Here are a few highlights from the tour:






The cathedral which is, by law, the tallest building in Budapest
















The Parliament building, which was intentionally built to the exact same height as the cathedral.











A sculpture on the river. You can see that people rub its legs for good luck. Is it a boy or a girl? Both. Its a girl dressed as a prince.













At the end of the tour we had a Hungarian lunch at a cafeteria. I have no idea what I ate but it was very tasty. Dark meat of some kind, something that resembled noodles, vegetables not native to North America, and mystery sauce, all on a bed of what was most likely rice. Or at least in the rice family. Does rice normally move? I'm sure it does. I may or may not have seen an eye ball but the fork was already on the way to my mouth and I didn't want to be rude and double pump my bite. I didn't feel compelled to ask any further questions about the meat. Some things are better left a mystery. As I said, it was tasty and it didn't kill me.

After "lunch" we were all pretty knackered to we decided to head back to the hostel and relax for a bit. There was also some concern that we may want to be in the relative comfort of the hostel after the meal. So back the hostel we went and we laid around in the common room and watched a movie and chatted for the evening and basically all night long. Towards the end of the night we ate some of the best pizza I have ever had.

Day 38 - Budapest

Marty and I arrived in Budapest at about 3pm and had one last meal together before he went on another train and I set out to find a hostel.

I eventually found a place and after I was checked in I met some people hanging out in the lounge. After the usual "where you from? where you been? where you headed?" we all ventured out to an outdoor music festival that we had heard about. It turned out to be a bust, it was all kids and crappy music, so we moved on to a bar that was inside a boat on the river. To our surprise, there was a pretty good German band playing, so we hung out there for the rest of the night even though we didn't have a clue what they were saying.

Budapest was surprisingly chilly, I miss the beach!

Day 37 - Hvar/Split/Zagreb

We were all feeling a little loopy the next morning (at least I know I was) and slept late. Once we were all awake we sat around a bit drinking coffee and chatting. Marty and I had no real plan so we tried to figure out where to go next. He had to be in Poland to meet his mum in a few days and I was planning on going to Budapest, Hungary, next so we decided to head that way together. Marty would catch a train from Budapest to Poland and I would stay there for a few days. It was a sad goodbye with the girls. We had had so much fun together but it was time to part ways. Marty and I took the ferry back to Split and hopped on the train. We had to switch trains in Zagreb and we slept most of the way to Budapest. This is the crew one last time before we said goodbye.

Day 36 - Split and Hvar

After breakfast Marty and I rented some bikes to explore the town a little bit before we boarded our ferry to another island, this one called Hvar. We quickly realized that Split was very small and there isn't much to see there, so we were done with our bikes after about 40 minutes. While we were riding down the main street, the one with ALL the restaurant, shops, and people, Marty's daredevil spirit came back out and he had an amazing wipe out right in front of everyone. I saw it happening and it was like slow motion. I was laughing before he even hit the ground and kept laughing for about 3 days.

We caught a 3pm ferry to Hvar where we were to meet up with the girls. We had made plans to all stay in the same hostel again. Once we all regrouped we headed to the market to stock up for another big BBQ that night. We met up with some new friends: Jake from California, Marty's friend Brea from Aus, and another friend of the girls named Mandy. We all got drunk and went down to the water for a late night swim.

Day 35 - Dubrovnik/Split

It was our last day in Dubrovnik so we all had breakfast together and went to another beach for a few hours. It was another nice one that we hadn't been to before and we all just lounged in and out of the water for a few hours before we all had to catch our buses. Marty and I headed North to a city called Split. We met some other Aussies on the bus and went out for a few beers with them that night. There was a big soccer match that night between Croatia and England so everyone was out and about. Split is a pretty coastal city with one main pedestrian street right on the water. We didn't do much other than the soccer match, just walked around a bit and went to bed.

Day 34 - Dubrovnik

We all woke up late and decided to take a day trip out to a nearby island called Lokrum, which we had heard was a good place to swim and jump off some cliffs. We found this little pond and went for a quick dipand then moved on to the beach, which was a rock beach. No sand. I was skeptical at first but it turned out to be a really good time. We all jumped off the cliff a few hundred times and had snacks and a nap. Later on Marty and I went exploring and jumped off a few more cliffs, getting higher each time. It was a very neat island and made for some interesting photos.
You can also see a couple of cliff jumping video here. (turn your head sideways for the second one:)

Once back in Dubrovnik we had a nice dinner at a restaurant in the old town and then watched a movie in the hostel before bed. Another excellent fun day with my new friends.

