The Ring of Kerry (Dingle Pictures to come later along with others that I have not had time to upload)

...And now... we are in Frankfurt once again... tomorrow we begin the long journey home! The next week will involve a stay in Ohio then a road trip, across the land of the free, to Idaho. What a way to end a trip on the other side of the globe, a reintroduction to my homeland, nothing quite like it in the world.

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I am happily writing you from western Ireland. We flew into Dublin for a three day stay. A very interesting city, we saw the sights and dealt with the rain. The most memorable part of our stay in Dublin might have been our roomate, Dane, a kiwi from Christchurch on the south island of New Zealand. He was there staying in a hostel until he found a flat, working odd construction jobs for the next year. We had some fun conversations with him every night. I had forgotten how hard it is to understand a thick New Zealand accent. I just remember all the 'buggers' he talked about, his trip to New York City (his only experience of the USA) and how many of the buggers he met were in a dear state. By dear, he of course meant dire. Good times those southern hemisphere english speaking mates.

After Dublin we decided to spend three days in Killarney in the south west of Ireland. This is another case of us planning three days and staying longer, ten days actually (we are still there). The landscapes in Ireland are rugged and scenic. My favorite part of being in Killarney, other than its small size (15,000 people), is that it is less than a five minute walk to the Killarney National Park, 10,000 hectares of land.

I can see people who like to walk, like my Mom, really enjoying it here. The park is no what I think of as a national park, like in the USA. I would describe this park as a giant city park with foot paths, areas of mowed grass, and old ruins, in addition to what I think of in US national parks -- the wildlife and landscapes. All in all, it is a great place to have a stroll and get some pictures.

More to come on the southwest of Ireland... until then check out the last weeks adventure in pictures.

St. Patrick's

Funny, but only because it is true.

The Spire on O'Connell street

The Guinness Bottles

To the train station...

St. Mary's Killarney

...and inside

Killarney National Park...

deer jumping the fence

Ross Castle, its only about 500 years old, no big deal

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"The Brussels waffle: (also referred to as the "Belgian waffle") is prepared from a yeast-leavened batter, often lightened with beaten egg-whites, to give a light, crisp waffle. It is often served warm by street vendors, dusted with confectioner's sugar, and sometimes topped with whipped cream or chocolate spread. They may also be eaten as a dessert, served with fruits, whipped cream or ice cream." (from Wikipedia.org)

Sound good? They are. My favorite, from the shop pictured above, was strawberry with the works. In this case the works included sugar injected into the waffel itself with a heavy wipped cream, the type that is basically unmeltable ice cream, which makes it pretty much amazing.

Brussels was an intersting place to visit, lots to see, but I am only going to talk about the waffles (plus a few more pictures). That is how I want to remember Belgium.

Brussels Town Hall at Grand Place, one of the coolest squares I have visited (plus the waffles can be found in great abundance here)

Atomium (btw, for you travellers out there, at the Atomium stop on the Brussels metro, there is a huge movie theater that shows movies in english if you run into a rainy day)

Some dogs running around chasing a ball, I guess this is where you have to play if you live in the city, bummer.

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It is no wonder that the City of Light is the most sought after destination in Europe. To me, it has the feel of a big American city in the style of streets, hotels, amenities, and traffic -- but the sights are one of a kind.

We wanted to take Paris in slow and therefore had two things on our agenda: the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. To do this, we would walk the city and see everything else we could.

The walk to the Tower was easy -- you can see it from just about anywhere. Pictures do not give you an accurate idea of how large it is. The thing is huge, 900 feet tall making it the tallest structure in the world in 1889. From afar, it towers above everything else, but it is not until you approach that you begin to take in its vastness -- it is the base. So we remained at the Tower from daylight until dark because it is even more magnificent when it is lit up at night.

The Louvre. Three museums claim to be the biggest in the world, the Vatican Museum (most art pieces I believe), the Smithsonian's (together have the largest area), and the Louvre (the largest single area). No matter, it is huge. It has everything from ancient Egyptian art to the paintings of the masters. We wanted to hit some of the highlights given that we only had one day to take in what should take weeks, so we used our map trying to find our way. The thing is, the Louvre is so massive, when you take a turn, walk for a while and think you know where you are on the map -- you actually have only moved a tiny distance. This happend to us constantly. We did manage to see more than most in our six hours in this way though. I will have to say that my favorite pieces were the ancient egyptian artifacts and art pieces. They are so old and some of them so perfectly preserved certianly almost the same as it looked 3,500 years ago.

The Arc de Triumph

Breaking it down on the Champs Elise

The Eiffel Tower, see what I mean, it is way bigger than that!

The Louvre, bringing back pictures from The Da Vinci Code?

Birdman outside the Louvre

Dan and I playing with mirrors in the Louvre

Cupid

Behind

Sphinxs'

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The city boasts more museums per square meter than any place in the world. Couple that with the theaters, other exibits, the canals, Red Light District, and the liberal culture -- the idea of compromise and 'agree to dissagree' -- and in a nutshell you have what makes Amsterdam remarkable.

