Make it count

Antarctica 2011 Video

2011-03-18T07:27:00.000-07:00

Friday, March 18th

I just completed the video for the Antarctica trip. The link is http://vimeo.com/21185560. I've also posted it on facebook if that's easier. My email is kyle1baum@gmail.com if anyone wants to connect as a friend. It's just 8 minutes in length but covers the highlights.

Antarctica - Day #16

2011-03-07T11:15:00.000-08:00

Kurt

Liam

Kyle

Greg

Monday, March 7th

I'm currently sitting on my buddy Greg's couch in Raleigh, NC at 2:30pm on Monday, March 7th. No issues with my 10 hour, 30 minute flight from Buenos Aires to Washington Dulles. I got in around 6:30am local time.

I spent about an hour getting my checked bag and going through customs. I then got some US cash from the ATM and called home to check in. I boarded my final plane at 8:30am headed to Raleigh, NC. I got into Raleigh around 9:45am and took a taxi to Greg's place - where I'll be staying for a couple weeks.

Uneventful last day of the trip --- but that's a good thing. I'm now going to go back and add some photos to the blogs throughout the trip.

This trip was truly a once and a lifetime experience. Truly. Because of the cost and logistics, I would not entertain the notion of going again. With that said, I would absolutely recommend the trip to anyone. It was incredible, scenic, challenging, rewarding, and alot of fun all at the same time. Perhaps my descriptions of choppy seas, tough marathon conditions, and anxiety of the unknown would make one ask the question: "Why would you go there?" You know what -- I'm getting ready to post a bunch of pictures and do a little video that will clearly answer that question. My words don't mean much - the pictures should tell the story.

Antarctica - Day #15

2011-03-07T10:55:00.000-08:00

Good times

Sketchy waters in the zodiac

#7 - Antarctica

Liam - BOOM!!!

Land Ho!

It's all good!!

Sunday, March 6th

I have to recap the activity last night - our final night on the boat before going into Sunday. The first thing that happened was some of the people talked the Quark crew into doing the Polar Plunge in the Beagle Channel. The water wouldn't have icebergs in it -- but it will still be very cold.

The Quark staff had a bet with all of us. If we could get a 50 percent participation rate, they would get 50% of their staff to do the plunge as well. Because we were a boat filled with competitive people, you can only guess as to what occurred. We had more than the necessary amount - AND - the entire Quark staff did the plunge. It was awesome! They made us put on a safety belt that was attached to a rope. We stepped down off the stern of the boat into a zodiac. They had a towel on one of the sides of the zodiac to prevent us from slipping. We all lined up 1 by 1 and jumped into the frigid waters of the South Sea. I did it. Strange feeling when you first enter the water and can't catch your breath. Once we completed it, they gave us a vodka shot. Music was playing, spirits were high. This set the pace for the rest of the night.

After the little swim in the Beagle Channel, we had our final dinner. We've become really good friends with a number of people. Specifically, Kurt, Liam, Greg, and myself have been sharing a dinner table with Alexis, Cindy, Diane, and Mike. Our waiter was the same guy every night - Celito. He was awesome. By the end of the trip, he knew our menu choices. The final night when we came down for dinner, there was a RESERVED sign on our table. Celito had made the sign and wouldn't allow anyone else to sit there but us. GREAT STUFF.

After dinner, we hit the bar and ended up staying into the early morning hours. Perhaps wine and drinks, 5 hours post seasickness patch, is not the best formula for success. Live and learn.

Sunday started with a very early wake-up call. We had to have our checked bags outside our rooms by 6:30am. We then had to quickly get all our gear packed up and ready for an 8am disembarkment. We took a bus over to the domestic terminal in Ushuaia. We had an 11:55am flight to Buenos Aires - arriving at 4pm. No issues.

On arrival into Buenos Aires, the group largely separated and went on their own. A few good-byes --- but mostly unceremonial for as much time as we spent with one another. We stayed together with our dinner table and went to McDonalds. We all had different flights, with Kurt's flight leaving first at 9:35pm. We hung around and all departed for our respective cities between 9-11pm.

Sunday ended for me aboard a United jet headed for Dulles airport in Washington DC.

Antarctica - Day #14

2011-03-05T11:14:00.000-08:00

Final sunset

Polar Plunge in the Beagle Channel

Final sunset on the ship

Celito's sign to hold our table

Our group at dinner

Preparing for the Polar Plunge

Saturday, March 5th

Today is our last day at sea. We'll be arriving into the port at Ushuaia, Argentina very early tomorrow morning. I'm writing this around 5pm Saturday afternoon. Tonight we have a final dinner celebration - so I wanted to get a jump on things.

The day has gotten better every minute. The shaking and constant movement of the ship has turned into relatively smooth waters. It's a great, great feeling to be out of the Drake Passage. We now have a visual of Cape Horn - the southernmost point of South America.

We had a couple seminars this morning. The first was titled - Icy Antarctica. We learned about the different movements of ice and how the seasonal changes occur. We then had a talk from the Marathon Tours group - providing an overview of our trip and pointing out some upcoming excursions.

I wanted to summarize the types of wildlife we saw on the trip. They have a daily recorder near the reception desk. This lists includes: 3 types of penguins (gentoo, chinstrap, adelie), 3 types of whales (orca, humpback, and minke), 4 types of seals (fur, leopard, weddell, crabeater), 3 types of albatross (wandering, southern royal, black-browed), 1 type of petrel (southern giant), 2 types of storm petrels (wilson's, black-bailed), 1 cormorant (antarctic), 1 sheathbill (snowy), 2 types of skuas (south polar, brown), and 2 types of gulls/terns (kelp gull, antarctic tern).

We really have been lucky on this trip. We had some aggressive weather, but it did not prevent us from running the marathon. We only saw the angry seas on the ride home -- it could have knocked us out if we had encountered this on our arrival. We had enough sunny days that we got to see the good and bad. It would not have been right if we didn't get some of the snowy, windy, and cold conditions that often defines the continent of Antarctica.

Tomorrow will be primarily a travel day - as I'll be catching 2 planes back to the US - for arrival in the morning of March 7th. I plan to keep the blog through the 7th. At this point, I think we're all happy and thankful about how things have turned out.

Hope to coming to you live from the airport in Buenos Aires tomorrow evening.

Antarctica - Day #13

2011-03-04T08:53:00.000-08:00

Incredible sites

southernmost point on the trip

Windy, cold day

Pretty special place

Ice Walls

Great backdrop

Unique iceberg shapes

Friday, March 4th

Kurt and I are currently sitting in our room on the 4th floor of the Sea Spirit at 2pm on Friday, March 4th. We are in the middle of the Drake Passage. The #8 out of #10 difficulty rating has proven to be accurate. This is crazy. We are catching air and jumping over waves. We're sitting here, we feel the boat hit the wave, then we can tell that we are suspended in mid air. Then, BAM - we hit the ocean again. The whole boat rattles.

Neither of us are sick - to this point. We're hanging in there. To leave the room is questionable. You literally bump into everything in site. We just went to lunch. An older gentlemen got his entire chair flipped over while sitting at the table. The drinks were flying around. We got some food - and got out of there.

We're starting the movie - "The March of the Penguins". More later.

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The rest of Friday was mostly spent inside our cabins, laying horizontally. The Quark staff had a couple presentations throughout the day - I did not participate. During dinner, one of the girls at our table flipped over twice. Another person flipped over in the lounge. I know that I can't decribe the feeling at this point of the game -- but perhaps the word - unstable - comes to mind.

After dinner, a few of us went up to the Bridge (the area where the captain drives the ship). There is an open-door policy on this ship. Everyone leaves their keys in their cabin doors and we are all allowed up on the Bridge. The captain told us that they have seen 24ft. waves on this passage. The Marathon Tours guide told us that this is the 2nd worst crossing he's ever experienced in 12 years.

I'm writing on Saturday morning about 10am. We're told that we should enter calmer waters by 3pm and should reach the protection of the Beagle Channel by late evening. This trip has been great - BUT ----- I'll be happy when my legs touch ground once again.

Antarctica - Day #12

2011-03-03T16:46:00.000-08:00

One of our most southern positions

Whale bones

Penguins in the foreground, mountains in the background

Port Lockroy

Views from the ship

Views from ship

Clear skies

Thursday, March 3rd

Our final day in the Antarctic. We got an early wake-up call over the announcements as we were transversing the Lemaire Channel. This is a 7-mile by 1-mile passage that runs from False Cape Renard to Cape Cloos, separating Booth Island from the Antarctic continent. Kurt and I threw back the window drapes and watched the scenery. This area reminded me of the Norwegian fjords. Towering peaks in excess of 985ft on either side of the ship. The highlight was seeing a couple Minke whales breeching out our window. Incredible!!!

We made it through the Channel and on to Petermann Island, southwest of Hovgaard Island, in the Willhelm Archipelago. It was discovered by the Dallman expedition of 1873-1874 and named after August Petermann, a German geographer and supporter of polar exploration. The French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charcot and his vessel overwintered here in 1909. On the beach near the cove is an abandoned Argentinean refuge hut, built in 1955. There is also a memorial cross nearby for 3 British scientists who died near here in August 1982. Petermann island is home to Adelie penguins (500 breeding pairs), the most southerly colony of gentoo penguins in Antarctica (2,000 breeding pairs), and blue-eyed shags.

This island was incredible. This will be the furthest south I will ever be in my entire life. There was a huge rock that overlooked the sea where we captured some incredible pictures. Our whole group got together for the memorable shot. (to be posted later). We saw a few of the Adelie penguins - the 3rd species so far on the trip.

Back to the ship for some lunch. The afternoon found us in Pleneau Bay. Here we found an iceberg graveyard, where both large tabular icebergs and older, rolled icebergs have run aground. Many of these have originated from as far south as the Ross Ice Shelf. We took a 1-hour zodiac ride around these amazing icebergs. This trip was our last and most fun zodiac ride of our journey. When we got into the boats, the seas were relatively calm. By the time we were ready to return, the wind gust had picked up dramatically. The seas were angry - and I'm not over-stating this. Huge waves were crashing over the boat. We were getting soaked --- and loving it. The zodiac driver was holding on to me so she wouldn't go overboard. She said: "I hope you don't mind" I said - "You can do whatever you want to me - just stay in this boat". It was great. Better than the best roller-coaster I've ever been on. A few folks were getting a little scared - but it was a major adrenaline rush for me.

Late afternoon - we were supposed to be given the option of doing a Polar Plunge - jumping into the ocean. Due to the heavy winds, they called it off. I was bummed - I would have did it.

It's 10:10pm now, I'm sitting in the conference room catching up on the blog. We are heading back through the Shetland Islands right now, and will be enteriing the Drake Passage within the next 8 hours. We have been warned that we need to prepare for the "Drake Shake". On our trip here, the waters were relatively calm we were told - maybe a 2 on a sclae of 10 (I still almost fell out of bed). Tonight, we are to expect an 8 on the scale of 10. We should be seeing waves in excess of 30 ft. We're already jumping waves and we haven't even made it to the really bad stuff. I just put on the patch about 3 hours ago. This could get very, very interesting. The staff are all taking medication as well.

Here's to calm, peaceful waters ---- and a well-constructed ship ---------------------------- Keep the faith!!!!!!!!!!!

Antarctica - Day #11

2011-03-03T16:20:00.000-08:00

Iceberg cruising in the zodiacs

pictures from the zodiac

Kurt and I on the "continental landing"

Small shoreline of Neko Harbor

Seal watching from the zodiac

Wednesday, March 2nd

Today we started the day off by disembarking for Neko Harbor. This was our very first "continental landing" - this basically means that we were on the continent proper - and not the islands off the South Shetlands or Antarctic Peninsula.

Neko Harbor lies on the eastern shore of Andvord Bay, approximately 7 miles south of the Errera Channel. It was discovered by Gerlache during his Belgian Antarctic expedition (1897-1899), It is named for the floating whale factory ship, "Neko", which often used this bay. "Neko" operated between 1911-1912 and 1923-1924 in the South Shetlands and Antarctic Peninsula. The site is home to approximately 250 breeding pairs of gentoo penguins, some of which nest around the remains of an Argentinian refuge hut which was blown down by a storm in 2009. Weddell seals are commonly seen on the island.

This landing was a tough one. There was only a very small section upon which the zodiacs could enter. A "continental landing" is rare - as most islands are not accessible due to the ice coverage. We made it. We were able to climb up this small ice field. It was great to see the penguins sliding on the ground beside us.

Back to the boat where we had a great barbecue lunch and then the Marathon Awards Ceremony After recognizing the winners of each division and the overall, they did an auction for the mile markers and marathon banners. The funds raised would be given to charity. It was a neat event and good to see the many ages of runners who completed the race. 14 people were given special recognition - as they had completed their 7th marathoned continent. Something I hope to do in the future.

The afternoon found us back at Port Lockroy - the area we had visited yesterday. Port Lockroy lies on the western side of the Wiencke Island in the Palmer Archipelago. It was discovered by Charcot during his French Antarctic Expedition of 1903-1905 and named for Edouard Lockroy, a French politician and sponsor. Goudier Island is home to the restored British Antarctic Society hut and museum. The hut was Station A, referred to as Bransfield House. It was occupied between 1944 and 1962. Research carried out at this site focused on surveying the region, geology, meteorology, and botany - but after 1950, the emphasis switched to ionospheric research. The hut was restored in 1996 and is open to visitors during summers.

The big draw to Port Lockroy was the gift shop and museum. We were able to actually purchase something on the continent itself. I bought a couple postcards and mailed them. They are expected to be delivered sometime in November of this year. Wow! The mail was just picked up a few weeks back, it won't be taken again until the summer of next year.

The other really interesting thing about this island was the whale bones that were found on the shore. Pretty incredible stuff to see just how large some of these whales can get.

Back to the boat where we had some dinner and watched a movie in one of our rooms. The night ended with some good times in the bar --- knowing that we have just 1 more day of landings to go before heading out to sea.

Antarctica - Day #10

2011-03-03T16:02:00.000-08:00

Seals on the rocky shore

A humpback whale

Ship anchored at sea

Abundant icebergs

Icebergs with a blue-tint from the sun reflection

More scenery

remote sites

Tuesday, March 1st

Today we awoke to the most spectacular scenery of the trip. Blue skies, sunshine, and icebergs/mountains surrounding the ship. We were able to step out on the track from our 4th level room and be awestruck We were anchored just off the shore of Cuverville Island.

Cuverville Island lies in the Errera Channel, between Ronge Island and the Arctowski Peninsula. The island was discovered by Gerlache's 'Belgica' expedition of 1897-1899, and named after a vice admiral in the French Navy. This small rocky island has vertical cliffs measuring 650 ft in elevation and has extensive moss cover. Culverville Island is home to the largest gentoo penguin colony in the region (4,800 breeding pairs), along with southern giant petrels, kelp gulls, Antarctic terns, snowy sheathbills, and south polar skuas.

We spent a couple hours on land walking amongst the penguins and capturing the amazing sites. This island had smaller chicks and even had some still on the nest. The gentoos make their nest on the rocky shore. In a couple weeks, they will return to the ocean for feeding. We saw a number of penguins going through the molting process - where they shed their feathers, resulting in the slick, black coating we're familiar with seeing. Some of the mothers were feeding the chicks by regurgitating krill to give to their young.

Before returning to the boat, the zodiacs took us for a short cruise through the icebergs. Awesome!! We saw a number of crabeater seals and got to appreciate the size and shape of the blue-tinted walls of ice. The area we were cruising is completely ice covered in the wintertime. The icebergs were sitting on the ocean floor - with only a portion exposed above the water.

Once back at the boat, we had some lunch and then were put on a holding pattern - as the weather began to turn bad. The ship made its way through the Neumayer Channel on the way to Port Lockroy. Our goal was to disembark at Port Lockroy in the afternoon, but this was delayed a day.

First day post race - the majority of the crew ended up at the bar on the 4th floor. It was a pretty festive bunch. We had a great late afternoon and evening. It can get a little crazy when 100+ marathoners and adventure travellers get together with celebration on the mind.

Antarctica - Day #9

2011-02-28T17:58:00.000-08:00

Early pack of runners led by Greg

Kurt, Kyle, and Greg at finish

A fast Irishman

A nervous start

Kurt & I early in the race

Monday, February 28th

It's 11pm here aboard the Sea Spirit. I just stepped out of the bar to post a brief update before calling it a night. Success. All 4 of us finished the marathon today well under the cut-off time. We're healthy and in good spirits. We took home 7th, 25th, 30th, and 42nd place out of 76 marathon finishers. We'll take that. My buddy Liam came in strong once again. The rest of us finished in the middle of the pack.

Anxiety is gone, exhaustion has set in. More to follow - but just wanted to let you know it's "all good" in the South Seas. Thanks for the encouragement and good wishes. We needed every bit of it today -- it was a brutal course. (descriptions to come)

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It's Wednesday, March 2nd at 6pm here in Port Lockroy Antarctica. Sorry on the delay the past 2 days. We headed south after the marathon to the Antarctic Peninsula. Internet connectivity has been extremely sketchy. Everytime I'd go to post something, the file would crash. I have a little window here to hopefully give a brief race-day overview.

MARATHON DAY
The day started with a 6:30am wake-up call over the ship's audio system. "Ladies and gentlemen, let's get ready to rumble" Pretty great. The head of the dining area has a voice that sounds like the famous boxing announcer. Each day we've received a smilar start.

We ate a quick breakfast and prepared for our 8:15am departure to St. George Island by zodiac. This will likely be the one and only marathon I'll ever run where you must be transferred to the start line by a boat. I was extremely nervous leading up to the start. Luckily, the distance to the shore was very short or I might have gotten sick pre-race. We were slightly delayed getting all of the zodiacs (100 people) to land, so the race began at 9:20am, rather than the originally scheduled 9am start.

The most difficult part of the early morning preparation was deciding how many layers to wear. The weather (no wind) was just around the freezing mark, but the winds were steady at 15-20 knots. We also had to prepare for anything - as we've been told that conditions can change almost instantaneously. I opted for a dry-wick long-sleeve shirt under a wind resistant running jacket on my upper body. I had on running tights under a wind-resistant outer layer on my lower body. I wore 2 pairs of socks, a neck gaitor, a dry-wick sock-cap and a light-weight, wind resistant pair of gloves. I brought along a pack with a back up pair of running shoes as well.

The beauty of the course we would be running was that it was 5 separate loops. We would be coming past the start-finish line after 5+ miles. Therefore, I had my pack filled with heavy duty clothing if necessary. When we arrived on shore, there wasn't much time. I had to quickly change out of my rubber boots into my trail shoes. I put on my running belt and checked my food. I'd be carrying 2 squeeze bottles of power gel. We were not allowed to bring any wrappers whatsoever on land. I had 3 - 16-oz bottles of water for the entire race. I placed these at the start line so I wouldn't be carrying any liquid. During my training during the past 2 months, I've used very limited water and food on my long runs in preparation for the lack of support in this race. The training would prove valuable. At 9:20am on Monday, February 28th, 98 runners began the 12th annual Antarctic Marathon.

Miles #1-5 (out and back to the Chinese Research Base - #1)
I'm not sure if it was due to the quick start, the location, or just my nerves -- but I began the race nearly hyperventilating. I couldn't catch my breath. Kurt and I were going to stay together for a little while - but he powered ahead of me the first 2-3 miles while I lagged behind trying to get it together. Right away, we discovered that a combination of the wind, the mud, and the hills would make this one of the most diffficult marathons I would ever run. The overall female winner (who we have made good friends with), would later say this was the toughest marathon she ever ran --- and this is her 54th marathon. By the end of the first loop, I was coming around. I had caught Kurt and we were getting into a rhythm as we passed the start/finish line.

Miles #6-10 (out and back to the Uruguayan Research Base - #1)
This section of the course was the most difficult. This was due largely to the massive mud pits we encountered. There were times we had to broad jump over puddles and streams along the route. I thought I'd lose my shoe from sticking in the wet mud a couple times. The wind was steady with high gusts. I felt good physically however. I finished the second loop just under 2 hours.

Miles #11-15 (out and back to the Chinese Research base - #2)
The greatest part of the race was how we continued to pass the other runners along the way. By this time of our trip, we know most everyone. We would give each other high 5's and words of encouragement along the way. This really helped keep the spirits high in tough times. Other than the staff positioned around the course and an occasional research person coming out of a building, we were largely on our own. These 5 miles went well. I was falling into a comfort zone. Even though I would stop and walk on some of the very steep hills - I kept moving forward.

Miles #16-20 (out and back to the Uruguayan Researh Base - #2)
This was the toughest loop. I couldn't quite smell the finish and I had to deal with the mud and steep hills once again. Even though it was hurting, I actually had a chance to look around a little. The lakes, the mountains -- what an unbelievable place. Just keep it going - you can do it.

Miles #21-26.2 (out and back to the Chinese Research Base - #3)
1 loop for my 5th marathoned continent. I was doing OK. No stomach pain, just the typical hurt that one would expect at this time of the race. I kept running and was able to make up some ground on a few of the runners. I ended up finishing at 5:09 - #25 out of 76 total marathon finishers. I was very happy with the result. Traditionally, they say to add 30 minutes to an hour to your standard marathon time for this race. The overall winner came in at 3:24. He is a 2:41 marathoner. Only 4 people finished under 4 hours.

Greg, Kurt, and I all finished very close to one another. We took several pictures at the finish line. As we were standing there at the finish, a lone penguin waddled in front of the finish line. A coule runners were coming in. The staff was yelling: "Stop - let the penguin have the right away". Wow - what a way to finish the Antarctic Marathon - time delayed by a minute for a penguin crossing ---- it doesn't get much better than that.

The rest of the day was fantastic. We even got to see a pod of orca whales (killer whales) from the ship before dinner. The drinks were flowing and the celebration was well underway. A great, great feeling to have the race behind us. We all commented how difficult the past couple of days have been when we had so much time to think about the race.

It's now time to have a little fun. Here's to a rewarding, challenging, and ever-memorable day in the Antarctic.

Antarctica - Day #8

2011-02-27T17:19:00.000-08:00

Our group on an icefield

Sitting in the dock of the bay

Amazing icebergs

The 4 fellas with the mountains in the background

Icebergs everywhere

We woke up to this scenery the day after the marathon

Taken off the deck of the ship

Sunday, February 27th

Happy Birthday to my sister-n-law Linda today! Hope you're having a great one.

It's 10:20pm right now on Sunday, February 27th. I'm currently sitting in the Oceanus Lounge on the 3rd level of the Sea Spirit. We're docked in the bay just off shore from King George Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. I have a ton of nervous energy going. I thought I'd write a bit before going to bed.

Today was largely a rest day. We were set to disembark at 10:30am to tour Robert Point (Robert Island), but the wind was blowing at 30 knots, with speeds gusting to 40knots. The conditions were deemed to be too dangerous to reach land on the zodiacs. We ended up pulling anchor and making our way to our marathon destination point - King George Island.

They did have a couple afternoon seminars today. The first seminar - "Antartica and Climate Change" was really interesting. You hear about global warming all the time. Today made things a little more clear to me, as we were lectured by a researcher from New Zealand, who specializes on this topic. In the middle of the seminar, an announcement came overhead: "There is a humpback whale on the starboard side of the ship." Everyone jumped up and looked at each other: "Which way is starboard?" Finally the presenter pointed us in the correct direction. Someone gave me a hint to distinguish starboard (right) from port (left). 'Left' has 4 letters and so does 'port' -- that's how you can remember. We did get a few glances of the whale. Cool - my very first visual of a whale at sea.

More resting, than dinner, and then a final marathon briefing. The course will basically involve 5 loops of 5+ miles each loop. We start at the Russian/Chilean research bases and then do loops to the Chinese and Uruguayan research bases. We're told conditions are fairly favorable. Winds at 10-20 knots, with outside temperatures around freezing without the wind. We've also been cautioned that things can change quickly - so be prepared.

I have so much anxiety - I just want to get this thing going. Although I'm trying to maintain positivity and confidence on the exterior, there's certainly rumblings on my insides.