Day 33 - Dubrovnik

In the morning I met the coolest people that I've ever met on any of my adventures. Marty, from Sydney, and Kes, Liv, and Sally from Perth. They had come to the hostel the previous day and we all met at breakfast.

We decided to go to a beach that Marty had spotted the previous day. It turned out to be one of the cooler beaches I've seen.We hung out there most of the day and got to know each other, although after 10 minutes it already seemed as if we had all been friends for years. Marty and I found a cliff to jump off of and you can see in the other picture that there is a cave that you can swim in to.

Once the sun started to set we were all pretty hungry so we decided to throw an Aussie BBQ. We all walked to the market and got all the food and cooked it outside at the hostel. We had great food and great conversation.

After dinner we all headed in to town for a little dancing. We started out at this really neat bar in the old town that was built on the rocks outside the city walls. On the way home we had to stop at every bakery in town looking for meat pies, which we ultimately found. It was one of the best nights, we all had tons of fun.

Day 32 - Dubrovnik/Bosnia

After the success of the snorkeling trip I decided to take Ive up on his offer of a day trip to Bosnia along with Shura and Louise from England. We left at about 10:30am and drove a few hours. The road went all along the coast and was very scenic. The first stop was a swimming hole in a river that looked like a real paradise. The water was pretty cold but it was a fun place to swim and they had a rope swing!

After the swim a hopped back in the car and drove to a restaurant the Ive promised would have a great lunch. He was right, it was one of the best meals I have ever eaten, the last thing I expected in Bosnia of all places. As we walked up to the door, we could see the lamb that we were about to eat as it was rotating on the split. It wasn't exactly the most appetizing sight, eyeballs bulging, tongue hanging out and fat dripping off, but when the meal was presented it looked and smelled delicious. In addition to the lamb we had several different kinds of bread, potatoes, and salad.

After stuffing ourselves we hit the road again and headed to the town of Mostar. The city was relatively small but had been hit hard by the war. There were bullet holes everywhere. There has been a lot of rebuilding, but you can still see remnants of war next to brand new houses and buildings.From Mostar we headed home and arrived back at the hostel by late evening. Everyone was pretty tired so we watched a movie in the common area and went to bed.

The best of

I created an album on Flickr of some of my favorites from traveling. Take a peek and let me know which ones you like.

Also, I promise to finish the trip details soon. I know you are DYING to know what happens next...

Day 31 - Dubrovnik

After a fantastic nights sleep under a table in the onboard casino, I went to the deck to watch the sunrise and take my first look at Croatia as we sailed into the port. I was impressed immediately by the beauty of Croatia and I knew that I would love it. The water, the trees, the buildings and houses, even the people were amazing to look at. This is one of the photos I took from the boat as we entered the harbor.

I got off the boat and made it to my hostel by about 9. I walked in and was greeted by one of the owners, Milka, who immediately sat me down at the table for breakfast before even checking me in. She had made some Croatian cheese pastry and French toast and coffee. Once breakfast was finished, Milka's husband came around to check me in and give me the scoop on Dubrovnik, which took about 30 mins and included 2 detailed maps and a welcome shot. A shot of very strong Croatian liquor at 930am is a real eye opener...

After breakfast I tagged along with some British and Kiwi friends to a beach nearby. The beach was a rock beach with medium sized pebbles and the water was beautiful. Dubrovnik is every bit as gorgeous as Greece if not more so. We hung out there for a few hours and then back to the hostel for some more food before a snorkeling excursion.

The couple that owns the hostel have a son named Ive (pronounce Eve and is short for something else long and Croatian) who took us about 30 miles outside Dubrovnik, almost all the way down to Montenegro, to a good snorkeling spot. He took some great pics with his underwater camera.
When we got out of the water he took us on a drive around the area to show us some of the countryside and locals:
and to the top of the hill where I took this neat photo of the old town:


That night the crew from the hostel went out on the town and ended up taking a late night dip in the ocean before we came home. They were a fun bunch.