One last thought on Amsterdam -- while the inner city seems pedestrian friendly, it is not. For instance, to cross the street -- you are actually crossing several paths, you have to look both ways twice for bikes, at least twice more for trams, and again for busses, cars or mopeds. Even when you think you are safe on the sidewalk, you are always in a battle with bikes. There are more than 600,000 bikes in Amsterdam, you always have to be on gaurd.

Bikes!

The Canals

Canals and Bikes

And in the center of the Red Light District, a Church?

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Where to begin? When I started to put together a rough outline of my trip to Europe, I wanted to be sure and see Greece as it is a Eurail country and a general place of interest. We had been trying to make it to the Hellinic Republic from the time we visited Italy, thinking that we might take a ferry (which looks easy enough on the map). This mode of transportation turned out to be time consuming and expensive. Our alternative was to book the cheapest round trip airfare to Greece from anywhere in Europe, which happend to be Cologne.

So we made it to Greece. The problem with our round trip ticket was that it was only for five days. We would have liked to see some of the islands but ended up settling on spending the entire time in Athens. Athens contains half of the Greek population, over 6 million people, for which I was mentally prepared for a big city experience (or so I thought).

I always thought of Athens on the same level as Rome -- ancient, classical cities with marvelous ruins. As I mentioned, Rome was magnificent in my opinion. Athens, to put it nicely, is a really big city -- I was reminded of my trip to Santiago in the Dominican Republic. I am very glad to have visited Greece, but I cannot think of a time, where I wanted to be in the middle of the rather quiet wilderness somewhere in northern Idaho, more than when I was wandering the busy streets of Athens.

Having said that, the Acropolis -- the crown jewel of Athens -- was the city's saving grace for me (and probably for lots of people). The hike up the hill to the awaiting ruins takes you out of the noise, cars, scooters, and generally crowded and dirty streets with buildings all around you. As you reach the summit, you are magically displaced, from the Athens of today, to its golden age over 2,000 years ago.

The entire hilltop is clad in white marble. The enterence, the remains of the Temple Athena Nike, welcomes you into history. As soon as you pass through this gateway, you see it, the enduring symbol of ancient Greece, the Parthenon. Even though it is not what it once was, the site of this monument screems of great achievement and still has a great deal of beauty. The pillars are massive, the overall size of the temple is huge -- and to think that it was built in 447 B.C.!

The remains of other temples and buildings, certianly great at one time, sit like skeletons with bones of marble scattered across the landscape. On top of the hill you can look down upon the remains of the Theatre of Dionysus Eleuthereus and the theater Odeon of Herodes Atticus. Also still standing is the interesting Erechtheum with the porch of maidens holding up one celine. At this vantage, you can also begin to see how big current day Athens is... but standing on the steps of the Parthenon while it withstands the test of time... that will make you feel small.

The Parthenon

Odeon of Herodes Atticus Theater, still used today (with renovations I am sure)

The Karyatides statues of the Eleuthereus

Ancient horses carved in marble circa 500 B.C.

Port of Athens, with all the pollution

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I had a much different view of Berlin that what I actually witnessed. I thought, probably as many think, of the Berlin you see in history texts or on a tv documentary -- the Berlin wall, communism, and the rest.

Berlin, I was happy to see, is a beautiful city. We managed to get to our hostel without too much trouble, which is always very nice. Upon arrival, our host wanted to know why my passport was in a plastic case. "Is this to make it waterproof?" "Uh, well really it just for some added protection, I suppose," I said. No one had ever taken as much interest in the plastic cover of my passport as he did. "Are you guys here for the demonstration?" he asked. "Demonstration?" I asked. "Oh yeah, tomorrow is the German -- how do you say -- work day," he said. The next day was May 1st, what he meant was that it was the German Labor Day. For the last 15 years there has been a huge demonstration, which was occuring the next night, a protest against the system.

Berlin we found out, while beautiful, is still a highly charged political center as you might expect. As we charged in our usual pedestrian fashion on Labor Day, we saw the different faces of the city. I took on a different style of photography for the day, instead of taking pictures of the sites as I usually do, I took on a documentary style. We didn't take part in any protest, but really did enjoy the holiday. There are great sites in the city, which is right up to par with modern standards in my opinion. I cannot make any widespread claims, but I am sure some of this is surface deep. This was certianly true of our hostel, which had all the feelings and furnishings of what I imagine an apartment would have looked like prior to WWII. All part of the adventure!

It would have been great to stay longer in Berlin, our host agreed saying, "Berlin in two days?" shaking his head, but we had to get to Cologne and the airport. With just one night in Cologne, we trekked all over, trust me on that one. It was a very different scene in Western Germany after visiting Berlin. I don't know the exact difference, there was one in the architecture, but mostly in the feeling and the people. It didn't feel as industrial or politically charged. Another beautiful city of Europe, Cologne seemed efficient and of course had its own enormous catherderal, The Dom. After a solid 3 hours of sleep we were off to the airport and on the plane.

The Berlin TV tower

Kaiser Whilhelm Church, it had been bombed pretty hard

A different wall in Berlin

No Nazi here

Some more documentary

Feeling political yet, ready for a demonstration?