Here's to a good day tomorrow! "Running Against the Wind" - Bob Segar ----- this might be an appropriate song to have in my mind.

We'll be back after 26.2 --- Keep the Faith!

Antarctica - Day #7

2011-02-27T04:51:00.000-08:00

A gentoo penguin and the Sea Spirit

Greg and Kyle - Continent #7

Zodiac unloading

mother gentoo feeding her chick

Aitcho Island - South Shetland Islands -- our first zodiac stop

'molting' gentoo

Starting to see some ice on the shores

Saturday, February 26th

Today we did it - we stepped foot on Aitcho Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. Awesome!!!! My buddy Greg and I completed the 7 continents today, a couple years shy of age 40. My very first international trip was in Year 2000 when my buddies and I went to Australia. I remember talking to a couple people in an airport bar at some point during that trip. They had recently completed all 7 continents. I remember thinking that their achievements were not obtainable - impossible for the 'common folk'. I guess all you need is an idea and a will -- anything can happen.

Things started getting serious today. During the morning, we had 2 separate briefings and seminars. The first briefing was done by the Quark Expeditions crew. This crew is made up of 9 people who are in charge of our adventure while on the boat. We discussed the pristine nature of Antarctica. There are numerous precautions that must be taken to eliminate the possibility of leaving any trace of us on land. This means no food wrappers, no cans, no eggs or nut products. We can't touch any animals, or step on any vegetation. We can't go inside any building. No bathrooms except on raceday where they'll have 4 porta-potties placed on land.

The second seminar of the morning was given by the Marathon Tours Group - the travel group responsible for our complete journey. They gave a brief history of the marathon. This was truly amazing to hear. So many different challenges. One year the conditons were so bad, they had to run the race on the ship. They ran 422 laps around the ship to complete the race. Really - 422 laps. Wow!! Another year, they had the 50+ foot waves on their return to Ushauia. They said that the worst conditions for sailing were at Level #12. During that trip, they reached Level #11 -- even the crew were getting sick.

After lunch, it was time for disembarkment. We first had to bring all our gear that we would be wearing as potential outer layers to the main deck to get vaccuumed and checked. We had to take our shoes to a location on the deck of the boat to be scrubbed with special chemicals. The general idea is that we absolutely cannot introduce a foreign species to the pristine environment in Antarctica.

Finally, we signed up into 4 groups and were given times of disembarkment. Our group (Chicago), was set to release in the first wave. We put on rubber boots and our gortex outer layers in preparation for a wet landing. The ship can only get so close to shore. Therefore, we had to take these zodiac boats (large rubber boats that can hold 11 people) to land. We jumped out into ankle deep water and walked ashore.

When we reached the Aitcho Islands - the site was incredible. Penguins - everywhere. We saw large colonies of the Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins. They have no fear of humans - why would they. It was amazing as they just walked around - often times coming up to you and pecking on your boots. We were allowed on land for 90 minutes before returning to the ship. We saw a seal just before boarding the zodiac for our return.

In addition to the animals, the glaciers, the mountains, the water ---- the sites were unbelievable. The crew mentioned during their lectures to make sure you stop for a few minutes and just take in the sites. Just look around. There's truly a feeling of peace and calmness that one may never get to experience again.

After dinner, we had a race protocol meeting on Level #3. We watched a movie in our room before calling it a night. I think I mentioned incorrectly before that the marathon will be on February 27th. It's actually set for Monday, February 28th. Tomorrow we'll have another disembarkment on a different island and do final preparations for race-day on Monday.

The churning in my stomach tells me that that the real stuff will be going down in just over 24 hours.

Antarctica - Day #6

2011-02-26T05:38:00.000-08:00

First night sunset over the Beagle Channel

The "Bridge" - where the captain runs the controls

5th level outside deck

The bar/lounge area

Outside track around Level #4

Friday, February 25th

We made it through the night without getting sick. Bonus!! The ship is currently rocking pretty aggressively from side to side. It's extremely difficult to even walk doen the hall (as your body bangs off the walls).

Kurt and I headed to breakfast around 8:30am. They had waste bags placed all along the railing leading up and down the stairs. (Seasickness is high on the communication topics). The breakfast was a buffet. I filled my plate and went to sit down. The dining hall is on the 2nd level - basically right at sea level. I looked up through the port holes. You could see the sky, then there were huge waves, and finally just water. After about 3 bites, I decided that breakfast wasn't in the cards for me today. I headed back to the room to lay down.

Today's itinerary involved several seminars spaced a couple hours apart. These were not mandatory - just informational if you were interested in attending. After a few minutes recovery in the room, I went to the talk concerning albatross and petrel birds. I started feeling better and remained stable the rest of the day.

I went to 3 other seminars total on Friday: seals, history of Antarctica, and current-day Antarctica. These talks were interesting and enabled us to pick-up a few ideas before reaching land.

Today was all about getting your sea legs, resting, and keeping hydrated between meals. A few people had a glass of wine or a beer, but the atmosphere is overwhelmingly focused, mixed in with some anxiety of the unknown. Midday, I took a walk around the outside track on Level #4 to get some fresh air. This was a little scary as you were walking next to the bannister. I had my hands on the inside wall the entire time. Kurt and I even went up to this small workout room and biked/ran for about 30 minutes to keep the legs going.

The night ended in the bar/lounge with a game of Yahtzee. Tomorrow we're set to hit land by early afternoon. It's about to get interesting.

Antarctica - Day #5

2011-02-25T05:11:00.000-08:00

Our room on the Sea Spirit

Our room for 10 nights

First night on the water - looking into Ushuaia

Liam, Greg, Kyle, Kurt -- in front of the famous sign in Ushuaia

The mountains surrounding Ushuaia

Our ship - the Sea Spirit

Thursday, February 24th

Coming to you live from the 3rd floor lounge aboard the Sea Spirit in the middle of the Drake Passage, 1-day from reaching the most isolated continent in the world. "Hold on baby it's a bumpy ride"

Yesterday was a long, crazy day. We left the hotel at 5:40am for the airport. On arrival, we found ourselves in a jam-packed line. Since our group made up over half the 7:40am flight, they actually held the plane for us. Only problem in this situation, if you barely make the plane, more oftern than not, your checked bags will not make the plane.

So, after our 3.5 hour flight, we arrived into Ushuaia, AND --- are bags did not show. Not so good. We got transferred to the port area and were given 3 hours of downtime before needing to report to the ship at 3:20pm.

We grabbed some lunch, walked the town, and made it to the ship on time. The ship is awesome. The rooms are significantly better than I had expected. There's 6 levels. Not a ton of space, but nice for the 150 people or so on board. There's 1 bar, 1 dining room, and 1 conference room - we'll definitely get to know each other better over the next 10 days.

We ended up waiting for a couple more flights to come into Ushuaia before setting sail. Our bags finally arrived by 7:30pm. Great feeling to have our gear back. We did our safety checks and then went to dinner. The dinner was nice - elaborate 5-course setup. We met up with a cool couple from Atlanta (already had completed the 50-states marathons and 5/7 continents).

Around 9:30pm, we completed dinner, just as the ship left port. We walked around the deck for a little while before calling it a night. The first several hours, the ride was smooth as we travelled through the Beagle Channel. We hit the Drake Passage in the middle of the night. I know this, only because I almost rolled out of bed a few times.

All I can say at this point of the game, the patch behind my ear is the most important thing in my life right now. I'mhaving trouble downloading pictures, hope to figure it out soon.

Antarctica - Day #4

2011-02-23T18:19:00.000-08:00

Buenos Aires skyline

Lounging on this plush leather couch in Uruguay

Bucket List - antiquing in Uruguay -- check.

Golf carting around Catalonia, Uruguay

Old Bull Ring

Tree-lined streets

Nice ride

A group of us overlooking the ocean in Uruguay

Wednesday, February 23rd

Early wake-up call today at 6:30am. Felt alot better. Illness is behind me. We all met down for breakfast at 7am. We then walked over to our ferry boat connection for an 8:45am departure to Uruguay.

Many people on our tour group joined along. The water shuttle took us to the city of Catalonia, Uruguay. It was a 1 hour boat ride. The time is 1 hour ahead, so we arrived around 10:45am. Our return trip to Buenos Aires was 7:00pm - so we had the day to check out the city.

Since we're only a few days out from the marathon, none of us wanted to walk too much and be on our feet for hours. We decided to rent a couple golf carts and tour the sites. It was really a fun day. It was overcast and rainy much of the time, but we had a good time nonetheless.

We drove down along the beaches and through the main city center. The streets were lined with trees and had a pretty good feel. We ate lunch at this pizza place in town. Then we drove down and saw the historic Plaza de Toro (the old bull ring from many years past).

We next decided to drive further along the beach and worked our way over to the Sheraton Hotel - probably the fanciest place in the city (outside pool, beach, golf course -- very nice). We proceeded to take a couple hour relaxation period and grabbed some hot tea while lounging on this plush leather couch (see pic).

We did some souvenoir shopping in town and headed back to the boat. We left Catalonia at 7pm and arrived in Buenos Aires at 7pm - very nice. We then walked along the waterfront to one of the most famous steakhouses in the world -- La Cabana. Most of us had these lomo medallions, which may have been the best steak I've ever eaten in my life. Argentina is huge on beef. That, along with the tango, are it's claim to fame.

I'm now just getting back to the hotel room at 11:30pm. We have a 7:40am flight tomorrow morning from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia. We have to leave the hotel at 5:40am. Wake-up call is set for 4:45am and we're meeting folks at 5am for breakfast. Needless to say, I don't have a ton of time to be very elaborate today. I did want to check in because I'm not certain if I will be able to blog again until March 6th. Tomorrow we board the ship to Antarctica. We will set sail tomorrow afternoon at 4pm. Everyone is doing fine and we're positioning ourselves to make miracles happen.

I hope to be coming to you live crossing the Drake Passage on the southern tip of the world tomorrow night. If I can't, no worries -- we'll be strong. I just watched the movie "Secretariat" on the plane ride to BA the other day. It's about the greatest racehorse that ever lived. Want to know why he was the best - he had a bigger heart than anybody else. I'll be thinking about his Belmont run in 1973 while on the backstretch of the marathon in a few days ------- the heart of a champion is not something that is easily broken.

Antarctica - Day #3

2011-02-22T16:59:00.000-08:00

Banner over doorway into the reception hall

The fellas at lunch - Kilkenny Pub

Busy lunch area - 2pm on a Tuesday

Great park across the street from hotel

Evening sky of Buenos Aires

Tuesday, February 22nd

I just got back to the hotel room after a really great opening dinner celebration with the entire marathon group. 115 people total -- 98 runners (83 marathoners and 15 half marathoners), 5 staff members, and 12 family members. Today I continued to feel pretty bad - but, after just meeting a ton of unique, inspirational people --- I know that I can do this. I talked with one of the girls I had met from Machu Picchu. She is a oral surgeon and a good motivator. Just like she says: "If you just stay positive and continue to look ahead, you can make yourself feel better. The mind can be a powerful tool."

Today the group met at 9am for a 3 hour tour of Buenos Aires. I didn't go. I got the highlights via camera shots and communication with the fellas. A couple things of interest: (1) Buenos Aires got its freedom from Spain in 1816 (2) BA is a very diverse city, with Spanish, Italian, and French ties. (3) BA had a big economic downturn about 10 years ago and has been steadily picking up the pace in recent years. (4) The group saw an interesting cemetary with some elaborate tombs holding 10+ people each.

After returning from the tour, Greg, Liam, and Kurt came to my room and dragged me out for some food. A tip of my cap to the fellas -- I needed that. We had a great lunch at this Irish Pub on the main drag. Argentina follows the Spanish way of life when it comes to eating. Lunch is mid afternoon and dinners start around 8pm. Then, people stay up until all hours of the night. It was great people watching. "Out last night" - Kenny Chesney --- the girls from Argentina are back.

After lunch we walked over to a tourist agency and purchased some ferry tickets to Uruguay. We have a free day tomorrow before heading further south to Ushuaia, so a number of folks are taking a ferry boat over to the country of Uruguay. I purchased the ticket but will play it by ear to see how I feel in the morning.

There was another training run at 4pm, but none of the 4 of us went today. I rested the afternoon while the other guys did some souvenoir shopping. We had cocktail hour at 6pm and then dinner starting at 7:30pm tonight. It really, really sucks right now that I cannot talk much at all. These people are very interesting and I relish the opportunity to get to know them better. That's OK for now - my time will come.

I took a few pictures of the city as promised. There's a really cool park next to our hotel. I'm impressed with Buenos Aires so far. I'm sure it has some poor areas like Rio - but I felt good vibes today.

Our tour guide told us tonight that we need to watch out for huge birds that will dive-bomb at our heads during the marathon and try to pick at us. Very nice. A guy raises his hand and asked: "How do we protect ourselves?" The guide says: "Don't wear headphones. You can hear them hovering above you. Just hold your hand above your head and that will deflect the blow when they make their move." Excellent!!!!!! Oh - he also mentioned that they have had waves of 50+ ft are more on the voyage over the Drake Passage. We were in this large auditorium. He pointed to the ceiling and stated: "The waves were way higher than this ceiling"

Antarctica - Day #2

2011-02-21T15:32:00.000-08:00

Monday, February 21st

It's 9pm here in Buenos Aires. Kurt, Greg, Liam and myself arrived safely into Argentina this morning. My flight was 10 hours, 28 minutes from D.C. - landing around 10am local time. We are currently 3 hours ahead of US central standard time. (6pm on Monday, Feb. 21st in St. Louis right now). Temperatures are around 80 degrees, as this is the end of the summer here in the southern hemisphere.

Embarrassing as it is to say, I'm currently sitting in my hotel room at the Marriott Hotel - by myself. I feel like garbage (well, actually - I'm getting better). What's my problem? Who knows - major sore throat, cough, general weakness. I'm taking antibiotics and getting some rest. All will be better tomorrow. Kurt, Greg, and Liam are out to dinner with the group. I had room service.

We got to the hotel about 1pm today after meeting up with our Marathon Tours group. There's about 100 total people on the tour. This was a strict number, as you can only have 100 people on land in Antarctica at the same time. This has recently changed. They used to take 2 cruise ships with 100+ people per ship. The new regulations cut the trip size in half.

There's a ton of great people on the tour, 3 who we had met on our trip to Machu Picchu. The majority of folks are from the US - all different ages from all different areas.

After checking into our rooms, some of the group met up for a 4pm training run. Kurt, Greg, and Liam participated - I didn't. The group then met up for dinner, departing at 7pm.

This is painful for me to write, as I do not like being weak. just keeping it real. Tomorrow is a new day. Pictures to come - I promise. Good night from BA.

Antarctica - Day #1

2011-02-20T14:05:00.000-08:00

Sunday, February 20th

Coming to you live from Dulles Airport in Washington D.C. It's 5:10pm EST. The Daytona 500 is nearing a conclusion on the overhead screen, the airport traffic in Concourse C is slowly subsiding, and I'm settling in after eating a turkey sandwich and orange juice from Starbucks. Before I can cap the year, I have 1 final thing to do. Today I set off for a 16-day journey to my very final continent --- Antarctica.

Well, since my return from Europe, I've been in a transitional period. I had a great Christmas season with family and friends. Busy - alot of different things on the agenda: training runs, genealogy trips, doctor's office visits, card playing, snow shoveling, house organizing, eagle watching. It's amazing how active one can be even without a full time job. This has been a special time for me and I recognize the significance.

So - what am I going to be when I grow-up? Man, I can say this, the people who can definitely answer this question without hesitation are superheroes in my book. I truly envy those who have it all figured out. I've been drawing inspiration from everywhere. I guess the beauty of my situation --- it can always be changed. With all that being said, I've determined that I would like to move to Denver, Colorado upon my return. The job -- to be determined. But, a place is a start. I'm just about through with feeling like a big slacker. It's amazing to see the faces of people when you tell them you do not have a job. It doesn't draw much respect - that's for sure. I'm ready to change that.

Alright, I thought I needed to at least summarize things for the past 2 months. Now - on to more interesting things. Antarctica. Roughly 3 years ago, my buddies and I dreamed up the idea of doing a marathon on the continent of Antarctica. We sent in our initial deposit and largely put it on the backburner. After spending the past couple years on the waiting list - we finally made the cut for the 2011 trip. Antarctica -- we're REALLY going to Antarctica. That's crazy stuff.

It's such an unknown. How many people do you know that have been to Antarctica? That number has to be small. I've been asked so many questions the past 2 months. I know so little myself. It's funny. I could have a whole conversation with someone and after shaking hands to leave, they may say: "Good luck in Alaska!" I've been offered a Triple AAA booklet so I could find hotels and rental cars when I get there. People tell me to watch out for polar bears. (Polar bears are only in the northern hemisphere - Arctic). This is all good stuff. I know only the very basics - and that's because I've read a little on the subject. Why is Antarctica a continent and the Arctic is not? I just found that out last night. Antarctica is a large land mass sitting on a tectonic plate; whereas, the Arctic is only an icecap floating on the Arctic Ocean, with no land mass under it. Is it north or south of the US? South. I can't wait to get there and figure it out. I look forward to providing further information.

After spending nearly all my time in Missouri since Christmas, I drove out to Raleigh, NC last week to my buddy Greg's house. Greg, Liam, and my brother Kurt will be joining me on the trip. We did some last minute preparation and packing. At 11:30am today, Greg dropped me off at RDU airport for the first part of my journey. I flew from Raleigh to Washington D.C. - arriving at 4:30pm. I'll be departing for Buenos Aires, Argentina this evening at 10:10pm. Greg and Liam will fly together later tonight. They connect through Miami on the way to Buenos Aires. Kurt is flying from St. Louis, connecting through Atlanta, before arriving in Buenos Aires. If all goes well, tomorrow morning around 11am, we'll all meet up at the EZE airport in the capital city of Argentina.

I'm going to keep daily accounts of the journey. I'm just not sure if I will be able to post them right away. We will be spending 3 days in Buenos Aires before taking a plane to the southermost city in South America - Ushuaia. From there, we take a ship for 2-1/2 days across the Drake Passage to the continent of Antarctica. The marathon is scheduled for February 27th. We do some touring after completing the race for a few days and return to Buenos Aires on March 6th and then transfer back to the US.

What am I feeling right now. A little sick - I'm currently hoarse with a sore throat. Nervous - The Drake Passage is recognized as the most aggressive water route in the world and I've heard the words: "The Perfect Storm" to describe crossing it on a boat. Prepared - I've trained more stringently for this race than any other I've participated in since 2006.

I hope that "Preparation" wins out. Sometimes, all you can do is put yourself in the best position (taking medication for my throat and bringing patches for seasickness) and hope for the best. I look forward to writing from the 80 degree temps of Argentina tomorrow. Until then - keep the faith!

Summary Video

2011-01-10T21:16:00.000-08:00

I promised a summary video of my trip - see http://vimeo.com/18645092

It feels weird to be back in the states - not writing about my daily encounters. I plan to continue the blog journal during my Antarctica journey in late February. Until then - keep the faith.

Final Thoughts - Make it Count

2010-12-20T07:20:00.001-08:00

This year has been really, really incredible for me. I was able to fulfill a dream that I didn't think would ever become reality. I learned a ton along the way. I am so very thankful to all those who helped me and shared in my experiences. There's been some good times, some bad times, and some scary times. These have all added to the overall significance.

In addition to the obvious - setting out to see new places and explore the history of Europe - I went on this trip to "get back to the basics". Way too often, I'm guilty of being laser-focused and not appreciating the little things in life. This trip has brought many of these things to new light. It might be as simple as an evening sunset or a conversation with a friend - it's all relevant.

I'm very happy that I kept this blog account throughout my journey. I was a little unsure at first - hanging myself out there. But, it's been excellent. It's been a way to express myself that I would otherwise not have had. I'm still uncertain where my future path will take me. One thing I know - I want to give back in some way. I'm truly lucky. I've been very fortunate throughout my life. Positive things have been the result of great people who've inspired me each day.

So, to wrap up my blog - I wanted to hit on a phrase that I never used once throughout my entire trip. Maybe it was inspired by Leonardo DiCaprio in "Titanic" or perhaps it had roots in Tom Hanks final words in the movie "Saving Private Ryan". Or - maybe it's just what I believe. I'm not sure.

No matter where you live, what career you've chosen, or what talents you possess --- everyday, extend your personal limits to a place that makes you feel a little uncomfortable. That's how we grow. Be thankful for what you have and use those abilities in the best way possible. Quite simply: "MAKE IT COUNT".

Thanks for sharing in this journey with me.

Best of the Best

2010-12-20T07:19:00.002-08:00

I wanted to include a page to recognize the very best highlights of the trip. A few of those are listed below:

A.) FAVORITE COUNTRY
1.) Germany
2) United Kingdom
3) France
4) Ireland
5) Switzerland
6) Italy
7) Spain
8) Austria
9) Greece
10) Norway
11) Iceland
12) Israel

Second Tier: Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Monaco, Netherlands, Portugal, San Marino, Sweden, Vatican City

Third Tier: Finland, Hungary, Litchenstein, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Peru, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Turkey

Fourth Tier: Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Egypt, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia, Ukraine

B.) FAVORITE CITY
1.) Paris
2) Prague
3) Rome
4) London
5) Munich
6) Berlin
7) Istanbul
8) Barcelona
9) Edinburgh
10) Jerusalem

C.) BEST PARTY
1) Ocktoberfest - Munich, Germany
2) St. Patrick's Day - Dublin, Ireland
3) Running of the Bulls - Pamplona, Spain

D.) BEST SPORTING EVENT
1) British Open - St. Andrews, Scotland
2) Wimbledon, London, England
3) Tour de France - France

E.) BEST MARATHON
1) Machu Picchu
2) Athens - 2,500 Anniversary
3) Iceland

F.) BEST DAY TOUR
1.) Berlin City Tour
2.) Auschwitz Concentration Camp - Poland
3) Vatican City
4) Giants Causeway - Northern Ireland

G.) BEST BOAT RIDE
1.) Norwegian fjords
2) Greek Isles
3.) Rhine River Valley

H.) MOST UNIQUE 1-DAY EXPERIENCE
1.) Pyramids of Giza
2.) Beaches of Normandy
3.) Highland Games - Scotland

I.) COOLEST EVENT TO HAPPEN UPON
1.) St. Jordi Day - Barcelona
2.) Paul McCartney Concert - Hyde Park
3.) Feria Festival - Seville, Spain

J.) BEST MOUNTAIN
1.) Jungfrau, Switzerland
2.) Zermatt, Switzerland
3.) Chamonix, France

K.) BEST CHURCH
1.) St. Peter's Basilica - Rome
2.) Notre Dame - Paris
3.) St. Mark's Basilica - Venice

L.) BEST RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE
1.) Walking the Via Delorosa (Stations of the Cross) - Jerusalem
2.) Seeing the Pope - Vatican City
3) Lourdes, France
4.) Passion Play - Oberammeragau
5.) Road to Santiago de Compostela - Spain

M.) BEST MUSEUM
1.) Anne Frank - Amsterdam
2) Picasso - Barcelona
3.) World War II Museum - Caen, France

N.) BEST PEOPLE
1.) Irish
2) German
3) Danish/Swedish

O.) MOST BIZARRE
1.) Obese gentleman's house in Scotland
2.) Straggler in Bulgaria
3) Cab ride in Athens

Trip Summary

2010-12-20T07:19:00.001-08:00

I did this at the 1/3 point of the trip, and decided to hold off until the end to summarize things one last time. Here goes:

Days on the Trip ---- 284

Continents ---- 5 (Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America)

Countries ----- 45 (Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Litchenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA, Vatican City)

Nights Stayed in each Country ------

United Kingdom - 37 (London-23, Edinburgh-5, Belfast-2, Cardiff-2, Carnoustie-1, Glascow -1, Inverness-1, Portree-1, Windemere-1)

Germany - 30 (Baden-Baden-8, Munich-7, Berlin-4, Frankfurt-4, Schrobenhausen-4, Oberammeragau-2, Hamburg-1)

Italy - 25 (Rome-6, Florence-5, Venice-3, Milan-3, Sorrento-2, Assisi-2, Parma-1, Ravenna-1, Torino-1, Verona-1)

France - 23 (Paris-11, Annecy-3, Nice-3, Caen-2, Biarritz-1, Bordeaux-1, LaRochelle-1, Lourdes-1)

USA - 22 (Bloomsdale-13, St. Louis-5, Raleigh-3, Chicago-1)

Ireland - 18 (Dublin-8, Galway-3, Cork-2, Killarney-2, Ballycroy-1, Castlebar-1, Limerick-1)

Spain - 16 (Barcelona-5, Madrid-4, Granada-1, Leon-1, Pamplona-1, Salamanca-1, San Sebastian-1, Santiago-1, Seville-1)

Switzerland - 11 (Geneva-5, Interlaken-3, Zurich-3)

Greece - 10 (Athens-8, Kalambaka-1, Santorini-1)

Peru - 10 (Cusco-5, Machu Picchu-2, Lima-1, Uramba-1, Yucay-1)

Norway - 9 (Oslo-5, Lavik-2, Voss-2)

Sweden - 7 (Stockholm-5, Alingsas-2)

Denmark - 6 (Copenhagen-6)

Russia - 6 (Moscow-3, St. Petersburg-3)

Austria - 5 (Vienna-3, Innsbruck-1, Salzburg-1)

Finland - 5 (Helsinki-5)

Turkey - 5 (Istanbul-5)

Iceland - 4 (Reykjavik-4)

Portugal - 4 (Lisbon-2, Faro-1, Porto-1)

Czech Republic - 3 (Prague-3)

Egypt - 3 (Cairo-3)

Israel - 3 (Jerusalem-2, Tel Aviv-1)

Netherlands - 3 (Amsterdam-3)

Poland - 3 (Warsaw-2, Krakow-1)

Romania - 3 (Bucharest-2, Suceava-1)

Belgium - 2 (Brussels-2)

Croatia - 2 (Dubrovnik-1, Zagreb-1)

Montenegro - 2 (Bar-2)

Bulgaria -1 (Sofia-1)

Canada -1 (Toronto-1)

Hungary - 1 (Budapest-1)

Lithuania -1 (Vilinius-1)

Serbia -1 (Belgrade-1)

Slovenia - 1 (Ljubljana-1)

Ukraine- 1 (Chernivtsi-1)

Number of different locations stayed --- 152 times I changed places

Average Cost of Hotel Stay ---- $76.53

Day #284 - London to USA (Last Day)

2010-12-20T07:18:00.001-08:00

Thursday, December 23rd

Gentlemen (women), welcome to the final day of my journey. You are the Top 1 Percent of all faithful blog followers, the ELITE, the "Best of the Best", I think in a way - we've made each other better this year.