Day 30 - Bari

My ferry arrived in Bari at 8:30am. I went straight to the ticket office to buy a ticket for Croatia but it didnt leave until 11:30pm. Gross...

Bari is not a tourist destination, it is a port town and that's it. There is nothing to do there. I know this because I walked all over the whole town. I sat in an internet cafe for a bit and had some coffee. Around lunch time I saw a giant sign that said "Pizzeria" which sounded amazing to me right then. So I go inside and get a menu and there isnt a single pizza in the whole restaurant. It's a pizzeria that only serves pasta? Mostly seafood pasta? I ate there anyway...

Walked and walked and walked

I came across some kids playing soccer so I sat and watched that for a couple hours. I finally boarded the ferry and found a cozy spot on the floor of the casino to sleep that night.

Day 29 - Athens & the ferry

I was up early to head to the bus station to go to Patras. I opted for the bus this time instead of the train. It was much quicker and cooler. I got some bad directions (again) from the guy at the hostel and was quickly lost (again) in Athens. Did I mention Athens is hot as hell? Especially with a backpack on. I was lucky to find a sympathetic and English speaking (sort of) bus driver who let me on his bus for free and dropped me off at the appropriate bus stop to get me to the terminal.

Once in Patras I didnt have to wait long for the ferry back to Bari, Italy. Again I had only a deck ticket so I set up camp on a nice bench.

Day 28 - Mykonos & Athens

I got up early to get checked out and head to the port. I had to walk quite a ways from the bus stop to the port. This was a long ferry as well, almost 8 hours back to Athens.

I arrived in Athens at about 8:30pm with no accommodation booked. I knew where a supposedly good hostel was located so I headed in that direction, hoping they would have one bed free for the night. I had the directions written down and they let me down. I still claim that the road doesnt exist. So, I was a bit lost. In Athens. At 10pm. (I may have mentioned this before, but Athens is dirty, dodgy, and hot.)

I was at the point where I was about to sleep in a park when I spotted a sign in the distance, down an alley. If it was any smaller, I wouldnt have been able to read it. "Hostel" So I walked in and asked if they had a bed for me. They did, and it was only 15 euros. Deal.

When I walked in to the room, I was punched in the face by heat and odor. It was a 6 man room and I was man #6. There was no A/C, only one small window, and several spiders. My bed had no sheets or pillow. I went straight to bed. It was the worst excuse for a hostel I had ever seen.

Day 27 - Mykonos

Today I licked my wounds on the beach all day. I think I could just live on a beach chair for the rest of my days. I met some Brits on the beach and we hung out that night as well. The party culture of these two islands is catching up with me...

Day 26 - Mykonos

I made it to breakfast by 10 and met up with some Aussie girls that I had met on the bus the day before. We hung out on the beach all day, it was another beautiful place. That night we went dancing at the club that was on the beach and I fell off a table, it was not alcohol related, just a misstep, I was not injured.

Day 25 - Mykonos

So you already know that I got home in the very early morning and basically got right to packing up to check out and head to the port. Needless to say, I didnt feel so hot. Actually, I felt TOO hot. The bus ride through the winding roads to the port almost ended in disaster but I was able to keep it down. I must have drank a gallon of water at the port while waiting for the ferry. This trip to Mykonos was only an hour and a half so the boat was passengers only, no cars, and super fast.

The mighty seas were high that day my friends! I was fast asleep when we hit the first wave and it scared the bejesus out of me. I believe the driver was also taken by surprise because after everyone and everything hit the roof, there was a noticeable reduction in speed, much to our relief. I was sure I was going to puke and to this day I still cant believe I never did. Once the initial shock was over, the crowd rejoiced that we were now moving at a more appropriate speed over the waves so it felt more like a roller coaster than sky diving.

Then el capitan over here decides he's Dale Earnhardt Jr on water and floors it. So once again there were 150 people bouncing all over the boat. Food and drink went everywhere. All I could so was cower in my seat like a little girl and weep openly for the next hour.

Once I got to my campsite on Paradise Beach I crashed and slept through the night.

Day 24 - Ios

The nights and mornings keep getting later and later...