Cologne & The Dom

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Yes, I am still alive, there is a picture to prove it. There is no reason why I shouldn't be I suppose, but it seems like I haven't been at a computer -- and hence had any communication -- for a while. The trek from the Eternal city to the heart of Bohemia has come and gone. I had heard many times how beautiful and amazing Prague is and in my opinion, the claims are true.

The city itself is very large, however, the central area is pedestrian friendly which is very appealing. Another observation is the fact that there are lots of places to get a good view and panorama in different parts of the city, you don't feel trapped in the tall buildings as you might in other large cities. In addition, Prague is relatively cheap, compared to eastern european countries, as the Czech Republic is not in the European Union, yet. The underlying meaning of this is that we were able to eat out and get a feel for Bohemian food. I can't tell you what it was that I ate, other than it was really tasty and included a variety of potato pancakes that were amazing. Another result of the rather cheap prices in Prague is that it is a weekend retreat for other Europeans, the symptom of this being we found accomidation during the week easy to find -- on the weekend we had to move to another hostel. This turned out to be a great move, the hostel we stayed in just opened and we were the first to stay in the room which was very clean.

There are lots of great sites in Prague, places to hike, and like I mentioned good view points. The dominating features of the City are the Castle, containing St. Vitus Cathedral, and the Vltava River with the Charles Bridge. Both of these features can be seen throughout the central part of town.

An interesting part of the long Prague history lies within the Jewish ghetto, especially interesting after visiting Israel. The Jews have had a difficult time around the world, and were forced into a ghetto in Prague as well. Relics of the Jewish population still remain -- the most appaling is the cemetary where, within the tiny quarter, graves were laid upon graves. Old headstones rise as soil erodes to meet newer ones (see below).

Well, check Prague off the list. It has secured a position within the top 5 places of this adventure.

Charles bridge, the polorizing filter in full effect

Tyn Church in the Old Town square

Prague Castle

St. Vitus Cathedral

Statues in the Castle, interesting I thought

Jewish graves, piled upon each other

The Classic view of Prague

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That's me at our pension in Venice, eating my last piece of pizza from my favorite pizzaria in Rome. So what did we find in Venice? Only this...

We had a lay-over of one night in Venice and one night in Vienna on our way from Rome to Prague, but we made the most of it. As usualy, we charged probably 16+ miles in two days -- all after sitting on trains for over 12 hours. That is what you must do if you want to see places in short order, charge it.

Venice, famous for their masks and glass among other things, is a place that you can't just go by without checking out. It isn't everyday that you travel near a city built on the water where the traffic lights direct boats on canals instead of cars on streets. The main square in Venice is the thing to take in after all the side streets and canals. We arrived at dusk, greeted by lights and music. Little stages with a band consisting of a singer, grand piano, bass, violin and accordian played romantic music from plays like the Westside Story and the Sound of Music in front of nice restaraunts and crowds of people.

Gondola on the Main Canal in Venice

St. Mark's Square in Venice

Masks in Venice

Then we made our way by train to Vienna, Austria. We got a good tour of the city by taking the old-fashion tram to our hostel. Tired, but wanting see at least get a picture or two in Vienna, we hopped the metro to see the symbol of the city, St. Stephen's Cathederal. The thing is just looks old, the sides are stained black like it has been through war (it has), and it is huge. The inside is impressive due to the size and the large stained glass in the windows. In the darkness and moonlight though the clouds, the cathederal seemed like a place where Dracula would reside.

Stephandom as it is said in German

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The Catholics sure know how to do things right when it comes to building a church and the art of interior design. The Vatican was a place to behold, all 110 acres of it. The sheer amount of different things going on in the Vatican, things to see and try and understand, is far too much to comprehend over years -- let alone a day. I guess I am stuck without words to describe the Vatican museum and St. Peter's Basilica (maybe von Goeth did it for me). I will just show some pictures, the thing is, my pictures don't do the place justice (you aren't allowed to photograph inside the Sistine Chapel, sorry for that). Michelangelo and his nemisis Rafael are a pair of geniuses.

St. Peter's Basilica

...and the inside, it is the biggest church in the world.

Michelangelo's Pieta, a masterpiece

A cool painting on the way to the Sistine Chapel

The "map room" right before you enter the Sistine Chapel

The Rock himself, St. Peter

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Rome is amazing.

You want history? Overwhelming. You want awesome architecture? Plenty here. Ancient ruins? Untill your heart is content. Art? Everywhere you look. Good food? Have you ever heard of pizza or gelato? Like I said, Rome did not let me down what-so-ever.

We cruised miles a day by foot all over town, on top of the ancient Roman super highway (now called Via Cavour, and on top I mean it is paved over), around the ancient city, and the Vatican to name a few. I am happy to say that I have only eaten gelato (basically the best ice cream, ever), pizza, and some fruit from the stands for the duration of my stay.

Have you ever seen the movie 'Gladiator?' Remember the shot of Rome where the birds are flying on the morning after Maximus is captured? I could see that scene looking at the old ruins, the clouds here at sunset fit the shot perfectly. It was even quiet, being Sunday, the cars weren't allowed on the roads around Palatino hill and the Colosseum.