It's 2:45am. I'm sitting here in my hotel room in London - frantically finishing up some final things before my 5:30am departure to Heathrow. It was long ago determined that I would not sleep tonight. That's OK - I think that just about every trip I made back to the states on this journey - I did not sleep prior to departure (my sick night in Istanbul, my sick night in Paris, the night I came home to see my dad, and now tonight).

Well, I'm going to be posting 3 more pages with some summary items. But, maybe you can tell with my words, this is a pretty weird feeling for me right now. This year has been incredible. It's been special. I'm so lucky to have great family and friends. I don't know - but I really feel like this journey has exceeded my expectations. I hope I can take with me some things I've learned and apply them to my everyday life. Thank you for sharing this with me.

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Alright - to bring it home, the #1 country on my list, "O'zapft is!" - (the keg is tapped) ------ GERMANY

Israel (#12)
Iceland (#11)
Norway (#10)
Greece (#9)
Austria (#8)
Spain (#7)
Italy (#6)
Switzerland (#5)
Ireland (#4)
France (#3)
United Kingdom (#2)
Germany (#1)

GERMANY (#1)
Well, I spent 30 days in this country - 1 month. It must be clear in what I have written, because many people have emailed me today stating that they felt Germany would be my #1 selection from the very beginning. That's good.

I spent 8 days in Baden-Baden - the Black Forest area. This is a smaller community - but an incredibly peaceful location. I never felt better in any particular town than here. I spent 7 nights in Munich. I saw the Christmas markets and particpated in the Ocktoberfest celebration. I spent 4 nights in Berlin. It's here, standing over Hitler's Bunker and looking out over the remnants of the Berlin Wall, that I asked myself: "Am I really here?". I spent 4 nights in Frankfurt. I did day trips to Heidelberg and Cologne - and did a boat ride on the Rhine River. This day may have sealed the #1 selection. Sitting out on the deck of this boat, with a tall adult frosty beverage, talking with the local Germans, who spoke better English than I did. Then I spent 4 nights in some smaller towns - Schrobenhausen, Regensburg, Bamberg ---- incredible areas to visit. What about the passion play in Oberammeragau. Special. The town itself is reason enough to make a visit. And finally, a night in Hamburg, where I saw arguably the best sunset of my trip.

And with all that said --- the main reason I picked Germany is because I felt the best here. It was right. People speak English, people are organized, they are calculated. They enjoy a beer, but are not scared of working. It's home to the Mercedes ---- and Ocktoberfest. It has incredible history -- World War II -- it started and ended here. It has natural beauty -- the Black Forest, the Rhine River Valley, and the Alps. Basically, when I looked at my requirements for obtaining the best - this place met each and every one.

With admiration and respect --- I'm proud to list GERMANY as my #1 country on my Gap Year 2010.

Day #283 - London, England

2010-12-20T07:17:00.003-08:00

Last hotel - Jesmond Dene - near Kings Cross Station

The London Underground - the Tube

Entrance into St. Pancreas Station

Wednesday, December 22nd

Well, for all practical purposes, this is my final day in Europe during my journey. It doesn't seem real. It started in Paris and will end in London.

I'm staying up by the Kings Cross/St. Pancreas Train Station. If things would have worked out a little better yesterday, I would have done some site-seeing today. But, I just had too much to do. I spent the better part of the day just shoring up things for my return.

I spent time at the Post Office, at the barbershop, at a few souvenir shops, and different Wi-Fi accessible cafes.

It's now approaching 7pm on Wednesday night. (If I was in STL right now - I'd be preparing for the big MU-IL Braggin-Rights basketball game) I have a taxi set for pickup at 5:30am tomorrow morning to bring me to Heathrow Airport. I feel really inspired right now. I have some people to Thank for the next few hours --- it might well bring me to my early morning departure.

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So, it comes down to the Final 2 countries. Who to pick? Albania and Serbia are both on the board. So are Bulgaria and Latvia. But-- it's not them. What about Vatican City or San Marino? Both excellent spots, but I couldn't spend a week there (1 of my requirements). Hmmm - Czech Republic and Sweden are awesome. Belgium and Denmark are great as well. These 4 are in my next best 10. If I've been true to myself and provided accurate descriptions this year -- you should already know the final 2. Would it surprise you that the final 2 countries both speak English very well -- it shouldn't. Comfort. Peace. If I had to live outside the US in Europe, I would only want to live in 1 of these 2 countries.

"Get on with it". Well, I'm currently sitting in my #2 country. Coming in tonight as my #2 most favorite country on my Gap Year 2010 is ........... UNITED KINGDOM

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)

Austria (#8)

Spain (#7)

Italy (#6)

Switzerland (#5)

Ireland (#4)

France (#3)

United Kingdom (#2)

UNITED KINGDOM (#2)

To be honest, this pick would have surprised me before entering my journey. I would have anticipated maybe Italy or Spain in this position. But, I kept an open-mind throughout. And, the UK stood out for me. So many things to see and do. I'll be looking at this later, but I've probably spent over a month in this country alone. It's like a country made up of 4 smaller ones: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland.

England --- It starts with London. This is a Top 5 city for me. I really enjoyed my stay here. Endless things to do. Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, London Eye, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Picadilly Circus, River Thames, Wimbledon -- you could spend 2 weeks in London proper before you adequately saw everything. Then, the day trip possibilities from London are immense. One of my favorite spots: Oxford University and Blenheim Palace. You have Cambridge, the White Cliffs of Dover, Stonehenge, Bath, Shakepeare's Place in Stratford Upon Avon, Southhampton, the Lake District, Windsor Castle, and Warwick Castle.

Scotland -- This was my favorite. This area secured the #2 position. Going to the home of golf at St. Andrews and then golfing at Carnoustie and Turnberry - unreal. Edinburgh is a fantastic city. Then there's Inverness, Loch Ness, Aberdeen, Glascow. I spent a unique day at the Highland Games in a small town in western Scotland. What about my day in the Isle of Skye. I most definitely would like to return to Scotland at some point. I didn't even do any hiking - and Scotland is known for this.

Wales and Northern Ireland --- both interesting areas. I spent limited time in each, but both were neat places that offer more than most countries.

Adding up the sum of the parts --- the United Kingdom comes in as my #2 most favorite country.

Day #282 - Paris to London, England

2010-12-20T07:17:00.001-08:00

Waiting to board the ship from Calais to Dover

People anxiously watching the Departure Boards at the Nord Train Station in Paris

Tuesday, December 21st

So, today was just as challenging as expected. The good thing however -- it ended with me arriving in London, England at 12 midnight. At that point, nothing else mattered -- the day was a success.

I got up and went over to the Nord Train station in Paris. I had a 2:30pm train to Calais, France booked - but I was fully expecting this to either be delayed or cancelled. My goal was to find backup. Well, it didn't take long for me to realize that the travel situation in Europe is serious. It's definitely real, and it's definitely not to be underestimated. This was clear from the faces of the thousands of people in the train station - a look of panic, anxiety, and desperation.

When I spoke with the lady last evening concerning trains to London, she didn't speak English well, and I didn't understand what she was trying to tell me. Today I get it. Due to snow issues in both England and France, there's been many delays to the Eurostar train connecting the ciites of Paris and London. Because of the delays, the tickets are completely booked for 7 days. The train lines are operational - but no spots are available.

The only 2 countries in which trains go directly to England from the mainland are: France and Belgium. I learned that this was not an option for me. I then checked into buses. Nothing. Long range bus options in France are not great to begin with, but they were completely booked as well. OK - deep breaths. There's 5 ways to get from Paris to London: car, train, bus, boat, or plane. Well, 2 of the 5 were eliminated as options (train & bus). I decided that the car option would be the absolute last thing I do. I wanted no part of driving in snow (on the wrong side of the road in England) to make this happen. Therefore, I had to look into 1) Boat or 2) Plane.

I did find a plane that would have gotten me into Southampon at 10pm. I could then take the train to London. It was pricey however - $400. So, my plan to take the train to Calais, then a boat across the English Channel to the White Cliffs of Dover, and then a train to London ----- this HAD to work. I had called the boat operator via Skype. I spoke with a guy from England. He told me that the ferries were currently only half full and the trains in England were running - just on delays. At that point, nothing else I could really due but cross my fingers. I sat around the train station waiting for my 2:30pm departure.

Luckily, the train to Calais went off on time. Just about everybody on this train was trying to get to London or other parts of the UK. We arrived into Calais, then took a bus into town. The crowds were massive, people were panicky. "Were the ferries to Dover going to be full?" Once into town, we had to get another bus to the port of Calais. Swarms of people were trying to make this happen. At this point of the game, I am lucky I had the ability to move quickly. I was taking no prisoners and negotiating around people to find the front of the line. We boarded the next bus to the port. All great - the boat leaves at 6:15pm. I buy a ticket - $50. Ouch - but it could be worse. We board the boat. We sit there. We sit longer. Announcement: "We have technical issues - more information to follow". We sit longer. 2 hours have passed. We should have already been in Dover. Announcement: "We have issues that cannot be repaired on this boat - everyone must deboard and a new boat is on the way". Not so good. We all stampeded onto the next boat and left the Port of Calais around 9:30pm. (over 3 hours delayed)

We arrived into Dover 1-1/2 hours later. A nice benefit, however, the time in England is 1 hour earlier than France. So, instead of being 11pm, it was only 10pm. I again hightailed it around many people to get to the first bus to Dover train station. Here, I was able to purchase a ticket into London for $40. I took the 10:44pm train to London and arrived at midnight.

I had no hotel, so I found a cafe open at the St. Pancreas International train station. I found a place within walking distance. I got there, and dumped my gear in my room about 12:45am. Whewww!!!!

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OK - the Top 3 countries. Coming in as my #3 favorite country on my Gap year 2010 is............................................................... FRANCE

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)

Austria (#8)

Spain (#7)

Italy (#6)

Switzerland (#5)

Ireland (#4)

France (#3)

FRANCE (#3)

Well, the reason I placed France in this position is simply due to the overall magnitude of 'Things To Do" in this country. France is not listed as the #1 most visited country in the world on most lists (with the USA being a very distant second place) by accident. It all starts with Paris. My favorite city in Europe. The Eiffel Tower, the Lourve, Notre Dame, Sacre-Coeur, Champs-Elysees, the Seine River, Invalides, the Bastille, the Republica - it goes on and on. Probably the main reason I like Paris so much, it's a great city to walk around. Endless things to see and a great atmosphere for doing such.

If the only attraction in France was just Paris, however, it may not have even made my Top 10. Circling the country clockwise starting at the 3-o'clock position -- you have the Alps. Awesome. Chamonix and Annecy were a couple of my favorite places. I've also skiied in Val d'lsere. It's not a surprise that many of my favorite countries border the Alps. Next, you come to the French Riviera. Nice, Cannes, Monte Carlo -- this is a great spot. The beaches may be a little rocky, but the atmosphere makes up for it. Continuing south to the French/Spanish border - you have Lourdes. This was one of the most special places for me on the whole trip. Coming up the western coastline, you have Biarritz. This is a great town with incredible beaches. Next, further north, you come to the beaches of Normandy. The history here made me ask myself: "Am I really standing on Omaha Beach?". You come around to the city of Strasbourg before entering the Alps once again.

France is also apart of my heritage. I'm still not giving up linking some of my relatives to the Lyon, France area. What about the whole interior of France - with the wine country of Burgundy (and the endless other places I didn't even get to). Coming in as my #3 selection on my most favorite country list - France.

Day #281 - Paris, France

2010-12-20T07:16:00.001-08:00

A look down the Seine River at the Eiffel Tower

Christmas lights of Champs-Elysees

Looking up to the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysees

My 'spot" - at night

My 'spot' - during the day

Monday, December 20th

A really nice day in Paris. I slept in and then decided to walk down to the Champs-Elysees. It's a pretty good jaunt from up near the Sacre-Coeur where I'm staying -- but, this being my final day in Paris, it had to be done. I didn't look at a map and just started in the general direction. I grabbed a 'large' coffee and a sandwich to go from a local cafe.

It took a while, but I eventually looked to my left - there was the Arc de Triomphe. Very nice. I walked the length of the Champs-Elysees and went over to my favorite Eiffel Tower viewing spot. I have a couple pictures posted today of this spot (1 in the daytime and 1 at night). This is the exact location where I saw the Eiffel Tower for the very first time.

It was early afternoon. The temperatures were wavering around the freezing mark. I know this only because it was snowing early and then it started freezing rain. I decided to go to the second floor of the McDonalds that overlooks the Champs-Elysees. I worked on my computer for a few hours while watching the people go by. I had to see this place at night - 5 days before Christmas - so I wasn't going too far.

By the time I packed up my gear and left the McDonalds - it was dark. I walked outside to a sea of lights. Impressive. All the trees lining the main drag where decorated with white lights. On the far end of the street, on the way to the Lourve, there where many outdoor stands (similar to the German holiday markets). I made my way back over to 'my spot' and took more pictures.

It was freezing rain pretty good about this time. I decided that I felt comfortable with my time in Paris. I've walked the better part of the entire city on a few different occassions. With a little bit of sadness, I hit the metro and took it back up toward the Sacre-Coeur.

I decided to stop at the Gare Saint-Lazare to see about getting a train ticket to London tomorrow. It's here where I received some bad news. "Sir, there are no trains to London until Sunday". My response: "You're gonna do what?" I talked to this lady for 15 minutes - and I just didn't get it. She initially said: "Oh, haven't you heard about all the bad weather in London?" I then said: "No, even if there was bad weather, how can they definitely cancel all trains for 6 days?" I'm a big fan of saying it out loud to see if it makes sense. What the lady was telling me just didn't add up. Plus, she wavered from her stance on the weather and said that they can only give tickets to the people who have tickets. Needless to say, I was more clueless after leaving this lady then when I got to the station. Since I had waited in line for about 45 minutes to hear this, I decided to walk in the rain for a while to figure out my options.

So, I'm here in my hotel and have formulated a plan for tomorrow. I'm getting up early and taking all my gear with me to the Gare Nord station. This is the station where trains leave to London. This is also the station where I have a train reserved to Calais, France at 2:30pm. My plan: 1) Talk to more people. Get confirmation of train closures into England. If possible - get on a train, even if I have to stand the whole way. 2.) If the train is absolutely NOT an option, I figure out if all trains in the entire country of England are closed. 3) If trains within England are operational, I'll look to go by boat to Dover from Calais. This is actually what the lady told me at the train station. There's a boat to Dover around 5:30pm. It arrives around 6:00pm (1 hour time difference). Then, I would take the train to London. 4) If trains are completely out - I have to book a flight into London - no other options. (because I somehow need to get across the English Channel - swimming is not a great option right now)

So, tomorrow looks to offer another logistics challenge before I enter my final country of the trip. I anticipated so much, that's why I gave myself a few days leeway. I just need to be in London by Thursday morning at 7am for my 9am departure to the states. I have 2-1/2 days to make this happen -- let's see if I can do it.

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OK -- the Final Four. Any country in the Final Four has got to be pretty special. I will say that the things that separate these last few countries have more t0 do with comfort and feel, then sheer sites alone. Don't get me wrong, they have the sites, but they also have the whole package. Tonight, coming in at #4 on the list of my most favorite countries during my Gap Year 2010 is........................................................................ IRELAND

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)

Austria (#8)

Spain (#7)

Italy (#6)

Switzerland (#5)

Ireland (#4)

IRELAND (#4)

I haven't stepped foot in this country since Easter Sunday. And - I knew it when I left - this place is special. I had an open mind throughout my entire journey, Ireland wasn't set in stone. But, even with all the other areas fresh in my memory, Ireland still pulls a Top 4 ranking. Solid. Why? Easy answer: the people. I like Ireland because it's very comfortable for me. From religion, to attitude, to national pride, to friendliness and approachability --- Ireland is fantastic.

It started in Dublin with St. Patrick's Day. I was more impressed with the national pride that I saw - then the party that ensued (and that was a great party). Dublin has some interesting sites: the Guiness Brewery, Trinity College, and the Temple Bar District. I had a chance to go to a 6-Nations Rugby match while in Dublin. Outstanding. To really experience Ireland, however, you gotta get out of Dublin. Cork - a reverse backbend to kiss the blarney stone started it off. Then there was the Ring of Kerry bus tour. After a nice Irish coffee, we sat on the bus and listened to some traditional Irish music while looking out the window at these incredible sites. I stayed in my first hostal ever in Killarney, Ireland. I met some people and went to an Irish dance school. Then there's Galway. You have Connemara and the Aran Islands - both top spots. What about the Cliffs of Moher -- now I relate every cliff hanging into the ocean to this day. Ireland is the place I came to appreciate a nice cup of hot tea (I still don't do the milk, but I'm learning) Then, to top it off, even though technically it's apart of the United Kingdom, I went to northern Ireland and did a day trip to the Giants Causeway. Great - and I got to learn alot that day because our bus driver was very informative concerning recent conflicts in the area. Throw in a truly memorable 2-day stay with my buddy Liam's family in Castlebar & Ballycroy---- it's an absolute pleasure to see Ireland come in as my #4 favorite country in Europe.

Adder: Checkout this website: http://thestar.blogs.com/weather360/2010/12/anger-rises-over-european-travel-chaos.html ----- Oh boy --- tomorrow I need to perform

Day #280 - Baden-Baden to Paris

2010-12-19T17:06:00.000-08:00

Parting shot from Baden-Baden

Cafe near my hotel in Paris

Christmas lights in Paris

Sunday, December 19th

Coming to you live from Paris, France - my home city throughout my travels this year. This is the 6th different time I've been to Paris in 9 months. I began my trip here on March 15th. Other visits included: the French Open, Bastille Day, a weekend after the Normandy Beaches, and a return flight from the states. I like it here. I'm pretty comfortable with the city layout. If you're going to have a 'home away from home' - why not make it the best city in Europe.

Today turned in to a little adventure to navigate the rail system from Baden-Baden to Paris. I had things lined out pretty well initially. I had a 12:45pm to Karlsruhe and then a 1:30pm connector into Paris - arriving at 4:30pm. Well, the connector from Karlsruhe was cancelled. No delays - just wiped off the boards. Luckily, I made 2 friends that would help me the rest of the day. A German guy and a French girl. Perfect. They had the language covered. All 3 of us needed to get to Paris. We let the German guy take over first. We got rerouted to Stratsbourg - a 2-train combination. Only problem - we were then going to have a big delay. We let the French girl take over. She worked the system to find an earlier train option. We jumped from 1 train to another as soon as we hit the ground. We found a direct option to Paris - and arrived at 6:30pm. I could have swung it by myself - but it was fun just to 'follow the leader' and not have to think. They both had connections out of Paris - to Nice and Toulousse, France respectively. We said our farewells and were on our own once again. (It's amazing to me just how many folks have helped me along the way this year -- today I would have been OK -- but so many other times, just arbitrary people have been my saviours.)

Our train arrived into 1 of the 6 main terminals in Paris - Paris Est. I had previously booked a hotel in the northern part of town - a couple hundred yards from Moulin Rouge. I knew the train terminal was close to my hotel, so I took a taxi. (8 euro) I checked in around 7pm and have just been relaxing most of the night.

Tomorrow, I'm going to see what the City of Lights has to offer at Christmas time.

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OK - I've come down to the Top 5 on my country list. The kidding around is just about over. Coming in tonight in the #5 position on my most favoritie countires list during my Gap Year 2010 is......................................................... SWITZERLAND

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)

Austria (#8)

Spain (#7)

Italy (#6)

Switzerland (#5)

SWITZERLAND (#5)
Well - this country is spectacular. By now you realize how much I enjoy the mountains, hiking, skiing, and just being outdoors. I don't think there is a better place in Europe for these activities. Two places I'll remember specifically when I think of Switzerland are: Zermatt and the Top of Europe (the Jungfraujoch). Zermatt (the Matterhorn) - I had my best hiking day here. Sitting out on the deck of Sunnegga Paradise Lodge, watching the para-gliders over the mountains -- it was amazing. Jungfraujoch (the highest rail station in the world - 11,400ft) - I had a chance to hike over to this lodge on a snow trail. The pictures I got during this walk are on the short list of best photos on my trip. What about Zurich? This place is elegant, classy, and a ton of fun to walk around. Then, you have Lucerne - one of the biggest tourist destinations in the world. I did a day trip to St. Moritz and walked around the lake. Speaking of lakes, how about the city of Geneva. Walking around Lake Geneva in mid July was incredible. I'll remember the couple days I spent in Interlaken. Swizerland is also very unique in other ways. It has it's own money - although completely surrounded by countries that use the euro. Switzerland stands for quality, money, finance - it may just be the most expensive overall country in Europe. It has a history of neutrality - unlike its neighbors. Combine all of these things - sitting strongly in the #5 position in my favorite countries list ---- Switzerland.

Day #279 - Baden-Baden

2010-12-18T11:54:00.000-08:00

A nice place to run

OK scenery

Downtown Baden-Baden

Holiday markets - the Saturday before Christmas

Interesting walking paths

Central water fountain

Saturday, December 18th

Back to back great days in Baden-Baden. I pretty much had a similar day as yesterday. I included an hour run in the middle - all good stuff.