I slept til 12:30 and guess where I went? Wrong. I went to the beach this time. Most of my friends had left so I spent the day alone with my ipod. That evening I met the guys in the camp next to mine and the 4 of us went out for dinner and drinks. This time I think I made it to every bar or club on the island and partied until 6 am. Ouch... I crashed for about a minute but then had to get right up and check out so I wouldnt miss my next ferry off the crazy island...

A note to family members and concerned friends: It's no secret that I enjoy the occasional adult beverage, but I assure you that I dont live like this. I was on holidays and remained responsible throughout. No interventions necessary. I calm down, read on.

Day 23 - Ios

Up at 11am and straight to the poolside. It was another lazy day around the pool and beach. I hung out with my new friends and made a few more. The evening was almost a repeat of the previous one, only this time I made it to a few more places and got home at 4 (?)

I have no pictures from this day because that would have required more effort than I was willing to give...

Day 22 - Paros and Ios

On this morning I said goodbye to Jeff and Stephanie. They headed to Crete and I headed to another island called Ios. I had a morning ferry so I was up and around while they waited around for their evening boat ride.

In Ios I had reserved a "bungalow" at a campsite that was right on the best beach on the island. When I got there, they gave me the key and I quickly found out that bungalow=doghouse in Greece. What did I expect for 11 euros a night? The door came up to about the middle of my chest but I opened it anyway, only to find it occupied by 2 hungover Italians. Back at reception, mass confusion. I'll spare you the details but basically I sat around for an hour and they ultimately upgraded me from a doghouse to an overgrown port-a-potty. But at least I had the WHOLE thing to myself. It was sweltering hot inside this thing. On the bright side, it did have a light and a decent view...



I went to the pool and met some friends, mostly Aussies, and we enjoyed some strawberry daiquiris all day while in and out of the pool and ocean. The beach was literally right across the street from the pool. After a shower I watched a movie with everyone at the outside bar. Shortly after we all caught the bus into town for a bit of a pub crawl. This would be my earliest night in Ios, I came home at about 2.

Day 21 - Santorini

We were up and around by 10 and headed to Kamari Beach. It was a black sand beach, the first one I've ever seen, and I have to say its pretty neat. All the rocks and sand were black and the beach was bordered on one side by a giant cliff.
The water was great and the beach wasnt too crowded so it was very peaceful and scenic. I stayed there for most of the day while the other two wondered around the island. Once I finally dragged my lazy bones off the beach, I returned my scooter and had a shower at the hotel. Later we all walked into town and had a nice dinner and wandered the streets a bit.

Day 20 - Paros & Santorini

Our ferry left Paros at 12:30, so we had to get up and get checked out in time to have breakfast and get on the ferry. This boat ride was only 3 hours and someone from our hotel was at the port to pick us up. Santorini is more volcanic than the other islands and you can see it in the rocks. The port is at the bottom of a steep hill and there is a winding road up to the top. We sat our stuff down in the hotel and walked over to a scooter shop to rent some wheels. I got a scooter and Jeff and Steph got a 4-wheeler. We got on the road and headed for a town called Oia, which is know for its spectacular sunsets. We stopped at a restaurant along the way. Oia is a really neat town built right into the cliffs. The sunset drew a pretty big crowd, but I wasn't as impressed as I hoped I would be. Even so, I got some neat pics and the city at night was amazing. Two of my favorite pics came from here:



After the sunset we scooted on back to the hotel and hung out at the pool for a bit before crashing.

Day 19 - Paros

We walked into the town and had breakfast and then headed to the bus stop nearby. The destination was a beach on the other side of the island, about 45 minutes away. The beach was great, perfect sand and water. There were quite a few wind surfers in the water and we had great views of some smaller surrounding islands. We had a nice lunch at a little beach side cafe and got the bus back to town at about 5. After a shower and a rest we went out to dinner. After asking around we decided that the best bet would be to catch a short bus over to a town called Nassou for some nightlife. The town was busy and we walked through the shops of the winding streets before reaching the harbor. There were plenty of bars and music but the drinks were far out of our budget so we ended up buying some cans from a shop and sitting on the pier. We could still hear music and watch all the people. It was a nice night and we headed home at about 2.