I sure am glad that I threw a coin in the Trevi fountian -- that means that I will make it back to Rome sometime.

Just a few shots of the Colosseum

The Pantheon, the largest ancient Roman building still intact

Michelangelo's plaza design at Campidogilo, the horse statues are about 1,900 years old!

Palatino Hill Ruins, where Romulus supposedly lived

Fontana di Trevi, the most famous fountain in Italy, flowing with the virgin water from the Roman original aquifer. It depicts Neptune and the sea (among many other things) by two horses, one is tame the other is wild. Pretty cool I thought.

In the famous Plaza Navona, the guy is fighting an octupus!

Pizza, yep I took a picture of it

Gelato!

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Cinque Terra is an Italian national park, consisting of 5 tiny coastal towns (Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggior) and a trail that connects them with lots of side trails along the way. We decided to take the train to Riomaggior and hike to Monterosso where we would spend the night. It is decieving to start the trail in Riomaggior, the trail is much easier on that end.

We charged the trail, stopping to capture a scene with the camera here and there arriving in Vernazza (the 4th town from our direction) right before sunset. Now, we just had to make the 5th portion of the trail back to Monterosso and dinner. The twilight faded way too fast. The first 4/5ths of the trail had taken us about 2 hours, the last fifth, in the dark, would take us another 2 hours... about that head lamp.

We are not talking about a level, solid, well lit, well marked path here. Instead we are talking about a rocky, uphill, downhill, meandering, pitch-black path. I would have failed the "being prepared" part of the Boys Scouts on this day. However, it was a good experience giving some me some good pictures and a story. There cannot be too many people that have experienced Cinque Terra having the trail lit by lightning bugs, a crescent moon, and the constilations of Orion, Cassiopea and Ursa Major among others.

Manarola, the 1st town past Riomaggiore

Corniglia, the middle town

Vernazza at sunset

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After trying to leave Spain for about a week due to the Easter holiday and train schedules, then staying a night in Milan -- which was a good place to get stuck for a day (see pics below) -- due to a workers strike on the train, we finally made it to the swiss part of the trip.

We visited the capital, Bern and made some day trips from there. Then, we found ourselves in Interlaken. It is at this time that my mind wandered from the thoughts of travelling. The smell of the alpine air, clear views of snow capped peaks, blue glacier lakes, waterfalls, evergreen trees. No city sounds; just the breeze through the trees and chirping of birds and crickets.

Switerland is flawless in what they do, cater to tourists. The Swiss are efficient -- surprising to me in Europe -- very clean, nice helpfull people. The problem... it all comes at an expensive price.

Bern skyline

Lake Luzern, crisp clean alpine air

...and agian

Interlaken

Where swiss cheese comes from!

This could almost be in Idaho...

Brienz in the Jungfrau area

The Swiss Alps at Brienz

Castle in Milan, like I said, it was a good place to get stuck for a day

Bam, The Duomo!

...and inside, that is a cathederal, can you here the organ music filling up the empty space?

Prayer candles

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I am starving. Apparently people here don´t eat, rather they survive on their smokes, cafes, wine, and tiny snacks consisting of a piece of bread and a slice of cheese. First thing is first, coffee. Upon finally finding a cafe, I order a cup and a croissant. I am the guy in the t-shirt. It is a warm 16C, especially in the sun. The smell is a relaxing combination of those from a bakery, coffee, and the mist from the sea. The view: in the foreground, the walking herd including old men with berrets, mopeds and cars behind them, buldings and the misty hills and sea in the background. The Basque people are friendly.

We are in a pickle. When you travel on the fly, this is bound to happen sooner or later. The holiday left us stuck in north Spain a week longer than we had wanted, but what can you do? We were just happy to have aquired a place to crash during the night. We have now stayed three nights in Bilbao, three more in San Sebastian, and one more in Barcelona before we can travel out of Spain. Tonight we take the train to Milan in an effort to make it to Switzerland, but lets rewind back to that cafe.

I really like the fact that many European cities are pedestrian friendly; people here walk a lot. I especially like this because I am a man counting on my feet to take me where I am going. Did you know Americans will only walk, on average, 300 yards a day? (thanks for that fact Bill Bryson). Did I mention that people here are really thin? (lots of walking+no real food). We have probably been covering between 4 and 10 miles a day on foot. My legs are now getting a rest and my mind enjoys the caffine. I am now taking in my newest prized possession: the March issue of National Geographic magazine -- in english. It is pretty much worth its weight in gold. I take it all in, devouring the pictures and text, watch people on the crowded sidewalk, sip coffee and eat the croissant which takes the edge off the hunger. Things will work out, I am going to enjoy the moment.

Here are some pictures from the last few days of adventure, maybe not worth a 1,000 words, but still more interesting than text.

Me, fully loaded

Maundy Thursday in Bilbao

Dan in Bilbao with a little guy very interested in whats going on

Bilbao river reflection

Bilbao Basilica

Out of the mist, the Gugenheim!