Honestly, I don't have much else to say. This place is exceptional. Period. (It's like when they were watching the sunset on the movie 'Crimson Tide' -- sometimes, you don't need to say anything at all)

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OK - another big one comes off the board tonight. A country that everyone knows, everyone likes in some way or another. A country famous for it's wine. Coming in at #6 on the list of my most favorite countries on my Gap Year 2010 ---------------------- ITALY

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)
Greece (#9)
Austria (#8)

Spain (#7)

Italy (#6)

ITALY (#6)

I just spent about 3 weeks here - so, I remember it well. My favorite city - Rome. This place was special. I truly enjoyed Vatican City - the day tour of the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Square, St. Peter's Basilica, and the morning with the Pope. Then, there's the Colisseum, the Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain. How about Florence - the Uffizzi Galleries and the Statue of David. Tuscany - wine country and great food. Then you have the uniqueness of Venice -- the city on the water. You don't drive - you take a boat. Milan - the city of shopping. What about the scenic Amalfi Coast. Walking around Sorrento at Christmas time. Hiking the Cinque Terre. Posing in front of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. St. Francis Basilica in Assisi. What about Romeo & Juliet in Verona. Bottom line ------ Italy is awesome. It is with great respect, that my #6 most favoritie country is Italy.

Day #278 - Baden-Baden, Germany

2010-12-17T14:49:00.000-08:00

Baden-Baden - Holiday Markets

Main Street

Concert near Holiday Markets

Bee Wax candles

Restaurants - decked out for holidays

Alot of snowfall

Friday, December 17th

Exceptional day today! Baden-Baden may be the most peaceful place I've ever been. It may have just topped my first plane ride and me sitting out by the pool in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I write this down tonight because I want to remember this feeling. No question that my current mindframe is helping with my peacful state. I'm at the end of my journey, it's Christmas time, I'm in the middle of this incredible town in Germany filled with special sites -- it truly doesn't get much better. I'm not exaggerating or making something out of nothing - this is very real to me. I realize I will soon need to flip the switch. I'm prepared to make this happen. When I do this, however, I want to have more of this in my life -- that's important. One thing I've been lucky with on this trip - I truly think that I get it. I am not taking things for granted or overlooking the significance of certain areas. I hope to make this continue in the future.

So, last night, I stayed up until about 2am watching some old movie that was in English. It was great - don't even know the name. It was some scary movie that could compete with Friday the 13th. Then, I fell asleep and awoke this morning at 11:45am. I had to do a double-take on my watch. I had not moved or regained consciousness for 10 hours. I should have gotten a standing ovation for this sleeping performance. I guess the combination of me running yesterday and sitting at the pool/sauna did me in.

Next, I walked the streets doing some Christmas shopping. It was snowing, Christmas songs playing ---- it could get worse. Then, I went back to the pool for a couple more hours. I followed this up with more walking at the holiday markets. I made it back to the hotel and grabbed a shower - preparing to meet up with my friends I had met during my last stay here.

Rick (friend of Jan from Minneapolis) and I went out for dinner. It was outstanding. His wife, Dagmar, couldn't join us -- but we still had a great time. I learned more about the country of Germany in 2 hours than I ever could have picked up on my own. Fascinating! I really enjoy learning about new countries and new areas. A 2-hour bit like this can put so many things into persepective. I had some unique German dish for dinner. A veal, pork, potatoe, vegetable combination -- it was outstanding.

The night ended and I said my farewells to Rick. "Thanks for your hospitality - it's greatly appreciated".

Another day of relaxation on the agenda tomorrow. I'm going to try and run for a couple hours sometime in there - and then, although unwillingly, I have to prepare to leave Germany for my final time of my journey early Sunday morning (19th).

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OK - this is a big one tonight. Coming in as my #7 most favorite country on my Gap Year 2010 is -------------- SPAIN

Israel (#12)
Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)

Austria (#8)

Spain (#7)

SPAIN (#7)

This country offers so many things, it would be impossible for me to leave it out of the Top 10. I came upon many unique festivals and events during my time in Spain. There was the Feria in Seville (celebration of the end of Holy Week), St. Jorge Day in Barcelona (books and roses given out), the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona. Then you have the cities of Madrid and Barcelona. Exceptional. Both are very different, but offer some great nightlife and active scenery. I went to a Bull Fight in Madrid - is there a better place to go to a bullfight? I did the last part of the pilgrimage to the city of Santiago de Compostela. I attended a soccer match in Barcelona - and saw, arguably, the best team in the world play. I'll always remember the Guggenheim Museum in Bilboa - where they shot red wax balls against a white wall. How about the sunset in San Sebastian? Then there's the unique towns of Avila, Leon, Salamanca, and Segovia I visited. Man - after I read all these things - why didn't I rank Spain higher? Well, that must mean there's places out there that are even better. But, I can assure you of this, you can't go wrong with a visit to my 7th most favorite country in Europe - Spain.

Day #277 - Baden-Baden, Germany

2010-12-16T13:23:00.000-08:00

Baden-Baden

Snowy streets

View in front of Thermal Pools

Christmas in B&B

Quiet streets

Thursday, December 16th

I took a train out of Munich today for Baden-Baden, Germany. This is the place where I spent my birthday - in the Black Forest. The town lies on the Germany/France border. Since I really enjoyed the area on my initial visit, I thought it would be a good stopping point before heading into France.

I actually got into town earlier than I had anticipated - arriving around 2:30pm. I dropped my gear at the hotel and went out for a run. Snowing - unbelievable atmosphere. (I realize I continue to use similar descriptions - just can't help it. Again, I'm able to appreciate smaller things more this year than ever before. While working - I would have hardly noticed the snow - unless it slowed me down on the roads.)

I don't know if there is a more peaceful and relaxing town than Baden-Baden. It's not the party capital of Europe - but that's not why you would come here. After my run, I hit one of the pools. Then, had a sit-down dinner. I'm back in my hotel now. Tomorrow night, I have plans to meet up with Rick and Dagmar - the couple I had dinner with during my initial visit into town. This should be alot of fun - look forward to it.

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OK - we're getting into the tough portion of my rankings. The country coming in as my #8 most favorite country on my Gap Year 2010 is: AUSTRIA

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)
Austria (#8)

AUSTRIA (#8)

The Alps - the fact that Austria has some of the most scenic countryside in the world goes a long way with why I'm placing it in my list. I spent minimal days here - but enjoyed my time immensely and would easily come back. I travelled across the country after leaving Zurich, Switzerland to my final destination of Vienna. I first came to Bregenz - an awesome small city on Lake Constance (one of the big recreational lakes bordering Germany, Austria, and Switzerland). I then had a day in Innsbruck - home to the Winter Olympics and a great skiing destination. Next, came Salzburg --- Mozart and "The Sound of Music". I really enjoyed this town. Finally, there is Vienna. This is one of the most under-appreciated cities in Europe in my opinion. The architecture, amazing buildings -- it really is a great place. Maybe it doesn't have the 1 big drawcard (like the Eiffel Tower, Buckingham Palace, or Vatican City), but the consistent quality was the feature I was most impressed with. Sum it all up -- Austria comes in as the #8th most favorite country on my journey.

Day #276 - Munich, Germany

2010-12-15T12:16:00.000-08:00

Christmas in Munich

Candle Stand

People everywhere

View from Marienplatz

Street between train station and central square

Wednesday, December 15th

Wow - I can't believe it's December 15th! This has gone too fast. Today I spent my final day in Munich just wondering the streets (primarily Christmas shopping). The atmosphere was unreal. Not sure I could find a scenario which would provide a better holiday feel -------- It was snowing steadily. The ground's covered, it's about 20 degrees F, the holiday songs are playing on the streets, swarms of people crowd through the holiday markets drinking hot tea or coffee, stores are filled with customers, and the mood is upbeat and positive

I really don't have much else to report other than me getting organized for my trip home. I spent several hours tonight working on this video I'm making. I thought it would be a cool summary. Rather than look back at all my pictures in the future - I could just watch this and get a general overview of everything. I honestly never did this before. I'm completely winging it. I'm using Windows Live Movie Maker. I have no point of reference, other than the internet, on how to go about this. I once put a movie together from my trip to Australia many years ago. At that time, I used tape from a camcorder and a VCR. I even editted in clips from other movies into the one I made. I'll watch it every now and again and laugh - quality is severely lacking. I was sick as a dog when I was doing it. The fact I completed it was good for me.

I just finished going through all the pictures and picking out the best ones for each day of the trip. The video is 41 minutes in length. I've added a number of songs. The next 8 days - I will edit and trim this down - hoping to get somewhere near 30 minutes (give or take).

Tomorrow, I head to the western portion of Germany -- I want to see Baden-Baden at Christmas time.

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Alright, coming in tonight as my #9 most favorite country on my Gap Year 2010 is: GREECE

Israel (#12)
Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

Greece (#9)

GREECE (#9)
This country is filled with incredible history and natural beauty. My most memorable days in Greece were in the Greek Isles - when we took our boat ride to Santorini. There are so many other islands I'd like to see (Crete, Mykonos, Rhondes). Blue water, beaches, cliff-top towns. Then, you have Athens. The Acropolis and the many "hills" for viewing the city below. I'll always remember running into the Old Olympic Stadium with Chariots of Fire playing at the end of the 2,500 Classic Athens Marathon. When you also consider the out-country unique sites, such as the Monasteries of Meteora, the Delphi and Mount Athos -- it's easy to see why Greece is positioned in the #9 spot of my most favorite countries.

Day #275 - Garmisch, Germany

2010-12-14T10:20:00.000-08:00

Ski-jump venue

Impressive ski slopes

Huge mountain peaks

Resort town

Great views

Tuesday, December 14th

Today I did a day trip from Munich. I took a 9:30am train down to the town of Garmisch, Germany. It was a 1-1/2 hour trip. The name is actually Garmisch-Partenkirchen. The 2 towns were separate for centuries, until Hitler forced the mayors of each town to combine forces in 1935 while leading up to the 1936 Olympic Games.

Garmisch is a small ski town located on the Germany/Austria border. It's location is not far from Oberammergau - the village I visited for the Passion Play back in late September. I really wanted to go skiing today after seeing the slopes and getting that craving. 3 reasons I couldn't: (1) Main reason -- I don't have the proper gear. I would have to rent it all or buy. (2) Can't afford to get hurt with my investment in the Antartica trip (3) More fun with others.

I spent the day walking around. I made my way over to some of the Olympic venue sites. The ski jump was awesome to see. Supposedly, they have a big ski jump competition each New Year's Day. The tallest mountain in Germany - the Zugspitze (9,731 ft), sits at the base of the town. There's a cable car or cog railway to the top. Since it was pretty overcast today, I didn't make the journey up the hill. Major skiing area - as the 2011 Alpine World Ski Championships will be held here.

Jumped back on the 3pm train and returned to Munich at 4:30pm. I'm calling it an early night tonight.

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Alright, coming in tonight as my #10 most favorite country on my Gap Year 2010: NORWAY

Israel (#12)

Iceland (#11)

Norway (#10)

NORWAY (#10)

The Norwegian Fjords. This area will forever leave an impression on me. It was the best boat rides of my entire trip. I spent 3 days looking up at these huge cliff-faces as our boat passed through the gap between them. Our ferry looked like a toy in a bathtub along side these solid masses. I also went on the famous Flam Railway. I got to take pictures of this incredible waterfall at the halfway point. Then, you have the city of Oslo. Expensive, but great to walk around. I really enjoyed the Nobel Peace Prize Center - looking at the room of honor with the descriptions of all the recipients. You can take a boat from the Oslo Harbor to access a number of interesting museums: Viking, Kon-Tiki, and Munch. Throw in the fact that Norway lays claim to the North Pole and has spectacular sites north of the Artic Circle (including the Aurora Borealis - "Northern Lights") - it's easy for me to include Norway as my #10 Most Favorite Country.

Day #274 - Munich, Germany

2010-12-13T12:49:00.000-08:00

Munich - Christmas markets

Marienplatz market

Major crowds - throughout streets of Munich

Awesome window display

Another market - 9pm

Monday, December 13th

You know why I like Germany - large coffees. Well, one of the reasons anyway. Today, I spent a leisurely day in Munich. I slept in after staying up half the night working on the computer.

I went out for a 1-1/2 hour run early afternoon. It's cold here. Right now, it's 21 degrees F. I'm training for the last event of my year off. On February 20, I leave for Antartica. I will be running the Antartica Marathon on February 28th with the group from Athens (minus Kim). My goal is to use the first 2-3 months of 2011 to get re-engaged into society. This will truly be a year at this point, as I officially resigned from my company on February 5th, 2010. When I return from the marathon - full speed ahead. Hopefully, I'll be starting a new career in a new location (what & where - still to be determined).

The month I took off from running after Athens has really helped me. I feel alot better. I'm going to just get miles in the next 2 weeks and then follow a more stringent plan when I get back to the states. The temperatures in Antartica where we'll be running are typically between 10-30 degrees F. Today was ideal training - I just need to get comfortable with it.

Munich is awesome this time of year. I spent a couple hours this afternoon and then again tonight walking around. One of the reasons I came to Munich before my return - to see the Christkindlmarkts. These are holiday markets scattered throughout the city. This place screams Christmas. Endless booths filled with ornaments, candles, wood-carved toys, and traditional figures. The music is playing in the background. There are endless food and drink stands. People are everywhere - all the better that it's cold and snowy.

Probably the neatest market can be found at the Marienplatz. This is the central square in the middle of Old Town. A huge Christmas tree stands in front of the Rathaus - the Town Hall. This is the take-home site in December in Munich. Incredible. When I think about the holidays in the future - I will likely think back of today.

Back in the hotel, going to call it an earlier night tonight. Going to try a day trip tomorrow.

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Alright, in keeping with my 12 Day's of Christmas theme, the country making the list in the #11 position as my most favorite country during my Gap Year 2010 ----- ICELAND.

Israel (#12)
Iceland (#11)

ICELAND (#11)

I only spent 5 days in this country, but it was great. I'm including it here - because it's a place I really want to go back. Reykjavik has a small city atmosphere - located right on the ocean. It's an easy city to walk, with some unique sites. People speak English everywhere. But, the main reason I'm including it - the day trip options available to tourists, as well as the Ring Road. The Blue Lagoon is a nice day trip from Reykjavik. Also, there are endless whale watching trips available. Then, rent a car and drive around the road that circles the country. I've had plenty of conversations with folks who've done just that, all agree - the natural sites are nothing short of incredible. It's not really as cold as one would think either. I just checked the temperature, it's currently 40 degrees F in Reykjavik - it's 20 degrees colder in Munich. For all these reasons, Iceland comes in as my #11 selection as my most favorite country.

Day #273 - Verona to Munich, Germany

2010-12-12T16:00:00.000-08:00

Snow covered Alps as I pass into Germany

Deep snow in some areas

Restaurant car on the train - had a great bean soup

Sunday, December 12th,

Coming to you live from Munich, Germany. It's 1am - just starting to write. I've been working on different things all evening. I feel better - more organized.

I took the 9:05am train from Verona and arrived into Munich at 2pm. The trip was great. We headed due north through the Alps. We past through Innsbruck, Austria and up into Germany. It was snowing must of the way. The snow is deep in several places. It was incredible scenery to just sit back and watch the mountains pass by.

It's snowing in Munich right now. It's like a winter wonderland out there. I hadn't booked a hotel prior to my arrival, so I walked around a little before I found a spot. I'm real near the Munich HBF (main train station). I didn't set out for any site-seeing today. Tomorrow we'll get it rolling again.

So, in keeping with the Christmas spirit - I thought about doing something different for the next 12 days. I have 12 days until I return to the states. 12 days. Like - in the 12 Days of Christmas.

With that being said, and because you may have realized that I'm a big fan of lists, I've decided to rank my favorite countries on the trip - from #12 to #1. I have 44 to choose from (as the US was one of my 45 - that doesn't count).

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So, drumroll please. My 12th most favorite country that I toured in my Gap Year 2010 is: ISRAEL

Whoa! Left field? Let me first explain that I thought about this list for about 4 hours on my train trip today. Not winging it. The countries you'll see in the next 12 days have these things in common: (1) I could spend a week plus in each of these countries. (2) I learned something when I was there. (3) Each country had some kind of unique site - something that made me take a minute - and ask myself: "Am I really here". (4) Each country has a combination of history and natural beauty. (5) And finally, I felt some sense of peace when I was in each of these countries.

One thing I'll point out as well, just because a city is great - doesn't mean that the entire country is great. For example, I'm going to include Istanbul in my Top Cities List. But, I would not put Turkey in my Best Countries List - as I would have no desire to explore outside the city proper.

ISRAEL (#12)

You can spend a long weekend on the beaches of Tel Aviv. These are 'great beaches'. In my opinion, better than the French Riviera. Maybe not the same clientele, but the sand and water are great. You can go south and scuba dive in the Red Sea. This place is said to be the second best diving in the world to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. You can do a day trip to the Dead Sea and float around for a while. You can go north to Galilee and Nazareth. Or - go south to Masada and Bethlehem. Everyone in the country speaks clear English - and it's fairly simple to get around. AND - then there is Jerusalem. This place is special. There's no 2 ways you can say it. There were many times while I was walking around that it didn't seem real. Certainly, this is a country of conflict in many ways, but it's intriguing. Interesting. And - for that matter - it makes the list as my 12th most favorite country on my trip.

Day #272 - Verona, Vicenza & Padova, Italy

2010-12-11T14:34:00.000-08:00

Bridge in Verona

Romeo & Juliet's Balcony

Statue of Juliet

Scrovegni Chapel - Padova

Teatra Olimpico - Vicenza

Saturday, December 11th

This morning I started out of Parma at 7:50am bound for Verona, Italy - arrival time around 11am. I had to take 3 trains to make it happen, but everything worked out well.

Verona is located between Milan and Venice. Actually, all 3 towns I visited today are on the same train line between these 2 cities. Milan - Verona - Vicenza - Padova - Venice. If you take the fast train, it will generally only stop in these 3 locations, and take 2-1/2 hours from point to point.

I'm staying in Verona right now. Really a cool city. I just came back from walking around the outdoor markets of the central square. It was great atmosphere. Saturday night, 10pm, stands filled with food, and all kinds of merchandise. I made a couple purchases - all good. I spent some of the late morning here as well before daytripping to Vicenza and Padova. Verona is fairly big, with a population of over 700,000 people. It has the Arena - an outdoor Roman amphitheatre completed around 30 AD. It's the 3rd largest in Italy - behind Rome's Colisseum and the arena in Capua. Another interesting site was the castle that overlooked the river. The arch bridge Ponte Scaligero, built in 1356, crosses the river from the castle.

And finally, one of the claims to fame for Verona, Italy - the setting for Romeo & Juliet. This was classic. I had no clue where this place was located - so I couldn't just stroll up to any dude and ask the quesstion. So, I spot the friendliest-looking lady in this outdoor market. I went up and bought an apple and said: "Ummm - where's this Romeo & Juliet place?". She just smiled and pointed me down a street: "It's number 23 on the left".

I saunter may way down the street. You walk through this archway into this small plaza. Saturday afternoon - the place was packed. They had the balcony, as the residence of the Capullets. People were walking out on the balcony and taking pictures. They also have a bronze statue of Juliet in this small plaza. Legend goes that you must rub the right breast of Juliet to bring you luck in love. This was great people watching - one of the funnier things I've seen on the trip to date. People would line up to get their picture taken with their hand on the breast. You saw people embarrassingly stroll up to the statue, then others would have no inhibitions whatsoever. Then, there were a couple of guys (no doubt several cocktails in), who took it 2-3 steps further. Did I touch the breast? Well, actually, no - on grounds I would have looked like a major pervert under the conditons that presented itself. It's all fun and funny with a group. I should have done it - it would have made for great TV.

Onward to Padova. I spent the least amount of time in this city. Just enough to walk the main street and go tour the Scrovegni Chapel. This is a 13th century chapel famous for it's frescoes. Giotti, the same artist that painted the frescoes in Assisi, lays claim to this work. 38 scenes - depicting the life of the Virgin Mary and Jesus.

Onward to Vicenza. I spent some time here just walking the streets of Corso Palladio It was late afternoon, around 5pm. The streets were packed with people. Great atmosphere. At the end of the busy street was the Teatro Olimpico. This is a famous theatre built in 1580. It looks like some sort of castle. Plays are still held here today. My book states that it's a pretty big ticket.

I trained back to Verona where I hit the markets. It's about 1am now, I have a 9am train to Munich tomorrow. I say Farewell to Italy. Great country. Certainly, it can be enhanced by your company and the time of season. But, regardless, it's an excellent place with alot of variety. I clearly see why it's ranked so highly - it deserves the accolodes.

Day #271 - Lucca & Parma, Italy

2010-12-10T13:53:00.000-08:00

Walls of Lucca

Lucca - central square & market

Lucca - outdoor skating ring

Parma - central square

Friday, December 10th

I'm nearing the end of my time in Italy. Tomorrow will be my last day in Italia on this trip. It's been interesting to visit some of the smaller towns along the way. There is alot of character in these smaller communities. I just wish that I could talk with people more. As in other countries, the smaller towns tend to equate to fewer English-speakers. Therefore, I'm relagated to visual stimulation for the most part.

This morning I got out of Revenna mid-morning. I had a chance to walk back through the town during the daylight. Really a neat place. The central square is only a 10 minute walk from the train station. A huge Christmas tree stands in the central square - typical. Alot of these little cities are very similar. I'm sitting here thinking about the US. I guess I think about these places like the city of Kirkwood in St. Louis or even Chanhassen in Minnesota where I used to live. The feel to me is very similar. Overall, I just really enjoy this time of year. I like the chill in the air. I like the stillness of the snow when it's falling. I like drinking a warm cup of coffee with the steam rising. Peaceful. Relaxing. This year, especially, I can appreciate these things probably more than I ever have in my entire life.

My first place I visited today was Lucca. This town is west of Florence - near Pisa. If you happened to look at a map and followed my travels the past few days, you may be wondering: "What's this guy doing?". I'm basically doing a big swinging loop through central Italy. I may not have actually walked around in all the cities, but I'm pretty sure I've probably seen almost the entire central portion of Italy in one way or another.

I took the 9:35am train to Lucca - arriving early afternoon. I wanted to find an internet spot while I was in town, as I had not booked a hotel for the night. This lady said: "Maybe you'll find one when you go into the city". I was thinking to myself: "Am I not in the city right now?". I walked a little further and then saw the fortified Renaissance walls of Lucca. It was like walking into the Old City in Jerusalem. I followed these people up the steps and through the columns into the city.

Then I noticed there was alot of runners passing me. I remembered reading how there is a running path that circles the city. Neat to see so many people out on a Friday afternoon. The weather was perfect - so easy to understand. A couple interesting things I'll remember: (1) They had an outdoor iceskating ring in the middle of the town square. It was Rockefeller Center (or maybe a little smaller). (2) Each of the 4 sides of the town were lined with a different tree species. (3) They had an outdoor market that filled one of the town squares.

After leaving Lucca, I made my way to the city of Parma - that's where I am right now. Parma - the home of parmigiano cheese. That, in itself, is reason enough to visit. It also claims the Parma ham and a couple of pasta dishes ("tortelli d'erbetta" and "anolini in broth").

I got here after dark and walked down to the Piazza del Duomo. The city is separated by a small river. I haven't seen this much in this area. The central plaza was great. It has the 12th century cathedral, the outdoor restaurants, and the great architectural buildings enclosing the square.

I walked back to the hotel and grabbed a slice of pizza to eat on the way. Have you seen the episode of "Everybody Loves Raymond" - the one when they're in Italy? I remember him eating the pizza slices. I'll remember this fondly when thinking about my time here. You just point to your slice, they throw it in the oven, and hand it to you with a napkin or on a small paper plate.

Tomorrow - onward to the town where Romeo & Juliet came from. Goodnight from the center of Italy.

Day #270 - San Marino - Pesaro & Ravenna, Italy

2010-12-09T14:48:00.001-08:00

View from San Marino

San Marino sunset

Streets of San Marino

Streets of Ravenna

Thursday, December 9th

Today started off rotten, but ended up great.