Day 18 - Athens

We slept in a little and then headed to the port to get ferry tickets to the islands. We had tickets by 11 but the ferry didnt leave until 5:30pm, so we had some time to kill. It was a Sunday so there wasnt much going on and we werent very motivated to go very far from the port. We walked through a bizarre flea market that had EVERYTHING you can imagine. There were people yelling back and forth, wheelin and dealin. We ventured a little ways back into town to an internet cafe and killed some time, booked a hotel, and had some food, then headed back to the port and waited it out. The ferry was neat but long, a little over 5 hours. We arrived in Paros late and the hotel was a pleasant surprise. The lady who operated it was very nice and welcomed us with a beer. Town was still hopping, so we walked around and had a late meal before going to bed.

Day 17 - Athens

After breakfast at the hotel we headed to the metro station to get to the Acropolis. There is a lot to see here so we went in the morning to try to beat the heat as much as we could. It didn't do us much good, Athens is sweltering. The entrance to the temples is through the temple of Athena Nike, which I am disappointed to say was entirely covered with scaffolding as part of a restoration process that appears to be taking decades. The Parthenon also had quite a bit of scaffolding, though only on 2 sides and all through the middle. There were at least a few parts that you could see. The views of the city from the top of the hill were amazing. We walked down the hill and over to Ancient Agora and the Temple of Hephaistos which was remarkably well preserved. Around the corner from this we went to Hadrian's Library, which was a mess, and the Temple of Olympian Zeus which still has many pillars standing. On our walk back we stopped and had lunch and then headed to the Archaeological Museum. Everything that used to be in the temples and the ancient cities is kept here. Countless sculptures, statues, pottery, jewelry, weapons, and art. It took over 2 hours to walk through. Afterwards we headed back to the hotel, hot and weary. That night we walked a few blocks over to a nice restaurant and had a good dinner.

Day 16 - Patra and Athens

We arrived in Patra at 12:30 and the train to Athens isnt until 5pm so we had lunch and walked around town a bit. Not much to see here. The first half of the 4.5 hour train ride was in a rickity old beater of a train with no a/c but it went along the coast so the view was amazing. The second half was on a much nicer train. Once in Athens we took the metro to our hotel, which was nice even though it was in a dodgy part of down. Had dinner and a shower and went to bed.

Day 15 - Napoli and Pompeii

Why go to Napoli if it is such a dump? Because Pompeii is right down the road. I've always wanted to see the ancient city that was destroyed by a volcano. After a bit of train confusion (surprised?) we made it to Pompeii with not much time before we had to catch another train over to Bari. Pompeii was amazing to see. Many of the paintings on the walls have survived, as have a few fountains which were decorated with stones and sea shells. We were also able to see several human bodies and a dog that are now solidified in ash. Wish I had more time for a proper tour but we had to head back to Napoli to catch another train to Bari, which is where we will catch a ferry to Greece.
...hours and hours on a train...

We made it to Bari and were able to get strait on a ferry to Patra, Greece. I got the cheapest ticket, which was for the deck, which means not only do I not get a bed, I dont even get a seat. So I set up camp on the deck of the boat and slept very little.

Day 14 - Tuscany-Rome-Napoli

We missed our first train in the moring back to Rome, so we had to scramble over to the next village to catch another one. From there we hopped another train down to Napoli. The train ride was neat, great scenery, but Napoli is a garbage dump. Literally. There is garbage everywhere. We got in a bit late, checked in to our hotel which was lovely, and went looking for a bar with some music or something but no luck.

Day 13 - Tuscan Villa

What an unexpected bonus this is. I woke up in the morning and went outside to find the girls picking basil leaves from the garden so we could make homemade pesto that evening. I had a swim in the infinity pool to wake me up a bit. The pool overlooks grape and olive vineyards as far as the eye can see. It looks like you could swim right over the edge of the pool and down the hill. We all loaded up and headed to the nearest village to get the rest of the pesto ingredients. When we got back we had a quick pasta lunch and I was back in the pool with a few Coronas. We all spent the whole afternoon in the pool, it was perfect. Once evening hit we spent about 4 hours making enough pesto to feed a football team. We had a feast outside that night and I never want to eat pesto again.