San Sebastian City Hall and Statue of Jesus on Easter... trust me that is Jesus

San Sebastian hilltop Church

Basilica in San Sebastian

Horsemen statue

Flying a kite in front of the Palace in San Sebastian, this guy was getting dragged around on the sand

North Spain Coastline, the conditions are just never perfect for good pictures it seems

Dan photographing the north coast... this is pretty much what we do

San Sebastian Sunset, yep I will take that picture

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Upon finding a novel while hiking, Bill Bryson (in his book "A walk in the woods") was delighted and sublimely gratified saying, "if there is one thing the (Appalachian Train) teaches, it is low-level ecstasy -- something we could all do with more of in our lives." I always try to enjoy the little things in life myself, not always with success. When travelling with a backpack, it is exponentially easier to enjoy such things. When before these moments are taken in with a quick good feeling and a smile or missed all together, you now grasp them with an embrace like a bear hug... I mean you run up to it like you are finishing a marathon, collapse at the line and almost break into tears you are so full of joy.

We found ourselves, out of the drizzling rain, at a coffee shop, ordered the largest grande cup of coffee, and sunk into beautifully cushy lounge chairs on the second floor. I mean, I ran ran up to that finish line and collapsed into that chair. Having a cup of coffee and sitting in that soft armchair was indescribable, just an overload of the comfort senses. How can you reach this level of ecstasy during the daily grind? Not sure if you can.

On top of our extreem enjoyment, we met a man from Seattle also enjoying a cup of coffee (starbucks, how ironic). We had no plan or intention other than to do some serious marinating in those chairs for a long period of time (it had already been a chunk of time). However, unknown to us at the time, we were about to begin an enjoyable long day.

Joel, our new english speaking friend (if you speak english in a foreign land, you are automatically befriended), is a world traveller and free lance writer who was laid over in Madrid on his way to India. We were contemplating things to do for the next twelve hours until our train left for Bilbao and decided to see a museum that Joel had visited some years back.

The Museo del Prado, among the thousands of art pieces, has a room containing the "Garden of Earthly Delights" painted by Bosch and several works by Patinir that are just as impressive. I stood and took in Bosch´s work for more than 20 minutes in awe of the complexity and imagination it must have taken to create such a painting. The Flemmish painters room alone was worth the admission. I could have been there for several more hours if I didn´t finally give in to the physical demands from the knees down and the rumbling in my stomach.

Our trio proceeded to chat about everything from photography and art to politics to travel while we sought a place to have a late lunch. After lunch we decided to visit the M.C. Escher special exibit which happened to be in town. By metro and foot, my feet still more or less in shambles and legs on the verge of cramping, we found the exibit.

Escher has been a favorite artist of mine for a while, his trendy works used to hang in poster form on my old apartment walls. Seeing the progression of his work in its entirety was mind boggling. You stare at them utterly amazed. Each one a perfect presentation of lines and contrast, most of them in simple black and white. It is beyond comprehesion how someone could create art like he does. As he progressed with his form, his works play tricks on your mind. You stare as long as you can while he holds you captive making you walk a wire between elation and losing your mind. You just cannot make the leap to understanding but are fascinated.

Some art is considered by art critics to be great. I can appreciate this and most art in some way. Between the Flemmish room in Prado and the Escher exibit, I was completely captivated and in awe. I forgot for a few gracious moments how little sleep I was running on... how my boots had not been off my feet in the better part of two days... how I still had to get back on the train that night... I have no words to describe how amazing those art works for me, they enticed my imagination and mind.

Madrid was a great stop. Starting out as a wreck, pulling the pieces together (the mind is a powerfull thing... thanks also to the coffee), meeting a new friend that shares the wanderlust, enjoying interesting conversation, seeing two art exibits that now top my list, and getting on the next train to Bilbao-- all in less than a day. Some days are just better than others.

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My expectations were high. I was hoping for an escape from the cities I had seen so far, ready for some hot weather, and a break from the ordeal of travelling. The plan was to take some R&R for a few days.

When traveling, the lows can seem like unscalable, cold, dark canyons. This makes the highs feel like you are soaring like an eagle, in beautiful blue skies, on an warm updraft, without any effort at all. No matter what you do, how hard you try... to plan, to feel comfortable where you are at... things just don´t work out. On the other hand, things do tend to work out, at least for me. When they do work out, there is no rhyme or reason, just blind luck or circumstance.

Concerning our arrival and concenquential stay in Lagos -- where I was looking for a shimmer of a good experience -- I found a vein of pure gold, blinding me with the reflection of the hot, yellow sun. It began the second we stepped off the train from Lisbon with the view of the Atlantic in the background. As usual, we had no real idea of how to get where we wanted to go, but we had something that travellers have, call it luck if you want.

A man asks us when we exit our first train from Lisbon, `Lagos?´ we nod, he hands us a map. Once on the next train we were certian would take us to our destination, the man reappears and wants to know if we have accomidation. We did have a reservation, somewhere. After checking out the rest of the passengers on the train, the man returns (determining us to be good tourist prey) and asks us the same quesion, then gives us his deal. It was too good to pass up, so we miss out on our 10€ deposit and head with this new man.