It all started with a wake-up call at 6:15am. I had a train at 7:22am and needed to catch the bus down to the rail station. The bus left at 6:43am. Ths bus stop was somewhere between 1/4 to 1/2 mile from my hotel doorstop. I'm not one to spring up and jump around in the morning - it takes me a couple minutes to get it going. So, I probably rolled out of bed at 6:20am. Showered, dressed, out the door at 6:40am. This means I have to run with my duffle the distance to the bus station in 3 minutes. I get there - nothing. "I missed it". Nope - I look at the schedule and it says the bus comes at 6:33am. What?? Yesterday, everybody told me the bus comes at 13 and 43 every hour. I even took one of those buses. Well -- comes to find out that the first couple buses in the morning leave at 33 instead of 43. Why?? That's probably never messed with anyone before.

Oh well - what do I do? I see that the next bus comes at 7:13am. That's not enough time to get to the rail station. I walk a hundred yards to this convenience shop. I ask them if they could call a taxi. No English whatsoever. They can't figure it out. No other store is open. By this time, here comes the 7:13am bus. I jump on and ask: "When does this bus arrive at the rail station?" Answer - 7:22am --- the exact time my train is set to leave. So - I'm riding on the bus thinking this through. I already know that if I miss this train - I'll be waiting for hours for the next one. We near the station. Dayback on my back, duffle in the hand. Doors open - I hightail it through the station. The train is still there. I jump on board. 2 minutes to spare (the train left late).

At this time, I'm thinking I got the world by the tale. Sit back, relax....... NO - wait! I remember I have a 3 train connection to my destination this morning. My first stop is at Foligno. When is this stop? No clue. That means that I'm wide-eyed awake, searching frantically through the windows at each stop to see if this is it. Excellent - only a couples stops down. But wait, I need to connect to Ancona - when does this leave? I jump off the train - no departure boards anywhere! I scramble down the platform to a board. The connector train leaves......right now! I'm on platform #5 and the train I need is on Platform #1. I look over - I can see it. I snag my bag and run down the stairs. I'm dodging in and out of people. I then grab my bag and run up the stairs to Platform #1 -- my train just left ----- Not so good.

All right - problem management mode. I go and check the board again. Oh - there's another train in 1-1/2 hours, not so bad. I go to buy a ticket, because this is not a regional train, I must pay a reservation fee before boarding. I get to the counter: "Sorry sir, this train does not operate this time of year" What!!! When's the next available train? That's 11:15am sir and that will cost you 20 euro. What!!! (If only the English spoken by the folks here was as clear as I've indicated). It's 8am -- I'm now stuck for 3 hours, 15 minutes and I'm out $28. The better part of my day is shot. Not so happy. The whole thing was my fault. If I would have checked which platform my connector was leaving before my day started - then, I would not have hesitated out of my 1st train to look at the board - and I would have made it. That close ----- horseshoes, hand grenades - train travel.

I made the best of it. I went into this cafe and watched all the people come in and take their shot of coffee. They should just take a needle or something. They come in - the bartender lines their expresso shot on the bar. They down it in 1 gulp in their sippy cups, gorge down a large pastry, smoke a couple cigarretes, and their out the door. Solid!!!

I read some and worked on my computer for the next 3 hours. I drank hot tea -- it's currently my drink of choice in Italy. Coffees are too small -- I need large quantities of liquid. During this period of the day - the tide started turning in my favor. I accomplished quite a bit. I made it back to the train station and got the next train.

My first stop -- Pesaro. This is a small town on the eastern coast of Italy. The train ride into the city was great as you past the beaches and the water. No doubt - this would be a happening spot when the heat is turned up. Due to my earlier comedy of errors, I had 25 minutes in this town. I walked as for as I could with my bag in tow and then double-timed it back to the train. I basically saw nothing. But - I read about it. The run down: it's a big-time sea resort, it has the Rossini Opera Festival every year in honor of Gioacchino Rossini (famous composer who's from here), and it's got a famous street where people hang out --- yaddy -yaddy - yaddy.

Then, things got good. I took the train to the town of Rimini. From here, I decided to catch a bus to my 45th and final country on my journey - San Marino. Who - Dan Marino is here??? I never heard of the place either until I looked at the list of countries in Europe. The country of San Marino is completely inside the country of Italy - between Florence and the Adriatic Sea.

After today, I've been to every country in Europe on this trip except for a list of seven: (1) Andorra (tiny country on border of Spain & France), (2) Belarus (country north of Ukraine - requires complicated VISA), (3) Cyprus (island country below Turkey), (4) Malta (island country below the Italian island of Sicily - off the southwestern tip of italy), (5) Macedonia (north of Greece - logistics didn't work out for me - also dangerous), (6) Moldova (between Romania and the Ukraine - went to Modovian region in Romania - not the country), and (7) Kosovo (between Serbia and Macedonia - some say it's part of Serbia and not it's own country. I was told to stay clear of here). At one point on the trip, I was thinking of making a run at 50 countries. But - it just didn't work out. I wasn't going to pay the expensive VISA to enter Belarus, so I would have needed 5 out of 6 of the remaining group. When I left this travel agent in Athens after discussing possible trip options to Macedonia and Kosovo, he said as I was leaving: "Sir, if you intend to make the trip - just watch your back". That was good enough for me to stay away. From that point forward -- I shot for 45. I feel good about it. My goal many years back was to visit 50 countries in my lifetime - mission accomplished when considering the other areas I've travelled.

Back to San Marino. This place was fantastic. Who would have known? I met this girl while waiting for the bus. She spoke perfect English. Wow - I haven't heard clear English since my sister left. She was awesome - doctoral student in Economics. A little younger than me - not by much. She works for the San Marino government - her mom is from here. She knew everything. San Marino has a population of about 35,000 people - she says it's the 2nd smallest country in Europe to Vatican City. It sits atop this huge cliff. We took the 3pm bus to arrive at 4pm in San Marino. The sun was setting. You could look out and see everything. The mountains to the north, the Adriatic to the east, small towns in between. The girl - Laura - had to get to work - but showed me around first. I then spent the next couple hours walking up and down these incredible streets. A foggy mist was blowing in over the city, while the Christmas lights sparkled in the streets, 4 dudes dressed in Santa outfits played music, and the hot chocolate was flowing. My lesson learned - keep working - good things will come. If I had made my train this morning, I would probably not have taken the bus to the top of this city, because I would not have met this girl from here, I would not have seen the sunset, and I would not have seen the best sites of this country --- maybe I'll miss my train tomorrow????

I took the bus back to Rimini and then caught the 7:30pm train to Ravenna. I'm currently writing this from my hotel room in Ravenna. I don't know much about this place. I went out for a run through the city and it looks pretty awesome. Not many people out however. Ravenna was the last capital of the Western Roman Empire after the fall of Rome in the 5th century. It's home to the most celebrated mosaics in Western art. Good stuff. I hope to see more tomorrow in the daylight before hitting the train.

Good night - here's to "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" - Freddie Fender.

Day #269 - Orvieto & Arezzo, Italy

2010-12-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

Umbria valley - viewed from the hilltop town of Orvieto

The Duomo in Orvieto - see the black and white sides

The Duomo

Basilica of San Francesco in Arezzo

The Legend of the True Cross - Arezzo, Italy

Wednesday, December 8th

Today I visited 2 more smaller towns in central Italy: Orvieto and Arezzo. Manipulating the transportation system to gain access to these places has been a real challenge. It's good though. I'm starting to get pretty comfortable with the railways in Italy. Departure boards are located throughout the terminals so I can do my own research. They also have computers which can help determine routes as well when considering transfers.

My first stop this morning was the town of Arezzo. It's located about 50 miles south of Florence. It was pouring rain on my arrival - so I made quick tracks to my destinations. The town is laid out very well and is easy to get around. I walked straight ahead from the train station to the Basilica of San Francesco. Interesting church - smack in the middle of town. The main draw is the series of frescoes painted by Piero dellas Francesca depicting the Legend of the True Cross. This legend states that a branch from the Tree of Life was planted on Adam's grave (Garden of Eden - Adam & Eve). The branch took root and was eventually used to make the cross on which Jesus was crucified.

Another interesting thing about Arezzo is that each year in late August and early September, it holds a Jousting Tournament. An elaborate procession winds through the cobblestone streets before the events. That would be a cool thing to see -- next time.

My second and final stop of the day was the town of Orvieto. Excellent. Once you depart the train, you take this funicular car up the mountain slope to the elevated town. I first stepped out and walked into this garden area with views over the valley below. I got some great pictures from this location. I then moseyed into town along the cobblestone streets, lined with shops and cafes. There were a number of tourists out today - a bit surprising to me. I made my way to the Duomo - the big church in town. This place looked like an over-sized zebra, with black and white colored bricks. The inside looked the same. Unique. Its claim to fame is the frescoes portraying the end of the world. Begun in 1447 and completed in 1503, these are thought to be the inspiration for Michelangelo's "Last Judgment" in the Sistine Chapel in Rome.

A couple of other interesting things I'm reading about Orvieto: 1) It's one of 3 cities outside Rome to have papal palaces (Viterbo, Avignon). Adrian IV was the first pope to spend significant time in Orvieto. 2) It has an underground city filled with secret tunnels and passageways. They're only open for guided tours.

I took a 3-train combination to get back to Assisi just shy of 7pm. I'll be heading to the eastern side of the country tomorrow. I'll be viewing the Adriatic Sea from its western front - having already seen the eastern half during my visits to Croatia, Bosnia, and Montenegro.

I forgot to mention that the place I'm staying currently is pretty great. On arrival, they gave me this audio phone and several books on Assisi (It's just like the audio guides you get in various museums. You just press a number and listen.) I've never been given anything this impressive at any other hotel I've ever stayed. And - this place is not some fancy, 5-star hotel. It's a modest place - but appears to be customer-service friendly. That's why I picked it.

Tomorrow - do something that scares you. Anything. It doesn't have to be crazy - just something that makes you a little uncomfortable. Eat something different, talk to somebody you normally wouldn't, go walk around the subdivision when you're tired. Just do it. Push your limits - you don't even know what your capable of until you try. Good night from Tuscany.

Day #268 - Assisi, Spoleto, Perugia, Italy

2010-12-07T12:29:00.000-08:00

Streets of Spoleto

Spoleto

Nativity - in front of St. Francis Basilica

St. Francis Basilica

Streets of Assisi

Tuesday, December 7th

I've spent my time in Italy to date by seeing the big tourist attractions. It's been excellent. Because I have a few days, I wanted to branch out and visit some of the smaller towns and get a flavor of real-life Italy -- away from the congestion and crowds.

I'm writing this from the town of Assisi, Italy (actually on the hotel computer because their Wi-Fi doesn't work. If you want to drive yourself crazy, try typing on a keyboard where all the keys are different than standard US versions.)

I visited 3 towns today: Spoleto, Perugia, and Assisi.

Spoleto was my first stop out of Rome. Great little town. Hilly. I felt like I walked straight up a hill for a couple miles into the city center. The city is known for the Spoleto Festival - a 3-week, world-class music, art, drama, and dance festival held at the beginning of June. I could see where this place gets going in the summertime. Their main pedestrian street is very narrow and greatly sloped. I don't doubt this has led to a few accidents when the beverages get flowing.

Perugia was my second stop. This is not such a small town. It was signficantly larger than the other two I visited today. Because of the size, I didn't get to see everything. Again, very hilly. My readings say that there is a vibrant international student population here. It has 2 well known universities. The heart of Perugia is the Piazza IV Novembre. This is a large, open square where all the locals congregate in the late afternoon to discuss the day's events.

Assisi was my final stop of the day, and is also the location I'll be staying the next 2 nights. This was my favoritie place of the 3 visited today. The entire city is located on a bluff - a couple miles up from the train station. Excellent. Great views, great streets. St. Francis of Assisi - you've heard the name. This is HIS town. Go to Youtube and play Montgomery Gentry - "My Town". It's appropriate. Everything here is all about St. Francis. The massive Basilica located on the far west of the town was built in his honor in the 13th century. He's buried there. It has an upper and lower Basilica - unusual - but interesting. I went for a run tonight when I got into town, I toured the Basilica with my sweat gear on (whatever it takes). The streets here are narrow and filled with Christmas lights and small shops. Again, very hilly. This is the theme today for sure. My legs would say as much.

I had dinner at one of the great restaurants very near my place. All in all, a very nice day. Tomorrow I'll continue to tour some of the smaller areas in Tuscany. Good night from Assisi.

Day #267 - Sorrento to Rome

2010-12-06T13:48:00.000-08:00

Main street in Sorrento

Central Square

Awesome buildings

Christmas in Sorrento

Monday, December 6th

Today was an odd day. Things didn't work out so well with the trains - so I ended up spending alot of time sitting around.

I took the train out of Sorrento to Naples - arriving around noon. All was well. I was then set to connect into Rome - arriving at 3pm. My 12:30pm train showed a delay of 10 minutes. No worries. I waited, waited -- it was now 12:50pm. Then, the board showed a 25 minute delay. I waited, waited -- it was 1:05. Then, the board showed a 40 minute delay. At this point, they did put up a Platform number. I decided to go sit on the train and wait in comfort.

I was sitting in this car with an older Italian couple. They were fiercely arguing with each other. It was entertaining. I couldn't understand a word - but I enjoyed it. After about 45 minutes of sitting around, everyone on the train was looking around trying to figure out our scenario. I got off the train and noticed that all the connections into Rome where on a delay. This was really odd. If it was all locations - there could be something up with the weather, etc. This was not the case. If it was a single line - maybe something happened on that rail. This was not the case either. I still don't know what went down in Rome which forced such delays.

All I know - I finally departed the Naples station at 3:45pm. This was 4 hours after my arrival. I ended up getting into Rome near 7pm. I walked around the streets by the station until I found a hotel that met my pricing conditions. I'm here now - planning a strategy for tomorrow.

Here's to 'no delays' tomorrow. Posting more pictures of Sorrento to set a Christmas tone. Most towns in Italy formerly unleash the decorations either on Dec. 6th (St. Nick's Day) or Dec. 8th (Immaculate Conception).

Day #266 - Amalfi Coast, Italy

2010-12-05T16:20:00.000-08:00

Amalfi

Amalfi - near sunset

Atop cliffs of Ravello

Reading a book with this view

Amalfi

Sunday, December 5th

Well, I didn't jump to conclusions -- this place is as good as advertised.

Today I took a bus ride along the Amalfi Coast. I left Sorrento around 10am. I visited the towns of Positano, Amalfi, and Ravello. The bus trip alone was worth the journey. We were on these extremely narrow roads hanging off steep cliffs which ascended above the Mediterranean Sea. Good thing the brakes worked. The road had these small guard rails - not so sure they would have kept us from plummeting into the sea. (It took a little while to be OK with this)

Great day trip. I spent the most time in the town of Ravello. Peaceful. I walked around and then read for a while on a bench overlooking the ocean below. (see picture).

The towns were interesting - but today was all about the views. They really have a great bus/rail system in this area. Several buses provided options for travel throughout the day. I was surprised to see this in the off season. And, I was just as surprised to see the number of tourists. It's an easy to reach destination from Naples - and I think that's the draw.

When I got back into Sorrento, the town was booming. The main street was packed with people. It was awesome. This town appears like it was made for Christmas. Throw some snow on the streets - it could be Bedford Falls.

It's late here - about 1:30am. I've been working the past 5 hours on my finances and spreadsheets. I was dreading this - as I had fallen behind somewhat. All good now. In addition to the blog, I'm keeping this record of all the hotels I've been to on a daily basis. I have the name of the hotel, the city/country, and the nightly price.

I'm still working with my 2 credit cards and 1 ATM card. In recent weeks, I'm glad I had a backup as 2 of my cards were temporarily placed on hold. This was done as precaution because I had been to areas like Israel and Egypt. I contacted all my companies before the trip and filled them in on my plan. I guess the movements I had made recently were not so typical and in sketchier areas. I certainly appreciate somebody looking out for me.

I found out how to make phone calls on Skype - real ones. I bought $10 worth of credit and now I can call people when needed. The other day I went to use an ATM machine. Everything seemed fine and the money came out of the slot. I went to grab it - and the machine sucked it back in. I had never seen that before - I was in Belgrade, Serbia. I decided to call my bank and discuss it with them. I was on Skype 15 minutes later, talking to my bank in the US. They told me they would cancel the transaction if it showed on my statement. Not having a phone this year has been great - but under certain situations, it would be nice to have. Skype has eliminated this need.

Tomorrow I head north. Not sure where my final destination will be. I plan to wing it - based on the train schedule out of Rome. Unitl then - keep the faith!

Day #265 - Pompeii & Sorrento, Italy

2010-12-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

Christmas season - Sorrento, Italy

View from cliffs of Sorrento

Huge Christmas Tree - Streets of Sorrento

Pompeii - notes on 79AD Eruption

Ruins of Pompeii

Mt. Vesuvius - through Archway

Cast of human body found in the ashes

Saturday, December 4th

Great day today! I got out of Rome early. I took a 7:27am train down to Naples - arrivng at 9:30am. I then took a connector train south for 30 minutes to Pompeii, Italy.

Pompeii --- On the 24th of August in 79AD, Mt. Vesuvius erupted to bury the city of Pompeii under 20ft of ash. It was rediscovered in the 16th century, but exploration did not begin until 1748 under King of Naples Charles III of Bourbon. Excavation, restoration, and enhancement of the ancient city has continued through today - where it is still an active archeological site.

Much of the items found in Pompeii have been relocated to the Archeological Museum in Naples. However, the ancient city is still a very impressive place to visit. Located only a couple hundred meters from the train station, Pompeii extends for approximately 66 ha. - of which roughly 45 ha. has been excavated.

The big deal with Pompeii - it's ancient. The origins of the city are uncertain; however, the oldest reports date from the end of the 7th century BC. As I explored the area, there were cages filled with old pottery, they had made casts of human bodies that were found under the ash, there was a theatre, a colisseum, many homes, baths, etc. I walked around the site for 2 hours. I was given an informational booklet with my entrance fee (11 euro). This was satisfactory to tell me everything I needed to know. I got this great picture (see above), looking at Mt. Vesuvius through one of the arches in the city. Great spot to visit.

I had some lunch and then continued south to the city of Sorrento, Italy. Sorrento is located on the Amalfi Coast. I'll be spending the next 2 nights here as I explore the coastline further. I don't want to get too crazy just yet, as I've only been here for 1/2 day, but this place is EXCEPTIONAL! This might be one of my favorite spots in Italy. The town is pristine and scenic. Once out of the train station, it's a 50 meter walk to the main street - which stretches maybe a mile through the city. It's lined with small shops, cafes, and outdoor heated restaurants. In the middle of town, in the central square, is this huge Christmas tree. The entire street is lined with Christmas lights and decorations. Everything is in its place - neat, organized.

I took a short detour off the main drag, to find the oceanfront. There are several areas where you can look out over the water. Whoa! This was great. Atmosphere - atmoshpere --- this place has it - for sure.

I've got the trip for you next year at this time. If you have a week's vacation, get a flight into Rome. See the culture and unbelievable sites of this city - with no heat and no lines. Make sure you're there on Wednesday if you have a desire to see the Pope. Sleep in - no need to get to St. Peter's Square too early - you'll have the place to yourself. Then, take the train to Naples (don't go into the city) and connect to Pompeii - then down to Sorrento. Spend a couple days on the Amalfi Coast - Christmas shopping, taking day breaks with hot tea/pastries, and spending the nights strolling the streets after a couple glasses of wine. If you're heading to Florence, Tuscany, or northern Italy - I'd book this trip mid October or earlier. Rome and southern Italy -- I think this time works just fine. With the money you can save on cheaper hotels -- buy more presents.

Tomorrow I'll explore more of the coast. I'll see if I jumped the gun on my feelings about this place. Goodnight from the southern Italy.

Day #264 - Rome, Italy

2010-12-03T12:58:00.000-08:00

Spanish Steps

Area by Spanish Steps

Last pic at Trevi Fountain

Gelato - all good

Orange trees lined the streets

Friday, November 3rd

Today Kay and I did some early morning walking around Rome. She had a little shopping to finish before her return to the states (plus, we needed to eat another gelato by the Trevi Fountain)

We ended up passing through some sections of the city we had yet to visit. I'm really glad we found these areas. These included a couple great streets near the Spanish Steps. We worked our way to the northern part of the city, passed through a park, and then went south to the Republicca. The area just north of the Republicca is high rent. Excellent area - orange trees lined some of the streets (maybe not a place for dining or lodging due to the cost however)

Kay grabbed all her gear and we headed over to the train station to catch her 1:22pm train to the Rome Airport. She'll be going Rome to London, London to Chicago, Chicago to Minneapolis. There's currently a big snow storm going across Europe. Gatwick Airport in London has been closed the past 2 days. Luckily, she's flying through Heathrow. Hopefully all goes well and it's a smooth return.

We really had a great time. As with any brothers and sisters - there were some ups and downs - but overall, it was excellent. I hope she feels the same. I'm truly lucky to have had so many visits from family and friends along my journey this year. I'm not sure if I could have made it without these pick-me-ups along the way. Thank You.

After saying farewell to Kay, I worked out some details for the next couple days. It was nearing 3 pm when I grabbed some food. I've spent the remaining portion of the day inside.

Tomorrow - I start the home stretch. Crazy. Feeling strange right now. I return to the states on December 23rd out of London. I want to be in Paris by the 19th and in London by the 21st. I have 16 days between today and the 19th. During that time, I plan to visit a few more areas in Italy and then work my way up into Germany and then over into France. Along this path, my goals are: 1) Christmas shop 2) Complete my picture/music video 3) Wrap up my blog and picture site 4) Finish Stieg Larsson's Trilogy 5) Get my finances lined out, and 6) Maybe find a job and a place to live.

Here's to bringing it home strong!!!!

Day #263 - Naples, Italy

2010-12-02T12:42:00.000-08:00

Great sites from Naples Port

Naples Shipping Port

Impressive shopping center

Archeological Museum

Nativity sets

Thursday, December 2nd

Today we took an 8:22am train south to Naples, Italy - arriving at 10:45am. This was an 'adder city' for Kay & I - as we had effectively seen the major sites in Rome -- so we decided to integrate another area in the mix before her departure on Friday.

Well, the positives of the day: 1) The weather was great and 2) I got my bag back after leaving it at an information booth and walking away for 10 minutes.

On the flip side, Naples has some things to consider before booking a trip. Naples is a very dirty city - trashbags, debris, papers, graffiti. It is also very crowded and chaotic. I was surprised to see that it ranks as the 3rd most populated city in Italy (Rome #1, Milan #2). It's also considered dangerous - many lists rank Naples as the most dangerous city in Italy.

Research ------
I just looked up the 'most dangerous' city list in Europe per the website: the-top-tens.com. The list includes: 1) Moscow, Russia 2) Tirana, Albania 3) Bucharest, Romania 4) Nottingham, UK 5) Belgrade, Serbia 6) Sofia, Romania 7) Sarajevo, Bosnia 8) Madrid, Spain 9) Lisbon, Portuagal 10) Chisineu, Moldova. This is the first time I've done any research on this subject - other than word of mouth. Wow - my days spent between Israel and Italy mean alot more to me right now. When I decided to head to the water -- maybe that was a good idea.

Throughout my trip in Europe, I've talked with many people about Italy. I've been told to be careful in Naples. I generally store this information and then draw my own conclusions. After today, I didn't necessarily feel that it was 'dangerous' - but I didn't get a warm, fuzzy feeling either. After Kay's departure, I plan to spend a couple days below Naples along some of the coastal islands: Pompeii, Sorrento, etc. I've been told that these areas are real highlights.

Kay and I walked the streets for a few hours. We ventured up to the Archeological Museum. Impressive place. We didn't pay to get in - but looked through some literature in the shop area. We also walked some really neat streets. Naples is known for it's 'Nativity Street' - where you can buy all kinds of nativity figures. Interesting.