Day 12 - Rome

Woke up VERY EARLY to go in to town with Flaminia. Started off at Vatican City. We walked through the museums and the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica for a few hours. I had seen the Basilica before but didnt make it to the museums or Sistine Chapel last time I was in Rome. They have countless statues, paintings, tapestries, maps, etc and all of it was very intriguing and priceless. From Vatican City we walked past Castle St. Angelo and over to the Pantheon, another thing I had not seen before. It was the first church in Rome and has an amazingly huge dome with a hole in the center. From there we walked past Trevi Fountain, always amazing, and made our way over the the Roman Forum and the Colosseum. I will always be amazed by the Colosseum no matter how many times I see it. After that we met Flaminia for lunch and headed home. I have now seen everything on my list in Rome, though there is plenty more for me to research and come back to visit.

That evening, Flaminia mentioned her mother's house in the hills of Tuscany and that we could hang out there for a few days if we wanted. The train leaves in 40 minutes, so three minutes later we were out the door and in a cab to the train station. 2 hours later we were there. The house is amazing! It is basically a mansion that is rented out to the super rich for weeks at a time. The last guests before us were uber rich Saudi princes or something (seriously). We got there a bit late so we just chatted with Flaminia's mother and her 12 dogs for a bit and went to bed.

Day 11 - Rome

We took the bus to town and walked over to Villa Borghese and through the parks there. From there we went down to Piazza Venezia which is where Vittoriano ("the wedding cake") is located, at the end of the Roman Forum and just down the road from the Colosseum. It was about here that Jeff's camera battery went dead, plus everthing was closed since it was Sunday, so we just headed home. By this time Flaminia was back so we just hung out and chatted with her, cooked dinner, and went to bed.

Day 10 - Ferry and Rome

The ferry doesnt arrive until 430pm and the pool was full of screaming kids, so I spent most of the day watching the Olympics in the lounge. Once we got to the port, there was no clear direction of what to do so we just got on a free shuttle bus that took us about 50 feet... From there we walked to the train station to take us on to Rome. Jeff and Steph have a friend who lives in Rome and offered us free accomodation, Thanks Flaminia! Once we got to her house, we walked to the market and then cooked dinner. It was a quit night and I got to sleep in a real bed!

Day 9 - Barcelona and the ferry

missed my bike tour again! I suck! But I had a great time out and met some cool people so no worried. I will be back to Barcelona so next time I suppose. So we checked out of the hostel, left our bags there since the ferry wasnt until that evening, and headed to the beach to nurse our wounds. We were there about 4 hours, perfect conditions, the perfect cure. From there we got on the 19 hour ferry to Civitavecchia, Italy, which is just outside Rome. We had dinner on board and what was supposed to be a short nap turned into bedtime and I slept through the night. For this ferry we had a cabin with beds and a bathroom. This was a luxury I would never see again...

Day 8 - Barcelona

I slept throught the freaking bike tour again! Damn it! In my defense, I had a terrible nights sleep due to a snoring Englishman in the bunk below mine. Once we got around we went to an internet cafe to check the ferry options to Italy. Once we figured that out we set off to the ticket office to book the tickets. The ferry company has a new name but never bothered to update the website or tell anyone, so what should have taken 15 minutes took an hour and a half just to find the right office, then they told us we couldnt buy the tickets until after 5pm. Once that debacle was finished I was slightly peaved. We hopped on the metro to Guell Park, which is on top of a hill overlooking the city and has some Gaudi architecture inside. After a pleasant stroll through the park we headed back across town to actually buy the tickets for the ferry. It felt like a major accomplishment to actually have these tickets in our hands. It was a long and hot day and I was a little cranky so we headed back to the hostel. There was a market nearby so we got some cheap food and cooked it at the hostel. I got a bottle of wine for less than 2 euros and that made me feel a bit better. Once some people had gathered at the hostel we fired up a drinking game, got everyone loose, and went out to a nightclub. Somewhere along the way I lost Jeff and Steph. The nightclub was called Razmataz, I recommend it if you are ever in town. Good music and then halfway through a live band came out and jammed for a bit. Next thing I know its 6am and I can see the sun. Got little to no sleep and...