Manuel. Of all the people I have met, there is a special place in my memories for him. He took us in, Dan and myself, and made it his mission that Lagos would be something to remember. If you ever, ever go to Lagos (which you must) please ask me for his number. As far as accomidating us, he did -- in spectacular fashion for backpackers. It is so nice, and refreshing, to learn about a place you are visiting -- in english no less -- from someone who really appreciates people and the world.

Being from the USA, you are sometimes apprehensive to state your home, not for shame -- for I love the states -- but for how people will accept and treat you (blame this on whatever you want). Manuel and Marie his wife, just like chatting it up with us. They travel the world themselves... through the people that pass through their apartments. Manuel, that man. Like I said before, having good accomidation makes things much better... this was just the beginning.

Our roomates for the first couple days were two Canadian ladies. We enjoyed their company to the fullest. We talked in english, reflected on our travel experiences, playied cribbage and hung out at the beach and roof of our apartment. A very appreciated and fun time, I assure you.

Lagos is a town of 40,000 in the offseason, 400,000 during the summer. Luckily we were here during the off season. This does not mean that Lagos is not a place to behold, just that there are less people and things are cheaper.

The landscapes and beaches are amazing. Pillars of limestone petruding from the surf fill the seascape. The weather, windy but warm. The people, english, portuguese, canadians, americans, italians, germans, spanish, french, tourists -- and everyone is happy, friendly and speaks english.

We have found lots to do, relax on the beach, swim in the fridged water of the Atlantic, browse the small shops, bike around, take lots of pictures, go boating, and surfing. The place is amazing. My travel guide book says you will come for two days and stay two weeks. Well, we planned four days and will spent two weeks, not too far off.

Lagos -- somente surpreendendo remains copyright of the author foltz.45, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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We had all sorts of time to dispose of as our apartment would not be ready until noon. We strolled around with our packs in the central square (see above), got some eats and proceeded to find our place. The first few hours in a new city, trying to figure out things, always prove to be the most stressful. We were supposed to meet our landlord at noon and found the place, after a fast paced hike in the warm Portugal weather, sometime around 13:00 -- not bad if you ask me. The problem was, we could have shown up at 15:00 and been fine. They were still trying to get things in order from the last resident. It is custom for the renters to have a look at the place before the deal is done. As they were cleaning, we set our packs down, stuck our heads in and though it looked fine. So we went to a cafe with a spectacular view of Lisbon, had a coffee, and returned to settle in.

Let me describe the apartment. It was something around 100 sq. ft. of living space. We had assumed when we looked in that there would be another room around the corner from the kitchen, or something like that... not the case. Have a look (the 'bed' is where the shot is taken):

We couldn´t be upset, when you backpack europe on a tight budget, you cannot be picky. We had a futon with separating cushions, a bathroom you could almost turn around in, a kitchen for one person, and the best part -- a wash machine. So thus we resided for four days.

The sites of Lisbon were worth seeing, however we had our fill of this city during our time there. We stayed in a historic part of town, the only place that the huge earthquake in the 1700´s didnt level. The apartment was below the castle of Sao Jorges, built in the 6th Century, and an impressive site at the end of the day with the last rays of sunlight.

We decided to hike to the Tower of Belem, the symbol of Lisbon and another historic site. On a map without direction or scale, this distance looks small from our apartment. When you make it to Lisbon and get your tourist map, remember, from the Castle of Sao Jorges to the Tower of Belem and back we figured to be 10-12 miles. Still worth it however, because the Monastery of Jerónimos is right across the street along with the Portugal Mariner Statue.

This hike also includes a great view of the Lisbon Bridge and Statue of Jesus, both worth seeing.

One other highlight of Lisbon was a bakery near us, which produced the most wonderful smells, not to mention great tasting sandwiches and pasteries. If you could only scratch and sniff this picture!

Well, that is a lot, and enough of Lisbon. The people here are as nice as you can expect from a 2 million+ people city. We had enough of the big city and were ready to head south to the smaller towns of the Algarave.

Lisbon Experience remains copyright of the author foltz.45, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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"Donde esta Las Fallas?" is my question at the information desk at the Valencia train station. His response, while probably trying to hold back a mixture of a laugh and frustration from how many times he had been asked the same question by touists, was to point behind me out the door. Luckily the train station was centrally located in the heart of the older part of town.

Even early during this spring day, you could feel the excitement and energy. As soon as you step out of the station, ninots or puppets could be seen. We had some time too kill before the 14:00 Mascletas. We began our own tour of the city. I was greeted by the scent of something fried.

I need you to picture in your head and feel like you are at something of a carnival, the 4th of July in the USA, and the beginning of spring. Got it? Okay, now you (by you I mean me) are walking by a food stand, a huge vat of oil is cooking dough. All kinds of fried donought type foods is what you smell. The architecture is also impressive. So now you are snapping off pictutures of the amazing buildings. At random points in the streets, sometimes at crossroads or just in the middle of a fenced area, huge ninots are visiable for your pleasure. These are amazing works of art, something that artists have spend lots of time and money on. They are only to be enjoyed, however, for one week. Las Fallas is the celebration of the start of spring. At the end of the week, among many other events that occur, these ninots will go up in a blaze of fire.