We then walked down to the waterfront. Best views of the day - by far. Naples has a huge shipping port. We saw 2 cruise ships. We also visited a castle that sits near the ocean. We then took a long stroll back through the city and made our way to a highly recommended pizza place. Naples is often said to have the best pizza in Italy. It was good -- but not 'Chicago-good'.

We left the city with mixed emotions around 4:30pm. We returned to Rome at 7:30pm. We're currently enjoying some hot tea as Kay spends her last night in Italy. All-good here.

Day #262 - Rome & Vatican City

2010-12-01T12:08:00.000-08:00

Wednesday General Audience - Pope's Blessing

Pantheon - hole in ceiling of Dome

Pantheon

Pope's Blessing

Pope Benedict XVI - 83 years old

Pope - on arrival into the Hall

Wednesday, December 1st

This morning we got to do something pretty special. We took the metro back over to the Vatican - arriving right at 9am. On Wednesdays, the Pope comes out and gives a blessing to the people at 10:30am. Generally, this is held in St. Peter's Square during the peak season. The Square accomodates the large numbers of people. Today, because of the rainy weather, the general audience was moved indoors to the Hall of Pope Paul IV (located to the left of St. Peter's Basilica - as you face the Basilica from the Square).

We had to get a ticket on-site to enter the Hall. We were lucky and met no line as we obtained our ticket. We entered the Hall around 9:30am. The crowd starting gathering inside - but the Hall was only 1/2 filled when the Pope entered.

A number of Cardinals were seated on the stage in anticipation of the Pope's arrival. (There's currently 199 Cardinals in the Catholic Church). The Pope entered and was seated in the middle of the stage. The ceremony was 1 hour in length. It involved the Pope reading prayers and speeches in a number of different languages. (The current Pope speaks 10 languages). The main languages being English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Portugese, and Polish.

After each reading, one of the cardinals (or archibishops, etc) would read through the list of group attendees from the specific areas where these languages would be spoken. After announcing a group, the group would stand and cheer. Often times, they would wave their country flag. A few times, they even had a prepared song that they sang to the Pope. This was slightly bizarre - it was almost like a pep rally at a big football game. The Pope would acknowledge the group and clap after the singing when appropriate.

At the conclusion of the audience, the Pope offered a blessing for everyone in attendence. I could only understand about 5 minutes of his talks today while he spoke English - but very interesting to see nonetheless. A couple things I noticed in the hour ceremony: The Pope looked very weak and frail. I guess I haven't really kept up with him -- he is 83 years old. He was the 5th oldest person to be elected Pope. (You must be under the age of 80 to be elected.) Also, it was amazing to see him speak all the different languages. Impressive to switch gears that quickly. I read his biography - pretty impressive fella.

After we left the Vatican, we walked over to the Pantheon. The Pantheon is the most preserved monument in the Roman world. It was built as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome. It was first built in 27 BC by Augustus and then restored in 130 AC by Adrian. In 609, the Byzantine Emporer Foca donated Pantheon to Pope Bonifacio IV, who dedicated it to the Virgin Mary and all Martyrs, giving it the name of Basilica of S. Maria ad Martyers. It stands as a Basilica today, an impressive building with a huge dome - with a circular opening to the outdoors.

We next walked around more of the streets of Rome - taking in some of the side areas we had yet to visit. We again ended the day late afternoon back at our hotel. I got in a quick run (the first one in a month), and then we had a nice dinner around the corner. Back now, reading the 2nd volume of the Millennium trilogy by Stieg Larsson - "The Girl who Played with Fire".

Onward to Naples tomorrow - good night from Rome.

Day #261 - Vatican City

2010-11-30T10:24:00.000-08:00

Roman Colisseum

St. Peter's Square

Papal altar - St. Peter's Basilica

St. Peter's Basilica

Vatican Museum

Tuesday, November 30th

Today we went to a different country - the Vatican City. We got up and took the metro across the river to the Vatican. We met up with our group around 9am for our 3-1/2 hour morning tour.

We started out at the Vatican Museum. We were first told the story of the Sistine Chapel - as group's are not able to take pictures or communicate while in the Chapel itself. Michelangelo began painting the Sistine Chapel in 1508 - at the age of 33. It took him 4 years to paint the ceiling and 5 years to paint the Judgment Day Wall. This guy was truly amazing - he even lived to the age of 89. His last work was the design of the dome on St. Peter's Basilica. He was a sculpture (David Statue in Florence), an artist (Sistine Chapel in Rome), and an architect (Dome of St. Peter's Basilica).

We spent about an hour walking through several of the different rooms of the Vatican Museum: the 10,000 Statues, the Tapestries, and the Maps. A couple interesting points - the satues were once colored and have since faded, and there have been fig leaves added for coverage on the statues per the request of the pope.

We next entered the Sistine Chapel and spent about 30 minutes gazing at the ceiling and the astonishing detail of Michelangelo's masterpiece. The Sistine Chapel is where the popes have their conclave to determine the next pope. A temporary flume is run up to one of the windows where white smoke will indicate the selection of the new leader of the Catholic Church. There has been 265 popes - the first one being St. Peter. In my lifetime, there's been 4 popes: Paul VI (63-78), John Paul I (78), John Paul II (78-05), Benedict XVI (05-present).

We next walked down into the catacombs where the popes are buried. This place was special. We walked past John Paul II and St. Peter. The catacombs are directly under St. Peter's Basilica. You could look up through these holes in the ceiling and visualize the people walking on the floor of the Basilica. St. Peter is buried directly under the Papal Altar.

After leaving the catacombs, we walked out to the front of St. Peter's Basilica and looked into the Square. We then spent about an hour walking through the Basilica itself. Wow! I've seen a number of churches, synagogues, mosques, etc on my trip throughout Europe. This place was the best of the best -- by far. As our guide described, you can't even realize the size and unbelievable detail here. The letters running across the very top of the dome are 6-1/2 ft in height. They look like small letters - unreal. She said: "Just picture Kobi Bryant up there".

We finished up the tour by walking out into St. Peter's Square. We saw the two sets of colums that are said to wrap around the people inviting them into the church. There are 140 statues of famous saints towering over the columns. 150,000 people can fit in St. Peter's Square. We learned that the Pope comes out 2 days during the week. On Sundays, he waves from the 2nd window from the right on the top level of his residence building. He also comes out for a blessing at 10:30am on Wednesday mornings in front of the Basilica (Kay & I are going to come back tomorrow for this). The Pope says mass in the Basilica on special occasions only: Easter, Christmas, New Year's Day. He also will come out on the balcony in the middle of the Basilica on special occassions: to announce a new pope, etc.

Once the tour was complete, we decided to just walk back over to our hotel. We came upon a bunch of students doing a 'protest walk'. We decided to steer clear of them and head south. Before long, we found ourselves back at the Colisseum. I went in and took a bunch of pictures. This place was neat to see. Construction began between 70 and 72 AD. Capable of seating 50,000 people, the Coliseum was used for gladiator contests, along with mock sea battles, executions, animal hunts, and dramas based on Classical Mythology.

We made it back to our hotel around 5pm. With some heavy touring leaving us exhausted after the past few days, we decided to stay in and rest. Tomorrow is a new day.

Day #260 - Rome, Italy

2010-11-30T09:33:00.000-08:00

Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II

Julius Caesar statue

Spanish Steps

Trevi Fountain

Colisseum

Monday, November 29th

Today we got an early start and walked around a few of the open markets in Florence before heading to the train station. We took a 10:40am train to Rome - arriving around 12:20pm.

Rome -- the last large city I've yet to visit on my trip. Fired up to see the many sites I've studied or read about in the past --- the Vatican, the Colisseum, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica - the list goes on and on.

Kay and I had not booked a hotel on arrival. We had 4 nights - so we wanted to stay someplace fairly central in the city. We were unsuccessful in coming up with a spot at the train station (as we used Wi-Fi outside a hotel while standing on the street corner), so we decided to walk the streets a bit. We headed straight down toward the Colisseum.

First site of the Colisseum - great. We rounded the corner of Cavour street and could see the jagged walls from afar. Bags in tow, we headed over for some pictures. We next decided to head toward the city center and A.) get some food and B) find a hotel. We made it to about 100 meters from the Trevi Fountain when we stopped for a nice lunch. If you would pick up a map of Rome and point to the center - that's where we ate. I was sort of surprised at how walkable the city felt. We did not have intentions to walk the city - but we had already covered a significant portion, even rolling our luggage.

After lunch, we headed over to the Trevi Fountain and took some photos. This place was great - the best fountain I can ever recall seeing anywhere else in the world. We went in a few hotels and checked pricing -- way too high. We were lucky enough to find an internet cafe where we got a great 4-star hotel for a budget price. The hotel was located between the Termini Station and the Trevi Fountain (not far from the Republicca).

We walked over and checked in. It was late afternoon by now. We investigated some tour options for Tuesday, booked a tour of Vatican City, and then headed out for a nightcap. We walked down one of the main shopping streets in Rome - Via Nazionale. We started out by the Republicca and made our way to the Trevi Fountain. We got a gelato and sat on the steps of the Fountain enjoying the view. It may be a little cold and rainy; however, we are pretty much able to go wherever we want and see all the main sites with very little traffice. It's nice. We commented that there would be 'no way' we would be sitting here in July at 8pm without enduring some heavy tourist acitivity.

We next walked up to the Spanish Steps. Wow! This place was impressive. I think I got my first sense of "I'm really in Rome" while standing at the base of these stairs. We walked up to the top and took a couple pictures of the famous Hassler Hotel at the peak. We walked back down, bought some roasted chestnuts, and then took a long stroll back to the hotel.

We're knocking out some mileage in Rome - all good. Today was an appetizer for more to come. Good night from Italy.

Day #259 - Cinque Terre, Italy

2010-11-29T13:56:00.000-08:00

View of Vernazza from high above

View from the final segment into Riomaggiore

Steep cliffs

Kay - mesmorized

Getting started

Initial views

Nice, blue water

Sunday, November 28th

A challenging, but rewarding day today. We headed out of Florence at 7:27am via train to Pisa. We arrived at 8:27am and then took a 9am train to La Spezia, Italy. We arrived here at 9:51am and then took our third and final train to our destination - Monterossa, Italy.

Cinque Terre --- The CinqueTerre is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera. It's located just north of the city of Pisa, on the western side of the country. There are 5 villages that make up this area: Monterossa (northern-most village), Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore (southern-most village).

Today, we toured this area. Reading through all the literature and travel books concerning Italy -- this is always viewed as one of the hidden treasures. I would concur after my visit today. Exceptional - I would recommend it to all.

The big draw with the Cinque Terre is the hiking trails that connect the 5 villages. These trails all skirt the coastline, as you walk up and down these steep cliffs with dramatic views of the ocean below. In addition to the water, you're walking through vineyards, orange trees, lemon tress, fields, etc --- it's unbelievable scenery.

Only unfortunate thing about today, it was about 30-35 degrees and raining. We were actually told that 3 of the 4 hiking routes were closed. You could take trains from village to village - but we really wanted to hike. We took the train to the northern-most village of Monterossa. The trail was open. We later learned that the path from Monterossa to Vernazza is actually the most difficult section of the course. That it was. It took us 2 hours to walk a distance that was said to be 3km. The trail is 9km in total distance (5-6 miles) - with the first segment of 3km, then 4km, then 1km, and 1km.

I've hiked alot of trails - and this trail in near sleeting conditions was very aggressive. Many steep ascents and descents on these slippery rocks. We were fine as we took our time and secured each footstep. We past only 5 others on our way. 1 gentlemen from the US (Florida) and 2 couples from Sweden. Kay and I made it to Vernazza and then had lunch. We ventured out for our next segment. It seemed like it had gotten 10 degrees colder. The wind had picked up dramatically. The next section was closed.

We decided to take the train to the 3rd town and start on the next segment from Corniglia to Manarola. This segment was closed as well. Slightly bummed that we were unable to walk the full length of the trail - but it made sense. No reason to be walking on these rocks under these conditions.

We were able to walk the last segment - as it was just a relatively flat walking path with nice guardrails. The views were amazing. We took it in and both felt that this is an area to return in the future.

We took the 3 train combination to get back to Florence. I felt really good - like a good day of skiing. We had hiked for over 3 hours on aggressive trails and seen some memorable scenery. We walked around the streets of Florence in our raingear upon our return until we finally called it a day.

Day #258 - Pisa, Italy

2010-11-27T12:46:00.000-08:00

Leaning Tower of Pisa

Piazza del Duomo

Kay - holding up the tower

Great picture day in Pisa

Saturday, November 27th

Today we slept in until mid-morning and changed hotels in Florence. Not too bad - as our new place is actually closer to the city center and is a bit nicer.

We worked our way to the train station and took a mid-day train to the town of Pisa, Italy. It was a 1-hour connection. We set off on a walk across the city to the famous "Leaning Tower" of Pisa. A must-see site while in Italy.

The Leaning Tower is 1 of many ancient buildings in the Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square). It is the free-standing bell tower of the cathedral. Construction of the tower occurred in 3 stages across 177 years - beginning in 1173. The tower began to sink after construction had progressed to the 3rd floor in 1178. This was due to a 3 meter foundation, set in weak, unstable subsoil - a design that was flawed from the beginning. Construction was subsequently halted for nearly a century due to war and turmoil in the Republic of Pisa. This allowed time for the underlying soil to settle (otherwise, the tower would almost certainly have toppled)

In 1272, construction continued. Engineers compensated for the tilt by building upper floors where 1 side had taller walls. Because of this, the tower is actually curved. Construction was halted a second time in 1284. The seventh floor was then completed in 1319. There are 7 bells - one for each note of the musical scale. The bell chamber was finally added in 1372.

In 1990, after 2 decades of stabilization studies, the tower was closed to the public. The bells were removed to relieve some wieght, cables were cinched to the 3rd floor, apartments and houses were vacated for safety, and the tower was slightly straightened. This feat was done by removing 50 cubic yards of soil under the raised end. The tower was straightened by 18 inches - returning it to its 1838 position. After a decade of reconstruction and stabilization efforts, the Tower was reopened to the public in December 2001. In May 2008, more dirt was removed from under the Tower. Engineers have stated the Tower has now stopped moving for the first time in history - and it should be stable for the next 200 years.

It's really interesting reading this story. We didn't get much information on-site today, but I'm looking at an internet article. I haven't found much on "Why they didn't just 'cut their losses' and end the project long ago". Well - I guess it makes for a unique tourist attraction. And - if they would have shelved the project - I wouldn't be writing about it today.

Kay and I took a few pictures while pretending to hold up the tower. It's a classic pose - everybody else was doing it.

We headed back into Florence. I did some much needed laundry and will soon be calling it a night.

Day #257 - Siena & Chianti, Italy

2010-11-27T11:17:00.000-08:00

Central Square - Siena

Sunshine after some snow in Siena

320-foot bell tower

Wine country - Chianti

Friday, November 26th

Today we took a day trip out of Florence. We took the train down to the town of Siena - located about 25 miles south. We walked into the main city center after departing the train. This was a couple miles and took us 20-30 minutes. The day was really cold. It actually started snowing a little when we arrived at the city square.

Siena is an interesting town in the heart of Tuscany. A long winding road leads to the Piazza del Campo. The Plaza is divided into nine marble-trimmed strips, which represent the city's ancient Government of Nine - and are also said to imitate the folds in the cloak of the Virgin Mary. On 1 side of the square is the Palazzo Publico - with its 320-foot bell tower. This is the second highest in Italy. The Plaza is also the location for a twice-yearly bareback horse race known as the Palio. It entails a 90 second, 3 lap tour of the plaza. Supposedly - this is a huge draw and very difficult to get tickets.

We left Siena and took the train up the road to Chianti. Chianti is one of the most well-known wine regions in all of Italy - stretching between Florence and Siena. It was getting to be mid-afternoon by this time. Due to the season - sunset is a little before 5pm. We left the train station and started a trek up to the castle in town which overlooks the vineyards below. The path we chose to walk was a bit dangerous - as it was 1-lane each way - with no shoulder. We trudged through, but weren't overly comfortable. We ended up seeing some interesting sites - but decided to call it a day before actually reaching the castle. We hailed a taxi to take us back to Siena.

We took the train from Siena back into Florence. We had a nice dinner around the corner from our hotel and called it a day. Tomorrow we head to Pisa - to see some kind of a tower that leans to 1 side.

Wanted to acknowledge my high school football team today - the Valle Warriors. They just won the state championship - 22-21 (went for 2 points in overtime to win the game). Outstanding accomplishment. This is the 10th state championship in school history - which ties us for the most championships all-time in Missouri high school football. I was lucky enough to be apart of 3 of these championships when I was in high school (sophomore-senior). Something that will always stay with you. Congratulations fellas!!!!!

Day #256 - Florence, Italy

2010-11-26T15:06:00.000-08:00

David statue - atop Michelangelo Plaza in Florence

Statues outsdie the Piazza della Signoria

Great Thanksgiving Dinner

A view overlooking the river in Florence

A view from Michelangelo Plaza - hilltop

Kay & I overlooking the city

Thursday, November 25th

Happy Thanksgiving! This year I have a whole lot to be thankful for - great family, great friends, and the good fortunes which have made this gap year journey really special.

Today was excellent. My sister and I started out early morning for our tour of Florence. We walked across the Fiume Arno river and climbed the steep steps leading to the Piazzale Michelangelo. There was a lookout point where we could see over the entire city. Spectacular. This was my first true look at Florence.

We continued our walking tour on the southern side of the river - making our way to Fort Belvedere. This was a nice walk through some tree-lined streets that winded their way across the hillside. Once we reached the Fort, we were able to get a different view from the city. We then descended down the steep hill onto the Ponte Vecchio bridge. We didn't even know we were on a bridge until we were half way across. There were shops and street vendors all along the way. The sun was just coming out at this point. We took some incredible pictures of the riverbank.

Our next stop was one of the most popular locations in Florence - The Uffizi Galleries. This is a large U-shaped art gallery - housing some of the most recognized masterworks of Western Civilization. Artists such as: Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Francesca, Lippi, Raphael - they can all be found in this world-reknown gallery. It was interesting to see - a mixture of sculptures and paintings.

We next walked over to the Piazza della Signoria. This is one of the most impressive plazas in Florence. The sculptures were amazing. It's one of the more memorable sites I'll take home with me from Europe. We followed the busy street of Via del Calzaiuoli up to the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. This place brings back memories of Notre Dame in Paris. The ceiling and paintings were the take-away for me.

We next worked our way over to the Galleria del Academia. This place holds the take-home symbol of Florence - the statue of David. This sculpture was made by Michelangelo between the years of 1502-1504. This original statue once stood at the Piazza della Signoria - until 1873 when it was brought to its current location. Today, 2 other large 'David' statues exist in the city: a marble copy sits in the Piazza della Signoria and a bronze copy sits atop Michelangelo Plaza (the hill we visited this morning).

We then walked around several of the open markets. Florence is known for leather. Every other shop had leather coats, handbags, wallets, etc -- some pretty high-dollar items on the streets of Florence. By this time, it was late afternoon. We worked our way back to the river and took some pictures of the fading sun. Then, back to the hotel in preparation for dinner.

Tonight we needed to get serious with dinner. I've only been out of the country 1 other time on Thansgiving day. That time, I ate kangaroo in the OutBack in Australia. Tonight, we researched the best restaurants in Florence on the internet. We decided we needed 'atmosphere' at a reasonable price. We decided on a place called ll Latini. We chose this place because it's family style. You get seated with other people. There's no menu - the waiters just give you a couple options - and pretty much bring you what they think you'll like. The wine is free-flowing and so is the conversation. This place was excellent - I'd recommend it to anyone.

My sister and I got seated by a couple from London. These people were absolutely some of the nicest, friendliest people I've met on my trip to date. What a fascinating dinner. They were extremely well traveled. Matter of fact - Andrew introduced me to the website: mosttraveledpeople.com. He currently sits as the 147th most travelled person in the world (at least of those who have signed up on this site). There is not a place I've been that they have not been. It was incredible. As I told them, I could sit and listen to their stories for a month - easy. They were very nice and down to earth. Andrew worked in the investment business and retired at the age of 48. They live on a boat for a portion of the year - aboardthe world.com. They just finalized a purchase on an apartment in Florence. Kay and I walked with them back to their place where they showed us around. Well - this was the fanciest, classiest home I've ever seen in my entire life --- amazing.

Good night from Florence. Here's to good times and good people. Here's to those who make us better - those people that keep us focused and keep us striving for new goals. Here's to believing that "Anything is Possible". And, here's to one of my favorite movies of all times - "It's A Wonderful Life" -- a movie that brings us a quote that's simple, but oh so right. "Dear George, remember, no man is a failure who has friends". I like to watch this movie every year during Thanksgiving break. It helps put things in perspective. Get back to the basics. Sorry to get so philosophical today -- but, it never hurts to think that way every now and again.

Day #255 - Bologna, Italy

2010-11-24T13:21:00.000-08:00

Center Square - Bologna

Chocolate - made to look like rusted tools

Gate to the 'Old City'

Archway streets throughout town

Homemade tortellini soup

Wednesday, November 24th

Solid day in Italy today. We're working the train system and seeing the sites. For the second consecutive day, we made it to our train with about 5 minutes to spare early in the morning. Nothing like getting your heart pumping to jumpstart the day.

We left Venice around 8am and headed to Bologna, Italy. This was an intermediate stop on our way to Florence. We arrived at 10am - giving ourselves 4 hours to walk the city.

Bologna was great. I didn't know much about this city - but was pleasantly surprised. We first walked through one of the gates of the old city - built in the 12th century. We entered the town to find long streets lined with shops and people - down these decorated archways. We came upon a bunch of booths selling chocolate. It was some sort of festival or something. We got to walk along and eat samples at several of the different shops - very nice.

One of the draws to Bologna for us today was to try out some of the local cuisine. Bologna is the birthplace of mortadella sausage (the distant granddaddy of American bologna) and meat-stuffed tortellini pasta. We had an awesome lunch with homemade tortellini soup and shared a side-dish of the mortadella sausage.

A couple other things I read about: Bologna is home to the world's oldest university - the University of Bologna (founded in 1088). Bologna also ranks as one of Italy's top cities in terms of quality of life. It's a lively and cosmopolitan city, with a rich history in cuisine, art, and culture.

Without reading this, my sister and I pointed out the big-city feel. The streets were filled with people at noon on Wednesday in the middle of November. Alot of activity. This is defintely a great spot to spend a few hours (at a minimum) as you work your way into Tuscany.

We left Bologna around 2:15pm and took a 2-train combination to Florence - arriving at 4pm. We made our way to our hotel - located in a great spot on the western side of town. It was dark by now. We had a great dinner and spent the evening planning a strategy for the next couple days.

Tomorrow we get to experience Florence, Italy.

Day #254 - Venice, Italy

2010-11-23T13:21:00.000-08:00

My sister Kay and I

St. Mark's Square - flooded

Walking over tables in front of St. Mark's Basilica

Awesome sites of Venice

My sister Kay - first view of the Grand Canal in Venice

Tuesday, November 23rd

Great day in Venice! My sister and I are doing a grand tour of Italy over the next 12 days. As I've been to the northern cities earlier on my trip, I'm excited to be somewhat of a tour guide for the first few days. Wherever she wants to go - I'm all in. We decided that we got the feel of Milan by walking the streets; therefore, we were off to Venice early on Tuesday.

We arrived via train around 11am. We hadn't booked a hotel yet - so we decided to walk around and see what we could find. The great thing about touring this time of year -- you pretty much have your pick of hotels. I would doubt if any are fully booked. We walked over to the area I stayed on my first visit. The goal was to stay in the same hotel that my aunt & uncle had stayed. It worked out that we found a great spot along the way -- a couple hundred yards from the central train station - right on the Grand Canal. Nice - for 55 euro (about $70).