Day 7 - Barcelona

Today I had every intention of going on an organized bicycle tour of Barcelona but I slept too late. No worries, I can catch it tomorrow. We walked down the main street of Las Ramblas and we were early enough that we saw most of the street performers putting on their makeup and costumes. This place had more street performers than I have every seen and most of them were very clever. They also have one million souvenir shops and quite a few pet shops on the street selling everything from turtles to chipmunks. We made it to the plaza at the end and found a place to rent bikes. It was the best decision I ever made. It was so fun to just cruise around town, it made me feel like a little kid in Coldwater again. I had a big clunky cruiser. We didnt really know where to go but stumbled across some Gaudi architecture and Sagrada Familia. Sagrada Familia might be the coolest looking building I have ever seen but I didnt want to pay a tenner to get in. Google it. After a lunch we came back to the hostel and Steph and I went to the beach while Jeff hung out at the hostel. The beach here is great. Nice sand, great water, and tons of people. I spent the whole afternoon/evening at the beach and then had a quit night at the hostel before bed.

Day 6 - Madrid and Barcelona

First thing on the agenda was to go to the train station to get tickets to Barcelona. It took much longer than we expected but we finally got them and then went for lunch, which also took forever. By then we didnt have much time til the train left so we went to a huge park nearby called Parque del Retiro and wandered around. They had several cool fountains and monuments there. After that we got on the train to Barcelona. We plan on staying there a few days and I cant wait to be settled somewhere for more than one night. Once we got checked in the to the Abaredo Youth Hostel in we went for a walk. Right away I could tell this was a very cool city. We went to the seaside and saw the many vendors and performers there. I walked all the way to the beach and had a look, though by now most people were leaving. The seaside/boardwalk area was very interesting. That evening we did our own little tapas tour through the pedestrian streets along Las Ramblas. Here they have tons of cool bars and restaurants. Came home a bit tispy to find several fun people hanging out in the common area of our hostel.

Day 5 - Madrid

Arrived at 840am after a long, hot, not too comfy overnight train. Had a quick bite and a coffee at the train station and then got on the metro. Our hostel was supposedly "very close" to a metro stop. What they didnt mention was that metro stop is under construction and you cant get there. So we got off where we could, got on a bus going whoknowswhere. At random we decided to get off. We walked a mile and found our hostel, Mad Hostel. After we checked in we went for a stroll and came across Reina Sofia museum. It had many works by Picasso including the famous "Guernica" of which I have always been a fan. It is HUGE. I also like art by Angeles Santos (Un Mundo) and Juan Gris (La Ventana Abierta and La Mesa Del Musico.) After about 3 hours in the museum we went back to the hostel to rest a minute before a tapas tour that the hostel offered. It was meant to go to 4 different tapas bars but #3 was so good we just stayed there. We met come cool people and I accidentally fed meat to a vegeterian and she puked, always a lifelong goal. Later that evening we went walking after dark. Madrid is neat at night, I got some neat pics.

a little ketchup

I am in Bari, Italy and my ferry to Croatia doesnt leave for 12 more hours so I am going to see how far I can get on the blog. Enjoy.

Day ???

I'm never drinking alcohol again. For at least 2 days.

Still Kickin it

Currently sleeping in a doghouse in Ios, Greece for a few nights. Today I laid by the beach all day then moved over to the pool. Now I'm exhausted...

Yes I am alive

I havent had a chance to do blogs lately, I´ve been very busy exploring and hanging out at beaches. I am at an internet cafe now but I dont have my journal with me and I dont want to miss anything. I´m in Barcelona, which is the coolest city so far. Hopefully I will get some more time soon to update you on what I have been doing, but it has been really fun. Gracias por su visita!

Day 4 - Lisbon

Today we had planned to hit the beach just a ways down the coast from Lisbon. We slept in a bit, grabbed some breakfast, and headed for the train station. After a bit of confusion over which train to take, we stuffed our bags in some lockers at the train station and headed for the beach town. There was one stop we wanted to make along they way which was the Monument to the Discoveries. It's bascially a giant statue of several famous Portuguese explorers. It's very big and impressive and you can go up to the top for more great views. On the other side of the river is a statue of Jesus that is the sister to the one in Rio, Brazil. After a bit more train confusion we made it to the beach and had a nap. My only complaint is the amount of old fat women in thongs...