Speaking of fire, it is now 14:00 (2:00pm, for you all not accustom to Europe watches tell time). The Mascletas is about to start. You had been walking around with ease, not too many people about. However, within the last hour, people have been appearing at an alarming rate. It is very apparent where the celebration was to take place, where the huge crowds of people were congregating (see above picture).

It takes you about 20 minutes to walk the distance of a block in the waves of people. Giving up on trying to make it any further, you just decide to stand and watch from this place. The sound of a fire cracker reaches your ears. The sound has been common all day long, but several more follow. Then fireworks in the air. Mascletas has begun! For the next 15 minutes, you, and everyone else watch the fireworks fly in a blaze of spring glory. These are exploding not 40 yards away causing shock waves of sound to pass through your body and chest. The lights and noise are impressive, the feeling is intense. In a grand finale, explosions are resounding from the sky to the ground. At the end, music begins to play and people sing along, something similar to New Years Eve. Locals in traditional dress walk around, people, including you take pictures. Within the next 30 minutes, most of the crowd will be gone. It is Monday, I assume people have to go work. Street sweepers and people clean the streets to be very respectable.

Happy Las Fallas!

Now you wander over to a stadium...

Valencia -- Part II remains copyright of the author foltz.45, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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My seat is old and hard as rock, but I don´t hardly notice. Wait! The gate is open... a big one, black, charges out. The crowd grows louder. out of the sides of the ring the torero´s assitants appear with their red-pink capes. The bull is full speed ahead, chasing after each of these men. The band strikes a chord and out come the horses, the bull burries his horns into the armored side of one of them, the mounted picador spears his back. The begining of a blood river flows down the bull´s side.

The band again begins. This is now the signal for the banderillero. Standing in the center of the stage, he raises his colorfull barbed poles. His appearance is of a preying mantis. The bull is infuriated by this gesture. He now charges this new man. Waiting until the last second, the crowd holding their breath, the banderillero skillfully places his banderillas. This act is repeated four more times all eight of the barbed spears now rest in the bulls back. The banderillero´s have been especially brave and skilled in their strikes, the crowd rewards them with appreciation of applause.

Now a new tune plays for the enterance of the matador. I rattle off as many pictures as I can. The bull, still angry as ever, has blood rolling down his back and sides. He seems unphased. Now alone in the arena with the bull, the matador skillfully moves his feet while holding his brilliant red cape, taunting for a charge.

Oley! Oley! The crowd is chanting. This particular matador is pleasing the crowd with his swiftness of foot and hand. The bull is also putting on a show of strength and stamina. Now, the final chord by the band. At this point, the matador recieves a new sword. The final moment is upon us, the crowd recongnizes and builds in sound. With several more volleys between the bull and matador, he raises his sword in a striking position. When the bull charges, it will be his last, the matador burries the sword deep into back, he stops, and falls to the dust. The crowd roars! The matador, looks at the bull giving it final thanks for sparing his life and for giving him fame.

In victory, the matador walks around the crowded arena. Bunches of flowers, single roses, and flags rain upon the stadium floor. The crowd is up on their feet waving white flags in the air. Giving kisses and bows, the matador retires within the walls.

This is a spanish bull fight. I was glad to have the chance to see one of these events, taken place in the city of Valencia on the southern coast, a short trip south of Barcelona. The event lasted 2.5 hours, the crowd was pleased, no man or animal was seriously wounded -- except for 6 bulls. I would say to those farmers who raise beef cattle, forget the cows, build a stadium, work something out with animal rights people, raise bulls for meat, and instead of sending them to slaughter, sell tickets and fill the market with bull meat. Yes, I know there would be many problems with this, but it is a novel idea (I´m sure the meat wouldn´t be as good) and it works in Spain! (all bulls killed are processed for meat right behind the scene).

As you noticed, this is part I of Valencia. Part II to come later. This week in the city of Valencia, there is a festival called Las Fallas. This is why we travelled there and why the bull fighting was so good this week, or so I was told.

Valencia -- Part I remains copyright of the author foltz.45, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Segrada Familia by day. This Roman Catholic basilica puts you in a state of awe. The completed towers look unearthly. As a kid making castles out of wet sand, dripping from your fingers, letting each drop of water and sand pile onto the previous drop, you were creating Gaudi´s blueprint. The basilica has been under construction for over 100 years and only has 8 of its planned 18 towers. It is an site to behold. At night it takes on an even more impressive auora.

As I had mentioned earlier, Las Ramblas is a street, an very interesting street. Populated by tourists and street vendors, you begin on the Mediterranean and end in the center of Barcelona. Mime statues pleasing the crowd can be witnessed at every turn; careful, when you reach to put a coin in the bucket, they might break their stone stance and silence. Artists doing cartoon portrait sketches, airbrush artists and painters mimicing the masters can be seen. It is said that every day brings a something new to the street. If you are into shopping, have no fear, you will find whatever you desire. Do you smell that? I don´t know what it is, but man it smells good. Hungry? foods of all kinds, from pitas and kabobs to McDonalds, can be found. McDonalds in Europe in comparison to the U.S. have proven to be some of the nicest establishments -- always with a WC. Just want to fit in as a tourist? Every day of the week you will find a crowd of people wandering the ins and outs of this place.