I like Venice. Why? Because of it's uniqueness. My sister and I were just discussing this. It might not be the fanciest place around, are the most elegant city in the world; however, it has it's own style. We first took a leisurely walk down to St. Mark's Square. Great - the streets were not busy at all. We had free reign to see the shops and interesting squares along the way.

We arrived into St. Mark's Square --- to find it UNDER WATER. Wow! This is one of the most surprising things I've seen on the whole trip to date. The take-home symbol of Venice - St. Mark's Square - filled with several inches of water. We had to take a side canal to enter. They had tables set up where we could walk across the water. See pictures. We went inside St. Mark's Basilica - there was water on the floor of the Basilica as you walked in. Can't even believe it!

We discussed with folks and were told that this time of year generally brings rain and flooding. This is not uncommon in Venice. Many people were walking around in these large boots to keep out of the water. When we arrived via train, the levels in the Grand Canal were almost overflowing. By the end of the day, these levels had dropped some 4 foot. Unreal.

The sun came out as the day progressed. We took the water bus back to our hotel from the Basilica. Awesome. Just like I had remembered it. Not as many boats today. The ride took us only about 25 minutes or so. I remember it taking nearly 45 minutes in early July (many more people boarding, etc).

We walked around the side canals taking photographs along the way. A cool day today - but nice walking weather. We slipped in an afternoon siesta and then had a great dinner. We contemplated the same restaurant my aunt, uncle, and I had eaten at early this year -- but opted for variety. Nice!

We're here at our hotel drinking some hot tea and recapping the day's events. Tomorrow, we head south - to Tuscany area. We might stop off and have some Bologna first. See you soon.

Day #253 - Milan, Italy

2010-11-22T07:21:00.000-08:00

Il Duomo - Milan

Teatro Alla Scala

Shopping streets of Milan

Plaza - Il Duomo

Santa Maria delle Grazie - Last Supper painting

Monday, Nobember 22nd

It's 4pm here on Monday afternoon. My sister comes in tonight at 7pm. I will be going to the airport in about an hour to meet up with her.

I've been to Milan once before on my trip - but only stayed a night and didn't really see anything. (It was just a transfer spot). Today, I got a chance to walk the streets and take in the sites.

So Italy has 4 cities in the Top 20 Most Visited Cities in Europe: Rome (3), Venice (12), Milan (18), and Florence (19). No wonder Italy is one of the favorite tourist spots of many Americans. I'm assuming going into this segment of the journey, many of you reading this have already been to these places - we'll see if I have similar takes.

Milan is really impressive. Did you ever see that Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James movie called "Grown-ups"? It was good - I saw it on my most recent flight back from the states. Adam Sandler's kids were really spoiled and were set to go to Milan. I can't get that image out of my head. I guess the city does have that feel a little bit. Fancy shopping streets, people looking the part with bags in hand. Now - I'm not close to a shopper-guy - not even remotely close. But, I can appreciate the scenery. It has that feel of class, wealth, flare -- slightly different than what I have experienced the past 5 days since my return from Israel.

Some of the other things of interest I saw today included: (1) The Last Supper. The famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci is located in the Gothic church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. I couldn't get in to see the painting today - as Monday it's closed. But, I was able to take some pictures of the church. It's currently undergoing some renovation. (2) Il Duomo. This is the world's largest Gothic cathedral. This was the take-home symbol of Milan for me. Really neat. I walked around inside. My book tells me that the only cathedral bigger then this is St. Peter's in Rome. Construction began in 1386 and was not completed until 100 years ago. It has 135 marble spires and 2,245 marble statues. (3) Teatro Alla Scala. Said to be the world's most famous opera house. Reopened in 2004 after 1,000 days of intensive renovation.

I went to the central train station and did some recon work for our travels the next couple days. I walked around for 2 hours trying to find a laundrymat - no luck. I had several people tell me where to go --- still was unsuccessful. Not so good - I badly need to do some laundry - soon.

I'll check in later after picking up my sister.

Later.

Found my sister - successful. I rode the bus out to the airport. In my sleepy haze, I got off at Terminal #2. I went inside and saw that her flight was going to arrive in Terminal #1. Still sleeping, I decided it would be a good idea if I just walked over to Terminal #1. About 3/4 of a mile later, with only signs of a long-distant connection to Terminal #1, not such a good idea. I was now left to run in high 30 degree temperatures. It was 6:30pm and my sister was set to arrive at 6:50pm. I'm running down an arbitrary road - hoping to make it. Finally, I found a bus to take me the last 1/2 mile - arrived at 6:53pm. Kay came out of customs at 7:15pm - solid.

Went back into Milan. Walked the shopping streets by our hotel for a couple hours. Had a nice dinner. Got to sleep around 10:30pm. All good stuff - tomorrow we head to Venice.

Day #252 - Bar, Montenegro to Milan, Italy

2010-11-22T07:04:00.000-08:00

Awesome early morning clouds in Bar, Montenegro

Waiting at the bus stop in Bar, Montenegro

The 'road' to the airport - I walked straight down the middle of it

Last look at Bar, Montenegro

Sunday, November 21st

I got an early start out of Bar. I took a bus to the airport around 10am. The airport is very near the capital city of Montenegro - Podgorica. I was informed that I would need to take a taxi where the bus left me off - because it was a little ways from the airport. About 45 minutes into the journey, the guy stops at this T in the road (really nothing ealse around) He says: "There - airport". I'm like: "What - I don't see any airport". He says: "Just walk down that road - about 3-4 minutes".

OK - I sense this guy is legitimate. There is a small hill that I can't see over - I'm assuming the airport could be out of site. Also, I'm not expecting JFK Airport here - so I go with it. 20 minutes later - I get there. (3-4 minutes -- if you were in a jet going supersonic speeds - maybe). It was raining. I stopped and put on my rain gear at one point. I was just walking down the middle of the road with my bag in tow. Just a nice Sunday stroll.

I connected through Vienna, Austria on my way to Milan. My flight was at 3pm - I arrived into Milan around 7pm. I had to take a 1 hour shuttle bus to the city center. (I did not realize the international airport in Milan is so far from the city). It was pouring rain - so I took a taxi to my hotel -- arriving sometime before 9pm.

I was writing some last night - but apparently I was being pretty loud on my Skype calls - as people were coming out of their rooms brow-beating me. I decided to cut my losses and get some sleep.

Here's to some good times ahead in Italy. Did I save the best for last -- we'll see.

Day #251 - Shkoder, Albania & Bar, Montenegro

2010-11-21T13:11:00.000-08:00

Interesting park in Shkoder, Albania

Mosque - Shkoder, Albania

Mountainous area of Montenegro

A look off my hotel balcony

Saturday, November 20th

AHHH---HAAAAA! I made it. Coming to you live from the friendly confines of Milan, Italy. It's 10:15pm here on Sunday, November 21st. Whewwww! About 5pm yesterday, when I was stranded in the country of Albania, this was only a dream. Explanations to follow!

I arrived into Bar, Montenegro on Saturday morning about 10am. I was in a sleeper car with 2 other dudes. I was on the bottom bunk of 3. A little clautrophobic - as I could barely lift up my head without knocking myself out on the bunk above me. It was fine - slept for a few hours. They woke us up at 4am when we crossed the Serbia/Montenegro border. I handed over my passport to some official-looking person in a sleepy haze. Then, they woke us up again about 45 minutes later. We had to hand over the passport a second time. Must have been the last stop in Serbia and the first stop in Montenegro.

I have a new theory ----- "When you're ever in trouble - head for the water". Examples: If you're lost in the woods or a city -- find a stream, river, lake, or ocean -- this will generally lead you somewhere you can identify. If you're stressed out and need a break -- go for a boat ride, sit out by the pool, or just take a walk around the lake -- you'll feel at peace pretty quickly. Along those lines, if you're through with getting hassled in war-torn ex-Yugoslavia -- head to the ocean. Generally speaking, places on the water cost more, tourist like these places more, it's more hospitable. There's no surprise that the main tourist destinations in all of ex-Yugoslavia are Croatia and Montenegro -- they're on the water. Next time you're in trouble - you know what to do. It may be as simple as taking a shower to make you feel better - just get it done.

Before I could leave peacefully for my Italian getaway, I needed to get aggressive 1 last time. With aggressive I mean -- visiting arguably one of the most questionable countries in Europe - Albania. No worries - I'm 60ft in the open ocean during the daytime.

I had talked with folks and read on the internet that a small town near Bar, Montenegro to visit is Shkoder, Albania. I lined up a bus to take me the 1-1/2 hour journey (30 minutes at the border) - departing at 12:30pm. The city was pretty neat. It had some interesting mosques and scenery. I had a great lunch. I had it all worked out that I would take the last bus departing at 4pm for my return. I checked this with 4 different sources: (1) I saw it on the internet, (2) I asked the lady at my hotel in Bar and she called to confirm, (3) I asked the bus station in Bar when I left what time the return was, (4) and when I arrived in Shkoder - I asked them if 4pm was the departure. They confirmed and told me they would be at this spot at 4pm. Even with all this backup - I still got to the pickup point at 3:30pm just to be sure. Waited - waited, waited somemore. A couple minutes before 4 - I'm starting to get nervous. I go over to a police officer. I communicate in single words. Note - Albania and Kosovo speak Albanian. Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia all speak Serbian. The 2 languages are very diffferent and people do not generally speak both. The officer informs me that the bus left at 3:45pm from here. I said: "No, I've been here since 3:30pm". He said: "Sorry, that's what they told me". Solid!!!

Not so good. I'm now stranded in Albania. What to I do? This place was OK to visit for a couple hours in the afternoon, but I do not intend to stay the night. I now have "people" around me. "I'll bring you to the border". The officer says that I can get to the border and then take a bus across. I ask him: "I was just at the border, I did not see any buses - what are you referring to?" He didn't respond. No way was I going to go with someone and have them dump me off at the border. What was I going to do then? It was starting to get colder - in the 40's. I was not dressed to sleep in the woods at the Albania/Montenegro border.

I flash the officer some cash. I say: "I'll pay whatever it takes for someone to get me to my hotel in Montenegro". Luckily, the officer was legit. He could see my desperation. He told me to follow him. We walk across the street and the officer talks with a taxi driver. He tells me that this guy can take me for 25 euro - roughly $33. Sold - I would have paid 5 times that amount to get me out of this situation. Luckily, this area is very poor and a little money goes a long way.

I got into this taxi and the guy took me all the way back to my hotel. Over a 3 hour round trip for him - for just over $30. Wow - that would have costs hundreds of dollars in the states. I had read on the internet that taxis can cross the border - but sometimes it can cause some trouble. I had no other option. Things went smoothly.

On my return into Bar, I had a great dinner alongside the ocean. My hotel room was spectacular - and cheap. Nobody else was in the hotel. I had this full suite which overlooked the ocean - see pictures. In the summertime, this would have been paradise.

No internet - so early to bed. Tomorrow - I fly away to another land.

Day #250 - Belgrade, Serbia

2010-11-19T08:03:00.000-08:00

Great part of Belgrade, Serbia

One of the nicest buildings in town

Farmland spread throughout the country

Awesome sunrise from my traincar

Friday, November 19th

This morning I arrived into Belgrade, Serbia about 10:30am. It was a 12 hour train trip (as Serbia is one hour behind Bucharest). Not such great sleep on this train ride. All night people were walking around the train. There is no question my gear would have been stolen if not kept closely to me. At one point in the night, an old, bum-looking guy was being pushed into our car. I'm assuming he must have tried to take something and the people were pushing him away. Who knows - but it doesn't help to sooth the nerves for sleeping very soundly.

I did get to see an unbelievable sunrise out my train car this morning. I was laying down, with my headphones on, just watching the sun come up slowly over the farmlands of out-country Serbia. It was the best part of my day.

My goal on arrival was to get a train to Bar, Montenegro. However, I found out that the train I thought was going to depart at 1pm was only active during peak season. Next departure - 10pm. Well - I guess I'm going to spend the day in Belgrade.

Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia (1.6 million people). It's the 4th largest city in southeastern Europe - behind Istanbul, Athens and Bucharest. That's about the same order I'd put them as far as my list goes for most-liked.

I walked around the city for a few hours. Some of the highlights included: Kalemegdan, the National Theatre, the Botanical Garden, and the city square. I was impressed with the number of parks spread throughout the city. The buildings and architectue were hit and miss - pending the area. I've read that some of the buildings were put up quickly in the past - resulting in poor lasting materials. You could also see some buildings with mass devastation - perhaps the results of the 1999 NATO bombings. This area has been in conflict for years. Serbia, Kosovo, and Alabania - have all been fighting for border rites. I've been referring to 'recommended travel' websites throughout my trip. Northern Kosovo and Northern Albania are termed: "No travel zones - unless absolutely necessary".

It's currently 6pm, I'm sitting at this outside cafe at the train station. My nerves are easing up a bit - a couple frosties have helped this. It just seems like I have to constantly watch my back. There's endless people approaching me --- from handouts, to salesmanship, to even little kids coming over and trying to hit my computer. I really just want people to leave me alone. I look up - and many folks are staring at me. I don't think it helps that I am the one and only tourist (perhaps in the entire city). I stick out - big time. Travelling in numbers can sometimes work in your advantage. During the summer - I can get lost in the shuffle - not now.

It's all good. The city turned out better than I had expected. I learned a lesson today. Just get out into the city - things will improve. I've recently been so turned off by areas around the train stations - I don't even venture out. That's not so good. Today, I was able to find an English-speaking information person - this helped me immensely.

Tonight, I take a 10pm overnight train to Bar, Montenegro. I'm excited to see this area along the coast. I'll spend Saturday in Bar (with maybe a day trip thrown into the mix), and then I'll fly to Milan on Sunday (21st). My sister comes into town on the 22nd - fired up.

Good night from Belgrade!

Day #249 - Chernivtsi, Ukraine to Bucharest, Romania

2010-11-19T07:14:00.000-08:00

Thursday, November 18th

Up at 6am. I then took a taxi back to the bus station for a 7:10am departure - returning to Suceava, Romania. Poor performance in Ukraine - but, it is what it is. Tired, massive language barrier, and unspectacular sites in my nearest vacinity -- led me to my decision to call it an early night. I'm sure the town had some nice places if I would have ventured out more. Next time.

My bus arrived into Suceava near 11am. We were delayed on the border for 1-1/2 hours. Complete bag check of everyone's gear. The former Soviet states and territories have easily the most difficult border crossings in all of Europe. For the most part, you may not even know you have crossed a border in western Europe.

In Suceava, I took the city bus to the central train station. My goal was to get to Belgrade, Serbia. I had this worked out from a previous agent in Bucharest but I couldn't get the same schedule. After a 30-minute communication session (which could have been taped and submitted to world's funniest videos) - I had my itinerary.

I boarded a 1:13pm train back to Bucharest - arriving at 8:30pm. I have no idea why I had to make this trip - as it is out of the way. But, it was the best option avialable to me. On arrival into Bucharest, I had to transfer to a 9:05pm train to Belgrade. I hurried to a McDonalds as I have not checked email in 2 days. Their service was down. (Apologize about the delays).

I'm writing this blog in my notebook at 11pm on Thursday, Nov. 18th - on a train bound for Belgrade, Serbia. I'm somewhere in Romania - no idea where. I'm set to arrive in Belgrade around 8:30am. I then have 1 more train to get to the ocean (Bar, Montenegro).

Why am I traveling in such obscure locations? I had a goal set that I wanted to see all of Europe. I wanted to see the 'high points', but wanted to get a feel for everything. This includes war-torn areas such as Serbia, and former Soviet states such as Ukraine.

It's been an adventure -- but I can almost smell the wine from Italy right now. Until next time, good night from 'the road less travelled'.

Day #248 - Suceava, Romania

2010-11-19T06:55:00.000-08:00

Humor, Romania (Moldova) - painted monastery

Detailed pictures

Relatively small buildings

Painted monasteries

Wednesday, November 17th

Last night I took the 11pm train out of Brasov, Romania - destination Suceava, Romania (on the northern border). It's really not that far - but travel is very slow in eastern Europe.

I actually got quite a bit of sleep on the train. No sleeper cars - but they had 3 seats together that I could put up the armrest and lay completely horizontal from head to toe. There were only 10 people or so on the whole train. I had a car to myself. I used my daybag with all my important stuff as a pillow. I tied a plastic bag from my duffel to my daybag. It would not have been easy to steal my gear without waking me.

I arrived into Suceava at 7:30am. I knew I wanted to take a bus across the border to Ukraine later in the day. Therefore, I found a city bus to transfer me to the central bus station to check times. Getting around was immensely difficult as few people spoke any English at all. The information I received was based on charades and single words only.

I found out the Ukraine bus left at 1pm. Kudos to my cousin Jonathon - as he laid out this route for me -- with safety and sites taken into consideration. (Note - anybody doing this journey - bus is the way to go over the border. Train takes much longer). I was left with about 5 hours to see some sites.

The northwest section of Romania is called Moldova - not to be confused with the actual country of Moldova, which is between Romania and the Ukraine. This is a very remote area. Pretty scenic - filled with forests and hills.

There is a number of small towns with monasteries that date back to the 15 & 16th centuries. Most of the monasteries are painted inside and out, top to bottom - with elaborate biblical scenes. These were said to have educated the illiterate faithful in the ways of Orthodox Christianity.

I went to the town of Humor and visited this monastery. Other towns with similar architecture include: Varonet, Sucevita, and Moldovita. I took a bus their and caught a "taxi" on the return. 'A little shaddy' -- that's the description of transportation in these parts.

The monastery was interesting. Very small. The paintings were detailed and well thought-out. It's amazing how these have withstood the test of time (some 500 years).

Back into Suceava, I took the 1pm bus to Chernivtsi, Ukraine. It was about a 3 hour journey (includes a 30 minute stop at the border). I had intentions a few days back to get to Kiev (capital of Ukraine) - but the travel times were just too lengthy to meet this goal. My cousin had mentioned the town of Chernivtsi - so I decided to stay here for a night.

On arrival, it was brutally difficult to get around. I did not have a hotel booked (bad move), but I had one written down that had spots open last night. I found a taxi to take me to the hotel. Rooms available - nice. I walked around the town a little - but just wasn't feeling it. Exhaustion was setting in.

About 7pm (no internet available) - I shut it down for the night. Lame - but it just wasn't meant to be. 11 hours later - I woke up with a chambermaid knocing at my door. (That was my wakeup call).

Strange day in Eastern Europe.

Day #247 - Dracula's Castle - Bran, Romania

2010-11-16T10:56:00.001-08:00

Entrance into Bran Castle (Dracula's Castle)

View from outdoor balcony

Story of Dracula

Path to the castle

View to the castle from ground level

Tuesday, November 16th

Hard-core day today. We finally flew out of Tel Aviv at 5:30am. We arrived into Bucharest around 8am. I really didn't sleep at all the entire night - but dosed off many times.

Too much to do - with little time to execute. I fell behind a few days due to my 2 trips back to STL, this means that I have some ground to make up. Instead of sleeping, I took a 9:47am train to Brasov, Romania. It went painfully slow. We were scheduled to arrive at 12:50pm - but only got in at 2pm.

I then rolled the dice and went with a driver that had approached me at the train terminal. I wanted to get to Dracula's Castle - and really didn't feel like planning the bus, bus, taxi combination to make it happen. This guy gave me a price of 20 euro - he would drive me there and back, and wait while I was inside. Probably shouldn't have went, but I felt OK about it after working out the terms. Turned out well.

Dracula's Castle. Why not! Author Bram Stoker gave this image life. This place looks the part. The castle is set on a hill in a wooded area. You walk up this rock path to get there. Throw in some darkness, but a full moon out, do this walk by yourself --- it would be pretty spooky without knowing anything else about the legend.

Count Dracula was supposedly taken from Prince Vlad Dracula of Walachia (1431-1476), who allegedly lived in Bran Castle in the wild region of Transylvania. He was known for his cruelty, including his habit of having his perceived enemies impaled alive on enormous stakes.

I walked around all the rooms of the castle. The coolest part was this 'secret staircase' that went up to an outdoor balcony area. You can actually book the castle as a hotel for the night - for a large sum of money however.

Quick tour - back to Brasova. I'm currently in this cafe catching up. I have a train at 11pm for Suceava, Romania that will arrive at 7am. I'm doing back to back alnighters - one in a plane terminal and one on a train. I'm actually planning to sleep as much as possible on this train. It doesn't have sleeper cars however - seats only. These parts are known for pickpocketers - I'm gonna tie my bag to my arm somehow during the night.

Good Night from Translyvania.

Day #246 - Jerusalem, Israel

2010-11-15T17:24:00.000-08:00

Dome of the Rock and Western Wall - conflicting images

Original pillars of the Old City

Room where Last Supper was held

Station #12 - Jesus dies on the cross

Station #13 - Jesus is taken down from the cross

Via Dolorosa - Signs posted to represent the stations of the cross

Western Wall - look from in the tunnel - see differences in construction

Monday, November 15th

I'm coming to you live from the floor of the Tel Aviv Airport in Israel at 3:30am local time on Tuesday, November 16th. Nice! I had a 12:45am flight to Bucharest, Romania. Got here about 3 hours early because my transfer just worked out that way from Jersualem. We boarded the plane 15 minutes late. Then, we sat there for 1-1/2 hours -- temperatures nearing 90 degrees. They continued to tell us that the weather was forcing delays. I'm guessing it's fog by the looks outside the window right now. Eventually, they let us off the plane. They gave us a free voucher for food at a restaurant here in the airport. I wasn't hungry - so I grabbed a soda. Now, I'm sitting on the floor because there are no seats by an electrical outlet and my computer is running on fumes.

We have a big case of the "bread and milk" syndrome going currently. Just like when it snows and people panic and run to the store to buy things so they don't DIE when the big blizzard comes -- These people were almost knocking each other on the floor to get after the food at that restaurant. If they did not eat in the next hour, for sure they would have started to die off. I used to not understand how folks could get trounced over and actually killed in huge crowd scenarios. I clearly understand now. I've seen too often what happens when people panic. It's like they lose their minds. It starts to snowball - then you have real problems.

I'm not tired anymore - so I thought I'd write a little while.

Another fantastic day in Jerusalem to wrap up my stay in Israel. I started the morning off by meeting up with a group to tour the underground tunnels of the Temple Mount. Wow! It was just an hour tour - but I really understand things much better concerning what transpired in this location since the beginning of time. Yes - beginning of time ----- some say this is where it all started and where it will all end.

We got to see the different layers of the First and Second Temples. The debris was not cleared off after the destructions, it was just built over. The current city is several meters above where the original streets of Jerusalem were found. There were a couple window tunnels drilled down so you could see the floor of the original city. The visual Western Wall is just a portion of the actual wall. It extends much further - all the way into the Muslim Quarter. We learned that the Western Wall was adapted as the new Holy Site due to its phyical location - being the closest to the center of the former Temple. Not the east, north, or south -- but the west was the closest point.

Once we completed the tunnel walk, my trip to Israel went from being great and very interesting, to being very special. Up to this point, I've primarily learned a ton about the Jewish faith and their beliefs (and that's great). However, I'm not Jewish. When we surfaced onto street level, I got to see what I really came here to see.

The primary difference in the Jewish faith and Christianity is that Christians believe in both the Old and New Testament; whereas, Judaism teaches the Old Testament only. The main difference -- Jesus -- and who he was. When we surfaced, we were standing on the Via Dolorosa. I knew this was the street where the stations of the cross were acted out. I asked the tour guide exactly where we were on the map. Her response: "Look up there, you see that Roman Numberal II - we're standing at the second station of the cross". Excellent!

The streets were jam-packed with people. I ended up following along with a tour group as they walked through all the stations. They had a priest that would read a passage at each location and then people would sing the "Tremble" song on the way to the next station. Stations 1-9 are out on the streets. Stations 10-14 are in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The two take home sites for me where: (1) Station #12 - Jesus dies on the cross --- we went through this line and knelt under a table - reaching our hand in a hole to touch the actual rock of Calvary (which the church has been built over). This is the place where the cross stood. (2) Station #13 - Jesus is taken down from the cross. There was a platform where Jesus' body was supposedly laid out after being taken down from the cross. People were kneeling and praying at it. See picture. Amazing stuff.