Back in town now, about to get dinner and then get on a 10 hour overnight train to Madrid, Spain. Long trip but it means I dont have to pony up for accomodation tonight:)

Adios!

Amo, Russ

Day 3 - Lisbon

August 9
We arrived in Lisbon just after lunch and checked in to our hostel after a long and hot walk from the train station. We were spoiled a bit by the first hostel and this one was not nearly as nice, but it got the job done. We had a bed to sleep in. As soon as we checked in we got a quick bite and made our way out to the aquarium. It is the second biggest in the world and the whole thing is built around a giant tank that represents the natural ocean and has tons of different fish and plants inside. It holds the same amount of water as 4 Olympic size swimming pools. The main tank had several kinds of sharks, rays, eels, barracuda, tuna, grouper, sunfish, and tons of other weird ones that I didnt recognize. As you walked around the giant tank there were many other smaller tanks with specific kinds of plants and animals from different oceans of the world. We spent about 2 hours there. We were there for about 2 hours and then headed back to the main part of town. We headed for a cafe that is at the top of a 100 year old tower with an elevator, but we chose to walk up the hill to get there instead. The top offered some great views of the city and a couple of well deserved beers. From here we headed back down to explore the city streets. Like most old cities in Europe, Lisbon has a main part of town that is mostly pedestrian, so we walked around there a bit. We came out at the coast where there is a giant arch at the gates of some very old government buildings with a massive public square. We saw that a stage had been erected to we checked it out and found that we were in the middle of an Ocean Festival and tonight would be a free concert by Craig David. I'm not really in to Craid David but we thought it would be cool anyway. We had some time to kill so we went for a quick dinner and back to the concert. The opening band was Portuguese and while they rocked, I had no idea what they were saying. My feet and back hurt from walking all day so I was ready to hear the one Craig David song I knew and go to bed. Intro band played for an hour and a half before CD came on, played three songs and we left. I almost got my pocket picked but luckily I have deep pockets and not much in them. That night I was very ready to get off my feet and get in bed. Tomorrow, the beach!

Day 2 - Porto

This morning after brekkie at the hostel we headed to the train station to reserve seats for the journey to lisbon tomorrow. Since the "Italian Standoff" I now know how to operate the ever so complex Europass. Hopefully I dont get threatened with jail time tomorrow. Once we had that taken care of we headed off to the beach. We went to a different one than the extra rocky one that we saw yesterday and it was much nicer. Not as many rocks and the sand was nice and soft. But...it was way to windy to enjoy. On the bright side, my skin has never been so exfoliated. I explored a rocky jetti that was neat. All the rocks were worn smooth by the waves and there were quite a few pools from when the tide is high. I saw quite a few crabs and seach urchins and a few fish in some of the bigger pools.

We werent at the beach long and we got back on the bus towards town to search out a Port storehouse. We crossed a bridge and found one just after the bus stop. It was the Sandeman storehouse which is the most popular brand. The tour was very neat. They had thousands of barrels of ageing port, some that held over 20,000 liters of wine! After that tour we got to taste a few and they were very good. We left there to get a very late lunch and sat by the river for a while enjoying the scenery and river traffic.

By then it was almost 5 so we started to head back to the hostel and took a detour through the main part of town that we hadnt been to yet. Again, neat architecture but overall pretty dull. We were pretty tired so we came back to the hostel to rest for a bit before dinner here. Dinner time in Spain and Portugal is anywhere from 9-12pm. I've had a nap and a shower and I think we are going to get some food from the shop down the street and maybe watch a movie here at the hostel or something. There are plenty of other people here so I'm sure we'll find some people to chat with.

I realized today that since I am travelling for 50 days total and this isnt like a regular vacation, I cant go out to dinner and fight something to do every night. I need regular nights in to relax, not only to save money but just to survive! Travelling is exhausting sometimes, there is so much to see and so many miles to walk.

Tomorrow we will be in Lisbon by noon and I think we are going to the beach for the afternoon. There is also a neat aquarium there that I want to go to, I'm very excited about that. Look for another post later with all the neat stuff I learned about Port wine today.