This is just about it for Barcelona, we are leaving in a few hours for Portugal. Hope you enjoy the pictures. Two last pics, one of the Barcelona Arc de Triomf -- the buildings and architecture of Barcelona have no end. The second is Monserrat. North of Barcelona about 30 miles, this old monestary was worth the trip. It is a serene place among the rocky mountians of the Pryenees.

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Things are going well now, we have been staying in Barcelona, a great city to visit. We found by extreem traveling skill -- more likely by luck -- what I like to call a choice place. We were able to hook up an apartment for a week. This includes a locking bedroom, a kitchen, bathroom and a wash machine, and a computer where the internet works from time to time. We are a 10 minute walk to the beach and a small hike to just about anywhere else. There is a supermarket 2 blocks away. The combination of making our own food and the apartment, I am glad to say that we have been under budget the last few days. The weather has been very nice, up to about 70 F during the day, although it gets cool in the shade.

Barcelona is a city full of things to do and see. The architecture is amazing. There are monuments, cathedrals, beaches, the olimpic village and other sights. We have been cruizing all over the city and doing a fair amount of relaxing on the beach (I managed in the last week, while traveling by bus, plane and train, to pick up a cold). We have also been able to secure places to stay for the next week when we will be traveling further west.

Two of the coolest sights so far have been Las Ramblas, the most lively and scenic street in Spain (the statue of Columbus pointing West is the start of the stree) and Sagrada Familia. Sagrada Familia is a temple designed by Gaudi, whose construction started in the 19th century and is still under construction. The pictures I have not been able to upload; these and more details to come later, sorry to keep you waiting.

Finally, I have been getting quite a few views on my blog. I sent out the link to a lot of people and would be interested in who is reading. Drop a comment or send me an email (foltz.45@gmail.com)-- maybe a place I should check out or just say hi.

Oh and glad to see the NCAA bracket, Go Buckeyes and Cougs!

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I am glad to say that I am writing to you in Barcelona now. The trip was just about 24 hours. We made a short stop off in Paris, I had heard that the French don´t like to speak english, oh man -- we will need to have our plan together when we head back there. After trying to deal with German, French and now Spanish, I appreciate the friendliness of the people here.

Well we are worn out and are now trying to work out a place to stay the next few nights. When traveling you really get down to your basic needs -- water, food and a place to get horizontal. I have had little more than a shower in a sink since leaving Israel. We have certianly found ourselves in the thick of an adventure.

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Right now I am just killing time, waiting to meet up with a friend from OSU swimming, Matan. He is a native of Israel and lives in Jerusalem. We are supposed to meet in Tel Aviv; I forgot how it used to be before cell phones. Tonight our group will have dinner, I will say goodbye and they will all fly back to Columbus on the red eye.

Tomorrow I will head to Frankfurt and crash at a hostel for a few hours before heading back to the airport in the early morning to meet up with Dan, my travel mate for the duration of the trip.

Below is a shot of the some olive trees in Garden of Gesthemane. Olive trees are an important biblical plant. Today olives are eaten at every meal in addition to olive oil used on bread and salad.

Israel has been an amazing place to visit. I highly recomend a trip to Jerusalem if you ever get the chance. The people here are nice and most everyone speaks english. Although you may feel a little uncomforatable due to the religious tensions and men walking around with machine guns, I never felt that I was in a bad situation. Next time I will be sending word from Europe.

Leaving Israel remains copyright of the author foltz.45, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The southern shores of the Dead Sea hold an ancient jewel. Built by Herod the Great 2,000 years ago on top of a mountian, the remains of his palace still stand today. The story of this place is full of drama; I won't go into the details, but check out wikipedia.org if you are interested. Present day Israeli soldiers are sworn into service at this place -- a testament to the faith and will of the Jews. The view of the mountians and the Dead Sea is amazing.

The Negev, the Israel Desert comprising 60% of the country, is a sight to see. We visited a agriculture research station that uses brackish water for irrigation. Considering this, the drastic daily temperature swings and the soil -- basically sand and dust, it is amazing that they produce the quality and quantity that they do.

After traveling in a round-about manner to avoid Palastinian areas, we arrived in Jerusalem. As you can see from the picture, the old city of Jerusalem is not large. The city was fully contained within the wall, the grave sites you see in the picture would have been outside. The city is full of history. I am sure that every religion has a different story and view of history and people within each religion have an additional variation. Within the walls, there is a Muslim quarter, a Christian quarter and a Jewish quater. Even within these quarters you find the other religions. It is all very confusing. The bottom line is that several religions share their respective holy places within a very small area.

I was in awe of the workmanship within the city. The sites, sounds and smells touch the senses. The Church of the Holy Seplicur, the Christian holy place, was something else. The energy and passion of the people in addition to the incense, singing and pipe organ and the religious art was a highlight of the city. This church claims one of the current resting locations of Jesus, of course there are more than one.

Well friends, I am signing off. I will be in Isreal for three more days before heading to Europe. Take care.

The Holy City remains copyright of the author foltz.45, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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