I then walked over to St. Mark's church. This is often referred to as the spot where the Last Supper took place. I walked into the basement room. Surreal. See picture. (Some believe that the Last Supper took place on Mt. Zion. There's also a room depicting the site in this location as well).

I then ate lunch and met up with a tour group at 2:30pm to get an overview of the entire Old City. Great! By this time, I had been to most spots in the city, this tour drove home some points I was unclear about. A few memorable things: (1) The Armenians were given their own Quarter out of respect. Christianity was not very popular until 300AD. At this point, the Armenians were the first to support the Christians - and even sent a representative to Jersualem on their behalf. (2) Each morning, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (perhaps the holiest place in the Christian faith), is opened by a Muslim. (3) A Christian architect designed the Dome of the Rock (one of the most sacred places in the Muslim faith). (4) There was a ceremony going on at the Western Wall. Young soldiers were being awarded their ranks. Boys are required to serve 3 years out of high school and girls are required to serve 2 years out of high school in Israel. There can be special circumstances to get out of this - but it is mandatory for everyone else to join in the military.

Grabbed my bag from the hotel. Ate some dinner overlooking the Old City. Took a sheroot back to the Tel Aviv airport - arriving around 9:30pm. I'm still here currently.

Here's to a great, great country - filled with tons of history that I'd recommend everyone visit at one point in their life. ALL GOOD.

Day #245 - The Dead Sea & Masada, Israel

2010-11-14T10:25:00.000-08:00

Western Wall - Old City Jerusalem

Dome of the Rock

A view out toward the Dead Sea and Jordan from the peak of Masada

Looking down on the side-cliff fortress of Masada

Relaxing in the Dead Sea

Sunday, November 14th

Coming to you live from the outside deck of the Dalton Restaurant in the Mimila Shopping Plaza in Jerusalem, Israel. Great view of the city from the deck. Back to what I know, I'm eating a tomato/cucumber/onion salad and some sort of Asian pasta dish. It's all good - and the atmosphere is really nice. I decided to write the blog this evening from here. My hotel has internet - but it's not very powerful. This is the reason I was unable to post pictures last night.

Today was unique - and awesome. I started early. I left my hotel, within the confines of the Old City, and walked down to the Western Wall (Wailing Wall). This is one of the most sacred places in the Jewish faith. It's a 187-ft exposed section of ancient wall situated on the western flank of the Temple Mount. I found many people standing at the wall doing morning prayers. This place felt a little like Our Lady of Lourdes - the respectful, thoughtful atmosphere that was portrayed. I then stood in a queu to go visit the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock. There are only certain times of the day this can be done. After looking at old pictures of what this area once looked like, it was amazing to be standing right where all this history took place.

I then walked out of the Old City (it's truly a maze of streets and alleyways - I'm starting to figure it out a little). I walked over to the Mamila Hotel where I would depart for my full day tour to the Dead Sea and Masada at 9am.

We headed out of Jerusalem into the desert. Within about 10 minutes, we passed through a gate that brought us into the West Bank (Palestinian territory). As mentioned a couple days ago, I believe this area is more stable than the Gaza Strip. We weren't even stopped by the guards - we passed right through.

Our first stop was Masada. This is a fortress that was build by King Herod during the Year 0. King Herod was the person who killed all the babies of Bethlehem because he heard the Messiah was born and that he would threaten his power. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph had fled to Egypt during this time (I believe). Masada is famous for two reasons - it was the fortress that King Herod could use if he needed refuge and it was also the place where 967 Jewish men, women, and children defied their Roman attackers for a number of years around 73 A.D. Really interesting story. It's even a movie - 'Masada'. (I want to watch this when I return to the states). The Romans had built a ramp leading up to the mountain. When the Jewish people realized they could not defend themselves any further, they committed mass suicide. Only a couple women and children (who had hid out) were saved. It's a national tradition to make the ascent on foot as least once to pay homage to one of the most tragic and heroic incidents in Jewish history.

We next ate lunch at a small working Israel community (Kibbutz) near the Dead Sea. I learned a little about these communities from Debbie yesterday. She lived and worked on a couple in the past. It's a community that shares things and works together - kind of like a family. Many today are focused on growing agricultural products. Great lunch spot. I talked with a couple ladies from Charlotte, NC. They were touring Israel for about the same number of days as me. They were very impressed as well.

Next, we headed to the lowest point on the face of the earth - the Dead Sea (1,305 ft below sea level). Death Valley in California is America's lowest - at 282 feet below sea level. We had about 1-1/2 hours to swim in the water. First, the Dead Sea is actually a lake. It has 10 times the concentration of salt than any normal ocean. Because of this, you float like a cork in the water. See my picture attached. You can lay on your back, with your hands behind your head, and read the paper -- exactly as if you were on a raft. It's incredible. It's like having a wetsuit on. You can swim unbelievably fast. It was amusing to see all these people in the water. Many of which were elderly women who may or may not have ever been in the water before. Because of the buoyancy, it was difficult to actually sit up once you were laying on your back or stomach. People were wallering around -- it was great fun just to watch this scene.

We headed back into Jerusalem, back into the Holy Land. I went to pick up my bag I had stored at my hotel. They told me yesterday that there were no rooms available for tonight. I got lucky - a single room opened. I am now staying at the same place again today. Excellent.

It's now 10:15pm - I'm finished with dinner and about ready to call it a day. Tomorrow morning I get to do something extremely unique. Debbie's husband, Amos, has connections with the Old City and they have gotten me on a tour of the architectural tunnels that go below the Temple Mount. This should be amazing. I then do a walking tour of the entire Old City before I'll make my way to the airport late tomorrow evening.

Good night from the Holy Land.

Day #244 - Jerusalem, Israel

2010-11-13T11:21:00.000-08:00

A night view overlooking Jerusalem from the 8th floor of the Mamila Hotel

Scale Model of Jerusalem during Second Temple Period

Debbie & I at the Israel Museam

Night Look at the Fortified Walls of the Old City

Jaffa Gate - enters Old City between Armenian and Christian Quarters

Saturday, November 13th

Outstanding day today! I might have learned more on this single day then any other on the trip. Man - how can I know so little about religion and this region in general. Good thing I'm OK with asking many questions. And - excellent thing that my sister's friend Debbie was willing to play along. Thanks Debbie - you are awesome!

I got up around 8am in Tel Aviv. I worked things out with the hotel reception desk - informing me how I could get to Jerusalem today. Israel is a heavy Jewish country - but there are still many folks who are not real religious and do not adhere to some of the customs and beliefs. The buses were not running, so I took the sheroot. A sheroot is between a taxi and a bus. It's basically a 10-person minivan that you must flag down like a taxi. However, it's much more cost efficient. You get on, pay the fee like a bus, and can just yell up at the driver whenever you want to get off. It does have a destination - but many stops can be made before this point.

I actually took 2 sheroots. The first one brought me to the central bus station in Tel Aviv. The second one brought me to Jerusalem. I will say that I didn't know where to get out on the second sheroot. I wasn't even sure I was in Jerusalem until I saw the bronze dome on the "Dome of the Rock" in the Old City. Everybody else had bailed out - so I figured I might as well join along.

Debbie and I had plans to meet up at the Israel Museum at 11:30am. I borrowed a lady's cell phone on the sheroot to call and confirm plans. Once out of the sheroot, I hailed a taxi across town to the museum. I think I was easy to spot. Debbie says that there is no doubt I'm a tourist. Even without my bag - it's written all over me. In this scenario, in this country -- I like that.

We spent several hours walking through the newly renovated museum. Really interesting. First thing we came to was the Dead Sea Scrolls. Obvious right - oh yeah. No - I've never even heard of these before. The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 documents, including text from the Hebrew Bible, discovered between 1946 and 1956 in 11 caves in and around the ruins of the ancient settlement of Qumran on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea. The texts are of great religious and historical signficance, as they include the oldest known surviving copies of Biblical and extra-Biblical documents.

Another significant thing I learned today is about the 2 temples that were built and destroyed in the Old City. The temple mount (the area once housing the temples) acts as a figurative "footstool" of God's presence in the physical world in the Jewish faith. On this very spot, the Dome of the Rock now stands - this is an Islamic shrine. Is there a wonder how/why there is a religious conflict in this area?

We then saw this display with a small-scale model of Jerusalem in the Second Temple Period. Fascinating. It covers nearly 1 acre and recreates the topography and architecture of ancient Jerusalem at its peak in 66CE, shortly before its destruction by the Romans.

There was another interesting area about Jewish Art and Life - but, mostly I learned just by listening to Debbie. At one point in the day, I said: "If somebody came to the US and I was trying to explain Christianity (or Catholism for that matter), I'd have a difficult time answering all their questions.

We then headed down and walked around the Old City of Jerusalem. How incredible was this? This is the ancient city surrounded by fortified walls. There are 8 gates with access to this area. The Old City is made up of the Christian, Jewish, Armenian, and Muslim Quarters. The Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock sit beside the Jewish and Muslim Quarters.

So many things for me to learn here. First, there are obviously places that the Jewish people would not be very welcome - the Muslim Quarter and the Dome of the Rock. Just seeing the differences in people walking around - amazing. We went inside the Jaffa Gate (between the Armenian and Christian Quarters). We walked through some interesting shops and had a nice lunch.

I ended up getting a hotel inside the Old City. Wow! I would not have picked this area if I was by myself. Since I'm planning to do some touring the next couple days - it's easier for me to be staying here. A great spot, and I feel good about it. Let me say, and Debbie and I discussed this quite a bit today, Jerusalem is so much more tourist friendly than most Americans would ever gather. Debbie stated that many people who come here for the first time have the same fears. Almost everyone agrees it's a great spot and they feel comfortable after visiting. You have to be careful in certain areas, but you must also be careful in certain areas of St. Louis as well.

I can't wait to see more. Tomorrow I'll get up early to tour the Temple Mount area and then I go sea-swimming in the Dead Sea. Until then, good night from the heart of Israel, where it all began. Bethlehem is down the road, Nazareth and Galilee are a couple hours north, the area Jesus walked the stations of the cross (Via Delorosa) is a few hundred yards away, the crucifiction and burial site (Church of the Holy Sepulchre) are a 3-iron shot from where I'm sleeping tonight. Pretty special stuff.

Day #243 - Tel Aviv, Israel

2010-11-12T09:22:00.000-08:00

Nice beach chairs and umbrellas

Great sand and very clean beach

A look down the coastline of Tel Aviv

Sailboats everywhere today

Israel flag - flying at the beach

A view from the cliff above

Sunrise over Israel on my Tarom flight

Friday, November 12th

I'm coming to you live at 6am aboard Tarom Flight 155 bound for Tel Aviv, Israel. I feel really good considering my 4 hours of sleep last night.

I've been anxious about this trip the past few days. But, this morning, things have changed. I was sitting in the waiting lounge before boarding. The area was packed - 4:45am. There were 2 huge tour groups heading to Israel on my same flight. One group had on bright yellow caps for identification. They were all seated - dutifully reading through their travel itineraries. The second group gathered in a circle. They were hurriedly filling out a form handed to them by their guide.

I was melting away in my chair. 'I can do this'. 'I belong here'. I put on my headphones. If I had a wing-man along - I would have simply said: "We're gonna have a good time." The response I'd be looking for: "Always". This is the most relaxed and confident I've felt in days.

LATER

It's 7:30pm. I'm sitting here in my hotel in Tel Aviv. Today was a great day. I honestly think this is partly true because I had a good attitude coming in. I landed at the airport at 8:30am - a 2-1/2 hour flight from Bucarest, Romania. I got the third degree from the customs folks on my way to baggage claim. They are always fascinated with what I'm doing. "So, you're by yourself, you have no friends, nobody is waiting for you. How do you plan to manage? What are you going to do right now?" I simply state: "I plan to go pick up my bag and get some money from the ATM. Then I plan to figure out how to get to my hotel. And then -- we'll see". I had to show him my credit cards. This guy ended up being very nice. He suggested a way to my hotel and gave some other tips on travel.

I took a taxi to my pre-booked hotel. I show up to find out there are no rooms available. Someone had instantaneously booked a room on Booking.com right before me last night. The hotel had sent me an email and called the number I provided - but I had went to bed right after I made my reservation. The number I always provide is to my parents home - because I have no phone with me. This is the second time on my journey someone has called my mom asking weird questions. I believe I failed to mention that my sickness prior to the Machu Picchu Marathon was some strange water-born bacteria that I had picked up in the French Riveria - presumably from drinking the water from the hotel. They were calling to ask where I had been so they could warn the authorities in the area. They asked my mom where I was currently. She said: "Ummm. He's currently in Peru participating in a marathon". Very nice.

The cancelled booking wasn't a problem. It was very early in the day. The people at the hotel were very helpful. They felt bad - although it wasn't anyone's fault. They helped me get a hotel in a good neighborhood. I then took a taxi up the road.

I found out my room wouldn't be ready until 2pm - it was about 10am. Where do I go? I went to one of the best beaches I've been to on the entire trip. Wow. Tel Aviv, Israel is a sleeper city for sure. This place is great. You can walk around town with no worries. I had been told by others that this city is very near western cultures. I'd agree. The beaches were awesome. (see pics). And - they extended the entire coastline of the city - probably over a mile or so. I walked the whole thing. And then just relaxed for a while.

I'm trying to learn about world religions and the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the next 4 days. It's a cram course. The major religions ranked in order of adherents (2009): Christianity - 2.26 billion (33.3%), Islam - 1.43 billion (21.0%), Hinduism - 900 million (13.2%), Atheist - 799 million (11.77%). These 4 categories make up about 80% of all the people in the world. Judaism is made of 15.6 million (0.23%). I was really surprised to see this low number.

I'm also learning alot about Israel itself. First off, The Gaza Strip is a slender piece of land located on the southwestern portion of the country. It locks up against Egypt. I've been informed that this area is certainly a "no travel zone". Actually, you couldn't get there if you wanted to because of all the security. I'm still having trouble with the West Bank. I'm learning that there are 2 different Palestinian factions: Fatah (the traditional dominant party) has control of the West Bank and Hamas (later electoral challenger) has control of the Gaza Strip. It appears that the West Bank is not as volatile. Then - there's East Jerusalem - not sure yet how this fits into the picture.

Anyway - a really great and interesting first day in Israel. Tomorrow I head into Jerusalem to meet up with one of my sister's friends - Debbie. She will be meeting me at the newly renovated Israel Museum. I'll then be staying at her place tomorrow night. I have so many questions unanswered. It's embarrassing at just how little I know about Judaism and it's customs. Debbie picked up on this pretty quick. She was like: "How are you going to get to Jerusalem - no one drives on the sabbath (Saturday)." Whoa -- I've got alot to learn.

Good night from Tel Aviv.

Day #242 - Sofia, Bulgaria to Bucharest, Romania

2010-11-11T10:21:00.000-08:00

Interesting statue outside Sofia central train station

Sofia Central Train Station

Thursday, November 11th

Brand new day - never been used (I contribute that to my brother - he always says that). I awoke in Sofia, Bulgaria feeling better. I ate breakfast and then walked over to the train station to get my ticket to Bucharest, Romania. Bulgaria will be mostly a pass-through country for me. I was impressed with the scenery throughout the train trip today. Alot of rolling hills and mountains even. Sofia is the capital of Bulgaria and it's largest city at 1.4 million people. Sofia is an ancient city - with ties dating back to the 7th century BC.

Something unusual happened at the train station on arrival. First off, nearly everyday, I get badgered by people asking for money or wanting me to by something. This is par for the course. It's expected. No issue. I ignore them - and they go away. Maybe they'll walk with me a few meters, but they go away. Until -- today. Wow - I'm still trying to figure out what just happened.

I got to the station and I stopped for about 5 minutes to look around and take it in. This shaggy, older guy - I'd put him mid 50's, about 5ft, 5in - 160lbs, comes over. I ignore him and walk to the window for a ticket. He follows me. The window folks tell me I must go to the international window - on the other side of the station. (I'm surprised they spoke English - very nice). This older guy says: "It's over here, follow me". I said something along the lines: "Thanks for your help, but I can manage". I walked to the international office. The guy is right there by me. They tell me at the window that I must pay a reservation fee - but in cash only. They point to the Change Station. The older guy is still there: "Come this way". I'm starting to get annoyed by this point. I don't mix words: "Thank you, but I do not need your help. I will not give you money. Please leave me alone". I changed 25 euro for Bulgarian money and went back to the ticket office. The guy grabs my bag and tries to roll it for me. I snag it away saying: "Get away from me".

I go to the desk. I have my money laid out on the counter and the ticket lady is helping me interrupt the Bulgarian currency. The older guy leans in, reaches out, and pushes some of my money toward the lady. Alright - I've had enough of this guy. I say very loudly: "Do not touch my money. Get away from me. I do not need your assistance. I don't want you here. Get away from me".

I leave the counter after securing my ticket. I had about 15 minutes before my train was set to depart. The guy tries to grab my bag again. This time - I yank it aggressively out of his hand. I walk over to get some snacks for the train ride. The guy is still right there saying: "Come on, this way to Platform #8". I get my food and head for the platform. I start to walk extremely fast. (I'm not at all scared by this situation - but I would like to ditch this guy if possible). He falls back - can't keep the pace. I look behind and find the guy literally running after me. He points to Platform #8. I say: "Yes, I can see it. I do not need you to help me". He points to the elevator and goes to push the button. I lift my bag and head for the stairs saying: "I don't use elevators". Once at the platform, there's no signs - nothing. This has been the case for the past couple days - not real great. I go over to the attendant and ask if this is the Bucharest train. Older guy is right there listening to the conversation. The guy grabs my bag again. I go to snag it and my food bag drops on the ground and all the contents spray across the concrete.

I completely stop. I do not go to pickup anything. I focus my entire gaze at this older guy. Maybe my eyes could burn holes through him. The conductor is right there. There are people all around. I yell: "Get away from me. I have not asked for your help. I do not want your help. Get away from me. Now. Now." The guy bends down and picks up the food with his hands and puts it in the bag. I can only laugh - because that's my way to let out some frustration. I board the train - the guy FOLLOWS ME ONTO THE TRAIN. He has seen my seat number when I was talking to the conductor. He walks to the seat and presents it like Vanna White (Wheel of Fortune).

I pull the same verbal move as I did outside the train car. I'm causing a major scene - everyone on the train is looking at me. Finally. FINALLY. Somebody intervened and said something to the guy in Bulgarian. He left the train and I did not see him again.

I've been thinking about this the past 3 hours. I don't get it. Maybe the guy was trying to provoke me on purpose. Then, he could sue me for assault if I retaliated. I've NEVER seen anyone in all my travels be that aggressive. He had followed me around for nearly 30 minutes. He continued to touch my bag, my money, my food, and on 1 occasssion, tried to grab me by the arm. Nobody at the station did anything - even though I was causing a major scene. I don't doubt he had a deal with the security -- "let's see if this guy does something stupid". Maybe he's like a fed bear - he's pulled this move before and somebody threw money at him to get him to leave.

I'm gonna need time to think this through. What if he stayed on the train? And tried to pick up my soda bottle and feed it to me? I don't get it. I was not an easy target for him. I clearly had the physical advantage and showed I could get around. I couldn't physically push him away (although I wanted to) - I might be in a Bulgarian prison right now. I don't know. Advice?????

LATER

It's now around 2pm on Thursday. I've been on this train to Bucharest since 9am. We're supposedly going to arrive at 6:30pm. I just talked with a friendly lady who spoke good English. I feel better that it appears this train will go all the way to Bucharest with no changes.

LATER

I'm sitting in the hotel lobby of the Rin Hotel in Bucharest, Romania around 11pm - a couple miles from the airport. On arrival, I ate a great dinner - baked chicken, vegetable salad, and soup. I needed it. I've been eating junk the past 2 days. No food on the trains - and I could only grab what the small stands had in stock. I then ran a couple miles in the fitness center. I'm wrapping up this blog and will head to bed. I have a 3:30am wake-up call. I leave for Israel on a 6am flight tomorrow morning.

Here's to the upcoming days. I've been to the Home of Golf, the Home of the Marathon --- I might as well go to the Home of Religion (or, at least I think of it that way)

Day #241 - Thessaloniki, Greece to Sofia, Bulgaria

2010-11-11T09:50:00.001-08:00

Thessaloniki, Greece

Walking around some side roads

Some older buildings around the train station

Wednesday, November 10th

I'm coming to you live from a train bound for --- well, somewhere. I honestly don't know if I'm in Bulgaria or Romania. There's really no way for me to tell. My hopes are that this baby brings me to Bucharest, Romania later tonight.

Have you ever driven on a dirt/gravel country road on a clear, dry day - a few days after a rainy period when tractors were extensively using the same road. The tractors create little ruts in the wet road - continuous bumps from their heavy wheels. When you drive this same road days later, you think your car might fall apart because of the constant juggling. Well - that is exactly how this train feels about right now. "Buckle up, baby, it's a bumpy ride" - Bon Jovi. I should save this piece of pater I'm writing on - nobody could make out this chicken scratch but me (and that's not easy).

The past couple days have been travel intensive. I headed out of Kalambaka, Greece (Meteora) at 7:44am on Wednedsay morning - headed north to Thessaloniki, Greece. I arrived at 10:45am. I spent the afternoon in Thessaloniki. Most of this time, I was bellied up in a cafe working on some planning. I walked the streets for a little while - but I wasn't feeling it. Maybe I could have found a better area if I ventured out further - but the area near the central station wasn't filled with tourist activity.

I did read up on the city. Thessaloniki is considered Greece's "hippest city" - it's given Greece some of its greatest musicians, poets, artists, and thinkers. It's the second largest city in the country and has the historical status of "co-reigning" city of the Byzantine empire - alongside Constantinople. It's a major port city and an industrial and commercial center. It acts as a gateway for the Balkan states.

I caught the 5:30pm train to Sofia, Bulgaria. Long ride - I arrived at 11:30pm. I had reserved a hotel about 500 meters from the central train station (I'm starting to describe distance in metric - that is scary). I was ready for bed by midnight. I must have eaten/drank something that was bad. My stomach wasn't feeling so hot. A little sleep will bring a new day.

Day #240 - Monasteries of Meteora

2010-11-09T09:52:00.000-08:00

Monastery of Rousanou

Cloudy, misty day amongst the pinnacles

Monastery of Rousanou - from a distance

Monastery of St. Stephen

A view out into the mountains

Tuesday, November 9th

Today I took an 8:20am train out of Athens - heading north toward Kalambaka, Greece. It was a 5-hour journey. Relaxing - slept and read the entire way.

I arrived into this small town and shared a taxicab ride with a retired Continental flight captain to my hotel (Doupiani House). Great spot - I'd recommend it to all.

The reason I'm visiting this remote area of Greece - because of it's unique monasteries perched high on these rock pillars. Amazing! This place was better than expected. The exact date which these monasteries were built is unknown. It's thought that by the end of the 14th century, hermit monks, seeking a retreat from the expanding Turkish occupation, found the inaccessible rock pillars of Meteora to be an ideal refuge. More than 20 monasteries were built - 6 remain today (Great Meteoron, Varlaam, Rousanou, St. Nicholas, St. Stephen, and Holy Trinity). Of the 6 remaining, only St. Stephen has nuns; whereas, the other 5 have monks.

Supposedly, the only way to get to the monasteries in the past was to climb up rope ladders that were thrown over the edge of the cliff. The monks would pull up the ladders once they arrived. Today, there are staircases cut into the mountain face which lead to the top. I walked up to the Rousanou complex. All are tourist destinations today; however, they close at 2pm so I was only able to view from the exterior. Still unbelievably impressive.

Meteora ("in the air") is a great place for hiking as well. There are over 60 of these pinnacles spiked across the valley. The mountainous landscape was full of autumn-colored trees today. I walked around all afternoon taking in the spectacle.

I really enjoyed today because of it's uniqueness. A great trip from Athens - I'd add it to the list.